Publication: “I accept that the state of St. Petersburg Teological Academy is very satisfactory in all dimensions”. Report of archbishop Macarius (Bulgakov) on the review of St. Petersburg Teological Academy in 1875 (edited, with introduction and comments by Dmitry Karpuk)

Te new bylaws for theological academies were adopted in 1869, and they played an important role in the development of theological education and ecclesiastical sciences in Russia in the second half of the 19th century. In 1874, the Holy Governing Synod appointed Archbishop Macarius (Bulgakov) of Lithuania to carry out a review of the theological academies in order to establish positive and negative aspects of the new bylaws. In 1874, Archbishop Macarius carried out reviews of the Kiev and Kazan Teological Academies and in 1875 - of the St. Petersburg and Moscow Academies. He authored a detailed report on the state of each of the four higher schools of theological education. Te report on his review of St. Petersburg Teological Academy is presented here. Te original has been preserved in the Russian State Historical Archives (RGIA. f. 802. sec. 9. 1874 file 7. pp. 25-45). Te report consists of four parts. In the first part, the author reviews the achievements of professors and instructors. In the second part, he describes the educational process and the living conditions of students. Te third part is devoted to the Academy’s library. Te fourth part reviews the activities of the Academy’s governing board, responsible for its academic and financial governance. Tis document is interesting not only in the context of the reforms of higher theological education in Russia, but also as a source for the history of St. Petersburg Teological Academy during the era of the Great Reforms