The marginalisation of the old believers by the mid-19th century: the origin of the Belokrinitskaya hierarchy

The Raskol (“split”) of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1653-1667, initiated by Tsar Aleksey Mikhailovich and realised by Patriarch Nikon, went on for 250 years until Nicholas II signed a decree On Tolerance Development on 17 April 1905. Over those years, the Old Believers had come a hard way. Since the beginning of the Raskol, the Old Believers’ Community had not been unified, which caused the marginalisation of those, who did not accept Nikon’s reforms. The key problem of the Old Believers was a lack of a legitimised priesthood. Pavel, bishop of Kolomna and Kashira, was the last bishop ordained before Nikon’s reforms and the only one who had not accepted the novelties. After his death in 1656, the Old Believers found themselves without a full three-pronged hierarchy. There was no one to ordain a new priesthood. Thus, since the beginning of the Raskol, the Old Believers had been seeking bishops who were ready to turn to Old Belief. Some of their attempts, made in the 18th century, failed. First Old Believers had to content with palliative measures. They managed to draw over priests and deacons in a variety of ways. However, not all Old Believers supported such a way of the priesthood formation. And soon a new split followed among Old Belief adepts: a new broad creed appeared, Popovtsy or Beglopopovtsy; and a part of the community that did not accept such a priesthood, Bezpopovtsy. This way of acquiring the hierarchy was not approved by the authorities. In 1822 and in the 1830s-1840s, Alexander I and Nicholas I took measures to destroy the fleeing priesthood of Old Believers. At the Moscow Assembly of the Popovtsy, a decision was made to create a bishop diocese abroad. In 1846, Ambrose, metropolitan of Bosnia, became an Old Believer, and a hierarchy of Austria or Belaya Krinitsa was introduced; the latter was a town belonging to Ausria-Hungary. Ambrose’s conversion to Old Belief occurred amid unsavory circumstances. There were rumours on his covetousness: as if the metropolitan made his decision after he had been paid. The amount mentioned was 500 chervontsy of “Austrian gold”. However, despite most of the Old Believers’ doubts and protests, including those of respected figures from the Old Believers’ clergy and clergy centres’ representatives, Ambrose was converted. In 1865, several high-rank clergymen from the Metropolis of Belaya Krinitsa became Orthodox, and handled the archive of the Monastery of Belaya Krinitsa to Professor Subbotin, a missioner, a theorist of the Russian Orthodox Church. The documents were about the establishment of the Belaya Krinitsa priesthood. On the basis of the documents, Subbotin published A History of the Belaya Krinitsa Priesthood in 1874. The Metropolitan’s conversion reflects the Old Believers’ marginalisation in the 19th century. The “thirst for normal church life” had led the supporters of Old Belief to marginal ways of priesthood formation.