Church-Social Journalism of the Mid-19th Century: Use in Modern Historical Research

In the article, church-social journalism of the middle of the 19th century is considered as a historical source in demand in modern research. The tendency of using church-public journalism without the necessary study of the peculiarities of this genre is indicated, which often leads to errors and delusions. On the example of the historical monographs of S. V. Rimsky and M. V. Nikulin, the most frequent actions of researchers are demonstrated, which provoke the reader to overly trust publicists, both critics and apologists of contemporary church life. The article also briefly describes the most prominent representatives of church and public journalism of the middle of the 19th century, such as the priest I. S. Belyustin, D. I. Rostislavov, A. N. Muravyov and N. V. Elagin.