Religious Schism in the Russian Aristocracy 1860

RELIGIOUS SCHISM IN THE RUSSIAN

ARISTOCRACY 1860-1900 RADSTOCKISM AND PASHKOVISM RELIGIOUS SCHISM IN THE RUSSIAN

ARISTOCRACY 1860-1900 RADSTOCKISM AND PASHKOVISM

EDMUND HEIER

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ISBN-13: 978-94-010-3230-8 e-ISBN-13: 978-94-010-3228-5 DOl: 10.1007/978-94-010-3228-5 To Mary PREFACE

My research in the intellectual and spiritual sphere of nineteenth• century Russia revealed that ever since the penetration of the fashion• able anti-ecclesiastical views of the Encyclopedists into Russia, the aristocrats had grown indifferent to religion. The spiritual vacuum created as a result of such conditions could not last, however, for a prolonged period of time; least of all during the decades following the r860's when Russia's moral, socio-political, and religious problems were most acute. The subsequent quest for salvation and the general religious inquiry among Russia's elite, as they were known in the West, manifested itself chiefly in the writings of such profound religious and philosophical thinkers as V. Solov'ev, K. Leont'ev, N. Fedorov, Dos• toevskij, and Tolstoj. They constitute, however, only a fraction of those tormented by the longing for religious truth and guidance in an age of transition and uncertainty. There existed among Russia's aristocracy in the second half of the nineteenth century a widespread socio-religious movement known as Radstockism or Pashkovism, which aimed for a religious renovation and with it a transformation of Russia on an ethical and moral basis. These aristocrats were men and women who in their youth were in• different to all faith, but who had never abandoned the search for a solution to their own and to Russia's problems. The solution to these problems they believed to be based on moral and religious principles found in Evangelical Christianity. Evangelical Christianity in Russia was not new. What was new, however, was the enthusiasm for this teaching as well as the fact that the patrons of this movement were of the aristocracy; which condition in part accounts for the success and spread of the movement. The religious movement, initiated by the English Lord Radstock in the r870's, was perpetuated by V. A. Pash• kov, Colonel of the Guard, and reached a staggering growth within the VIII PREFACE next few decades. This religious upsurge gave its age the appearance of a Reformation within the traditional social and religious order. As such, Radstockism attracted many members of the upper classes and was scrutinized both in critical treatises and in the creative literature of the time. "Not to be a Radstockist [in the r870'sJ meant to lower one's self in the eyes of society and thus risk the danger of becoming labelled a backward person. To take exception to the teaching of the English Lord in a private home was considered equal to insulting the host." The success of this drawing-room revival was due primarily to the fact that many had been disillusioned with "the staleness of traditional viands" offered by the official church. As the nation's elite, the aristocratic Radstockists constituted a potential peril to Orthodoxy. The guardians of Russian Orthodoxy, on the other hand, rejected Radstockism as an extraneous growth of foreign origin. This was primarily done in several books and numerous biased periodical articles in the later decades of the nineteenth century, an indication of alarm on part of the Hierarchy of the established state church. The lack of bibliographical references to these neglected sources necessitated my perusal of many periodicals. These are listed in the bibliographical appendix. Although the importance of this religious movement has been recognized by many critics, it has received in our time little scholarly attention. Least of all has it been treated in the context of the general socio-religious development of the second half of the nineteenth century. For obvious reasons one studies the social revolutionary movement of nineteenth-century Russia with greater zeal than the movements which were already suppressed by the Tsarist government. My hope is that my study of this movement will produce a greater understanding of the Russian spirit, that is, the spirit resultant from the various social and religious struggles following the emancipation. It will reveal further that this movement, though Evangelical in nature, sought no separation from Orthodoxy, and that its primary aim was the revival of Christian ideals and their application. More important, it will demonstrate that the movement among the aristocracy was a force similar to Christian socialism, or Tolstojism, which aimed at Russia's transformation through the application of moral and religious principles. In the present work I have endeavoured to present an objective study of Radstockism and Pashkovism, first as a unique historical PREFACE IX phenomenon of Russian religious and social thinking, and second as a literary motive in the belles lettres of nineteenth-century Russia. Special attention is devoted to profound religious thinkers and writers like Tolstoj, Dostoevskij, Leskov, and others like Boborykin and Prince V. Meshcherskij, in whose works we learn of their attitude toward this movement. A work of this nature necessitated an introduction setting forth a discussion of scepticism and the general social and religious disillusionment of the second half of the nineteenth century, for it is out of the lack of faith and the apathy toward religion that Rad• stockism and Pashkovism were born. This brief account cannot survey in detail the various social, political, and religious nonconformist currents of the time; nor is it possible to present a full picture of Orthodoxy. Excellent works on this subject are available by such prominent scholars as Professor N. Zernov, F. Florovskij, ]. Meyen• dorff, and A. Schmeman. Inasmuch, however, as this work traces the emergence of a religious movement nourished by the inadequacy of the established state religion, it is necessary to refer to certain negative features of the Orthodox practice which had an immediate bearing on the spread of Radstockism among the Orthodox aristocrats and later among the masses. For the vast amount of source material used in the preparation of this manuscript, I am indebted to many individuals and libraries, but particularly to the University Libraries of Harvard, Vienna, and Hel• sinki, to the New York Public Library, the Library of Congress, the British Museum, the State Public Library of Leningrad (Saltykov• Shchedrin), the Theological Orthodox Institute in Paris, and the St. Vladimir's Orthodox Seminary in New York. I must pay a special tribute to the library staff of the University of Waterloo for their assistance in the search for rare documents. I am indebted to the Canada Council and the University of Waterloo for grants which made the research for this work possible. I should like also to thank many of my colleagues for suggestions and corrections.

EDMUND HEIER University of Waterloo NOTE ON TRANSLITERATION

Since this work is not directed exclusively to scholars specializing in Slavic Studies, the system of transliteration employed is one which suggests to the English-speaking reader something about the pro• nunciation of Russian names. For the sake of consistency, this system is also used for all citations of bibliographical material. Surnames of individual Russians who have adopted their own Latin alphabet spelling, such as Mirsky and Berdyaev, remain unaltered in this text.

Aa - a RR - k Xx - kh B6 - b .JIJI - I u:~ - ts Bb - v MM - m qq - ch rr - g HH - n IIIrn - sh ,I.1;,ll; - d 00 - 0 mID; - shch Ee - e IIil - P 'b - " Ee - e Pp - r bl-y .iRm - zh Cc - s b - " 33 - Z TT - t 99 - e MIl - i Yy - u !Oro - ju nil - j

PREFACE (V)

NOTE ON TRANSLITERATION (IX)

CHAPTER I. SOCIAL AND RELIGIOUS DISILLUSIONMENT OF THE AGE r850-r900 (I) Old conservative and new liberal forces. Loss of the Crimean War and the be• ginning of a new age. Epoch of Great Reforms - the consequence of reforms - discontent and disillusionment. Formation of new classes - bourgeoisie, la• bourers, men of various professions - the educated middle class - liberal and revolutionary leanings of the intelligentsia. Chernyshevkij's What is to be Done? The Nihilists - Avant-Garde intellectuals - their struggle for individuality. Reaction and the radical youth. The populist movement. - Trek to the People. Repentant nobility.

a. Literature: A Reflection of Social and Political Currents (8) Saltykov-Shchedrin and writers of plebeian origin - utilitarian approach to literature. Disillusionment and pessimism a literary theme - Uspenskij and Ne• krasov. Assassination and terrorism. Victory of reactionaries - persecution of political and religious dissenters in the I880's. Prevailing scepticism - Garshin and Nadson. Epitome of pessimism - Chekhov, Mikhailovskij - disharmony and irreligion in an age of transition. Symbolism and escape from desolation.

b. Disillusionment in the Official Church (r6) Spread of nonconformists. The Church's inability to provide guidance in an age of religious uncertainty. Impact of European Protestantism among the aristo• crats. Socialistic ideas and sectarianism. Diffusion of atheism among the intel• lectuals. Failure of clergy as religious educators - Albov and Pomjalovskij. Rus• sia's aristocracy perplexed by scepticism and religious doubts - Golitsyn and Boborykin. Apathy towards Orthodoxy among the aristocracy. Cultural and social isolation of the state church. Lack of a theology in Western sense. Despair and a quest for righteousness and religious truth. Seekers after God - Dostoev• skij and Tolstoj. Evangelical Christianity among the aristocrats; the beginning of Radstockism and Pashkovism. XIV TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER II. LORD RADSTOCK AND THE RELIGIOUS REVIVAL IN RUSSIA'S UPPER CLASSES (30) The "Religious Renaissance" ot the turn ot the century. Lord Radstock and the religious revival of the 1870'S - his teaching. Radstock's activities in England. Solov'ev and Radstock compared. Radstock's acquaintance with Russian aristocrats - his arrival in Russia. Receptive mood among aristocrats for Rad• stock's teaching. Publication of a Russian Bible. Count Korff - distribution of Bibles - British Bible Society. The Shuvalov's - Bible-reading. The Orthodox Church's awareness of dissension - Metropolitan Filaret - attempts to modernize Orthodoxy. Society of Friends for Spiritual Enlightenment. Old Catholics - attempts to unify European churches. Radstock's meetings in the salons of the aristocracy - presentation of the fundamentals of the Gospel. Drawing-room meetings became the craze. Salvation by faith as opposed to good works. Rad• stock's teaching arouses ardent discussions. Prince Meshcherskij recognizes in Radstockism a potential sect. Ideal of Christianity - that of personal help and service is put into practice by the Radstockists. The teaching of Tikbon Za• donskij - the positive type of Russian sainthood. Dostoevskij's figures of Zossi• ma and Makar. A Radstockist princess and Vera Zassulich. Other foreign preachers - Mueller, Baedeker. Radstockism and the Russo-Turkish war (1877- 78). Actual adherents to the new teaching. St. Petersburg a stronghold of Rad• stockism. Radstock in Moscow. Radstockists remain officially Orthodox. The new teaching, a spiritual enrichment in addition to Orthodoxy. Colonel Pashkov emerges as the principal leader of the movement. The Society for the Encourage• ment of Spiritual and Ethical Reading. Introduction of the new teaching among the common people.

CHAPTER III. RADSTOCKISM AND PASHKOVISM IN RUSSIAN LITERATURE OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY (57) Literature, the barometer of Russian spiritual life - representation of various religious types. Radstockism in Russian fiction.

a. Dostoevskij and Zasetskaja (58) Dostoevskij's rejection of Radstockism - his relation to Zasetskaja, a defender of Radstock. John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress. Dostoevskij's portrayal of Radstock in his Diary 0/ a Writer (1876).

b. Prince Meshcherskij (63) Meshcherskij's novel Lord Apostle in High Society - satirical portrayal of Rad• stock and his followers. Presents Orthodoxy as ideal way of life - Prince Baja• nov, principal protagonist. Tendentiousness of the novel.

c. Leskov and Peuker (67) Leskov's preoccupation with religious problems - his interest in the religious revival among the aristocrats. His The Schism in High Society written in oppo- TABLE OF CONTENTS xv sition to Meshcherskij's novel. Criticism of the doctrine of justification by faith. Leskov welcomes Radstockism as it restores Christian ideals within its followers. His relation to Peuker, editor of Russian Workman, a journal published in the spirit of new teaching. Leskov becomes editor and contributor to Russian Workman. His obituary of Peuker. Leskov cautions against anyone who claims to have found the path to salvation.

d. Ward de Charriere (76) Ward de Charriere and her novel, Serge Batourine: Scenes des Temps Actuels en Russe. A sympathetic account of the revivalist movement in St. Petersburg. Prince Baturin and his conversion to Radstockism. Alexander II and the translation of the Bible into modern Russian creates optimism for flourishing of religious revival.

e. Tolstoj (82) Tolstoj epitomizes the struggle of Russian intellectuals. Precepts of the Gospel, his ethical system. His contact with Bobrinskij - first acquaintance with Rad• stockism. Countess Tolstaja supplies him with information on the new teaching. Anna Karenina and the Radstockists in the novel- Karenin and Lidija I vanovna. Tolstoj portrays the worst possible features of Radstockism. Tolstoj rejects the doctrine of salvation by faith. Chertkov, Tolstoj's most trusted follower and intermediary between Radstockists and the novelist. His respect for Pashkov. Tolstoj's "Where there is love, there is God" and The First Distiller. Resurrection and Prince Nekhludov's contact with Radstockism in the home of his aunt, Princess Charskaja. Nekhludov, the mouthpiece of Tolstoj's own reflections. Tolstoj views Radstockism and Pashkovism as parodies of true Christian brotherhood. The preacher Kiezewetter and the English missionary in the novel are modelled after Dr. Baedeker, the evangelist whom Tolstoj met in 1889.

f. Boborykin (r02) The chronicler of his time. His novel The Confessors, an account of the noncon• formist in Russia, the Evangelical sects, the Stundists, Radstockists, and Pashkovites. The central idea of the novel - freedom of conscience. Bulashov, the hero of the novel, protector and spokesman of sectarians. Attempts to show that sectarians are of Russian origin - another version of traditional Russian God-seeking. In spite of persecution Pashkovism continues to spread. The reactionary views of the reviewer of Boborykin's Confessors. Boborykin's demand for religious freedom is a reflection of Russia's intellectuals.

CHAPTER IV. PASHKOVISM: DIFFUSION AMONG THE MASSES AND PERSECUTION (r07) Religious nonconformity and anti-religious ferment. The Church another instrument of oppression in the eyes of the industrial classes. Spread of Pash• kovism - Korff, Bobrinskij, and Pashkov initiate Bible-readings among the masses. Pashkov the man - a repentant nobleman - his generosity and philan• thropic work. Pashkov's palace the meeting place of all classes. The essence of Pashkov's teaching. The practical application of his teaching among the lower XVI TABLE OF CONTENTS classes. Prohibition of public meetings. Pashkovism in opposition to Nihilism. The causes of rapid spread of the new teaching. Pashkov an example of Tol• stojism. Social aspect of Pashkovism. Glebov's observation of Pashkovism - notes rapid spread. Pashkov's practical help to the needy workers and students. Social and philanthropic work of the aristocratic Pashkovites - in the capital and provinces. Korff and Pashkov, the chief propagandists. The Society for the Encouragement of Spiritual and Ethical Reading - its religious and moral publications - the Bible and religious tracts. Popularity of the religious pam• phlets. Attempts to counteract the success of the Pashkovite Society. Russian peasant demonstrates his protest in religion. Causes for spread of sectarianism among lower classes after 1860'S. Pashkovite missionaries; the effect of Pash• kovite propaganda among the peasants. Spread of Pashkovism due to Russian clergy and their attitude towards their parishoners. Recognition on part of Orthodox hierarchy that Pashkovism can only be counteracted by its own methods. a. Pobedonostev and Anti-Pashkovism (rz5) Pobedonostsev, the Chief Procurator of the Holy Synod - his attempt to crush Pashkovism - his memorandum of 1880 to the Tsar. He views Pashkovism as grave danger to Orthodoxy - procures official order to prohibit Pashkovite meetings in the capital. Pashkov leaves St. Petersburg for a time - transfer of his propaganda to the provinces. The year 1881 - terrorism and assassination of Alexander II. Renewed attacks on Pashkovism. Pobedonostsev's memorandum of 1882 to the Minister of the Interior - he asks for Pashkov's expulsion from Russia. Pashkov and Bobrinskij transfer their work to the provinces. Pashkov's activity among the Stundists, Baptists, and Molokans - his philanthropic work. An Orthodox missionary's account of Pashkov. Pashkov's popularity among the sectarians - his attempt to unify all Evangelical sects. The Evangelical Confer• ence of 1884 in St. Petersburg - the inability to reach an alliance. b. Exile and Persecution (137) The Evangelical Conference of 1884 is interpreted as organized resistance against Orthodoxy. The arrest of the delegates. The abolition of the Society for the Encouragment of Spiritual and Ethical Reading. Exile of Pashkov and Korff; confiscation of all literature published by Society of Pashkov. Pobedo• nostsev's letter to Pashkov. Exile of Pashkov and Korff marked a definite end of an era of Radstockism and Pashkovism. Church authorities and police kept strict vigilance on followers of Pashkov. Pashkovism continues to be spread by peasant preachers. Pashkovism in the Don region and South Eastern Ukraine. Pashkov's visit to Russia in 1887. Pobedonostsev once more condemns the aristocratic followers of Pashkov - his letter to Alexander III. Renewed efforts to stamp out Pashkovism - persecution, arrests, and exile. Futility of perse• cution. Tolstoj, the symbol of compassion. c. Disintegration and Decline of Pashkovism (145) Effect of persecution - Pashkovite peasants begin to ally themselves with Baptists and Stundists. The desire for doctrinaire teaching. The decline of Pash• kovism among the aristocrats.

BIBLIOGRAPHY (ISO)

INDEX (156)