The history of the establishment of the Kiev society for religious and moral education in the spirit of the Orthodox Church

The Kiev Society for Religious and Moral Education in the Spirit of the Orthodox Church is one of a few large-scale organizations in the Russian Empire that carried out religious education and anti-sectarian activities at the turn of the 20-th century. Non-liturgical lectures organized by the Society were a new format for Orthodox preaching. Te Society served as a place of fellowship for active religious figures in the Kiev Diocese, both clergy and lay. Professors of the Kiev Teological Academy played a significant role in the life of the Society. For the most part, they were able to set aside political differences and devote themselves to Church mission. In this article, the author describes the reasons and motivations behind the establishment of the Society, the process of its founding, as well as its governing bylaws. Te author draws on Reports about the Society's activities and various materials in the contemporary periodical press. Studying the history of the Society's founding allows us to see the true reasons behind its emergence. Te article also introduces the reader to those figures who were instrumental in the founding of the Society and the goals that the Society hoped to pursue afer its establishment