Canonical answers of Metropolitan John II Prodromos (†1089) on difficult aspects of Christian marriage in Rus'

Throughout the history of church law, marital life of Christians and priesthood in particular was under special control of the Church. This is evidenced by the canonical answers of Metropolitan John II Prodromos (†1089). At least four rules proposed by the holy bishop are devoted to the regulation of marital relations of the clergy. At the same time, the attention of the first hierarch and the questioning monk Jacob was focused mainly on the problem of compliance of the wives of the clergy with the high requirements imposed on the spouses of deacons and priests. A comparison of these norms with the rules in other Old Russian canonical collections of that time shows that in general the problem of conjugal purity was characteristic of both the South and the North of Rus'. Along with this, the following points are noteworthy: 1) the Greek and Old Russian versions of the canonical answers are far from coinciding in all points; 2) the attitude of monk Jacob to the church-legal text is creative in nature; 3) while Metropolitan John (judging by the Greek text) is inclined to show sincere archpastoral leniency, monk Jacob (a Russian monk) strives to tighten the rules. All these issues raise the problem of both the accuracy of the Old Russian translation of the Greek church-legal norms, neophytism and the adoption of the Greek church-legal culture in Rus', and the place of monk James in the system of church government in Kiev.