Missionary service of the laity. Theological researches of the priest Georgy Kochetkov

A universal call to the mission of every Christian by virtue of the gift of the royal priesthood of the People of God.
Unity of the clergy and laity in the mission, the need for a common witness of the Church

The testimony of salvation in Christ, the evangelization of the Kingdom of God in word, deed and life is the most important calling of every Orthodox Christian, contributing to the revival of the fullness of the life of the Church and all ministries in it. All members of the Orthodox Church are called to participate in the broad and comprehensive mission of the Church to gather and teach people who sincerely seek the path to God. The state of missionary service, including the "apostle of the laity", is one of the main indicators of the level of spiritual life in any church community and in universal Church[see, for example: Anastasius (Yannulatos); Schmemann].

In the books published more than half a century ago by the largest Orthodox ecclesiologist and canonist of the twentieth century, Protopr. Nikolay Afanasiev "The service of the laity in the church", "The Church of the Holy Spirit", etc., the rootedness in the Orthodox Tradition of the unity of all the faithful disciples of Christ, all the people of God in the grace-filled service of the "royal priesthood" is revealed and deeply substantiated [see: Afanasiev. Church of the Spirit]. This is the unity and catholic integrity of the Church "from below", from the Eucharistic gathering of all "born again" "of water and the Spirit" (Jn 3:5) personalities, whom Fr. Nicholas traditionally calls la and kami [ Afanasiev. Church of the Spirit, 23], allows him to lay the foundation for the revival of the now almost completely forgotten local catholicity at the communal parish level [see. also: Kochetkov. Problems of ecclesiology]. Penetration into the mystery and sacrament of local catholicity leads him to the original teaching of the Church about the royal priesthood of all the people of God, which allows him to boldly deny any division (keeping distinction) of church members into clergy and laity, which still feeds both church clericalism and laicism - extremes that break the internal unity of the Church and affirm one part of it at the expense of the other. He especially emphasizes the need for unity in the missionary service of the clergy and the laity, returning to the classic formula of St. Cyprian of Carthage: "The Church is in the Bishop, and the Bishop in the Church" ( Cypr. Epist. 66.8).

Only under the condition of such internal unity and saturation with one Spirit is mission possible as a witness to the Church. Father Nikolai writes: “And no matter how people have humiliated the gift of prophecy, which underlies the ministry of witnessing, it continues to live in the depths of the church consciousness, as the norm of the grace-filled activity of the faithful in the Church” [ Afanasiev. Ministry of the Laity, 51–52]. In the mission there is no division into clergy and laity: an apostolate as a gift and calling belongs to all equally. Neither the laity without the hierarchy and presbyters, nor the hierarchy and clergy without the laity will be able to carry out missionary service in full [see: Gzgzyan; Final document].

Appointment to missionary service, which makes it possible to realize in the Church the gracious basis of all ministries, takes place in the sacrament of baptism performed in the Church and for the Church. The grace taught in the sacraments is the basis of all ministries in the Church: “One body and one spirit, just as you were called to one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in all of us. Grace has been given to each of us according to the measure of the gift of Christ” (Eph 4:4-7).

There is some mystery of the universal royal priesthood of the People of God, connected with the Mystery of Christ's priesthood "according to the order of Melchizedek" (Heb. 6:20, etc.). Precisely because it is above the Law and abolishes the Levitical ministry, the royal priesthood of the entire People of God is possible, foretold in the Old Testament, but fulfilled only in the New. The teaching about it belongs to the Catholic Church, and not to the Protestants, although they emphasize it due to the loss of the canonical priesthood in their structure, for there is no competition between the royal priesthood of the People of God and the canonical legal hierarchy, there is a difference in gifts and ministries in the unity of the Holy Spirit [ cm.: Kochetkov. The book about. Nikolay Afanasiev, 9–19].

Service to God and the Church (as the fulfillment by each Christian of the vows of baptism and the bearing of its fruits) manifests itself in the highest way precisely in the mission, for “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45). A person who has received the gift of divine Love in the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist is filled with this Love himself and strives to pass it on to others. In this testimony of the action of God, of the experience of life in Love and Freedom, in Truth and Peace, lies the main content of missionary service [see: Kochetkov. Sermon Problems].

Unlike Christian obedience and work(based on duty and the Law, limited by time and specific circumstances), to which a person usually agrees from the realization of his insufficiency and unlearnedness in order to
replenishment, service is accomplished from an excess of grace-filled forces that overwhelm the heart. Service is free, initiative, responsible, personal and ecclesiastical, it can be performed by every faithful, i.e. full, member of the church, who is able to realize his churching as acceptance of the Path of Christ - the Path of the Cross and Resurrection. If the priestly ministry of Christ is the offering of an immaculate and pure sacrifice of His Life for the life of the world, then for all His disciples, entering into the universal priesthood of the People of God means, first of all, love for each person as God's creation, compassion and rejoicing with him. This is the announcement of the Good News to another, the awakening in him of a thirst for salvation and creativity, his appeal “to God from idols, to serve the living and true God and to wait from heaven for His Son, whom He raised from the dead, Jesus, who delivers us from the coming wrath” ( 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10).

A missionary's ecclesiastical character, defined in this way, obviously cannot be characterized only externally. In principle, any Christian who has full communion with Christ's Church can be a missionary. “Everyone” - that is, without distinction of gender, age (but taking into account the peculiarities of age), nation, social and church status, etc. “Having full communion with the Church of Christ” - except for new converts, catechumens and penitents (i.e. e. excommunicated for a while from church fellowship).

Thus, the missionary service of Christians is possible, firstly, by virtue of the royal priesthood and the prophetic gift of all the People of God, and, secondly, by virtue of the personal charisma (gift) of the Holy Spirit (which makes the mission for someone the primary service to which a person ready to devote his whole life). The main indicator of the degree of involvement of church members in the mission is this distinction of gifts, which, as it were, forms two types of missionaries. The ministry of both is grace-filled, but in different ways: the first - by the grace of the general Christian and sanctifying, the second - by special personal and transfiguring grace [see: Kochetkov. Mysterious Introduction, 205–206].

Both the first and second types can be represented by both clergy and laity. The decision on the evangelistic service of the laity in the Russian Church was taken by the Local Council of 1917–1918. Control missionary activity belongs to the hierarchy (by virtue of the gift of church government, in which lies its special service in the church).

The internal unity of the church will only increase if the gifts and abilities of each complement each other. The laity in the mission have their own advantages: they are freer in the forms of life, they have much wider opportunities for communication - in the family, at work, while studying, on vacation, in transport, even in the store. This in a new way raises the question of the diversity of forms of mission, of the admissibility of initiative, in which it is possible and necessary to meet halfway with the laity. The richness and diversity of the mission in the Russian Orthodox Church is also evidenced by its history [see: Innokenty (Popov-Veniaminov); Kochetkov. Baptism of Russia].

Problems of Laity's Mission Readiness

Turning from the theology of mission to our real church practice, it is worth noting that one of the most acute issues is the preparation of the laity themselves and the readiness of the clergy for a joint common service to God and the Church. Unity of ministry must be rooted in unity of church life. The main conditions for its acquisition are the following:

Both clergy and laity who organize joint missionary activities should be united at least in the parish community, their church and liturgical life becomes a real common concern, in which everyone takes an active conscious participation, corresponding to his place in the church. In reality, this immediately confronts us with the need to: a) revive the full participation of the entire community and each of its members in worship; b) the return to the sacraments of their church-personal nature, i.e., their performance by the church in the Church and for the Church, and not as individualized requirements and rites.

In order to enter responsibly into the common parochial and liturgical life, all members of the church must themselves be taught the faith, that is, undergo adult catechesis in the sacrament of Enlightenment and receive a spiritual education. This will help them to enter deeper into the spirit and meaning of Church Tradition, to cognize it holistically, not fragmentarily, to gain experience and strength in it for church spiritual communion and witness.

Church life should inspire people to serve, fill them with joy, strengthen them in faith; they need to feel the support and help of their spiritual brothers and sisters, as well as presbyters and hierarchies. Lay people who have dedicated themselves to the cause of the mission can be assisted in obtaining an appropriate education, in solving everyday problems, including domestic ones (for example, babysitting for small children, providing financial support, etc.).

A missionary must be prepared for all the hardships and hardships that often accompany his ministry, while the church's concern for his loved ones, for providing him with legal assistance, for protecting his honor and dignity is an important condition for his peace of mind and readiness to fully devote himself to God.

It is necessary to renew the forms of cooperation between the clergy and the laity. On the one hand, clergy should be able to support the initiative of the laity, trust them more, having a sober understanding of what exactly a person can and is ready to take real responsibility for. It is important to remember that the mission is an open space that cannot be strictly regulated. A person who has received a general blessing for missionary service can make independent decisions in each specific case.

On the other hand, lay missionaries can seriously carry out such a ministry only if they do not ask for a blessing at every step, but take full responsibility for themselves. Creativity and responsibility are inseparable in the mission, first of all for those whom the Lord brought to the missionary, so that he would help them come to Him.

To the missionary (whoever he may be in the church - a layman, deacon, presbyter or bishop), proclaiming the "Mystery of Christ" (1 Col. 4:3), the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven, the Church makes, in addition to common Christian, increased spiritual and moral requirements. This also needs to be prepared. The missionary must be a mature and spiritually experienced Christian. Since for the outside he is the representative of the Church, his image, his personal inner and outer spiritual and secular life are of great importance. He should not "give a reason to those who seek a reason" (2 Cor 11:12), he should avoid violating church and universal rules.

He also needs mutual understanding (internal and, if possible, external) with the hierarchy of his local church, especially with those who themselves preach and accomplish the work of the mission. Forms of cooperation may vary in different conditions and circumstances.

Orthodox mission as a witness to God and the Church through the manifestation of the Church.
Parish, Orthodox community and Orthodox brotherhood as mission centers

The main content of the mission is the constant call of the human conscience to faith in the One God and in Christ, and therefore to the unity of man with God and His people in the Love and Freedom of the Spirit. The mission should be a witness to God and the Church as the People of God. It is based on the fact that one can not only speak about the experience of the Meeting with God and the Church, but also show it, including on the example of people who experienced it. Like app. Philip answered the doubting Nathanael: “Come and see” (John 1:46), so we can and should testify about the Church through the living manifestation of the Church.

Based on this, in a Christian mission it is possible:

• the personal and personal testimony of the individual;
• activities of revived missionary parishes;
• missionary service of Orthodox communities and brotherhoods, spiritual movements;
• uniting efforts within the framework of an Orthodox missionary society or other missionary organizations.

Personal Testimony As a rule, the missionary has direct contact with relatives, acquaintances, colleagues at work, fellow travelers on the road, etc. Even missionary meetings, for example, in student classrooms or libraries, require a team, i.e., the combined efforts of several Christians. Often they are more enlightening or apologetic in nature, or the form of a personal confession of faith in response to questioning about it. Evidence in such cases does not play leading role and only rarely becomes its goal and internal imperative. All famous Russian missionaries - St. Innokenty of Moscow, St. Macarius of Altai, St. Nicholas of Japan and others - gathered around them a certain circle of people (assistants, students). Often the most faithful and active members of this circle were those who themselves found faith and were baptized as a result of the missionary preaching of their teacher.

Speaking of personal mission, it is important to emphasize that it always remains the center of any group forms. Just as the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the vocation and the talents with which the Lord endows a serving person are personal, so missionary witness is personal and personal. It is around a person chosen by God, endowed with the gift of and denomination, deep in its faith, faithful and sacrificial, loving God and compassionate to people, and a missionary community can gather. If such a vivid personal testimony is fruitful, then the most important fruit of it can be the entry of new disciples into the ministry.

At present, the most effective and widespread form of witness about the Lord - the Savior of the world can be the life of Christians in communal parish, in modern conditions inevitably acquiring missionary orientation.

The missionary parish should be open externally and internally. In a normal case, its doors are always (except for the liturgy of the faithful) open to everyone, so that even a person who accidentally enters it can buy church literature, talk with the missionary on duty or the catechist (both priests and all permanent members of the parish should be friendly and interested in treating everyone person), pray in silence or just be in a new space for yourself. At the same time, the readiness to help him enter not only into the temple, but most importantly, into communion with God, to hear the answers to his inner questions is important.

A missionary parish is called upon to be dynamic, so that every person in it - both a permanent member of the parish and a newcomer - feels that the parish community is able to respond to a change in the situation of his life, to his specific circumstances [see: Kochetkov. Experience, 89–126]. And for this, people need to experience that they are interested in them as individuals, and not in useful functions: “I am not looking for yours, but you,” said St. Paul (2 Cor 12:14). In the Missionary Concept of the ROC about the parish, it is said as follows: "... the way of life and the very appearance of a modern church parish should be maximally adapted to missionary needs, based on the interests of the mission of the Church" [see: Concept, section "Missionary parish"].

The missionary parish is based on personality, internal unity and mutual responsibility of its members. But most importantly, it must be rooted in the Eucharistic gathering, understood as the service of all the faithful, brothers and sisters, gathered in Christ by the Holy Spirit, and therefore responsible for overcoming divisions, primarily between the clergy and the laity. Only a communal missionary parish can and should take responsibility for revealing in the church the liturgical and church-wide (cathedral and personal) nature of all the sacraments, beginning with baptism and chrismation, as well as for the revival of the ministry of the Word. The latter presupposes the reading of Parimias at Vespers, a sermon at the Liturgy of the Announcers, at Vespers and Matins, sounding at its statutory place (that is, immediately after the reading of Holy Scripture), so that it can be heard by non-churched people who are often present at divine services.

However, the primary and main carriers of the mission can be Orthodox communities and brotherhoods, for they themselves are called to confirm the effectiveness of the power of the Resurrection of Christ, showing the highest evidence on earth of overcoming the "hateful strife of this world", the monastic life of their members in this world, but not according to its laws. Arising as informal spiritual unions, they are most of all able to turn a person to the unity and integrity of his inner faith and the spiritual world and outer life, embodied in the testimony of the fruits of faith. Missionary communities and brotherhoods can act as witnesses and, in a certain sense, guarantors of a missionary's churchliness, they can provide him with real assistance in prayer, cooperation, and even financing of missionary projects. But the main thing is that they visibly reveal that Church to those who seek it, actualizing it as a sacramental and mystical reality, where “two or three” are gathered in the name of Christ and love each other. When the inner communal life of its members is really built around Christ on the deep spiritual communion of brothers and sisters, and the common life is based on the desire to live according to the Gospel in the service of God and the Church, then the missionary meetings of such a community are especially fertile and can yield the greatest fruits.

Orthodox Missionary Society- not just a targeted professional organization, but a true brotherhood in Christ of those who have decided to dedicate their whole lives to the mission. Without the rootedness of its members in this fraternal life, without its eucharistic, self-sacrifice and focus on serving the revival of the church, such a missionary society can quickly turn into a mere organization, into a “structure” and lose the Spirit.

Principles of Orthodox mission in modern conditions

The principles of the Orthodox mission delineate the boundaries of the internal and external action of the missionary. in different historical periods various emphasis of the mission was actualized, which depended on its specific tasks, the nature of society, and the available forces of the church.

At present, the following principles can be called the most relevant:

The unity of faith and life, words and deeds, evidence of the experience of the life of a missionary and the church

Integrity, undividedness is necessary condition the life of both the missionary and the whole church. A new church person should have the opportunity to come to the church that the missionary testified to. If in a sermon he hears that “The Church is a school of love,” then, entering it, he must see, feel this love. That is why such a huge anti-missionary impact is exerted by schisms and divisions in the church, its politicization, the desire to achieve state patronage and sometimes promiscuity in the means to achieve one's goals in solving purely worldly problems (material, property, financial, etc.). It is no coincidence that the efforts of the God-fighting Soviet authorities were aimed primarily at compromising the church, for which
there was always a reason. This often resulted in the apostasy of her flock from God. More app. Paul denounced this state of affairs in the church, foreseeing its dire consequences: “...how can you, teaching another, not teach yourself? Preaching not to steal, are you stealing? saying, “Do not commit adultery,” do you commit adultery? abhorring idols, do you blaspheme? You boast of the law, but by transgressing the law you dishonor God? For because of you, as it is written, the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles” (Rom 2:21-24).

Common life with those to whom you testify, relying on local forces

The driving force of the mission is love and compassion for all people, primarily unbelievers, unchurched. This leads the missionary to desire to share life with those to whom he preaches, to enlighten it as much as possible with the Light of Christ's Love. He believes that for every person there is nothing more precious than the truth revealed by the Word of God, because it is those who are deprived of this Word who suffer the most in our time. From this follows the need to base the mission mainly on local forces, creating missionary groups in each diocese, in each parish. If there is no temple in the city, and therefore, the place where the mission can be born, then local residents (or those temporarily residing in this region) can start it, forming a missionary community.

Bringing seekers not to oneself (not to a parish, not to a community, not to a brotherhood, etc.), but to Christ and through Him in the Holy Spirit to the Heavenly Father

No one can appropriate the flock of Christ, realizing that he was sent only to return looking for a person to Heavenly Father. In this regard, there are two acute, yet unresolved problems. Firstly, the false confidence of many (even clergymen) that the main thing in a mission is to bring a person to the temple, to the parish, to “church” and “put them to work”, not caring about the awakening and growth of his spiritual life. Secondly, the organization of a mission on a confessional basis in a multi-confessional country (or even on a local scale: in an aul, a village, a city, etc.). It is impossible to build “on someone else's foundation” (Rom. 15:20), but it is also impossible to find out indefinitely which denomination or temple this or that person should go to. This can block his way to God for a long time.

Unity with catechesis

Catechesis does not just follow the mission, it includes missionary moments right up to the end of the second stage, that is, up to lifelong confession and baptism or conscious churching. Even a person who has turned to God needs again and again to resolve his doubts, to strengthen in faith.

The inadmissibility of counter-mission and enmity on religious or national grounds, as well as the inadmissibility of proselytism in relation to Christians of other confessions

This principle is connected with the third one (bringing the seekers not to oneself - from which counter-mission and proselytism inevitably follow - but to the Heavenly Father). Another source that feeds such errors is the substitution of faith for national or other ideology, including the heresy of phyletism as love for one's own according to the flesh. An attempt to use Orthodoxy as a national-patriotic idea that consolidates the people is absolutely utopian in a secular and at the same time multi-confessional society, but it can give rise to a search for enemies, the division of the people into “us” and “them” on religious grounds and, as a result, proselytism and counter-mission .

How to make sure that the mission is truly Orthodox and at the same time not narrowly confessional? How to avoid the eternal dangers and spiritual substitutions: fundamentalism and secularism, proselytism and isolationist counter-mission? Are there prospects for cooperation between Christians of different faiths and denominations? All these questions have come to the fore today, and without answers to them a successful mission is impossible.

All-round use of Orthodox missionary tradition and modern world Christian experience

It is very important that missionaries and their associations be open to all the richness of missionary experience in the Tradition of the Church, be able to distinguish graceful moments in the life of any Christian denomination and not present their brothers in faith, for example, Catholics, as heretics (and sometimes even more!), opposing their experience of the purity and integrity of Orthodoxy. In a modern society immersed in the occult and magic, which has become atheistic in many respects, at a certain stage and within certain limits it can be very fruitful to turn to the experience of living faith in the One Living God the Creator, common to all three Abrahamic religions (Christianity, Judaism and Islam). ).

The main tasks and forms of the Orthodox mission today

The variety of types of Orthodox missionary work is the richness of the church, it cannot be unified according to a single template. The concept of missionary activity of the Russian Orthodox Church calls the following forms of missionary service for the laity[cm.: Concept]:

• attracting the laity to active church work through specific missionary assignments;
• using a network of libraries to create missionary educational centers in them by the efforts of the laity;
• communication of the laity outside of worship, in particular through meetings and joint meals of parishioners (“liturgy after the liturgy”), primarily for the purpose of discussing issues of spiritual and church life;
• organization of missionary, catechism, theological training of secular teachers, doctors, psychologists, lawyers, economists, military personnel, cultural and scientific figures to work with social risk groups (drug addicts,
  HIV-infected, homeless, etc.).

The forms of missionary service of the laity are determined by what the church carries out as internal- in relation to unlearned members of the church, and foreign mission- in relation to all non-believers, non-Christians (i.e. non-Christians) and non-church people, including children, the elderly, the disabled, prisoners, serving in the army, etc., with their subsequent preparation for holy baptism and / or churching. To achieve this goal
necessary and possible:

• support missionary churches, parishes, brotherhoods, libraries, etc. missionary institutions of the Russian Orthodox Church, as well as the personal initiative of its individual members to develop the missionary movement;
• publish and promote the publication of missionary materials, especially Holy Scripture and liturgical texts, patristic, theological, historical and catechetical literature in different languages;
• use existing as well as create new tools mass media and look for other opportunities (for speaking and addressing various church missionary issues);
• to promote the training of missionaries and catechists through the organization and support of special courses, schools, etc., including through the appointment of nominal scholarships;
• cooperate with other Christian missionary organizations, charitable, biblical, cultural and other church, public and state institutions;
• collect financial and material resources and allocate them to specific missionary projects;
• to protect the freedom, honor, dignity of missionaries, catechists, catechumens and newly baptized, as well as their social interests, including through the provision of material and other support to them.

Literature

1. Anastasius (Yannulatos) = Anastasius (Yannulatos), archbishop. Purpose and motivation of the mission // Orthodox community. 1997. No. 37 (No. 1). pp. 28–30.

2. Afanasiev. Ministry of the laity = Nikolai Afanasiev, Protopres. Ministry of the Laity in the Church. Paris: Religios.-ped. cab. under Pravoslav. theological Institute in Paris, 1955. 78 p.

3. Afanasiev. Church of the Spirit = Nikolai Afanasiev, Protopres. Church of the Holy Spirit. Riga: Balto-Slavic Society for Cultural Development, 1994. 328 p.

4. Gzgzyan = Gzgzyan D. M. Orthodox mission today and tomorrow // Orthodox community. 1997. No. 37 (No. 1). pp. 31–37.

5. Final Document = Final Document of the Conference “Mission of the Church and Contemporary Orthodox Missionary Work” // Orthodox Community. 1996. No. 35 (No. 5). pp. 120–122.

6. Innocent (Popov-Veniaminov) = Innocent (Popov-Veniaminov), St. Instructions to a priest appointed to convert non-believers and guide those converted to the Christian faith // Orthodox community. 1997. No. 39 (No. 3). pp. 17–33.

7. Concept = The concept of missionary activity of the Russian Orthodox Church / Missionary Department of the Moscow Patriarchate. M.: Patriarchy, 2009. 44 p.

8. Kochetkov. The book about. Nikolai Afanasiev = Kochetkov Georgy, priest. The book about. Nikolai Afanasyev "The service of the laity in the Church" and modernity // Materials of the International Theological Conference "Lay in the Church": Moscow, August 1995. Moscow: St. Philaret Moscow Higher Orthodox Christian School, 1999. P. 9–19.

9. Kochetkov. Baptism of Russia = Kochetkov Georgy, priest. The Baptism of Russia and the Development of the Russian Mission // Vestnik RHD. 1989. No. 156. S. 5–44.

10. Kochetkov. Experience = Georgy Kochetkov, priest. The experience of a missionary-communal parish // Proceedings of the International Theological Conference "The Parish in the Orthodox Church": Moscow, October 1994. Moscow: St. Philaret's Moscow Higher Orthodox Christian School, 2000. P. 89–126.

11. Kochetkov. Problems of Ecclesiology = Georgy Kochetkov, Priest. Problems of ecclesiology. Personality and conciliarity. Movements in the Church // Interview with members of the Sretensky Brotherhood in connection with the report read at the International Scientific and Theological Conference "Spiritual Movements in the People of God: History and Modernity". M.: Brotherhood "Sretenie", 2003. 24 p.

12. Kochetkov. Mysterious introduction = Georgy Kochetkov, priest. T a An Instructive Introduction to Orthodox Catechetics: Pastoral-Theological Principles and Recommendations for Those Performing Baptism and Chrismation and Preparation for Them: Dissertation for the degree of maitrise de theologie. M. : St. Philaret Moscow Higher Orthodox-Christian
school, 1998. 241 p.

13. Kochetkov. Problems of preaching = Georgy Kochetkov, priest. Problems of preaching the Gospel and the context of modern church life in Russia. M. : St. Philaret Orthodox Christian Institute, 2006. 32 p.

14. Charter = Charter of the Orthodox Missionary Society: project // Orthodox community. 1993. #13–15 (#1–3) pp. 84–89.

15. Schmemann = Schmemann Alexander, archpriest. Missionary imperative // ​​Orthodox mission today: Sat. texts on the course "Missiology" for Pravoslav. spirits. school and the theologian textbook institutions / Comp. arch. Vladimir Fedorov. SPb. : Apostolic City, 1999. S. 71–77.

Notes

1. See the draft charter for such a company in: [Charter].

Missionary Service of the Laity // The Light of Christ Enlightens All: Almanac of St. Philaret Orthodox Christian Institute. Issue. 6. M. : SFI, 2012. S. 51-65.

Over the past year, in one of the Moscow churches, I had the opportunity to meet many times with members of the community Priest George Kochetkov and observe their behavior. Some features of the life of this community - such as a clear sense of being an elite, a developed and strictly observed intra-group ritual of behavior in the temple, an obvious neglect (from ignoring to very rude treatment) of non-members of the community, a large number of unbaptized infants and young children, obligatory communion in any case (even if you come to the temple during and after the Eucharistic canon), and so on. - were immediately eye-catching.

At the same time, I began to have lengthy discussions on the Internet with several of the most active writing and teaching members of the community. From these discussions, I learned that the “Kochetkovites” do not perceive any critical information about their community, do not even admit the theoretical possibility that their head (priest Georgy Kochetkov) may be wrong, are extremely aggressive towards their opponents, and display elementary polemical dishonesty and are extremely irresponsible with their own words and statements (for example, having initially “given out” some information in the heat of controversy, which, as it turned out later, was compromising in relation to them, they immediately easily retracted their words). Moreover, at the slightest opportunity, the Kochetkovites, who stood for unrestricted freedom of speech, destroyed the remarks of their opponents, thus achieving complete unanimity in the discussions they opened.

On the one hand, any researcher of totalitarian sects encounters similar very frightening features of behavior. But, on the other hand, on the basis of these features alone, all the more noticed in this case subjective observer, it would be incorrect to conclude that the entire community of priest Georgy Kochetkov is a sect. However, the confidence that this community certainly contains a number of very alarming characteristics, characteristics that are inherent specifically in totalitarian sects, after acquaintance with some randomly taken published materials of this community, increases sharply.

Let us consider the materials placed in the journal of St. Philaret's Moscow Higher Orthodox-Christian School "Orthodox Community" No. 51 (No. 3, 1999). I would like to note in advance that it is very difficult to disassemble and analyze the texts of the priest Georgy Kochetkov - their characteristic feature is phenomenal ambiguity and inconsistency; because of this, he always has an excuse in store that they meant something quite different here. That is why it becomes necessary to consider each of his statements and expressions in the context of the entire teaching and practice of the community he leads. It should also be said that the texts published by him suffer from tongue-tied, unintelligible and constant repetitions.

But to an even greater extent this applies to the speeches of the priest Georgy Kochetkov, transcribed from a tape recording. It is significant that they are not subjected to any, even the slightest, literary processing: any text coming from the leader of the community is absolute in the eyes of his followers and is not subject to any changes or corrections. The attitude to each word of the guru as to the sacred truth in the last resort and the absence of even the slightest critical feeling towards his statements is a characteristic feature of totalitarian sects.

At the same time, such incomprehensibility, in turn, is one of the obligatory characteristic features of cult texts used in totalitarian sects. Here, the words that the author of these lines writes in another place about the writings of the false Christ Vissarion are quite applicable: “All this viscous, verbose, helpless and incoherent“ dark water in the clouds ”has only one goal - to control the mind of the reader by using familiar phrases: it creates a kind of supposedly profound fog, which only sets off those main provisions of the sect's dogma, which the reader must certainly notice and assimilate.

Another characteristic feature of the texts used in totalitarian sects is their glaring inconsistency, which catches the eye of an outside observer and is completely unnoticed by members of sects. Here, for example, is a text from a publication of Jehovah's Witnesses:

“The Witnesses have no paid clergy, and meetings are led by elders. A typical congregation has about 100 Witnesses, including six elders and six ministerial servants. As the congregation grows larger, it divides into a number of congregations.

Twenty congregations of Jehovah's Witnesses make up one district, ten districts make up an oblast. Spiritual leadership is exercised by district and regional overseers (the Greek word "bishop" literally means "overseer"). The overseers of Jehovah's Witnesses constantly travel around the congregations in their districts and regions, visiting them at least twice a year (and spending a week in each), therefore they are called "traveling overseers."

Special pioneers, missionaries, and traveling overseers are supported by the religious organization. In 1998, the Watch Tower Society spent about $64.4 million to support them."

As we can see, the above text contains two mutually exclusive statements: the first allegation about the absence of paid clergy in the sect is refuted by the stipulated actual state of affairs, but at the same time, any "Jehovah's Witness" does not notice this contradiction - he is absolutely and sincerely convinced that, in contrast to from Christian churches and denominations, his organization has no paid clergy.

The same phenomenon of two mutually exclusive statements, of which the second is a factual situation, but only the declarative first is remembered, we can also notice in the texts of priest Georgy Kochetkov. In the course of our analysis, we will repeatedly have the opportunity to verify this.

***

In the descriptions of the community by Priest Georgy Kochetkov (both coming from the community itself and from sources that are benevolent towards it - mostly foreign ones) its missionary character is always noted; it is also emphasized here that she - almost the only one in the entire Russian Orthodox Church - takes seriously the ancient Christian practice of Baptism only for people who have been prepared and taught the basics of the faith.

An indispensable condition for admission to theological courses at the St. Philaret Moscow Higher Orthodox Christian School (hereinafter referred to as the HSE) is the provision of a written recommendation confirming the passage of the announcement.

Announcement, indeed, is the key word in the system of the priest Kochetkov. At the same time, in fact, this word means a special preparation for Baptism, which takes place precisely in his community. A person who has been catechumenized in another church or (horror!) baptized without any lengthy preparation at all, as a rule, is considered an "incomplete member of the Church." Persons who have not "passed the full (emphasis ours. - A.D.) cycle of catechesis for adults" are not admitted to theological courses at all.

What is the system of catechesis, which is so proud of the community of priest Georgy Kochetkov and which, according to their conviction, makes them not “like other people” (“...your Christian life ... exceeds the possibility of salvation life in monasteries, in seminaries and in all other similar institutions")?

This is a very long (often many years) cycle, beginning long before Baptism, but by no means ending with Baptism. Baptism is followed by a "mystery week", then a forty-day period called the "wilderness", and after that the newly baptized are urged to enroll in theological courses ("As you remember, in the fall you can enroll in theological courses, and we recommend that you all do this") , upon completion of which they will have the opportunity to start classes at the HSE itself. The classes are very intense.

The whole process of pronouncement takes place in small groups (so-called families), each of which is headed by an elder and spiritually nourished by a "catechist". Members of the communal "family" are encouraged to associate closely and as often as possible with one another. In addition to classes, regular gospel meetings are necessary for members of "families" at all levels of the Kochetkov system of education, "where you can read the Gospel together, prepare for it together, discuss together how the Gospel fits your life or does not fit. The purpose of your meetings is to so that you can apply the gospel to your particular life."

In addition, frequent door-to-door "prayer meetings, when Christians gather to pray together" are needed.

Here is what priest Kochetkov writes about these groups: “And the community is the family. Only the family is not in the flesh, but in spirit. This is the community. And relations should, in principle, be the same as in the family, only, of course, in a good family."

Eyewitnesses note that members of real families are often sent to different communal "families": the husband - to one, the wife - to another. It can be imagined that such a division is hardly conducive to a full-fledged family life. Let us also note that "family" is one of the most used terms in various sects, chosen by them for self-determination. As psychologists (in particular, Lifton, Langun, Singer, Hassan, and others) explain, each of the totalitarian sects is an ersatz family that actively uses family terminology.

All the rest - in addition to communal - affairs are declared not only secondary, but also directly harmful: “Do not make these mistakes. and with household chores. Like, this is what I need to do - in the summer on vacation or at the dacha, because the most important thing is health, and all that ... No! If you live like this, you will not succeed in the Christian life. It simply will not work - I tell you frankly, I will not deceive.

It is interesting that the words of the priest Georgy Kochetkov almost verbatim repeat the statements of the leaders of the totalitarian sect "Church of Christ", which are narrated by Sergei Glushenkov, who spent several years in it: if a student is going to go to the dacha on Sunday with his parents, the leader can ask him: "" What , in your opinion, is it more important - life with God or your beds? "Well, what can you say? Of course, life with God is more important than anything in the world, but what do the beds have to do with it?" .

Such a complete workload of members is a very characteristic feature of totalitarian sects: the more a person is loaded, the less time he has to stop and think about what is happening to him. As Stephen Hassan, a well-known psychologist and specialist in totalitarian sects, notes, mind control consists of four components: behavior control, thought control, emotion control, and information control.

A massive, comprehensive, and all-time learning system certainly helps to control the information that comes to a person: because of the constant workload, he simply does not have time to read anything other than what is offered to him by the leadership, and reading lists are constantly replenished. Even the busiest people are strongly encouraged to "enter the correspondence department: you will take tapes and listen at home.<…>Cook dinner and listen (just make sure nothing burns)" .

The contents of the recommended reading list (by the way, very, very extensive) should be considered separately. As noted by Prot. Valentin Asmus, there is "the entire gentleman's set of intellectuals." There is also the novel by M. Bulgakov "The Master and Margarita", and the stories of L. Andreev, and the works of the infamous author of "The Last Temptation of Christ" Kazantzakis, and many other, alas, not very soulful literature. But still, the list can rather be called not so much a "gentleman's set of an intellectual" as a general educational reading list for a Soviet teenager: it contains Robinson Crusoe, Shakespeare's works, and Uncle Tom's Cabin (usually this book is paired with the famous "The Gadfly" - it is strange that it is not on the list), and "Moby Dick" by Melville, and "The Song of Hiawatha" by Longfellow, and the novels by F. Mauriac.

Here it is necessary to properly dot the "i": the problem is not that someone is ordered to read these books (undoubtedly, for general education and the development of horizons, many of them are useful, and it is good to know the classics), but that they are included in the reading list for people preparing for Baptism, that is, they are considered categorical literature. But there is another aspect here as well. In sects, newly recruited members are often forced into the role of children who are completely psychologically dependent on their new "parents" - mentors. In this case, this "school" list undoubtedly plays the same role: an adult, mature person, as it were, again sits down at the school reading program.

But what about the actual spiritual literature and, above all, the Holy Scriptures? Here is what Priest Georgy Kochetkov tells people who have undergone catechesis about the recommended reading during the first weeks after Baptism: "... most likely, someone will slip you or recommend some books. This can also be a temptation. Because you need start with the main thing. And what is most important for you? First of all - Holy Scripture, the New Testament. Read in the "desert" the New Testament - everything that you did not have time to read from it. Do not take up any books until you have read the New Testament in full ".

Two aspects are interesting here: the first is a ban on receiving any information from the outside world (recall about controlling information), and the second is that during the one and only Kochetkov catechesis, people preparing for Baptism, it turns out, do not even read New Testament(note that the Old Testament is out of the question at all!).

And now let's look at the text of the same instruction, but a little lower (we will clarify that we are talking about a forty-day period): "Sometimes you will still not have enough spiritual strength to read the New Testament, since this requires great concentration. Then you can read others books that are important to you now that will help you in choosing your future Christian and church path.For example, the collection "The Parish, the Community, the Brotherhood, the Church."

Here is a book about Sergius (Savelyev) "The Long Way" and a collection of his own sermons. These are absolutely wonderful books about the experience of Christian life in the twentieth century. It is community life...<...>There is almost nothing of the kind in community life.<...>This is the magazine "Nadezhda" No. 16, which also tells about the community - Fr. Alexy Mechev and his son Fr. Sergiy Mechev, - which existed in the first half of the twentieth century.<...>Here is another book about the experience of asceticism of the twentieth century "Mother Mary" by Fr. Sergius Gakkel - about how an ascetic should live in our time.

But in the 176th issue of the Parisian magazine "Bulletin of the Russian Christian Movement" a wonderful manuscript of the same mother Maria (Skobtsova) "Types of Religious Life" was published. If you haven't read it yet, please read it! This is about types, about directions, which is especially important for you now. 'Cause you can go to spiritual path in the Church and get lost.<...>... Read the book "Father Arseny". This is a good book that tells about a priest who was in camps, exiles, and how his life was built. This will be very helpful for you too. These books, which I showed, are what you need first of all (highlighted by us. - A.D.), so that you can strengthen yourself in what you received at the announcement.<...>You will find a list of recommended reading with imprint in the Author's Preface to my book In the Beginning Was the Word. A Catechism for the Enlightened. M., 1999".

At first glance, this list contains very good books. But everything must be taken in context. What unites all the books listed by priest Georgy Kochetkov? This is an emphasis on the role of "charismatics" in the Church, who oppose the church hierarchy and the general way of church life, or at least exist independently of them - either individually or at the head of their own communities. Thus, even the book "Father Arseny" can be perceived as confirmation of the highly controversial and even scandalous conclusions of the nun Maria (Skobtsova), expressed in her article "Types of Religious Life".

But let's see what happens next. So, after the passage of forty days, people again gather in the temple. Again, talk about recommended reading: “More about books. What books do you need first of all now? Of course, first of all you need to read the Holy Scriptures. This is clear to everyone, it will always be in the first place. take the task of re-reading the whole New Testament in a post. You have already read large chunks, but I think no one has read the whole New Testament yet (oh, that's how! - A.D.) During the "wilderness" you could do it , but I think that we didn’t have time (where does such confidence come from? - A. D.). This is the first and most important. But there are also other books that are fundamentally important and necessary for you, which I also recommend you read.<...>All of these books are listed in bibliography, recommended to you after the "desert" (see appendix 3 in my book "In the beginning was the Word. Catechism for the enlightened")" .

Let us pay attention: on the one hand, the priest always says that it is necessary to read the New Testament (again, we note that the Old Testament is not remembered even now), on the other hand, he is unshakably sure that absolutely no one reads it and, based on this certainty, he keeps offering some kind of surrogate list of others that are primarily "necessary for Christian life books". But at the same time, any member of the community who has not yet read the New Testament will quite sincerely assert that their community life is based on the Gospel and nothing else.

***

Another characteristic feature of totalitarian sects is the control over the thinking of their members. According to Stephen Hassan, mind control "is such a dense indoctrination of the members that the teaching of the group replaces their own thinking, they begin to speak a new in-group language and use the "thought-stop" system, which acts as an internal censor. A person who wants to become a full member of the group must learn to manipulate his own thought process.<...>A destructive cult usually uses a set of "loaded terms" or expressions. Since language provides us with the symbols with which we think, by learning to manipulate certain words, we can control our thinking.<членов секты>. Many groups primitivize difficult situations, attach a label to them and thus reduce them to intra-sectarian stereotypes. This label - the verbal expression of "loaded language" - controls the thinking of a person in any situation.

To clarify this idea, let's recall Marshal Applewhite, the head of the Heaven's Gate sect, whose members committed mass suicide in California in 1997. To designate human bodies he used the verbal label "containers" and called death "transition to the next superhuman level". As a result of repeated daily repetition, these words became clichés that no longer evoked any terrible or unwanted associations. So when Applewhite announced that it was time to dump the obsolete containers and go to the next superhuman level, this call to suicide sounded not at all scary and even attractive.

Kochetkov's system also has its own specific language, which includes many "loaded terms" denoting concepts that are not at all acquired by these words in our everyday use. The "Kochetkovites" talk about "full members of the Church" and "incomplete members of the Church" (PChTs and NPChTs), about "mystery week", about "agaps" (see below about them), about "catechesis", which actually means indoctrination, about "families" that are not related to a real family, and so on. An important concept in the terminological dictionary of the community of priest Georgy Kochetkov is "freedom". He repeats this word all the time.

True, by freedom he means, first of all, complete independence from the hierarchy: “You are free in the Lord, you are the children of God, whom no one on earth has the right to enslave - neither confessors, nor hierarchs, nor elders, nor juniors, nor external circumstances, no power, no domination - no one.

"You are free in the Lord," says the apostle Paul. Keep this in mind, because you will now have many different temptations in the church in connection with this.<…>There should be no more idolatry in your life: neither your health, nor your comforts, nor church or secular authorities, no one. Remember: "Worship the Lord thy God, and serve Him alone" - that should be your motto. These are words from Scripture. Do you agree? - Some, I see, are still thinking ... Well, think, just think well so as not to make a mistake.

At the same time, it is emphasized here: “This does not mean that everything will be easily resolved - you will need to think, you will need to pray, maybe you will need to come and ask the elders (not by age, but by experience in the community. - A. D.), catechists and others. And one more thing: "Think with the help of your catechists. They have long, many years of experience in catechumens in Moscow and not in Moscow. Many thousands of people have passed through the catechumens, so you can ask the catechists: what is the best thing for you to do? The catechists will look at you and say ( highlighted by us. - A. D.): for example, it’s better for you to gather for prayer meetings, it’s better for you to read the Gospel together, for example, from Matthew, but you still need something else - maybe at first discuss some sharp and the difficult problems of your spiritual life, and for some, maybe both, and the third.Some need to meet once or twice a week, and someone who is weaker, it is better to meet once every two weeks …" .

So, having freed themselves from the hierarchy, the members of the community give their right of choice and counseling over themselves to catechists (often very young and very self-confident, proud of the trust placed in them and their newly acquired teaching status), sometimes leading people who are much older than them. As we can see, the catechists (mid-level leadership in the community) determine everything for the rank-and-file members - up to their spiritual and prayer life - "they will look at you and say."

But total discipline entails total control. The leadership needs to know what is happening in each group - in each "family": "I think that in each group you will have your own headman. He may be the old one (! - A.D.), but you can elect a new one.<…>Two weeks later, after Vespers, we will meet them.<старостами>at the General Council of our Brotherhood, so that we have time so that we can talk with them in more detail about how things are going in your groups, what interests you, what information you would like to have, etc. ".

To illustrate the foregoing, let us quote what members of the community write about the role of catechists and elders in their lives: “One day, a call home. At the other end of the line is our catechist, a young boy, who this time strictly reprimands the old woman who has been at fault, a candidate of pedagogical sciences, then still a senior scientific worker of the Academy of Pedagogical Sciences. And accordingly, at this end of the telephone wire - carefree laughter, a frivolous reaction: they say, say, say, "do not teach a scientist." And into the phone - apologies, apologies, assurances of a quick correction ... adepts of the teenage role. - A.D.) Only after some time comes the understanding of how important every meeting, every lecture, because we knew so little then about Christian culture. And about ourselves. After all, at one of these meetings in the group our headman Sergei T. said the words that cut into my heart and became a turning point in my fate: "You don't like people." breathe those words! First, an internal protest - it can't be!<…>... I began to observe myself. Gradually, an understanding came of how deeply Sergei was right.

Compare with what S. Glushenkov writes about the "Church of Christ": "... each member of the ICOC verifies his own views on the Bible and the leader's beliefs. The leader is obliged to actively "transmit" his beliefs to ordinary students. Once in a conversation, the leader of the "sector" told us that he had acquired a strong conviction, based on the text of the Bible, that borrowing money is a sin. Personally, I was surprised and intend to figure it out using the same Bible. However, I was sure in advance that the leader was right, and it was necessary only to find confirmation of his position. And this happens in everything. The leader, of course, can be mistaken in understanding this or that passage. But the error can be recognized by the students as such only if the leader himself admits it and announces it to everyone. the student will never undertake to question the authority of the leader, especially if he is his good friend. It is quite possible to criticize the personal shortcomings of the leader, but not his reading of the Bible ".

Thus, we see that members of the Kochetkov "family" agree to very strict conditions for control over themselves by the "senior" leaders; moreover, such control is very similar to similar control over members in many totalitarian sects. And this control (including counseling) is carried out by very young and obviously spiritually immature catechists and elders, naturally, not authorized for this by the Church. Considering that such a group life is proclaimed the only possible one for a Christian, it is obvious that all reproaches here are also made publicly.

***

Group pressure, public reproaches - "extortions" and "open", group confessions are one of the most powerful tools for exercising control over a person in sects and creating what psychiatrists call a "dependent type of personality" incapable of independent thinking and life. The harmfulness and danger of independent thinking is confirmed to members of the community of priest Georgy Kochetkov, for example, by their own demonstrative writings: “To this day, I often want to manage my own life, and the lives of my loved ones too. At the same time, I continue to fill bumps.<…>I stumble and fall all the time, but now I know where to go when I get up again."

"... For the first time, I felt God's participation in my life on the day when our catechetical group in full force after vespers brought public repentance. It was allowed to quietly pronounce or silently confess. Everyone spoke quietly. And I heard every word uttered by my new acquaintances aloud , I myself thought that all my sins had already been revealed, but to me ... Here is my turn. I have not a single thought, I became nervous and suddenly started talking about my relatives, who had already died: my grandmother, aunts, uncles, who treated me very well, and I was inattentive, callous, hard-hearted: I didn’t remember their birthdays, I hardly visited them in hospitals ... And words and tears poured out that hadn’t been there for a long time. And it became easier and easier in my soul. "

***

An important "loaded term" for the "Kochetkovites" is the concept of "desert", denoting an extremely important stage in the process of catechesis for controlling the consciousness of the members of the community. In order to understand its meaning, it is necessary to consider how the process of catechesis developed by the priest Georgy Kochetkov takes place. Recall that during the preparation for Baptism, the newly created "families" gather several times a week for various joint events.

As we have already seen, their life passes under the careful supervision of catechists and elders, and members of the "families" are constantly called upon to turn to the "elders" in all matters. Group members quickly learn to keep track of each other's attendance, to call brothers and sisters who miss classes and events, urging them not to skimp on their new responsibilities. A pronounced emotional, enthusiastic attitude is encouraged both towards each other and towards everything that people receive in the group. Catechists and elders must be loved and obeyed.

We have already seen from the above quotes that their words are perceived as the ultimate truth: these words need to be analyzed, they need to be pondered for a long time and, accordingly, put into practice. Over a long period of announcement, a person gets used to this state of affairs. The more he is drawn into communal life, the less he has both "external" acquaintances and time for any other business and activities. Accordingly, the abrupt cessation of communal life inevitably causes a feeling of emptiness and restlessness. In the same way as for someone who is accustomed to consult with a "catechist" for the slightest reason, the break in such communication and the need to make decisions on his own can cause a severe stressful state.

When the members of the group are finally baptized, they must go through a "mystery week" during which they must walk in white baptismal shirts and receive communion daily, after which the very period of the "desert" begins. What does being in the "desert" mean for a member of the Kochetkovo community? A word to the inventor of the term: “After all, during the“ desert ”you will naturally come to church every week or once every two weeks (whoever can), confess and receive communion, but you will not have meetings with catechists. This is the only condition, but This is an essential condition for you."

As we have seen, this is indeed a very essential condition... And at the same time, the members of the group are very persistently given a mental attitude that they must feel very bad in the "desert": "You must know that various spiritual" animals "are found in the" desert ", and sometimes small, but very poisonous. So beware: there will be temptations from them. Now you are, as in Heaven, as in Christ's bosom.<…>Well, if the temptations will concern only the outer side of your life: well, let's say if someone breaks his arm. These are the little things - this is the simplest, the easiest. Well, that's a broken arm.<…>But, of course, more difficult temptations are always internal: spiritual and spiritual.<…>This, perhaps, is the most terrible thing: now there will be many temptations that will try to tear you away from God and from each other (emphasis added. - A.D.).<…>…Someday you really want to go back to the past. Surely there will be such temptations! Only you do not come back and help each other in this. As we have already said, live by the principle: give me help!<…>They are<ваши ближние из "внешнего мира">you will even be taught a little: now, they say, now you are a Christian, and therefore you must do this and that for me. Do not let us teach you in this way, never and no one!<…>It also happens, of course, that a person does not want to go to the "desert" and he does not succeed in this period. All the time of the "desert" he passes joyfully, cheerfully, without a single temptation, and thinks: how well he went through the "desert"! Alas, if this is the case, then the "desert" has not yet been, and it will overtake you anyway - at another time, later. But then it can no longer last 40 days, but six months, a year or even several years. And in this case it is much more difficult to tolerate, because everything is good in its time. After all, if a childhood illness overtakes a person in an adult state, he, as you know, endures it worse. And the "desert" is also, as it were, your childhood illness. God will always help you, just pray to Him properly."

The latter is very important: the newly baptized is instructed that during the "desert" he cannot but feel bad, that if he does not feel bad, then it will be even worse, and that he should pray to God, asking himself more temptations during the forced excommunication with catechists. And at the very first group meeting after the end of the "desert", every conscious "Kochetkovite" will have to tell about how unbearably difficult this time was for him. This model of behavior is recommended to him, and very insistently, in advance: "I think it would be interesting for you, for example, to meet tomorrow in groups with your catechists and exchange experiences. Previous years show that this is very useful. When it suddenly becomes clear that temptations many were similar, then it will be clear to you that what we warned you about has come true for most of you to a large extent.

Naturally, as soon as such an attitude is given to people, they will talk about similar temptations and experiences during the “desert” during general confessions. And in any case, how much can you fantasize during such group revelations? And then, seeing that they all say approximately the same thing, and the priest Georgy Kochetkov warned them about this, they will once again be convinced of his gift of foresight. In fact, this simple psychological trick is similar to a children's trick with guessing the right card, when the "magician" takes away all the cards from his client one by one until he calls the rest - exactly the one that was set aside by the dodger himself in advance.

And let the reader not be deceived by the fact that this general meeting and general story is only advised, recommended. A little lower, priest Georgy Kochetkov writes: "And after that, I repeat, be sure (emphasis added. - A.D.) meet and share your experience."

***

Despite all the declared freedom: "... you yourself determine to whom you go to which church", - you can return from the "desert" only to the community of priest Kochetkov: "... As you need to be sent to the "desert" today, so you will need from the "desert" and bring them out. And if for some reason someone does not come or spiritually gets lost and does not come out of the "desert", then be sure to contact this person, find him ".

So, being in any other parish does not take a person out of the "wilderness". The way out is determined only by returning to the community, for only it is outside the desert: “Therefore, try not to drag out the“ desert ”and that no one gets stuck in this“ desert ”. , do not stay in the "desert", even if it kind of warms you ".

Those who remained in the "desert", that is, those who did not return to the Kochetkov community, are at best spiritually ill, and at worst they are dead: "Tomorrow, all of you should, at least on the occasion of leaving the "desert" ... go to take communion with your groups and with their catechists, and then go to the common "meal of Love" - ​​agapa, in order not only to thank God together for each other and for the meeting, but also to somehow communicate and see if everyone came out of the "desert", did not die Is anyone in a hard struggle with the "desert beasts", i.e. with temptations. And such things can happen, although I hope that this will not happen, that everyone will come, everyone will come out of the "desert", that no one has been there for too long However, if you still see that someone is not there - and today it was not there, and tomorrow it will not be, - this means that the person is somewhere, as it were, lying to himself and waiting for your help. Then he needs to urgently send a stretcher and an ambulance to get him out of the "desert" while he's still alive.

I hope with God help none of the new members of the Church will perish, but still, it is very important to help those who are not leaving the "wilderness" now. So if you have already noticed today that someone is not here with you, then call them now so that tomorrow they will come with you to the temple, for communion and for a meeting that can continue even until vespers and the rite of forgiveness, which will be in the evening.

Priest Georgy Kochetkov does not get tired of reminding again and again that the fate of any person who does not return to the community is deplorable: ""Desert Animals" did not seem to bite you much: at least I don’t see broken arms, legs, broken souls either I see, although, however, this should be judged by those who are absent (emphasis ours. - A.D.), and not by those who are present. So tomorrow you will be able to complete this picture. "

***

Another thought constantly and consistently repeated by Kochetkov is the importance of group communal life, without which a person inevitably dies: "Whatever temple you go to, you must all be together, because it will be much more difficult to bring someone out of the" desert " Of course, "everything is possible for a believer," which means, in principle, it is possible to leave the "desert" later. But for this, a person will need to go with a group to the temple, take communion together, and then meet and somehow discuss what what happened to him during the "desert" was good and what was not good. It will be necessary to sort of sum up the past period, and only then will a person come out of the "desert". As you know, a person cannot pull himself out of the water by the hair You can't get out of the "desert" on your own without the help of brothers and sisters. Therefore, if someone does not come today and tomorrow to leave the "desert", it means that he is still in the "desert". So help the brothers and sisters, be very careful, see who is and who is not with you. And in the future, be just as attentive to each other."

Outside of communal life, the most terrible thing happens to a person: “Some people ask: here, meetings and everything else ... It takes time, but where to get it? Well, you have to sacrifice something, otherwise you won’t be able to move forward, and your life will begin to crumble , and you will begin to dechurch."

The intimidation of members by the fact that if they leave the sect they will experience all sorts of misfortunes, both spiritual and physical, is one of the characteristic features of totalitarian sects.

Do not be deceived: when Priest Georgy Kochetkov speaks about the community and churchness, he does not mean the Orthodox Church as a whole, but only its community: “The Church lives in service, in mutual personal and sacrificial love and church responsibility for each other. is called a community. Of course, you don’t think that if you gathered in your group of ten or twenty people, then you immediately became a community. After all, in the world, when people first get to know each other, do they immediately become a family? Of course not. this is the family. Only the family is not according to the flesh, but according to the spirit. This is what the community is. And relations should be, in principle, the same as in the family, only, of course, in a good family. Of course, you and some difficulties. None of us seems to be an angel yet. Do you see haloes in anyone? - Well, if we are not angels, then there may be problems, just try to make them less. create problems, but help each other solve them - and in this there will be your common ministry and your Christian life, which exceeds the possibility of saving life in monasteries, in seminaries and in all other similar institutions (highlighted by us. - A.D.). I say this so that you don’t have excessive romance: it would be nice, they say, to become a priest or now go to monasteries, to the elders ... There are, however, no elders in the church now (! - A.D.). That is OK. Someday they will, if God wills."

***

Moreover, the community constantly opposes itself to the Church, other parishes and other communities. Recall that the black-and-white vision of the world and spiritual elitism, expressed in the feeling of one's own group as "the only one", "enlightened", "correct", "true", "advanced", etc., are typical signs of totalitarian sectarianism.

“There are a lot of disorders in our church now, but there is no need to be afraid of anything, no “whipped Orthodoxy”, as they say now, and all sorts of fundamentalists, modernists and everything else. You must listen to the Lord (in the person of catechists and elders? - A.D.) "You must not accept any nicknames, any labels: "Kochetkovites", "Renovationists", etc. - all this is nonsense. That's what people who play political games in church say. You don't play any games. If someone will say something like that to you, answer: "Excuse me, I'm a Christian, I'm Orthodox," and that's all. This is the main thing.

"... You may still have some temptations related to our church situation, our parish situation, etc. This situation remains difficult for now. We hope that through common efforts and common prayers, and your standing before God The Lord will help, and the truth will triumph. And what is useful for the Church will be done. But alas, not only God's power, but also other forces act in history. It happens that they even temporarily win. We hope that this won't, but still be prepared for different things."

***

And as soon as the community feels itself to be the "light of the world" in the "dark realm" of inertia and ignorance, which is the Russian Orthodox Church, then it is quite acceptable not only to conceal part of the information about itself, but even to lie. On the other hand, it is extremely important for members of the community to learn that information received from "outsiders" (even Orthodox) can be fatal to the soul. Thus, the "Kochetkovites" are doomed to an information blockade. Recall that information control is one of the four components of mind control.

"Do not rush to argue. Otherwise, you will come somewhere and start saying: "Here, I passed the announcement there and there," and someone will start to dispute this from positions, maybe not very good knowledge what is in reality. Do not rush to argue, look at the person: if he is ready to accept a different opinion, tell him, really, the truth. But if he is not ready, if he simply asserts his point of view - that's all, then wait a little while the person changes his anger to mercy, opens his heart, and then your words will fall on good ground.<…>They will embarrass you, they will tell you some kind of lie - but you yourself cannot know all the details of what really happened here and there, who did what and who said what - and you may begin to doubt. And without that, temptations will lead you away from the Church. So, it is important that they do not take you away from God and from the Church.

“But when you go to other churches, you still think that there may be people who do not like either catechism or the mission, and in general do not like you. Therefore, do not immediately step on their favorite corns, have pity on the priests and parishioners who do not always understand what is in the church and what should or should not be in it.

Such a double standard, when one thing is said for "outsiders" and something completely different for "insiders", is characteristic of totalitarian sects. At the same time, very often such an approach takes the form of concern for dark people who have not yet known the truth, for whom it may be simply harmful to know the whole truth. Hence the following pearl: “Remember that in confession you always need to tell the truth, but at the same time not always in all details, if you are confessing not to a confessor, but to a more or less random priest. Moreover, sometimes priests are somewhat opposed to of our community, and this, of course, is somehow reflected in confessions. There is some danger in this, it should not be underestimated ... ".

***

The approach to mandatory frequent communion recommended by Priest George is also interesting: “…come, take communion, no one can forbid you. catechesis, and you have both the grounds and the strength for this.

Thus, members of the community perceive Communion as their inalienable, deserved (or even won) right, which they can and must achieve by any means. In this regard, it is worth remembering the words of Protopresbyter Alexander Schmemann, whose successor the priest Kochetkov calls himself. Protopresbyter Alexander repeatedly during his life repeated that when a person considers himself worthy and prepared for Communion, he should abstain from the sacrament, because at that moment he is the least ready and least worthy.

But more important than participation in the Eucharist in the system of the priest Georgy Kochetkov are considered "agapes" - ritual meetings that crown the entire stormy communal life of the "family" group. Prayer meetings, joint meetings for the study of the Scriptures, and even the Eucharist only lead a person to the fact that he can take part in agape. Much has already been written about these gatherings and their ritual character. Here I would only like to note that in order to substantiate the agape ritual developed by him, Kochetkov resorts to a direct forgery: "You can gather for agapes - the meals of Love, traditional in the Church, which have existed in it for two thousand years (! - A.D.). "Christianity exists, and this tradition exists as long. Usually it is customary for us to celebrate them once every two months, but at the same time everyone must first take communion, preferably from one Chalice. Those who do not receive communion that day, or at least the day before, are on agapa does not come - do not tempt each other. You should know this in advance: love on agape can be shown when you are with the Lord, when you repented, took communion, served, then you will have not just a common meal, but a meal of Love, Love of the Lord."

***

So, we examined the instructions of the priest Georgy Kochetkov, delivered by him to the new members of his community. It is impossible not to notice the four main signs of totalitarian sects, which were formulated by the author of this article in the book "Introduction to Sect Studies" (M., 1998).

This presence:

a) an unmistakable, sinless and omniscient leader-guru (undoubtedly, in this case this role is played by the priest Georgy Kochetkov, to whom his parishioners even dedicate their writings, as well as catechists appointed by him and, accordingly, authorized to carry his power and authority to the masses and elders);

b) a method developed by the leader that is applicable in all cases, one hundred percent effective and helps always and from everything (in this case, "catechesis" and community life);

c) a special type of organization, also created by the leader (in this case, the Sretensky Brotherhood community, divided into "families", which seeks to occupy all the time of the parishioners and control all the information they receive);

d) and the "esoteric gap", that is, the difference between what is communicated to the "external" and what the "internal" know (it should be noted that the "esoteric gap" also passes in the minds of parishioners who do not perceive the glaring contradictions in the teaching they are inspired to who consider themselves the most free and independent people and are convinced that they always tell the truth and only the truth).

Priest Georgy Kochetkov and members of his community consider themselves almost the only, and in any case the most effective and successful missionary group, bringing thousands of people to the Church. This is not true. They bring people first to their own community. Here is what a newly converted parishioner writes about what she received thanks to catechesis and joining the Candlemas Brotherhood: "...He<Господь>gave me sobriety, faith, wonderful people, interest in life, the true joy of communication - a new life.

Note that this list does not include Christ, the Sacraments, the desire for salvation, or the actual church life, but only what can be found in any club or hobby group. Just in this case, this very "interest in life" and "joy of fellowship" is given an absolute salvific meaning, and the main thing is not life in Christ in His Church, but membership in an elite group - in a sect. Knowing this, it is impossible not to remember the bitter words of Christ: "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, that go around the sea and the land in order to convert at least one; and when this happens, make him a son of hell, twice as bad as you" (Matthew 23: fifteen).

Yes, the materials cited above are not enough by themselves to call the community of priest Georgy Kochetkov a totalitarian sect in the full sense of the word. So far, we have only carefully read one of the many dozens of community publications. But, as we have seen from this analysis, a number of frightening signs of totalitarian sectarianism are present in its teaching and practice. Only a competent theological commission, after a thorough and comprehensive study of all aspects of the teachings of priest Georgy Kochetkov and the life of his community, will be able to make a final, balanced and comprehensive decision. And, as we see it, when analyzing the new methods of catechesis and catechesis proposed by priest Georgy Kochetkov, the commission should also pay attention to those signs of totalitarian sectarianism that we noted in them.

Alexander Dvorkin, Professor

head of the department of sectology

Orthodox St. Tikhonovsky

Theological Institute

References

3. Dvorkin A. Sectology: Totalitarian sects. N. Novgorod, 2002. S. 653.

4. Ivanenko S. About people who never part with the Bible. M., 1999. S. 23.

5. Announcement of admission to theological courses at the Higher School of Education // "PO". S. 123.

6. See: Ibid.

7. Priest Georgy Kochetkov. A word to the newly enlightened after the "desert" // PO. S. 64.

8. Ibid. S. 66.

9. Ibid. S. 63.

10. Ibid.

11. Ibid. S. 64.

12. Ibid. S. 65.

13. See: Glushenkov S. I was in the "Moscow Church of Christ" // Alpha and Omega. No. 4, 1995. S. 198.

14. See: Hassan Steven. Combat Cult Mind Control. Vermont, 1990, pp. 59–67.

15. Priest Georgy Kochetkov. Word to the newly enlightened after "desert". S. 66.

16. Prot. Valentin Asmus. What needs to be taken apart? // NG-religions. 04/12/2000. C. 3.

17. Rev. Georgy Kochetkov. The Word to the Newly Churched Before the Entrance to the "Desert" // PO. S. 44.

18. Ibid. pp. 45–46, 47.

19. Prot. Valentin Asmus (see http://www.moskva.cdru.com:8080/blessed_fire/03_99/asmus.htm).

20. Rev. Georgy Kochetkov. Word to the newly enlightened after "desert". pp. 65, 66.

21. See J. Orwell's novel "1984".

22. Hassan Steven. Decree op. P. 61–62.

23. Rev. Georgy Kochetkov. Word to the newly enlightened after "desert". pp. 61–62, 65.

24. Ibid. S. 67.

25. Ibid. S. 61.

26. Ibid. S. 67.

27. The writings of the members of the community on the topic "My path to God and to the Church", quoted below, were apparently written for admission to theological courses at the Higher School of Education. Undoubtedly, they are cited in the journal as examples of both this kind of creativity and the "exemplary" behavior and attitude of members of the community. The composition of these works is also interesting: the author was in a very bad place - nowhere worse - before meeting the priest Georgy Kochetkov and his community, but then the incessant euphoria began, so to speak, "May day, name day of the heart."

28. L. R. "And I remembered my path to love ..." // PO. S. 31.

29. Glushenkov S. I was in the "Moscow Church of Christ" // Alpha and Omega. No. 3, 1995. S. 203–204.

30. O.Kh. "A Christian is like a roly-poly..." // PO. S. 29.

31. In the original, these words are accompanied by the following cautious, although not very intelligible, footnote: "I mean, of course, not confession with a list of specific sins, but repentance, as confession of one's falling away from God and the desire to return to His path. - Note ed." However, from the further text it is obvious that we are still talking about a real public confession.

32. L. R. "And I remembered my path to love ..." // PO. pp. 31–32.

33. Rev. Georgy Kochetkov. A word to the newly churched before entering the "desert". S. 42.

34. Ibid. pp. 40, 41, 43, 44, 45.

35. Rev. Georgy Kochetkov. Word to the newly enlightened after "desert". S. 60.

36. Ibid. S. 62.

37. Priest Georgy Kochetkov. A word to the newly churched before entering the "desert". S. 42.

38. Ibid. S. 44.

39. Ibid.

40. Rev. Georgy Kochetkov. Word to the newly enlightened after "desert". S. 60.

41. Ibid. S. 68.

42. Ibid. pp. 60–61.

43. Ibid. pp. 64–65.

44. Ibid. S. 64.

45. Ibid. pp. 66–67.

46. ​​Priest Georgy Kochetkov. A word to the newly churched before entering the "desert". S. 50.

47. Ibid.

48. Priest Georgy Kochetkov. Word to the newly enlightened after "desert". S. 63.

49. Priest Georgy Kochetkov. A word to the newly churched before entering the "desert". S. 48.

50. Ibid. S. 47.

51. The early Christian practice of combining the Eucharist with the agape meal disappeared in the 2nd and 3rd centuries. The ritual of the agape practiced in the Sretensky community is a postmodern author's development of the priest Georgy Kochetkov himself. Equally categorically and equally incorrectly, for example, neo-Krishnas (members of ISKCON) claim that their religious tradition is five thousand years old.

Holy Georgy Kochetkov. Word to the newly enlightened after "desert". S. 64.

52. See p. 35–44.

53. See: PO. S. 30.

54. O. H. "A Christian is like a roly-poly..." // PO. S. 30.

church life

43 min.

Today, thank God, we have a rare opportunity not to rush, because we have been waiting for this day for a year. True, some things, in particular those that will be discussed, are hatched not for one year, or two, or three, but much more.

I would also really like you to take it not as a theory. Some things will sound theoretical, but only outwardly and forcedly, because we cannot speak in detail about all the details of life situations, and they have to be generalized. But since all of you are involved in the living church life, I hope that all of you will easily find out what is behind what. I will be as brief as possible, although I know that you will have to show some patience.

So, I would like to say about the missionary and communal parish in the Orthodox Church as some new experience in the life of the Church.

I mean the arrival of the Cathedral of the Presentation Vladimir icon The Mother of God of the former Sretensky Monastery, and not only it, but also other churches, in which, however, church life is just beginning. We will now speak about our cathedral, because much is expressed most clearly here and we have fewer obstacles. There may be more external ones, but there seem to be fewer internal ones so far.

Our parish is perhaps the only openly missionary and communal parish in the country, and this leaves its mark on all aspects of his life.

But what is a missionary and communal parish? How does this quality change parish life, and what is the relationship between parish, community, brotherhood and church?

I was really lucky to participate in a discussion on this topic back in the 70s, and already then the circumstances were quite happy that I managed to publish something on it. For example, many of you have already read in the R.H.D. No. 128, published at the beginning of 1979, an article published, however, under the pseudonym Nikolai Gerasimov: "Entering the Church and confessing the Church in the Church." it great article, in which, on the advice of one of our best preachers and theologians, I have inserted a special chapter in which the parish and the community are clearly distinguished and even contrasted. After all, it is wrong to think that a Christian church community is just a well-organized parish, consisting of believers who do everything conscientiously, do not betray anyone or anything, who are disinterested and each in his own place, etc. If you want to get acquainted with this issue in detail, I recommend that you read the named article.

Further, in No. 140 of the same "Herald of the R.H.D." in 1983, another large article was published, already under a different pseudonym S.T. Bogdanov (sorry, I didn’t give myself pseudonyms, so I don’t bear responsibility for them): “The Priesthood of Orthodox and Baptists”, where there is a conversation on a similar the same topic, including many related topics.

In the second article, I no longer simply contrasted the coming with the community, I did not simply show that these are not the same things and that these things are even opposite in some important ecclesiological dimensions. If it seemed to follow from the first article that the parish system should almost completely be replaced by a communal one due to the obvious advantages of the life of communities, in contrast to parishes, then later it became clear to me that it was impossible to put an end to this, otherwise it would either turn out to be some kind of utopia, or even not quite a church thing. Therefore, in the "Bogdanov" article, I corrected the previous point of view, taking the next step, expressing the idea that yes, there must be a community, and the Church within itself should be organized in a communal, not parish way, but at the same time, as it were, on the outskirts of it. , at the "combat" outposts of the Church there should be parishes open to everyone and everything.

This means that missionary (open) points, as it were, must remain in the structure of the Church, because a community, voluntarily or involuntarily, is only half-open. She knows her membership, she knows her caucus, yes, she is mobile, she is almost independent of external circumstances, legislation or other political circumstances, and so on. this is true, but there is a danger in it of a certain isolation, loss of communication between communities, completeness of catholic ties. And if in the ancient Church there were mechanisms, institutions for establishing and maintaining these ties, then in our Church they have long been gone, and, given this, we must be afraid of a break in communion. We cannot confuse what is desired with what is real, and that is why the Church needs parishes, without which the fullness of churchness cannot yet exist.

Bogdanov's article immediately evoked a response from Fr. John Meyendorff. Already in No. 141 of the Bulletin his “Note on the Church” was placed, dedicated to this article. It's a pity that Fr is not here now. John (although he promised to be). It would be interesting now personally, and not across the ocean, to continue our discussion. If any of you read his response, you will surely remember that a rather heated discussion was started, which, apparently, suggested an answer and conclusion on my part. Illness and other circumstances of that time did not allow me to do this. However, I still think that then Fr. John "from across the ocean" did not consider something (you see, the author always wants to justify himself).

Other things were also published, about which I will not go into detail now, up to the article “Parish communities in the Orthodox Church and the needs modern society in the USSR" in No. 1 of our journal "Orthodox Community". It's not exactly on the same subject, but it's still largely nourished by the same roots.

It seems to me that now we also need not just an adjustment, but a continuation and development of what was written then (only, it seems, there is no need for pseudonyms, although who knows ...).

So, today I would really like to take one more step forward. After all, now the life of communities and parishes has been verified by experience to a much greater extent, in contrast to the 70s and the first half of the 80s. It allows us to say that the parish itself can become not only missionary, but also communal.

So, what is a missionary and communal parish? It is impossible to understand the life of our brotherhood, our communities and our parishes without answering this question, without thinking it through deeply.

First of all, we note that more than 90 percent of our parishioners_ are intelligentsia and youth who have not been brought up in Orthodox tradition. They came to the Orthodox faith and the Church at a mature age and quite independently, after which almost all underwent a full catechesis according to the system of catechesis for adults, developed in relation to modern conditions. According to this system, teaching is conducted in our Christian school, officially called the Moscow Higher Orthodox Christian School, which is now part of the Russian Open University with full internal autonomy.

A few words should be said about this school, more precisely, about its first course, since it is precisely devoted to the complete catechesis of adults. The program of the first course corresponds to three stages of the announcement of adults: the first and second announcement, i.e. pre-declaratory and categorical stages, and sacramental teaching. Full disclosure usually begins at the age of 20.

Starting from the second stage and up to the third stage of the announcement, all the catechumens (the ones being announced, more precisely, the enlightened ones) regularly visit the church and delve into all the divine services in order to fully participate in them, except for the Liturgy of the faithful, with which they leave after the exclamation “all the announced, depart” . Therefore, in our cathedral, special attention is paid to the form of holding traditional statutory services. What does it mean?

As is known, today's Orthodox worship has almost lost all of its elements, which were once intended for incomplete members of the Church who were catechumensed, enlightened, and penitent. Yes, and for the full members of the Church, i.e. people already catechumenized, baptized, taking communion, worship remains largely inaccessible.

The point here is not only an obscure liturgical language, although this problem remains one of the most acute in our church. By our time, the service has developed in such a way that even if it is translated into Russian, not even into colloquial, but high, it will still remain incomprehensible and, most importantly, almost inactive, although canonically it is almost always valid. The effectiveness and vitality of worship is its main characteristic, if we want to evaluate its strength and level, i.e. his spiritual qualities. The goal of all those who perform worship is to contribute in everything to its effectiveness, to the fullest possible disclosure of its spirit and meaning.

The clarity of worship, of course, also plays an important role. Therefore, divine services are held in the Vladimir Cathedral due to the lack of satisfactory translations, if not in Russian, with the exception of some readings, especially from Holy Scripture, then in Russified Slavonic, i.e. with the replacement of all hard-to-understand obscure ancient Slavic words and expressions.

Under such conditions, many other things fall into place. So, after the prokeimenon at vespers, parimiias are always read from old testament which are always followed by sermons. Or, for example, at the liturgy, the later, 14th century, insertion with the “prayer of the third hour” naturally leaves the anaphora.

Burning incense at the Liturgy takes place after, and not during, the reading of the Apostle on "alleluia" before the book of the Gospel, but after the transposition of the Holy Gifts only in front of them, around the altar.

All the sacraments are performed only for believing Christians, for they are always, as in ancient times, directly associated with the Eucharist and Communion, thus ceasing to be a private requirement, often unknown to him. There are no fees or voluntary contributions required for the performance of the ordinances. You remember that we celebrate the sacraments of Marriage and Baptism in direct connection with the Eucharist, we do not have "passing", ritual weddings and baptisms. And it is very important that the wedding takes place according to ancient rank, during the Liturgy, followed immediately by the communion of the newlyweds. And Baptism, if it is the Baptism of adults, is always performed after a complete catechesis, and if infants, then after the catechesis (full or not quite complete) of their parents and godparents.

All this makes it possible to carry out the ancient patristic principles of spiritual and ecclesiastical life in contemporary church services, renewal without renovationism, simplicity without simplification. And this, in turn, brings into our lives the desire to actualize many ancient layers of church tradition, and not focus only on any one of them, eliminate the magical attitude to worship and the sacraments, sweep aside superstitions, correctly evaluate and put in their place more and less important things Orthodox worship, which means to “go deeper into oneself and the teaching”, to know more and appreciate the common Christian spiritual experience, to be more fully responsible for our entire Church and for the specific brothers and sisters standing in the same church.

This is expressed, in particular, in the rapid organization of church institutions at the parish. You remember how quickly we started worship almost immediately. It was the same in Elektrougli just a few days after the transfer of the basement to us. Two months later, they organized a Sunday school with more than 120 students, a parish library and a fraternity. The parish has branches of the general church and Moscow Orthodox youth movement, scouting. The magazine "Orthodox community" is published to a large extent by our parish. Since September 1990, there has also been an inter-parish educational and charitable brotherhood "Sretenie". And among the parishioners, full members of the Church, the faithful, spiritual families-communities are born.

What is a community parish? It seems to me that what I just said about catechesis and about the peculiarities of our worship basically corresponds to the characteristics of a missionary parish, but let's talk about what a communal parish is. To answer this question, we must turn to the problem of helping newly enlightened adult Christians to organize their internal and external church life.

These newly enlightened ones, or, as they were called in ancient times, “babies in Christ”, immediately after their Baptism or churching, through the sacraments of Penance or Confirmation, enter the Eucharistic assembly of the Church, at which they receive communion. Then their “bright week” begins, when they serve at the Eucharist as “kings and priests of the Living God,” just as after ordination, a newly ordained minister of the Church goes through a week of daily service in a new rank. Also, every day, the newly enlightened during the week not only listen to sacramental conversations according to the program of the third stage of the announcement, initially explaining all the sacraments and all the dogmas of the Church, the main principles of Christian asceticism, anthropology and mysticism such as the Jesus Prayer, not only discover new pages of Holy Scripture and others books, master the church experience of personal prayer according to the Prayer Book, but also take communion daily, and, if their conscience does not condemn them, without confession and even without permissive prayer during those seven days.

The last rule applies so far only to “bright week” or days when, for example, due to the coincidence of holidays, the Liturgy is served two days in a row, and before that a person took communion weekly or almost weekly and is well known to the pastor. If an adult Christian in the Church lives an intensive spiritual life for 3-5 years, he can also receive a blessing for regular communion without confession at every Liturgy, i.e. confession as needed, according to the testimony of one's Christian conscience.

After " bright week”, such as we have described it, adult newly enlightened people become full members of the Church. Having become full members, having received the personal Gift of the Holy Spirit, Christians, following the example of our Lord Jesus Christ, go for some time into the so-called "desert" in order to personally know even graceless states, learn to reject false paths of salvation as temptations from the devil and prepare themselves to an independent church life and carrying out a feasible service in the Church with a capital letter, which is not identical with the church with a small letter, i.e. especially one or another church organization. People often confuse these concepts when they turn their desire to serve the Church of God in Christ and the Holy Spirit exclusively to church institutions, leaving everything and everyone in their lives, becoming janitors, watchmen, etc.

During the "desert" (and a better desert than Moscow cannot be imagined) there are no meetings between the catechizing group and its catechists. Therefore, the group, after leaving the “desert”, which lasts 1.5–2 months from the moment of the end of its announcement, fully recognizes the value of communication with each other and with elders in the Church and, with the exception of self-determining members, who are usually few, does not want to disperse. and sticks together, just like a church circle or group. Its members begin to meet regularly to read and comprehend the Gospel or the Epistles of the Apostles in relation to modern life, as well as to pray together both according to the Book of Hours and for each other “in their own words”, or to preach to each other on topics that are relevant to all. At first, they may be led by one of the older brothers, including godparents, and over time, leaders appear in the group itself. In addition, on average, once every two months, the whole group meets for a meal of agapa love after the joint service and communion at the Eucharist. Agapa does not have its obligatory rank, but is always performed by one of the older brothers.

Over time, the group spiritually strengthens and grows spiritually (its number does not exceed 20-30 people) and, if God bless, becomes a church community in which everyone freely takes responsibility for all its members. This development of a church group into a church community is more like a kind of spiritual birth through the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The newborn community, or the spiritual family, being internally churchly, cannot yet be called the Church itself, for it is incomplete, since the sacraments are not performed in it (exemplary principles for the life of a family-community can be found in No. 1 of our magazine "Orthodox Community" for 1991 .). However, the desire for completeness, for the mysterious fulfillment of the family-community is a normal phenomenon. True, unlike the whole Church, the family-community is not organized hierarchically, it has only a head unanimously elected every year by all its full members, in his position similar to any head of the family according to the flesh. But nothing, in principle, prevents recommending a worthy head of the family-community for ordination to the presbyter.

This is where the question arises about the relationship of the community with the parish as part of a hierarchically organized church, as well as both of them with the brotherhood and with this church itself.

Any spiritual family-community, having united with other similar families-communities, without denying the existing church structures and traditions, can have, as it were, “its own” parish, which will then become a communal one. This parish, like everyone else, is open to everyone in the world and in the church. But it has a different internal structure, for it is supported and is supported by a certain number of fraternal families-communities that can be responsible for the internal church life and, therefore, can independently resolve many internal parish issues.

This is essential. You know that now not a single responsible church leader will allow the parish to decide any serious issues. And not at all by chance. This is not just a bureaucratic principle, everything is decided only from above, and nothing from below. Alas, now there is no basis for this in the church in ordinary parishes. But the community parish has such a base, and therefore there really is an internal need and the opportunity, in principle, to solve important intra-parish issues on their own.

For example, these are questions of their own liturgical traditions that do not contradict Orthodoxy, their own liturgical experience and system, church calendar, lectionary and synaxarium, i.e. the order and composition of liturgical readings from Holy Scripture, patristic writings and lives, etc. questions of the schedule of church services and, in general, the implementation of the “theology of time” in the life of the parish. (You remember what it is, everyone read Father A. Schmemann. This is a combination of daily, weekly and annual services in time.) Further, these are questions of choosing clergymen with their presentation to the clergy for approval and ordination, receiving guests of the parish, worthy of representation coming to the church and for those outside, correcting those who have seriously sinned and are under penance, helping the sick, the weak and the absent, those who are in the army, imprisonment, and in service. These are catechetical, financial and economic, publishing issues, etc. However, this freedom should not contradict the fact that for everything you receive the blessing of your bishop, and if necessary, then the Patriarch, and the Synod or Council.

Members of families-communities supporting their communal parish, the first candidates for members of its Parish Assembly, which, if desired, could very quickly equal or specifically correlate with the General Parish Assembly, for which it remains only to restore fixed membership and lists (diptychs) in the parish, and without This makes it impossible even to begin to speak seriously about the relationship between the visible and invisible boundaries of the Church.

The question of parish diptychs in general has matured long ago, and it is necessary, apparently, to move from words to deeds. With the blessing of the Patriarch, we intend to announce the conditions for enrollment in our parish as soon as possible, which, probably, can be recommended to other fraternal parishes. I won't elaborate now, because for now these are just my thoughts, assumptions.

In a communal parish, each family-community is not only support for it, but also a living cell of the parish and general church organism, which can also become a kind of branch of the parish. Here is the most important thing. Indeed, on the one hand, the family-community must support its parish, and on the other hand, it is also a cell of that spiritual organism of the Church, which at the present stage of history exists in the parish general church body. And then each community can become, as it were, a branch of the parish. For example, if a parish supports 2, 3… 10 or more communities, depending on what kind of temple and parish it is and what parish opportunities and needs are there, then it can have the same number of branches or branches.

This means that any community can have as its head an ordained presbyter, who is a full-fledged member, if not in the state, but in the clergy of his parish. After all, contingency clerics are also possible. Western experience shows this perfectly. In the same place, many clerics do not receive anything at the parish, they work as professors, teachers, in one way or another they conduct some kind of usually humanitarian activity, but they are not actually part of the staff. And if the community has such an ordained head, then it will sometimes be able to celebrate the Eucharist in itself, for example, before the communal agape, or perform Baptism and Chrismation of its new members from those announced by the same community, or accept the repentance of its members, perform their wedding, unction, etc. .d. The design and arrangement of these mystery and other spiritual church acts is a special issue. So, each family-community could have its own chapel for these purposes or house temple, as happened in many wealthy houses before the revolution. This, besides the parish center, the parish cathedral, in case of need.

Families-communities, of course, can feel a deep community of their lives, and therefore many of their members already now feel like members of one or another informal intercommunal and interparish brotherhood. It is something we call Preobrazhensky. On the one hand, the Transfiguration Brotherhood can support its own institutions, such as, for example, our officially registered educational and charitable brotherhood "Sretenie" or some other brotherhood, such as the Order of Spiritual Adherents of Orthodoxy, on the other hand, it is itself supported by them.

Our Transfiguration Brotherhood, which has already gathered for the second time on the feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, was not born according to plan and was not organized by anyone and in any way. I would like to say this first of all to those who do not know about this, who did not attend such a meeting on the day of the Transfiguration last year. For the first time, our informal brotherhood came to light at the general meeting of catechists who passed through our system, as well as our other friends, held in the city of Elektrougli last year. Then, several hundred people gathered for two days, including those from other cities, and more than 250 people received communion for the feast. The Liturgy was served in the open air in a specially constructed chapel behind the church (we also wrote about this, and you could read it in No. 2 of the Orthodox Community). Do you remember what the temple was like there were solid holes, there were no windows, no doors, no ceilings, and our basement, in which we usually celebrated the Liturgy, could not accommodate everyone.

Summing up the results of the past year of our joint Christian life, I would like to hope that the missionary and communal parish of the Vladimir Cathedral managed to achieve something both quantitatively and purely spiritually. The parish has grown significantly, and primarily due to the newly baptized people in it. Its members do not feel like “foreigners and aliens, but as members of God” in His temple home. There is no mutual distrust, ritual belief and other similar sins that are still typical in our church. There is no alienation of the altar from the temple, the clergy from the people, the people from the choir, some parishioners from others. There is openness to each other and to all who come, which does not negate, in necessary cases, rigor and discipline.

You remember how well-known theological professors and church leaders who visited us spoke about what was happening in our church. Do you remember the reviews of S.S. Averintsev, Olivier Clement, D. Pospelovsky, Fr. John Meyendorff, Fr. Alexandra Kiseleva, Fr. Mikhail Evdokimov, the Sheveton monks, headed by the governor, Fr. Anthony, leaders of the Kostroma and Moscow diocesan theological schools, as well as other fathers and brothers. The other day we were glad to receive Fr. Kirill (Sakharov), and today we are also happy to welcome Fr. Vitaly Borovoy, Fr. Innokenty (Pavlova), Fr. Sergiy Shirokov, Fr. Pavel Vishnevsky, Fr. Vasily Kovalev and other guests, including those from three countries. During these 8 months, we have had about two dozen clerics who co-served or were present at the service, and so far, thank God, there has not been a single case of misunderstanding, a fundamental disagreement.

Of course, this is only the beginning of the journey, there are still many difficulties and problems of various kinds ahead. There is a further struggle ahead for the liberation of the temple and for the parish premises, for the construction of the adjacent Church of the Assumption of the Virgin in Pechatniki, for gaining full trust and recognition from the whole church, for the dissemination of our experience to other churches, which may also wish to be missionary and communal .

It is necessary to study for a long time, to delve into all the subtleties and the entire thickness of the fullness of the Orthodox tradition, to recognize God's Truth and Truth in any, even unusual forms, to appreciate the "unity of the spirit in the union of the world" with the external diversity of forms of spiritual and church life, to be able to identify for oneself and another living life of the Church, so that Orthodoxy, not only potentially, but also really, actually, could be identified not just with any one, even if for someone the best Christian denomination, but with the fullness of Christianity with a capital letter. To do this, we and our church must learn to carry out reforms without reformation, renewal without renovationism, and achieve simplicity in Christ without simplification.

How I would like to end my speech on this high note, but it seems that it is still necessary to at least briefly look at our new experience, both from the standpoint of similar experience, but accumulated in other churches, and from the point of view of those dangers that are already relevant to us, problems and challenges that he poses.

Although the experience of our families-communities is original and even unique, however, typologically, it is, of course, close to the rather rich experience of church life in small communities and groups known in the church since ancient times, but especially developed in the pre-Konstantinian and our, post-Konstantinian, church eras. . Protestantism and Catholicism have somewhat overtaken us in disseminating and summarizing the positive aspects of this experience. They also tried to identify and overcome the dangers and temptations associated with this activity - insufficient internal and external churchliness, closeness, sectarianism, exaltation over others, elitism, hypercriticism in relation to church centers, a break with the fullness of traditional ties for a given church, sometimes nationalism and hypereschatology, etc.

I recently opened at random the New York Orthodox magazine The Way, No. 4, 1984, published by Fr. Mikhail Meyerson-Aksenov, and found a noteworthy note, which, in my opinion, is a good example of such heterodox work. It speaks of small Christian communities in connection with the then published epistle of the Spanish Catholic episcopate, which was called "The Pastoral Ministry of Small Christian Communities."

The Orthodox author of the note writes: “The emergence of small communities of lay people who gather in small groups in private homes for joint prayer, reading the Bible and mutual assistance, this is a movement that has engulfed the Catholic Church of Vatican II. At the heart of this movement is the need to strengthen Christian self-awareness, the understanding that preaching the gospel and living according to the gospel is the duty not only of the clergy, but also of every Christian, as well as the desire to overcome the impersonality and formalism of church life in huge city parishes, where every Sunday thousands of people gather who do not know each other and never meet outside of Sunday divine services.

Small Christian communities, no more than a dozen people, sought to revive the communal spirit of “the ancient Church, which is spoken of in the book of the Acts of the Apostles. For 20 years, this movement has embraced many countries…” A document of the Spanish episcopate analyzes the state of domestic Christian communities in their country: “In Spain, there are 5,000 small Christian communities. They are mainly located in cities, it is written further in this note, about half of their members are workers and employees, 49% are small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, 6% are university students, etc. ”

You feel a big difference, don't you? I specifically cite all this material, because some of the outward signs begin to identify our communities with the movement of these basic Catholic communities, which is not entirely true, to say the least.

The note goes on to say: “These communities are short-lived, they rarely exist for more than 10 years, due to the high mobility of the population in the modern city. What is the purpose of these communities? For some, the main thing is theological self-education, others believe that the main thing is the preaching of the Gospel to unbelievers, the testimony of Christ in the modern world, others seek the gifts of the Holy Spirit, call themselves charismatic communities, and others see their goal in the practice of evangelical love, in the practical implementation of Christ's commandments. .

As you can see, all this is quite close to us, although we would hardly dismember the meaning and goals of our communities in this way. The document of the Spanish bishops gives an assessment of these communities, which is also interesting, although again not identical to our experience. It says that among the positive aspects of the communities, the bishops highlight the atmosphere of Christian maturity and independence, as well as the fact that young people in these communities can more easily fulfill their desire to change the world around them, and that community life helps to establish personal relationships, realize creative potentials and the fuller development of the personality of each member of the community.

Among the dangers of communal life, the bishops name: impatience, inconstancy, the spirit of criticism towards the hierarchy, the danger of falling into sectarianism or reducing Christianity for some to pure spiritualism, for others to socio-political activity.

You and I also know these dangers, although they often seem to us to be specifically Catholic. As a rule, we stand somewhat at a distance from the Catholic experience, the Western experience of communal life, precisely for this reason. But there is something for each of us to think about.

In this regard, the Orthodox experience would also be very important for us, starting with the experience of our church in the first half of the 20th century, as well as those churches that for a long period live mainly in a non-Orthodox environment, which requires them to have a missionary attitude and tension, as well as compels parishes to live in small groups with various communal elements. Unfortunately, we don't know much about him. However, many people know the experience of Metropolitan Anthony (Bloom) and his diocese. For example, the service of the Eucharist in the homes of the sick. Remember how he said that he celebrated the Eucharist on sewing machine. He was afraid that this would shock the local people, but he talked about it nonetheless. Further, from the experience of his diocese, the selection of candidates for presbyters by the parish, the brotherhood-order, the constant missionary and catechetical activity of parishes accepting new members, the small number of parishes and other elements of community and responsibility for each other.

There is a lot of value in the experience of the Orthodox Church in France. Great spiritual, theological, ecclesiological and cultural experience St. Sergius Institute in Paris, Professor Olivier Clement, the liturgical experience of the parishes of Fr. Boris Bobrinsky, Fr. Nicholas Rebinder and Fr. Mikhail Evdokimov, the experience accumulated by the R.Kh.D. Bulletin, headed by N.A.

Of course, one cannot pass over in silence the experience of America: one immediately recalls the names of Archbishop John (Shakhovsky), who wrote about "white monasticism" and warned against "sectarianism in Orthodoxy" and dared to find "Orthodoxy in sectarianism", and the ever-memorable Protopresbyter Alexander Schmemann, a new preacher of Orthodoxy in America, who delved deeply into the liturgical and catechumenical traditions of the Church and did much to remember, comprehend and rethink it from the standpoint of modern church life. I would like to name the names of living Orthodox figures, especially professors of St. Vladimir's Theological Seminary in New York, headed by Fr. John Meyendorff.

A similar experience is interesting, reflected in the book of the Archbishop of Finland Pavel "As We Believe", the experience of the activities of Syndesmos, the RSHD, foreign Orthodox brotherhoods, etc. It is a pity that, on the one hand, we know little about this experience, we know it fragmentarily, and on the other hand, as always, we do not have time to talk about it in more detail.

In connection with the foregoing, we can try to understand our current situation and the immediate tasks of our communities and parishes, our brotherhood and our church.

1. Families-communities

It is desirable for every family-community, in my opinion, to find in its environment such a head who, in unity with his rector, bishop and all the church people, especially in the parish, could become an ordained presbyter. If he, as the senior and responsible leader of the family, celebrated the Eucharist from house to house with subsequent agapes, then, perhaps, the rite of the Liturgy would naturally change and become simpler, and all members of the family-community could really participate in it in the fullness of their spiritual and spiritual gifts. . It can only be the Liturgy of the faithful, or there can be synaxal services, but everything is as God will give and as the Church will accept.

In order to find a leader for itself, each group of already catechumens, and even more so, already existing family-communities must be spiritually open and must find the strength in themselves to be born as families-communities, and continue to exist without special “coaching” from the elder brothers of the brotherhood and our Christian school. They are required to set aside only one evening a week for general meetings, including intercommunal and interward meetings, as well as time for joint services in accordance with their gift. Agapa and family councils should be held as a "liturgy after the Liturgy", with a corresponding responsibility for these meetings, which, as many of you know, is not always present in life.

2. Community parishes

Everyone should have a humble awareness of themselves as full members not only of their families-communities, but also of a specific, preferably communal parish, with full personal responsibility for its life and activities.

Probably, many have already encountered the great difficulty of this position. When you get used to consider yourself a member of the community, it is not easy to "attach" yourself to a particular parish, to feel like a full member of it, while remaining a full member of your community. It turns out to be quite difficult for many to realize and feel that they still cannot find a solution to the contradictions that arise in connection with this.

Sermon and catechesis, perhaps also further secondary theological education, should be organized at the level of the community parish (for members of the parish) or brotherhood (for members of the brotherhood) with the help of our Higher Orthodox Christian School. At the same level, other ministries should also develop, especially diakonia of every kind.

Parish churches could become both a meeting place and communication, including the Eucharistic, of several communities, and a place for joint spiritual, moral and cultural activities, including professional ones.

Communal parishes could also become a guarantor of the connection between families-communities and their members with the entire church and its hierarchy. But in each of them it is also necessary to quickly resolve the issue of membership in the parish and diptychs. It is desirable that it is in their own communal parish that they serve as presbyters, i.e. representatives of the church hierarchy, all the heads of the families-communities supporting this parish. This, of course, is only a certain perspective, but this idea seems very natural, although it has not yet received full approbation and reception in life.

3. Community brotherhood

Just as our parish is not just a parish, but a communal missionary parish, so our brotherhood is not just a brotherhood, but a communal brotherhood. Therefore, it must also unite and support family-communities and communal parishes, as well as organize inter-communal and inter-parish services and, as we have already said, maintain relations with other parishes, communities and church hierarchy together with communal parishes. It could also unite all family-communities and communal parishes, creating a kind of monastic (which does not necessarily mean monastic-monastic) unions.

4. Church

The Church as a parish and diocesan hierarchical structure, in my opinion, must learn new ways in its life, including those of the type described by us, and, by reasoning, trust them if it does not want to become a large confessional sect and, having turned into a national museum ghetto, push away in potency their own people. So far, he has not denied her confidence, but this is already being planned in our country. Alas, it is already planned. Yes, the people have not yet had time to repent and enter the Church, when they are already ready to refuse trust in the Church. We don't have to live in pink glasses, we must see the actual, real processes taking place in our country. Moreover, there are forces that quite consciously lead the people to such a result, accelerating it. However, the church, of course, has the right to support other forms and ways within itself.

Thus, now everyone needs to make every effort so that in our time in our church the traditional hierarchical diocesan-parish system takes its place, so that by doing so it can perform new functions, including establishing links between spiritual families-communities, so that these family-communities did not break away from it and did not degenerate into secret or overt sects. Only then will the still inevitable tension between our ordinary parishes, supported by the existing common hierarchical system, on the one hand, and communal parishes, communal families and communal brotherhoods, on the other, be lifted.

That's all I wanted to tell you today. Of course, it turned out quite a lot. The main thing that seems important to me now is to bring to our entire fraternal assembly the idea of ​​a possible organic connection between the traditionally existing system and what is now being implemented and felt by us as the will of God in our Church.

We cannot demand from others the same feeling, the same actions, for this would be pressure and therefore an act unecclesiastical, but we not only can, but are obliged to set an example. And this example should be of high quality, and not just external, since there should be no show in anything.

So, let's not forget that there is a problem of the unity of the missionary-communal movement with the church, which I spoke about, but it is possible to make such a connection precisely in our modern conditions without any conflicts destructive for the church. But I am very afraid that sometimes, carried away by the obvious advantages of communal life, some members of our brotherhood will already find it difficult to perceive the entire parish system, and will generally forget about the hierarchical system, because they do not know it and do not really want to hear about it.

Of course, it would be easy for them to refer to other church members who behave in the same way, because most of the parishioners of ordinary parishes really do not know anything and do not want to know anything about this hierarchical parish system of the church, except for some purely church leaders who directly work in churches , dioceses, etc. But this is a departure from the question, not a solution to it.

Thus, in carrying out church succession, we must think about how to “fulfill” in life that fullness that makes our church Orthodox. For our Church is not Orthodox because it differs from others in some external way, but because it is precisely she who gives the opportunity, the living opportunity, to each of its members to partake of the fullness of Christian life.

So it is necessary to join it, but not to tear it apart, because there will always be those who want to say “I am Appolosov, I am Kythin”, I am such and such, and you, respectively, are different, and therefore a stranger.

Dear brothers and sisters, this is all I wanted to bring to your judgment and discussion. In this regard, it is very interesting for us to hear the opinion of our fathers and guests, people who may not live the communal life as we do, but who naturally have sufficient spiritual experience to have a competent judgment on this matter. I think that we still have enough strength and patience and experience to listen to the speeches of all comers today.

Hieromonk Job (Gumerov)

The history of the Church reveals to us a sad truth: most of the discords and divisions in the Church come from self-appointed teachers.
Addressing uncalled tutors, driven by pride and self-conceit, St. Philaret of Moscow wrote: “Likewise, if you honor the dignity of a teacher, established in the Church of Christ, then you should not arbitrarily invade a teacher’s place or lightly run after teachers whom no one has appointed, and after the prophets, whom God did not send, but must, in meekness and obedience, pass the title of a disciple of the gospel under the guidance of teachers appointed by God and the Church, fearing to be a teacher for himself, and even more so, without a higher calling, to guide others or retrain teachers, appointed from God and the Church” (Word on the day of our father Alexy, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Russia, wonderworker, February 12, 1825). Saint Philaret relies on the apostolic warning: “My brethren! do not many become teachers, knowing that we will be subjected to greater condemnation” (James 3:1). Dangerous is the teaching of those who themselves are not yet established in the blessed experience of struggle with their own passions.

Newly come to the faith, regardless of age, education, culture, is a student elementary school spiritual life. He will have to work through the many centuries of grace-filled experience of the Church and gradually correct himself. Abba Isaiah the Hermit warns you to teach others what you yourself are only learning. “The desire to teach others, recognizing oneself as capable of this, is the cause of the fall for the soul. Those who are guided by self-conceit and wish to raise their neighbor to a state of dispassion lead their souls to a state of distress. Know and know that, instructing your neighbor to do this or that, you act as if with an instrument with which you are destroying your house at the same time as you are trying to build your neighbor’s house ”(Otechnik // Ignatius (Bryanchaninov), saint. Full collection. Moscow, 2004, vol. 6, pp. 122–123).

The tendency to self-proclaimed teaching is born of pride and leads to a dangerous spiritual disease that gradually progresses. First, such a “teacher” tries to correct people close to him. Then he seeks to change the life of his parish. Gradually, he comes to a critical assessment of the life of the Church. He has the intention to "resurrect" her.

Father Georgy Kochetkov was born in October 1950. “I, like many, was born a non-believer, went through an atheistic school and came to faith completely on my own somewhere at the end of high school, in the sixties.” In 1968, he graduated from high school, and two years later he "began to systematically engage in the mission and catechesis of adults since 1970" (from a biography posted on his personal website). That is, from the age of 20, being a novice in the Church, having no spiritual education, began to labor as a missionary and catechist. Already in his very first publication in early 1979, “Entering the Church and Confessing the Church in the Church” (Bulletin of the RHD, No. 128; under the pseudonym Nikolai Gerasimov), he formulated those ideas that later determined the principles of life of the community led by Father George. The development of these ideas was an article written by Father George in 1988 for the collection On the Way to Freedom of Conscience, which was being prepared for publication by the Progress publishing house. The collection was published, but the article was not included in it, but was published later in the journal "Community and Sobornost" (1991. No. 1). In it, Deacon George formulates one of his main ideas - the opposition of communal family life and church hierarchy: to preserve the apostolic succession of the “three orders hierarchy” with a tendency towards the “four orders” under the influence of all kinds of Western and Eastern papism)”. What way does Fr. George see from the unacceptable state for him, in which the Church has been for many centuries? Transition to community life. Moreover, such families-communities, in his opinion, should not necessarily be associated with parishes, but should remain free enough to maintain independence. “The Church, as a parish and diocesan hierarchical structure, in my opinion, must learn new ways in its life, including those of the type described by us, and, by reasoning, trust them if it does not want to become a large confessional sect and, turning into a national museum ghetto , potentially alienate their own people ”(The Parish, the community, the brotherhood, the church (On the experience of the life of missionary-communal parishes). Report at the II “Transfiguration Cathedral” in Moscow on August 19, 1991 // Orthodox community. 1991. No. 9) .

Gradually, priest Georgy Kochetkov from the program for the "correction" of the Church comes to the recognition of his leading personal participation in this matter. In an interview given in 1999, answering the question: “What was your idea of ​​the priestly ministry?”, he said: “I perceived the priestly ministry, first of all, as a kind of sacrifice of myself in order to gather the Church with Christ. I especially felt that the Church was not assembled. Orthodox people were then like sheep without a shepherd (however, now it sometimes seems that among the new shepherds there are too many who are more like wolves in sheep's clothing) ”(Sretensky sheet. Special issue. 1999. October).

This was said while he was under prohibition. In the same year, in another interview, speaking about the community he leads, Father George, when asked about the state of the community, said: “The community behaves in this sense surprisingly staunchly, in a literally apostolic spirit, in a prophetic spirit, in the spirit of martyrs, saints, in the spirit of great confessors and other saints.

For two decades now, the community (more precisely, the family of communities) of Father Georgy Kochetkov, while formally maintaining a connection with the Orthodox Church, has been an independent confessional structure. It is difficult to understand and explain the duration of this painful phenomenon in the life of the Church.

“One should not,” advises Hieromartyr Irenaeus of Lyon, “from others to look for truth, which is easy to receive in the Church. In it, as in a rich treasury, the apostles in full put everything that belongs to the truth. Anyone who wishes can drink the water of life from it, it is the door of life” (Against Heresies, Book 3, Ch. 4). A special property of the church treasury is the dogma, which has a divinely revealed source. Whoever systematically studied the dogmatic teaching of our Church could not but be amazed at the harmony and internal coherence of its parts. All the dogmas necessary for our salvation are contained with the utmost clarity and conciseness in the Creed, which was elaborated at the I (325) and II (381) Ecumenical Councils. It is part of the Divine Liturgy. It is pronounced three times during the catechumen of the sacrament of baptism. For those preparing for baptism, Father George compiled his “creed”: “I believe in the One Holy Living God – our Heavenly (Spiritual) Father and Creator of the whole material, spiritual and spiritual world; and into the Eternal Living Creative Wise and Only Begotten Word (Logos) by Him, by the Spirit and Power of God (see: Acts 10: 38) appeared in the world and incarnated in the Son of Man - Born of a chaste Wife (see: Gal. 4: 4 ), the Virgin Mary (Mariam), and Crucified out of envy and rejection, but Resurrected (Resurrected) through the Love of God and Unity with the Father - Jesus (Yeshua) of Nazareth, Who was God's Prophet, strong in deed and word (see: Lk 24:19), and the Son of God - the Anointed One (Mashiach, Messiah-Christ), foreseen by the ancient prophets, and Who became the Judge of all the living and the dead (see: Acts 10:42) and our One Lord-Liberator from slavery to this world that lies in evil (see: 1 John 5:19), and to the weak and poor material principles of this world (see: Gal. 4:3, 9), and our Savior, who mercifully forgives all sins to all believers those who repent and are baptized in His name (see: Acts 10:43; Mark 16:16); and in the Life-Giving and Prophetic Holy Spirit - the One Comforter (Paraclete), Whom the Lord instead of Himself sends from our Father into the world as a confirmation of the Fullness of our eternal Life in the Kingdom of God in Heaven, as a Gift of His one, holy, catholic (cathedral) and apostolic Church, that is, the world of God, and especially all those who sincerely love Him and truly believe in Him, and through Him, by the grace of God, who believe in a Personal God and in every person capable of conformity with God and becoming like God ”(“ In the beginning was the Word. ” Catechism for enlightened. M., 1999. S. 10–11).

It is bewildering why it was necessary to replace the Creed, which has been used by the Orthodox Church for more than 1500 years, with an unreadable text, in which there is not even a clear teaching about the Holy Trinity, since the Divinity of the Holy Spirit is not indicated. It is completely unclear whether its author considers the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit consubstantial, equal in honor and co-throne Persons (Hypostases) of the one God. If we turn to other texts of Father George, then bewilderment increases. Thus, he writes: “The dogma of the Holy Trinity proclaims the Mystery and is the sacrament of faith in the Divine Unity outside the framework of absolute monotony, the Unity that overcomes the “hateful strife of this world” by the power of Its uncreated divine Light” (Mysterious introduction to Orthodox catechetics. Dissertation for the degree of maitre en theologie of St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute in Paris, Moscow, 1998, p. 107).

In the 9th member of the Creed, the dogma about the Church is formulated: "I believe ... in the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church."

The Church is one because she is the Body of Christ, and Christ the Savior is one.

Priest Georgy Kochetkov put forward the idea of ​​the existence of two churches: "true" and "canonical". He writes: “Almost since apostolic times, the boundaries of the Church with a capital letter and the church with a small letter have noticeably diverged, so that if outside the true Church there is no true faith, but outside the canonical, “correct” Church, it appears, then this is direct evidence of such a divergence of boundaries. and the onset of the danger of losing in the canonical church the fullness of even potential churchness” (Faith outside the Church and the problem of churching // Afanasiev readings. International theological conference “The legacy of Professor-Protopresbyter Nikolai Afanasiev and the problems of modern church life (On the 100th anniversary of the birth)”. M., 1994).

There is a clear definition of the Church as a God-established community of people united Orthodox faith, Divine commandments, holy sacraments and hierarchies. This is the “canonical” Church. Father George does not give any definition of the church, which he calls "true", "mystical". No criteria specified. He only claims that it includes not only those who have not been baptized, but also those who do not believe in Jesus Christ: “Over the course of historical time, the mismatch between the boundaries of the true and canonical church has progressed, going further and further, until the appearance of phenomena and noumenons of open atheism, disbelief within the canonical church (remember, for example, the last inveterate general secretaries, who were buried only on the grounds that they were baptized) and recognized by many Christians as real personal holiness outside of them, but within the boundaries of the mystical Church (from Francis of Assisi to D. Bonhoeffer and A. Schweitzer, maybe even Mahatma Gandhi)”.

The Lutheran pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945), who showed courage in the fight against Nazism, was one of the creators of the concept of "non-religious Christianity", formulated in 1943-1944 in letters from prison to Eberhard Bethge. In them, he wrote about the end of historical Christianity: “The time has long passed when everything could be told to people in words (whether it be theological reasoning or pious speeches); the time of interest in the inner world of man and conscience, and hence in religion in general, has also passed. We are approaching a completely non-religious period: people simply can no longer remain religious. Even those who honestly call themselves “religious” are in fact not at all like that: apparently, by “religiosity” they understand something else ”(Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Resistance and Submission).

Father Georgy Kochetkov is ready to rank among the members of the “true” Church even M. Gandhi (1869–1948), who said (“Ethical Religion”):

“I am an extreme reformer, but I do not reject any of the main beliefs of Hinduism”;
“I believe in the cow-guarding cult in a much broader sense than the one in which the people understand it”;

"I do not reject the cult of idols";

“I do not believe in the exclusive divinity of the Vedas. I believe that the Bible, the Koran and the Zend-Avesta are just as divinely inspired as the Vedas”;

“All religions are different paths converging towards one goal” (HindSwaraj).

Christianity in the understanding of Father George is so vague that he also ranked Muslims as Christians: they call Jesus the Messiah, everyone knows this sura, and the Messiah is Christ, then why are they not Christians? At that time I did not yet know the famous quotation from St. Philaret of Moscow: “I dare not call any church that believes that Jesus is the Christ false.” For me, Muslims are Christians: they are, as it were, Protestants of the 7th century” (Materials of the International Scientific and Theological Conference. Moscow, September 29 - October 1, 2004. M .: St. Philaretovsky Institute, 2005. P. 114–115).

Several confusion arises:

1. Islam denies the Christian doctrine of the Holy Trinity, denies the expiatory death of the Savior on the Cross, does not recognize the Resurrection of Christ. It is not clear how Father George decided to consider as Christians those who deny these fundamental truths. “But if Christ is not risen, then your faith is in vain: you are still in your sins” (1 Cor. 15:17).

2. Father George, apparently, does not know that there is no teaching about the Messiah in the Koran. Jesus, the son of Mary, in Islam is only a prophet (nabi) and a messenger of Allah (rasul). Why then does the Qur'an use the word "al-Masih" (verse 75, sura 5)? According to the Islamic theologian Abu Ishaq Ibrahim al-Firouzbadi (d. 1083), the word "al-Masih" in relation to Jesus in the Qur'an was adopted from Christians and does not carry that sacred meaning given by Christians. This view is confirmed by reference to the Qur'an. I quote the 75th verse (Sura 5) in four translations:

E. Kuliyeva: “The Messiah, the son of Maryam (Mary), was just a messenger. Before him, too, there were messengers, and his mother was a truthful woman. Both of them were eating. See how We make the signs clear to them. And then see how they are turned away from the truth.”

M.-N. Osmanova: “The Messiah, the son of Maryam, is just a messenger. Many messengers long before him [came and] left. His mother is a righteous woman, and both of them took food. See how We make the signs clear to them. And see again how far they are [from their understanding]!”

I.Yu. Krachkovsky: “The Messiah, the son of Maryam, is only a messenger, messengers have already passed before him, and his mother is a righteous one. Both of them ate food. See how We explain the signs to them; then look how disgusted they are!”

I.V. Prokhorova: “The Messiah, the son of Maryam, is nothing more than a messenger - He was preceded by many others, and his mother was a righteous one. They ate food (which is for mortals) - see how clearly We explain Our signs to them, and see how far (from the Truth) they are!

As we can see, verse 75 does not contain an affirmation of the Messiahship of Jesus, but, on the contrary, a denial.

3. The reference to the statement of St. Philaret (“Conversations between the searching and confident about the Orthodoxy of the Greek-Russian Church” (St. Petersburg, 1815, p. 27–29) is absolutely untenable, since the saint speaks only of heterodox denominations that recognize Jesus as Divine Messiah It does not apply to non-believers at all.

How does Father George's understanding of the "canonical" church correlate with New Testament and patristic ecclesiology?

In the interview “The Church should aggravate questions”, we come across the following statement: “When Konstantin Sigov asked me about the nature of the“ blessed fire ”and about my attitude to this phenomenon, I, unexpectedly for myself, answered that this is God’s punishment for the absence of churches of the fire of Pentecost. At that moment, I really felt completely involved in what happened on Pentecost in the thirtieth year with the holy apostles ”(Kepha newspaper. 2005. No. 6 (33), June).

The statement about the absence of the fire of Pentecost in our Church contains the heaviest accusation that can be made against the Orthodox Church - the denial of her grace. With the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles (fiery tongues - a visible image), the Church was born. From that day on, the Church lives by the grace of the Holy Spirit, all the sacraments are performed in it. “As long as God preserves the existence of His Church, until then the Holy Spirit abides in her” (St. Philaret of Moscow). Hieromartyr Hilarion (Troitsky) says the same thing: “The Spirit of God lives in the Church. This is not a dry and empty dogmatic position, preserved only out of respect for antiquity. No, this is precisely the truth, experienced by everyone who has become imbued with the Church's consciousness and Church life... Too often people now talk about the lack of life in the Church, about the "revival" of the Church. We find it difficult to understand all these speeches and are very inclined to recognize them as completely meaningless. Life in the Church can never dry up, for until the end of the age the Holy Spirit abides in it (John 14:16). And there is life in the Church. Only churchless people do not notice this life. The life of the Spirit of God is incomprehensible to a spiritual person, it even seems to him foolishness, for it is accessible only to a spiritual person. .

Father Georgy Kochetkov's denial of the grace of our Church signifies his complete internal separation from it. Outwardly, he and his community do not leave the church fence, because such a position helps to attract followers to the community. The reason is obvious. History shows that interest in schismatic movements disappears very quickly in society.

Not recognizing the grace of the “canonical” Church, Father George regularly gives her harsh, sometimes rude, assessments. I will cite some of them so that the measure of Father George's spiritual alienation from the Church can be seen:

“The Church itself is not churched! The church is not churching like never before
before!" (Kifa. 2004. No. 4, July–August).

– “Society, from a certain unity, built, perhaps, not from the most durable material, has turned into a pile of sand. But we see the same thing in the Church. This is also a kind of pile of sand” (ibid.).

“And hence the all-round crisis in church life: in parishes, and in missions, and in education, and in work with children, and in asceticism, and in ethics, and in prayer, and often in the sacraments. Whatever we undertake, we always meet with some very serious perversions and problems” (Ibid.).

- “a church with a small letter, where there is often really a place for violence, averaging, restriction of freedom and suppression of creativity and a variety of forms and formulas of life, where there is pressure from dead and untrue members, where there is suffering from false brothers ... from those created in the church with their main participation false traditions” (Faith outside the Church and the problem of churching).

– “Orthodoxy has become an unusually legalistic religious
system… people feel that modern Orthodoxy lacks freedom, “grace and truth.”

– The Church “became closer to the ideology of spiritual decline – “protective Orthodoxy” and the ensuing isolationism, nationalism, nationalization, Bursat scholasticism, magic clericalism… This was expressed in strict demands for the canonization of the former Emperor Nicholas II and a departure from inter-Christian dialogue and communication” (“Yes, I can confirm and sign all this" // NG-Religion. No. 12 (58) of June 28, 2000).

In the report “On the Problems of Modern Eschatology” (2005), Father Georgy spoke about the new, “post-Constantinian” period of the Church: “There was also an attempt to sum up the entire Constantinian period of church history, including in the field of theology, which was brilliantly done about . Sergiy Bulgakov and N.A. Berdyaev, and in the West - the Second Vatican Council and all those who prepared it: Catholic theologians and church leaders and Pope John XXIII” (Kifa. 2005. No. 6 (33), p. 10).

Father George directly denies the most important dogma of the Church about the inspiration of Holy Scripture. In an interview given by him in the summer of 2012, he said: “After all, some concepts and things that may have previously served people an excellent service, inevitably then become outdated, become meaningless. But then the spirit is lost! Open the Bible, the Old and New Testament, see how many have died since then. This is also visible to the naked eye. Some things are very much alive and some are not. Gone are the days when it was believed that the Bible was written by people with their eyes closed, and their hand was led by the Holy Spirit himself. These are grandmother's tales. And since all this was written by people, it means that they brought something of their own, human” (Harvard Business Review Russia. 2012. No. 8 (80), August).

Father George in this interview only openly expressed his non-Orthodox attitude to the Holy Scripture, which he had in the works of the 1990s. In Catechism for Catechists, he wrote: “Let us now turn to the first stage of the earthly life of Jesus Christ - from the “prophetic” Conception and Birth of Jesus, mythologized by the gospels, to His Baptism and Temptation in the wilderness” (“Go, make disciples of all nations.” Catechism for Catechists Moscow, 1999, p. 225). What prophecy are you talking about? What prophecy does Father George call mythologized? The one that is contained in the book of the prophet Isaiah (7: 14: "Behold, the Virgin in the womb will receive and give birth to a Son"). Father George takes the word prophecy even in quotation marks. Why is this understanding unorthodox? Because the Orthodox understanding is expressed in the theology of the holy fathers. The ecumenical teacher John Chrysostom says: “Joseph would not have calmed down his thoughts so soon, hearing from an angel that She is a Virgin, if he had not heard it from Isaiah before; but from the prophet he had to hear it, not as something strange, but as something well-known and long occupied him. That is why the angel, so that his words would be more conveniently accepted, cites the prophecy of Isaiah; and does not stop there, but raises the prophecy to God, saying that these are not the words of a prophet, but of the God of all. Therefore he did not say, Let it be done what was spoken by Isaiah, but he said, Let it be done what was said by the Lord. The mouth was Isaiah, but the prophecy was given from above ”(Interpretation of St. Matthew the Evangelist. Conversation V. 2).

Father George considers many gospel stories about miracles to be mythologized (legendary, fabulous): “The narrative material, including miracles and phenomena, is essentially mythologized, legendary God-Apparitions, which means that they also include stories about Christmas, Baptism, Temptation, Transfiguration, Walking on the Waters, Entrance to Jerusalem, Passion, Resurrection and Ascension of Christ. All of them speak not just of the Humanity of Jesus, but also of the divine power and glory of Christ, and therefore they are always mythologized” (“Go, teach ...”, p. 275).

Without limiting himself to denying the truth of many gospel narratives, Father George gives the following general assessment of the holy Four Gospels: “All four of our Gospels assimilated both the Jewish religious and mystical traditions, and the Hellenistic moral and emotional culture with elements of Greek philosophy and the dialectics of Greek myth” (Ibid. pp. 279).

The doctrine of the inspiration of the holy Bible was already expressed in the Old Testament books. They clearly express the idea of ​​the operation of the Spirit of God in the prophets. The holy writer cites the words of King David: “The Spirit of the Lord speaks in me, and His word is on my tongue” (2 Samuel 23:2). The prophets begin their books by testifying that God put words into them: "And the word of the Lord came to me" (Jer. 1:4); "The word of the Lord which came to Hosea" (Hosea 1:1); "The word of the Lord which came to Joel" (Joel 1:1).

The very concept of “divinely inspired” (Greek theopneustos) is found in the apostolic epistles: “All Scripture is inspired by God” (2 Tim. 3:16). The apostle Peter testifies that all Scripture comes from God: “For prophecy was never uttered according to the will of man, but the saints spoke it. God's people being moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Pet. 1:21).

This dogma is revealed in the works of the holy fathers, who relied on the grace-filled experience of spiritual life. St. John Cassian speaks of the need to purify the heart before trying to comprehend its meaning: “Whoever wants to understand the Holy Scriptures should be engaged not so much in reading interpreters as in cleansing the heart from carnal vices. If these vices are exterminated, then, after the veil of passions is removed, the eyes of the soul will contemplate the mysteries of Holy Scripture. For it is not revealed from the Holy Spirit so that we do not know it; it is dark because our spiritual eyes are covered with a veil of vices; and if they are restored to their natural health, then one reading of the Holy Scriptures will be enough to comprehend its true meaning, and there will be no need for the help of interpreters, just as bodily eyes do not need any science for seeing, if only they are pure and there is no darkness. That is why so many differences and errors have occurred among the interpreters themselves, that, starting to interpret the Holy Scriptures, they do not care about the purification of the spirit: because of the impurity of the heart, they not only do not see the light of truth, but also come up with many things that are contrary to faith ”(Epistle to Castor , Bishop of Apt, Book V, Chapter 34).

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O. Georgy Kochetkov. Photo: ogkochetkov.ru
Closely connected with the denial of the inspiration of the holy Bible is the rejection of other fundamental dogmatic truths contained in Holy Scripture.

The exceptionally high veneration of the Mother of God is not only a feature and manifestation of Orthodox piety. It is based on the dogmatic teaching of the Church about the Savior of the world. Without a precise and correct understanding of the significance of the Blessed Virgin in the economy of our salvation, there can be no Orthodox dogma.

Mother of God is the Ever-Deva (Greek Aeiparthenos). The dogma of the virgin, seedless Birth of our Lord Jesus Christ is based on the Holy Gospel. The Blessed Virgin says to the angel-evangelist: “How will it be when I don’t know my husband?” (Luke 1:34). Archangel Gabriel said: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:35).

The dogma of the virgin incarnation of the Son of God Holy Fathers Ecumenical Council introduced into the Creed: "... and became incarnate of the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin, and became human." Instead of an absolutely clear and precisely formulated teaching, Father George offers the following reasoning: “What has been said does not, of course, mean that virgin conception has ever been rejected in Christianity. Christianity just tried not to talk much about it, keeping this moment a secret, which is very important for us. The conception of Christ has always seemed, of course, perfectly chaste. But chastity can be understood in different ways. It can be understood more externally - in the physical, bodily sense, but it can also be understood more deeply and spiritually, that is, in a slightly different way. As the most profound Christian ascetics noted, one can lose chastity while not married, but one can live in marriage, have children and be completely chaste. Moreover, even before the fall, while still in paradise, God gave the commandment to man: “Be fruitful and multiply.” So it is not in carnal relationships as such that sin, although often among people sin is expressed in these relationships, but in something else.

Bewilderment may arise: why was the above reasoning necessary, given the clear testimony of the Gospel that the virginity of the Mother of God was both spiritual and bodily? The author himself gives the answer: “The chastity of the Conception and Birth of Christ is unconditional, but how it was from the point of view of the physical remains a mystery, no one on earth knew, does not know and will not know” (“Go, teach ...” M., 1999 pp. 249). It can be seen from the above quotation that the author does not share the Orthodox dogma about the virgin incarnation of Jesus Christ. Following the sowed doubt in the Orthodox dogma, Father George writes: “So, since Matthew in 1: 18-25 connects the original Christian tradition about the birth of Jesus from Joseph with the belief in the physical virginity of this birth close to the spirit of the Hellenistic era, he further cites a corresponding quotation from the writings of the prophet Isaiah: "Behold, the Virgin in the womb shall receive and give birth to a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel." Although it must be borne in mind here that Isaiah does not have exactly the same word.

“Parthenos” is “virgin” in Greek (according to the Septuagint), and in the Hebrew text is “alma” - “a young unmarried woman, a young woman, a maiden”, i.e. the concept is broader. It is no coincidence that modern specialists in the text of the New Testament argue that behind the canonical story of Matthew, perhaps, there was an even more ancient story, the content of which, of course, is very guesswork for us. However, there are also very ancient Syriac versions of the text of Matthew, which allow us to assume a story with an emphasized role of the fatherhood of Joseph.

1. For a believing Orthodox person, the Holy Gospel is an indisputable authority. Evangelist Matthew, speaking about the virgin birth of Jesus, speaks of the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah.

2. Father George circumvents the truth with the help of reasoning, in which he refers to some "original Christian tradition about the birth of Jesus from Joseph." This could not be, because the Holy Tradition, which originates from the apostles, does not diverge from the Holy Scriptures.

3. What does Fr. George mean when he writes about “faith close to the spirit of the Hellenistic era in the physical virginity of this birth”? We are talking about pagan myths about a husbandless conception, common in the late antique era from Greece to India. This parallel is blasphemous. It was carried out in the II century by Celsus.

4. In contrast to the Evangelist Matthew, who speaks of the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecy (“hine ha-alma hara veyedet Ben”), Father George does not believe that the prophet Isaiah is talking about the virginity of Mother Immanuel. Regarding Is. 7:14 the author uses the rationalistic objections of 19th-century biblical scholars who base their argument on the fact that the Hebrew word "alma" has two meanings: "virgin" and "young woman." They argue that this place of the great prophet the evangelist "adapts" to the Christian understanding of the birth of the Messiah. However, already Jewish translators (interpreters sent by the high priest Eleazar) 2.5 centuries before this New Testament event put the Parthenos in the Greek text. Second, the prophet Isaiah says that the Lord will do a sign. The birth of a married woman is a natural thing. There is no omen in this either for contemporaries or for posterity. And the virgin conception and the birth of a son is a supernatural thing and is a special sign.

The word "alma" is used in Hebrew Bible in the meaning of "maiden" in other books: in Gen. 24:43 speaks of Rachel before her marriage; in Ex. 2:8 almah refers to Miriam, the sister of Moses.

In addition to Is.7:14, there is another prophecy about the virginal conception of the Savior - from the prophet Ezekiel: “And he brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, facing east, and they were closed. And the Lord said to me: This gate will be shut, it will not be opened, and no man will enter by it, for the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered by it, and they will be ”(Ezek. 44: 1-2).

“The Son of God, born before the ages of the Father and in the last days incarnated from the Virgin, born to Him only in a known way, seedless and indescribable, preserving virginity uncorrupted ... Whoever denies that Mary gave birth to God will not see the glory of His Divinity” (St. Ephraim the Syrian ).

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Hieromonk Job (Gumerov). Photo: A. Pospelov / Pravoslavie.Ru
In his report “In Search of the Meaning of History” at a colloquium in Jerusalem in the spring of 2005, Father George said that “a modern Christian cannot seriously support, say, the doctrine of the immortality of the human soul. It has become so deeply embedded in the flesh and blood of people, as well as in various ecclesiastical and near-church writings and traditions, that it seems that if this immortality does not exist, then the very foundations of faith are destroyed” (Kifa, 2005, no. 6 (33), p. 10). In an interview about this report, he again spoke about disbelief in the immortality of the soul: “I have talked a lot about fundamentalism as practical atheism and that it is now almost impossible for a conscious Christian to believe in the theory of the immortality of the soul. For Catholics, this is a very “shocking” thing ”(Kefa. 2005. No. 6 (33), p. 4). Father George with this statement denies the 12th article of the Creed of the Orthodox Church.

The doctrine of the immortality of the soul is one of the most fundamental in the Holy Scriptures. Whoever rejects it ceases to be a Christian. In the holy Gospel the Lord says: “He who loves his soul will destroy it; but he who hates his soul in this world will keep it for eternal life” (John 12:25). Also, the holy Apostle Paul: “For we know that when our earthly house, this hut, is destroyed, we have from God a habitation in heaven, a house not made with hands, eternal” (2 Cor. 5: 1).

The doctrine of the immortality of the soul is the most important part of the patristic heritage:
- “For this we have an immortal soul, in order to fully prepare for that life” (John Chrysostom, saint. About the Samaritan woman and to the words: “So He comes to the city of Samaria, called Sychar” (John 4: 5).

- “The whole world is not worth one soul, because the world is transitory, but the soul is imperishable, and abides forever” (John of the Ladder, reverend. A special word to the shepherd, what should be the teacher of verbal sheep. 13: 18).

– “We admit that the soul is divine and immortal, however, it is not consubstantial with the Divine and Royal nature and is not a part of this Divine, Creative and everlasting nature” (Isidore Pelusiot, Rev. Letters. Book 3. To Presbyter Digyptius).

In the publications of Father Georgy Kochetkov, one can often find the assertion that he and his community are persecuted, because in their spiritual life they strive to overcome "formalism", "fundamentalism", "indifference", "legalism" in the Church. For this they defend freedom, the right to individuality and creativity.

It is not true. The fullness and high intensity of the spiritual life in the Church does not lead to a clash with the liturgical typikon, canons, tradition, and other church communities. Suffice it to recall the experience of parish communities led by Archpriest Valentin Amfiteatrov, Saints Alexy and Sergius Mechev, Rev. Sevastian Karaganda and others. Yevgeny Poselyanin, who often visited the Kremlin church of Saints Constantine and Helena, says: “Father Valentine proved that a zealous priest can attract worshipers to abandoned, non-parish churches. Even on weekdays, it was crowded in his temple. The people flocked to him not only to pray, but also to open their souls to him, pour out their accumulated grief, ask for advice ”(Poselyanin E. In memory of a zealous pastor // Church Gazette. 1908. No. 44, November 1. P. 2171-2173). For eighteen years, the self-sacrificing pastor served the Divine Liturgy every day, after which “with extreme zeal” he performed prayers and requiems, several of both, at the request of those who came, and then talked with people burdened with sorrows. Already the first meeting with him brought noticeable relief to a suffering soul and crushed by sorrows. And then, having accepted him into his spiritual flock, the priest led him to salvation, no matter how long and difficult the path was. In his pastoral ministry, Father Valentin relied on the traditions of Orthodox eldership. Trying to instill in his parishioners, first of all, inner piety, he encouraged them to pay special attention to the innermost life of the soul. Among many Muscovites there was even a custom: at least once a year to talk in the community of Father Valentine. There were marvelous spiritual fruits. All this was done without dividing the community into "full" and "incomplete", without Russification of worship, without opposition to the "fundamentalists", without criticism of the Church.

The determining factor for the worldview of Father George is N.A. Berdyaev. He took the main religious and philosophical ideas from him: “It is a great joy to meet N. Berdyaev, whom, it seems to me, I not only love, but also understand. His apologetic gift in the church is unique, as is his revelation about God, man, the church. He is the first time since ap. Paul spoke in the Christian language, and in such a way that all people felt that they needed Berdyaev and his Christianity” (http://www.zavetspisok.ru/kochetkov.htm).

– “Berdyaev understood the role of the church, but was more willing to fulfill his great prophetic mission – to support the “fallen tabernacle of David”, to manifest in life and strengthen the Church. He never left Orthodoxy, but often had a low opinion of the Orthodox confessional institution”;

“He felt the need for all Christians to break through their confessional limitations and life untruths. He was interested in both the teaching and the life of the church, although he understood that life surpasses the church teaching and that the teaching becomes its enviable model”;

– “He built a new building of non-objectified and non-idealized knowledge of God, the world, life and man, not embarrassing to use in this construction, as it were, “scaffolding” - mythologemes (Ungrund, Adam Kadmon, communism, etc.). However, it is clear that as the construction of the building is completed, these “forests” are less and less necessary for him and us (like the “sophiology” of S.N. Bulgakov’s congenial father)”;
- "ON THE. Berdyaev rethought and approved, as a kind of aristocratic, "ascetic virtues" in Christianity. He raised obedience to God, and humility to its root - the World, which is the same God (remember what was said about Christ: “He is our peace”);

“He can be recognized by all as one of the spiritual fathers of modern humanity.”

I have given only a part of the dithyrambic assessments of N.A. Berdyaev, so that the reader can understand religious outlook Father Georgy Kochetkov. About the true spirituality of N.A. Berdyaev is easy to form an idea based on his works.

The doctrine of N. Berdyaev about God, formed under the influence of the German theosophist Jacob Boehme (1575-1624), from the point of view of the biblical Christian doctrine is absolutely false, heretical. ON THE. Berdyaev does not recognize the primacy and omnipotence of God: “From the Divine Nothing, from Gottheit, from Ungrund, the Holy Trinity is born, God the Creator is born. The creation of the world by God the Creator is already a secondary act. From this point of view, it can be recognized that freedom was not created by God the Creator, it is rooted in Nothing, in Ungrund, primary and without beginning ”(On the appointment of a person. Experience of paradoxical ethics. Ch. 2).

Historical Christianity is too ascetic for him:

– “Great is the significance of Dionysism in religious life; one can welcome the modern revival of Dionysus as a way to reconcile Christianity and paganism” (New Religious Consciousness and Society. Mysticism and Religion. XXXVIII);

- "St. John Chrysostom was a real communist of his time, a representative of the Constantinople proletariat” (Is there freedom of thought and conscience in Orthodoxy // Way. 1939. No. 59, February-April);

“Christians of a new type, a new sense of life, creative Christians of all denominations echo each other, and there is more closeness between them than within each denomination. They must unite” (ibid.);

– “A monk can sit in seclusion for twenty years, he can devote himself entirely to ascetic exercises, pray most of the day and still be in a terrible obscurantism of the mind, obscurantism of moral assessments of social life, there may be a very weak degree of humanization in him. Bishop Theophan the Recluse, for example, was such an obscurantist. Such were many elders” (Spirit and Reality. Fundamentals of Divine-human Spirituality).

Father George believes: “Berdyaev’s significance for the Church is very promising” (You should not look at who people revere him for // Kifa. 2004. No. 3 (18), March).

The activity of Father Georgy Kochetkov leads to conflicts and discords because his religious and philosophical outlook is alien to Orthodoxy, which is based on the theology and spiritual experience of the holy fathers. The practice, which is rapidly expanding every year, poses a serious danger to the Orthodox Church.
Hieromonk Job (Gumerov)

Bogoslov.Ru

Addressing uncalled teachers, driven by pride and conceit, he wrote: “Likewise, if you honor the dignity of a teacher, established in the Church of Christ, then you should not arbitrarily invade the place of a teacher or frivolously run after teachers whom no one appointed, and after the prophets. whom God did not send, but who, in meekness and obedience, must pass the title of a disciple of the gospel under the guidance of teachers appointed by God and the Church, fearing to be a teacher for himself, and even more so, without a higher calling, to guide others or retrain teachers, from God and Churches appointed ”(Word on the day of the saints of our father Alexy, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Russia, miracle worker. February 12, 1825). Saint Philaret relies on the apostolic warning: “My brethren! do not many become teachers, knowing that we will be subjected to greater condemnation” (James 3:1). Dangerous is the teaching of those who themselves are not yet established in the blessed experience of struggle with their own passions.

A person who has recently come to faith, regardless of age, education, culture, is a student of the elementary school of spiritual life. He will have to work through the many centuries of grace-filled experience of the Church and gradually correct himself. Abba Isaiah the Hermit warns you to teach others what you yourself are only learning. “The desire to teach others, recognizing oneself as capable of this, causes a fall for the soul. Those who are guided by self-conceit and wish to raise their neighbor to a state of dispassion lead their souls to a state of distress. Know and know that, instructing your neighbor to do this or that, you act as if you were an instrument with which you destroy your house at the same time as you attempt to build your neighbor’s house ”(Otechnik // Ignatius (Bryanchaninov), saint. Full coll. op. M., 2004. T. 6. S. 122–123).

The tendency to self-proclaimed teaching is born of pride and leads to a dangerous spiritual disease that gradually progresses. First, such a “teacher” tries to correct people close to him. Then he seeks to change the life of his parish. Gradually, he comes to a critical assessment of the life of the Church. He has the intention to "resurrect" her.

Father Georgy Kochetkov was born in October 1950. “I, like many, was born a non-believer, went through an atheistic school and came to faith completely on my own somewhere at the end of high school, in the sixties.” In 1968 he graduated from high school, and two years later already " systematically began to engage in the mission and catechesis of adults since 1970”(from a biography posted on his personal website). That is, from the age of 20, being a novice in the Church, having no spiritual education, he began to ascetic missionary and a catechist. Already in his very first publication in early 1979, “Entering the Church and Confessing the Church in the Church” (Bulletin of the RHD, No. 128; under the pseudonym Nikolai Gerasimov), he formulated those ideas that later determined the principles of life of the community led by Father George. The development of these ideas was an article written by Father George in 1988 for the collection On the Way to Freedom of Conscience, which was being prepared for publication by the Progress publishing house. The collection was published, but the article was not included in it, but was published later in the journal "Community and Sobornost" (1991. No. 1). In it, Deacon George formulates one of his main ideas - opposition of community-family life and church hierarchy:“The modern structure of the Orthodox Church remains fundamentally, as it was many centuries ago, parochial and rigidly hierarchical (i.e., based on the call to preserve the apostolic succession of the “three-order hierarchy” with a tendency towards the “four-order” under the influence of all kinds of Western and Eastern papism). What way does Fr. George see from the unacceptable state for him, in which the Church has been for many centuries? Transition to community life. Moreover, such families-communities, in his opinion, should not necessarily be associated with parishes, but should remain free enough to maintain independence. " Church as a parish and diocesan hierarchical structure, in my opinion, must learn new ways in her life, including those of the type described by us, and by reasoning trust them if you don't want to be big confessional sect and, turning into a national museum ghetto, potentially alienate their own people ”(The Parish, the community, the brotherhood, the church (On the experience of the life of missionary-communal parishes). Report at the II “Transfiguration Cathedral” in Moscow on August 19, 1991 // Orthodox community. 1991. No. 9) .

Gradually, priest Georgy Kochetkov from the program for the "correction" of the Church comes to the recognition of his leading personal participation in this matter. In an interview given in 1999, answering the question: « What was your idea of ​​the priestly service?”, he said: “I perceived the priestly service, first of all, as a kind of sacrifice of myself in order to gather with Christ the Church. I especially felt that Church not assembled. Orthodox people were then like sheep without a shepherd(however, now it sometimes seems that among the new shepherds there are too many who are more like wolves in sheep's clothing) ”(Sretensky sheet. Special issue. 1999. October).

This was said while he was under prohibition. In the same year, in another interview, speaking about the community he leads, Father George, when asked about the state of the community, said: “The community behaves in this sense surprisingly staunchly, in a literally apostolic spirit, in a prophetic spirit, in the spirit of martyrs, saints, in the spirit of great confessors and other saints.”

For two decades now, the community (more precisely, the family of communities) of Father Georgy Kochetkov, while formally maintaining a connection with the Orthodox Church, has been an independent confessional structure. It is difficult to understand and explain the duration of this painful phenomenon in the life of the Church.

“You should not,” he advises, “look for the truth from others, which easy to get in church. In it, as in a rich treasury, the apostles in full put everything that belongs to the truth. Anyone who wishes can drink the water of life from it, it is the door of life” (Against Heresies, Book 3, Ch. 4). A special property of the church treasury is the dogma, which has a divinely revealed source. Whoever systematically studied the dogmatic teaching of our Church could not but be amazed at the harmony and internal coherence of its parts. All the dogmas necessary for our salvation are contained with the utmost clarity and brevity in, which was developed at the I (325) and II (381) Ecumenical Councils. It is part of the Divine Liturgy. It is pronounced three times during the catechumen of the sacrament of baptism. For those preparing for baptism, Father George compiled his “creed”: “I believe in the One Holy Living God – our Heavenly (Spiritual) Father and Creator of the whole material, spiritual and spiritual world; and into the Eternal Living Creative Wise and Only Begotten Word (Logos) by Him, by the Spirit and Power of God (see: Acts 10: 38) appeared in the world and incarnated in the Son of Man - Born of a chaste Wife (see: Gal. 4: 4 ), the Virgin Mary (Mariam), and Crucified out of envy and rejection, but Resurrected (Resurrected) through the Love of God and Unity with the Father - Jesus (Yeshua) of Nazareth, Who was God's Prophet, strong in deed and word (see: Lk 24: 19), and the Son of God - the Anointed One (Mashiach, Messiah-Christ), foreseen by the ancient prophets, and Who became the Judge of all the living and the dead (see: Acts 10: 42) and our One Lord-Liberator from slavery to this world that lies in evil (see: 1 John 5:19), and to the weak and poor material principles of this world (see: Gal. 4:3, 9), and our Savior, who mercifully forgives all sins to all believers those who repent and are baptized in His name (see: Acts 10:43; Mark 16:16), and in the Life-Giving and Prophetic Holy Spirit - the only Comforter (Paraclete), whom the Lord remembers He sends Himself from our Father into the world as a confirmation of the Fullness of our Eternal Life in the Kingdom of God of Heaven, as a Gift of His one, holy, catholic (cathedral) and apostolic Church, that is, the world of God, and especially to all who sincerely love Him and truly believe in Him and through Him, by the grace of God, to those who believe in a Personal God and in every person capable of being conformed to God and becoming like God” (“In the beginning was the Word. Catechism for the enlightened. M., 1999. S. 10–11).

It is bewildering why it was necessary to replace the Creed, which has been used by the Orthodox Church for more than 1500 years, with an unreadable text, in which there is not even a clear teaching about the Holy Trinity, since the Divinity of the Holy Spirit is not indicated. It is completely unclear whether its author considers the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit consubstantial, equal in honor and co-throne Persons (Hypostases) of the one God. If we turn to other texts of Father George, then bewilderment increases. Thus, he writes: “The dogma of the Holy Trinity proclaims the Mystery and is the sacrament of faith in the Divine Unity outside the framework of absolute monotony, the Unity that overcomes the “hateful strife of this world” by the power of Its uncreated divine Light” (Mysterious introduction to Orthodox catechetics. Dissertation for the degree of maitre en theologie of St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute in Paris, Moscow, 1998, p. 107).

In the 9th article of the Creed, the dogma about the Church is formulated: "I believe ... in the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church" .

The Church is one because she is the Body of Christ, and Christ the Savior is one.

Put forward the idea of existence of two churches: "true" and "canonical". He writes: “Almost since apostolic times, the boundaries of the Church with a capital letter and the church with a small letter have noticeably diverged, so that if outside the true Church there is no true faith, but outside the canonical, “correct” Church, it appears, then this is direct evidence of such a divergence of boundaries. and the onset of the danger of losing in the canonical church the fullness of even potential churchness” (Faith outside the Church and the problem of churching // Afanasiev readings. International theological conference “The legacy of Professor-Protopresbyter Nikolai Afanasiev and the problems of modern church life (On the 100th anniversary of the birth)”. M., 1994).

There is a clear definition of the Church as a God-established community of people united by the Orthodox faith, Divine commandments, the Holy Sacraments and the hierarchy. This is the “canonical” Church. Father George does not give any definition of the church, which he calls "true", "mystical". No criteria specified. He only claims that it includes not only those who have not been baptized, but also those who do not believe in Jesus Christ: “Over the course of historical time, the mismatch between the boundaries of the true and canonical church has progressed, going further and further, until the appearance of phenomena and noumenons of open atheism, disbelief within the canonical church (remember, for example, the last inveterate general secretaries, who were buried only on the grounds that they were baptized) and recognized by many Christians as real personal holiness outside of them, but within the boundaries of the mystical Church (from Francis of Assisi to D. Bonhoeffer and A. Schweitzer, maybe even Mahatma Gandhi)”.

The Lutheran pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906–1945), who showed courage in the fight against Nazism, was one of the creators of the concept "non-religious Christianity", formulated in 1943–1944 in letters from prison to Eberhard Bethge. In them, he wrote about the end of historical Christianity: “The time has long passed when everything could be told to people in words (whether it be theological reasoning or pious speeches); the time of interest in the inner world of man and conscience, and hence in religion in general, has also passed. We are approaching a completely non-religious period: people simply can no longer remain religious. Even those who honestly call themselves “religious” are in fact not at all like that: apparently, by “religiosity” they mean something else” ( Dietrich Bonhoeffer. resistance and obedience).

Father Georgy Kochetkov is ready to rank among the members of the “true” Church even M. Gandhi (1869–1948), who said (“Ethical Religion”):

« I - an extreme reformer, but I do not reject any of the basic beliefs of Hinduism”;
“I believe in the cow-guarding cult in a much broader sense than the one in which the people understand it”;

"I do not reject the cult of idols» ;

“I do not believe in the exclusive divinity of the Vedas. I believe that the Bible, the Koran and the Zend-Avesta are just as divinely inspired as the Vedas”;

“All religions are different paths converging on one goal» (HindSwaraj).

Christianity in the understanding of Father George is so blurry that he also ranked Muslims as Christians: “When I read the Koran, then I was inside, for myself, not for someone, but for myself, I said: a muslims are christians… If they call Jesus the Messiah, everyone knows this sura, and the Messiah is Christ, then why are they not Christians? At that time I did not yet know the famous quotation from St. Philaret of Moscow: “I dare not call any church that believes that Jesus is the Christ false.” For me, Muslims are Christians: they are, as it were, Protestants of the 7th century” (Materials of the International Scientific and Theological Conference. Moscow, September 29 - October 1, 2004. M .: St. Philaretovsky Institute, 2005. P. 114–115).

Several confusion arises:

1. Islam denies the Christian doctrine of the Holy Trinity, denies the expiatory death of the Savior on the Cross, does not recognize. It is not clear how Father George decided to consider as Christians those who deny these fundamental truths. " And if Christ has not risen, then your faith is vain: you are still in your sins."(1 Cor. 15:17).

2. Father George, apparently, does not know that there is no teaching about the Messiah in the Koran. Jesus, the son of Mary, in Islam is only a prophet (nabi) and a messenger of Allah (rasul). Why then does the Qur'an use the word "al-Masih" (verse 75, sura 5)? According to the Islamic theologian Abu Ishaq Ibrahim al-Firuzbadi (d. 1083), the word "al-Masih" in relation to Jesus in the Qur'an was adopted from Christians and does not carry the sacred meaning that Christians attach. This view is confirmed by reference to the Qur'an. I quote the 75th verse (Sura 5) in four translations:

E. Kulieva: “Messiah, the son of Maryam (Mary), was just a messenger. Before him, too, there were messengers, and his mother was a truthful woman. Both of them were eating. See how We make the signs clear to them. And then see how they are turned away from the truth.”

M.-N. Osmanova: “Messiah, the son of Maryam, is just a messenger. Many messengers long before him [came and] left. His mother is a righteous woman, and both of them took food. See how We make the signs clear to them. And see again how far they are [from their understanding]!”

I.Yu. Krachkovsky: “The Messiah, the son of Maryam, is only a messenger, messengers have already passed before him, and his mother is a righteous one. Both of them ate food. See how We explain the signs to them; then look how disgusted they are!”

I.V. Prokhorova: “The Messiah, the son of Maryam, is nothing more than a messenger - He was preceded by many others, and his mother was a righteous one. They ate food (which is for mortals) - see how clearly We explain Our signs to them, and see how far (from the Truth) they are!

As we can see, verse 75 does not contain an affirmation of the Messiahship of Jesus, but, on the contrary, a denial.

3. The reference to the statement of St. Philaret (“Conversations between the searching and confident about the Orthodoxy of the Greek-Russian Church” (St. Petersburg, 1815, p. 27–29) is absolutely untenable, since the saint speaks only of heterodox denominations that recognize Jesus as Divine Messiah It does not apply to non-believers at all.

How does Father George's understanding of the "canonical" church correlate with New Testament and patristic ecclesiology?

In the interview “The Church should aggravate questions”, we come across the following statement: “When Konstantin Sigov asked me about the nature of the “Blessed Fire” and about my attitude to this phenomenon, I, unexpectedly for myself, answered that it is - God's punishment for the absence of the fire of Pentecost in the life of our church. At that moment, I really felt completely involved in what happened on Pentecost in the thirtieth year with the holy apostles ”(Kepha newspaper. 2005. No. 6 (33), June).

In the affirmation of the absence in our Church the fire of Pentecost contains the heaviest accusation that can be made against the Orthodox Church - the denial of her grace. With the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles (fiery tongues - a visible image), the Church was born. Since that day, the Church has lived by the grace of the Holy Spirit, all the mysteries are performed in it. “As long as God preserves the existence of His Church, until then the Holy Spirit abides in her” (St. Philaret of Moscow). Hieromartyr Hilarion (Troitsky) says the same thing: “The Spirit of God lives in the Church. This is not a dry and empty dogmatic position, preserved only out of respect for antiquity. No, that's exactly truth experienced to everyone who has become imbued with church consciousness and church life... Too often people now talk about the lack of life in the Church, about the “revival” of the Church. We find it difficult to understand all these speeches and are very inclined to recognize them as completely meaningless. Life in the Church can never dry up, for until the end of the age the Holy Spirit abides in it (John 14:16). And there is life in the Church. Only churchless people do not notice this life. The life of the Spirit of God is incomprehensible to a spiritual person, it even seems to him foolishness, for it is accessible only to a spiritual person. .

Father Georgy Kochetkov's denial of the grace of our Church signifies his complete internal separation from it. Outwardly, he and his community do not leave the church fence, because such a position helps to attract followers to the community. The reason is obvious. History shows that interest in schismatic movements disappears very quickly in society.

Not recognizing the grace of the “canonical” Church, Father George regularly gives her harsh, sometimes rude, assessments. I will cite some of them so that the measure of Father George's spiritual alienation from the Church can be seen:

“The Church itself is not churched! The church is not churching like never before
before!" (Kifa. 2004. No. 4, July–August).

– “Society, from a certain unity, built, perhaps, not from the most durable material, has turned into a pile of sand. But we see the same thing in the Church. It's also a pile of sand."(Ibid.).

“And hence the all-round crisis in church life: in parishes, and in missions, and in education, and in work with children, and in asceticism, and in ethics, and in prayer, and often in the sacraments. Whatever we undertake, we always meet with some very serious perversions and problems” (Ibid.).

- “a church with a small letter, where there is often really a place for violence, averaging, restriction of freedom and suppression of creativity and a variety of forms and formulas of life, where there is pressure from dead and untrue members, where there is suffering from false brothers ... from those created in the church with their main participation false traditions” (Faith outside the Church and the problem of churching).

“Orthodoxy has become unusually legalistic religious
system... people feel that modern Orthodoxy lacks freedom, “grace and truth.”

– The Church “became closer ideology of spiritual decline– “protective Orthodoxy” and the ensuing isolationism, nationalism, nationalization, Bursatian scholasticism, magical clericalism… This was expressed in strict demands for the canonization of the former Emperor Nicholas II and a departure from inter-Christian dialogue and communication” (“Yes, I can confirm and sign all this” // NG-Religion No. 12 (58) of June 28, 2000).

In the report “On the Problems of Modern Eschatology” (2005), Father Georgy spoke about the new, “post-Constantinian” period of the Church: “There was also an attempt to sum up the entire Constantinian period of church history, including in the field of theology, which was brilliantly done about . Sergiy Bulgakov and N.A. Berdyaev, and in the West - the Second Vatican Council and all those who prepared it: Catholic theologians and church leaders and Pope John XXIII” (Kifa. 2005. No. 6 (33), p. 10).

Father George directly denies the most important dogma of the Church about the inspiration of Holy Scripture. In an interview given by him in the summer of 2012, he said: “After all, some concepts and things that earlier, perhaps, served people an excellent service, inevitably then become outdated, become meaningless. But then the spirit is lost! Open the Bible, the Old and New Testament, see how many have died since then. This is also visible to the naked eye. Some things are very much alive and some are not. Gone are the days when it was believed that the Bible was written by people with their eyes closed, and their hand was led by the Holy Spirit himself. These are grandmother's tales. And since all this was written by people, it means that they brought something of their own, human "(Harvard Business Review Russia. 2012. No. 8 (80), August).

Father George in this interview only openly expressed his non-Orthodox attitude to the Holy Scripture, which he had in the works of the 1990s. In Catechism for Catechists, he wrote: “Let us now turn to the first stage of the earthly life of Jesus Christ - from the “prophetic” Conception and Birth of Jesus, mythologized by the gospels, to His Baptism and Temptation in the wilderness” (“Go, make disciples of all nations.” Catechism for Catechists Moscow, 1999, p. 225). What prophecy are you talking about? What prophecy does Father George call mythologized? The one that is contained in the book of the prophet Isaiah (7: 14: "Behold, the Virgin in the womb will receive and give birth to a Son"). Father George takes the floor prophecy even in quotation marks. Why is this understanding unorthodox? Because the Orthodox understanding is expressed in the theology of the holy fathers. The ecumenical teacher John Chrysostom says: “Joseph would not have calmed down his thoughts so soon, hearing from an angel that She is a Virgin, if he had not heard it from Isaiah before; but from the prophet he had to hear it, not as something strange, but as something well-known and long occupied him. That is why the angel, so that his words would be more conveniently accepted, cites the prophecy of Isaiah; and does not stop there, but raises the prophecy to God, saying that these are not the words of a prophet, but of the God of all. That is why he did not say, “Let what was spoken by Isaiah come true,” but he says: may the word of the Lord come true. The mouth was Isaiah, but the prophecy was given from above ”(Interpretation of St. Matthew the Evangelist. Conversation V. 2).

mythologized(legendary, fabulous) father Georgy considers many Gospel stories about miracles:“The narrative material, including miracles and apparitions, is essentially mythologized, legendary God Apparitions, which means that they also include stories about Christmas, Baptism, Temptation, Transfiguration, Walking on the waters, about the Entrance to Jerusalem, the Passion, Resurrection and Ascension of Christ. All of them speak not just of the Humanity of Jesus, but also of the divine power and glory of Christ, and therefore they are always mythologized” (“Go, teach ...”, p. 275).

Without limiting himself to denying the truth of many gospel narratives, Father George gives the following general assessment of the holy Four Gospels: “All four of our Gospels assimilated both the Jewish religious and mystical traditions, and the Hellenistic moral and emotional culture with elements of Greek philosophy and the dialectics of Greek myth” (Ibid. pp. 279).

The doctrine of the inspiration of the holy Bible was already expressed in the Old Testament books. They clearly express the idea of ​​the operation of the Spirit of God in the prophets. The holy writer cites the words of King David: “The Spirit of the Lord speaks in me, and His word is on my tongue” (2 Samuel 23:2). The prophets begin their books by testifying that God put words into them: "And the word of the Lord came to me" (Jer. 1:4); "The word of the Lord which came to Hosea" (Hosea 1:1); "The word of the Lord which came to Joel" (Joel 1:1).

The very concept of “divinely inspired” (Greek theopneustos) is found in the apostolic epistles: “All Scripture is inspired by God” (2 Tim. 3:16). The apostle Peter testifies that all Scripture comes from God: “For prophecy was never uttered by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Pet. 1:21).

This dogma is revealed in the works of the holy fathers, who relied on the grace-filled experience of spiritual life. St. John Cassian speaks of the need to purify the heart before trying to comprehend its meaning: “Whoever wants to understand the Holy Scriptures should be engaged not so much in reading interpreters as in cleansing the heart from carnal vices. If these vices are exterminated, then, after the veil of passions is removed, the eyes of the soul will contemplate the mysteries of Holy Scripture. For it is not revealed from the Holy Spirit so that we do not know it; it is dark because our spiritual eyes are covered with a veil of vices; and if they are restored to their natural health, then one reading of the Holy Scriptures will be enough to comprehend its true meaning, and there will be no need for the help of interpreters, just as bodily eyes do not need any science for seeing, if only they are pure and there is no darkness. That is why so many differences and errors have occurred among the interpreters themselves, that, starting to interpret the Holy Scriptures, they do not care about the purification of the spirit: because of the impurity of the heart, they not only do not see the light of truth, but also come up with many things that are contrary to faith ”(Epistle to Castor , Bishop of Apt, Book V, Chapter 34).

Closely connected with the denial of the inspiration of the Holy Bible is the rejection of other fundamental dogmatic truths contained in Holy Scripture.

Exceptionally high is not only a feature and manifestation of Orthodox piety. It is based on the dogmatic teaching of the Church about the Savior of the world. Without a precise and correct understanding of the significance of the Blessed Virgin in the economy of our salvation, there can be no Orthodox dogma.

The Mother of God is Ever-Virgin (Greek Aeiparthenos). The dogma of the virgin, seedless Birth of our Lord Jesus Christ is based on the Holy Gospel. The Blessed Virgin says to the angel-evangelist: “How will it be when I don’t know my husband?” (Luke 1:34). Archangel Gabriel said: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:35).

The holy fathers of the Ecumenical Council introduced the dogma of the virginal incarnation of the Son of God into the Creed: "... and became incarnate of the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin, and became human." Instead of an absolutely clear and precisely formulated teaching, Father George offers the following reasoning: “What has been said does not, of course, mean that virgin conception has ever been rejected in Christianity. Christianity just tried not to talk much about it, keeping this moment a secret, which is very important for us. The conception of Christ has always seemed, of course, perfectly chaste. But chastity can be understood in different ways. It can be understood more externally - in the physical, bodily sense, but it can also be understood more deeply and spiritually, that is, in a slightly different way. As the most profound Christian ascetics noted, one can lose chastity while not married, but one can live in marriage, have children and be completely chaste. Moreover, even before the fall, while still in paradise, God gave the commandment to man: “Be fruitful and multiply.” So it is not in carnal relationships as such that sin, although often among people sin is expressed in these relationships, but in something else.

Bewilderment may arise: why was the above reasoning necessary, given the clear testimony of the Gospel that the virginity of the Mother of God was both spiritual and bodily? The author himself gives the answer: “The chastity of the Conception and Birth of Christ is unconditional, but how it was from a physical point of view remains a mystery, no one on earth knew this, does not know and will not know” (“Go, teach ...” M., 1999 pp. 249). It can be seen from the above quotation that the author does not share the Orthodox dogma about the virgin incarnation of Jesus Christ. Following the sowed doubt in the Orthodox dogma, Father George writes: “So, since Matthew in 1:18-25 connects the original Christian tradition of the birth of Jesus by Joseph with a Hellenistic spirit of belief in the physical virginity of this birth, insofar as he further cites the corresponding quotation from the writings of the prophet Isaiah: “ Behold, the Virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name: Immanuel.” Although it must be borne in mind here that Isaiah does not have exactly the same word.

“Parthenos” is “virgin” in Greek (according to the Septuagint), and in the Hebrew text is “alma” - “a young unmarried woman, a young woman, a maiden”, i.e. the concept is broader. It is no coincidence that modern specialists in the text of the New Testament argue that behind the canonical story of Matthew, perhaps, there was an even more ancient story, the content of which, of course, is very guesswork for us. However, there are also very ancient Syriac versions of Matthew, which suggest role-playing story paternity of Joseph».

1. For a believing Orthodox person, the Holy Gospel is an indisputable authority. Evangelist Matthew, speaking about the virgin birth of Jesus, speaks of the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah.

2. Father George circumvents the truth with the help of reasoning, in which he refers to some "original Christian tradition about the birth of Jesus from Joseph." This could not be, because the Holy Tradition, which originates from the apostles, does not diverge from the Holy Scriptures.

3. What does Father George mean when he writes about “ faith in the physical virginity of this birth, close to the spirit of the Hellenistic era”? We are talking about pagan myths about a husbandless conception, common in the late antique era from Greece to India. This parallel is blasphemous. It was carried out in the II century by Celsus.

4. Unlike the Evangelist Matthew, who speaks of the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecy (“hine ha-alma hara veyodet Ben”), Father George does not believe that the prophet Isaiah is talking about the virginity of Mother Emmanuel . Regarding Is. 7:14 the author uses the rationalistic objections of 19th-century biblical scholars who base their argument on the fact that the Hebrew word "alma" has two meanings: "virgin" and "young woman." They argue that this place of the great prophet the evangelist "adapts" to the Christian understanding of the birth of the Messiah. However, already Jewish translators (interpreters sent by the high priest Eleazar) 2.5 centuries before this New Testament event put the Parthenos in the Greek text. Second, the prophet Isaiah says that the Lord will do a sign. The birth of a married woman is a natural thing. There is no omen in this either for contemporaries or for posterity. And the virgin conception and the birth of a son is a supernatural thing and is a special sign.

The word "alma" is used in the Hebrew Bible in the meaning of "maiden" in other books: in Gen. 24:43 speaks of Rachel before her marriage; in Ex. 2:8 almah refers to the maiden Mariam, the sister of Moses.

In addition to Is.7:14, there is another prophecy about the virginal conception of the Savior - from the prophet Ezekiel: “And he brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, facing east, and they were closed. And the Lord said to me: This gate will be shut, it will not be opened, and no man will enter by it, for the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered by it, and they will be ”(Ezek. 44: 1-2).

“The Son of God, born of the Father before the ages and incarnated from the Virgin in the last days, born to Him only in a known way, seedless and indescribable, keeping virginity uncorrupted ... Whoever denies that Mary gave birth to God will not see the glory of His Divinity”(Rev. Ephraim the Syrian) .

In the report "In search of the meaning of history" at a colloquium in Jerusalem in the spring of 2005, Father George said that " a modern Christian cannot seriously support, say, the doctrine of the immortality of the human soul. It has become so deeply embedded in the flesh and blood of people, as well as in various ecclesiastical and near-church writings and traditions, that it seems that if this immortality does not exist, then the very foundations of faith are destroyed” (Kifa, 2005, no. 6 (33), p. 10). In an interview about this report of his, he again spoke of disbelief in the immortality of the soul: « I have talked a lot about fundamentalism as practical atheism and how it is now almost impossible for a conscious Christian to believe in the theory of the immortality of the soul. For Catholics, this is a very “shocking” thing ”(Kefa. 2005. No. 6 (33), p. 4). Father George with this statement denies the 12th article of the Creed of the Orthodox Church.

It is one of the most fundamental in the Holy Scriptures. Whoever rejects it ceases to be a Christian. In the holy Gospel the Lord says: “He who loves his soul will destroy it; but he who hates his own soul in this world keep her to eternal life"(John 12:25). Also in the holy apostle Paul: For we know that when our earthly house, this hut, is destroyed, we have from God a dwelling in heaven, house not made by hands, eternal"(2 Cor. 5:1).

The doctrine of the immortality of the soul is the most important part of the patristic heritage:
“That is why we have an immortal soul, in order to fully prepare for that life” ( John Chrysostom, saint. About the Samaritan woman and to the words: “So he comes to the city of Samaria, called Sychar” (John 4:5).

- “The whole world is not worth one soul, because the world is transitory, but the soul is incorruptible and endures forever” ( John of the Ladder, reverend. A special word to the shepherd, what should be the teacher of verbal sheep. 13:18).

- “We admit that the soul is divine and immortal, but it is not consubstantial with the Pre-Divine and Royal nature and is not a part of this Divine, Creative and everlasting nature” ( Isidore Peluciot, reverend. Letters. Book. 3. Presbyter Digiptios).

In the publications of Father Georgy Kochetkov, one can often find the assertion that he and his community are persecuted, because in their spiritual life they strive to overcome "formalism", "fundamentalism", "indifference", "legalism" in the Church. For this they defend freedom, the right to individuality and creativity.

It is not true. The fullness and high intensity of the spiritual life in the Church does not lead to a clash with the liturgical typikon, canons, tradition, and other church communities. It is enough to recall the experience of parish communities led by Saints Alexy and Sergius Mechev and others. Yevgeny Poselyanin, who often visited the Kremlin church of Saints Constantine and Helena, says: “Father Valentine proved that a zealous priest can attract worshipers to abandoned, non-parish churches. Even on weekdays, it was crowded in his temple. People flocked to him not only to pray, but also to open their souls to him, pour out their accumulated grief, ask for advice. Villager E. In memory of a zealous pastor // Church Gazette. 1908. No. 44, November 1. S. 2171–2173). For eighteen years, the self-sacrificing pastor served the Divine Liturgy every day, after which “with extreme zeal” he performed prayers and requiems, several of both, at the request of those who came, and then talked with people burdened with sorrows. Already the first meeting with him brought noticeable relief to a suffering soul and crushed by sorrows. And then, having accepted him into his spiritual flock, the priest led him to salvation, no matter how long and difficult the path was. In his pastoral ministry, Father Valentin relied on the traditions of Orthodox eldership. Trying to instill in his parishioners, first of all, inner piety, he encouraged them to pay special attention to the innermost life of the soul. Among many Muscovites there was even a custom: at least once a year to talk in the community of Father Valentine. There were marvelous spiritual fruits. All this was done without dividing the community into "full" and "incomplete", without Russification of worship, without opposition to the "fundamentalists", without criticism of the Church.

The determining factor for the worldview of Father George is N.A. Berdyaev. He took the main religious and philosophical ideas from him: “It is a great joy to meet N. Berdyaev, whom, it seems to me, I not only love, but also understand. His apologetic gift in the church is unique, as is his revelation about God, man, the church. He is the first time since ap. Paul spoke in the Christian language, and in such a way that all people felt that they needed Berdyaev and his Christianity” (http://www.zavetspisok.ru/kochetkov.htm).

– “Berdyaev understood the role of the church, but was more willing to fulfill his great prophetic mission – to support the “fallen tabernacle of David”, to manifest in life and strengthen the Church. He never left Orthodoxy, but often had a low opinion of the Orthodox confessional institution”;

“He felt the need for all Christians to break through their confessional limitations and life untruths. He was interested in both the teaching and the life of the church, although he understood that life surpasses the church teaching and that the teaching becomes its enviable model”;

– “He built a new building of non-objectified and non-idealized knowledge of God, the world, life and man, not embarrassing to use in this construction, as it were, “scaffolding” - mythologemes (Ungrund, Adam Kadmon, communism, etc.). However, it is clear that as the construction of the building is completed, these “forests” are less and less necessary for him and us (like the “sophiology” of S.N. Bulgakov’s congenial father)”;
- "ON THE. Berdyaev rethought and approved, as a kind of aristocratic, “ascetic virtues” in Christianity. He raised obedience to God, and humility to its root - the World, which is the same God (remember what was said about Christ: “He is our peace”);

“He can be recognized by all as one of the spiritual fathers of modern humanity.”

I have given only a part of the dithyrambic assessments of N.A. Berdyaev, so that the reader can understand the religious worldview of Father Georgy Kochetkov. About the true spirituality of N.A. Berdyaev is easy to form an idea based on his works.

The doctrine of N. Berdyaev about God, formed under the influence of the German theosophist Jacob Boehme (1575–1624), from the point of view of the biblical Christian doctrine is absolutely false, heretical. ON THE. Berdyaev does not recognize the primacy and omnipotence of God: “From the Divine Nothing, from Gottheit, from Ungrund "a, the Holy Trinity is born, God the Creator is born. The creation of the world by God the Creator is already a secondary act. From this point of view, it can be recognized that freedom is not created by God the Creator, it is rooted in Nothing, in Ungrund "e, is primary and without beginning "(On the appointment of a person. Experience of paradoxical ethics. Ch. 2).

Historical Christianity is too ascetic for him:

– “Great is the significance of Dionysism in religious life; the modern revival of Dionysus can be welcomed as a way to reconcile Christianity and paganism"(New religious consciousness and the public. Mysticism and religion. XXXVIII);

- "St. John Chrysostom was a real communist of his time, a representative of the Constantinople proletariat” (Is there freedom of thought and conscience in Orthodoxy // Way. 1939. No. 59, February-April);

“Christians of a new type, a new sense of life, creative Christians of all denominations echo each other, and there is more closeness between them than within each denomination. They must connect"(Ibid.);

– “A monk can sit in seclusion for twenty years, he can devote himself entirely to ascetic exercises, pray most of the day and still be in a terrible obscurantism of the mind, obscurantism of moral assessments of social life, there may be a very weak degree of humanization in him. Bishop Theophan the Recluse, for example, was such an obscurantist. Such were many elders” (Spirit and Reality. Fundamentals of Divine-human Spirituality).

Father George believes: “Berdyaev’s significance for the Church is very promising” (You should not look at who people revere him for // Kifa. 2004. No. 3 (18), March).

The activity of Father Georgy Kochetkov leads to conflicts and discords because his religious and philosophical outlook is alien to Orthodoxy, which is based on the theology and spiritual experience of the holy fathers. The practice, which is rapidly expanding every year, poses a serious danger to the Orthodox Church.

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Father John Privalov once asked me why not arrange an "experimental site" on the basis of his church. But traditions are strong in our North, so neither the priests nor the laity accept such “experiments”. How they do not accept the denial of the immortality of the soul and death torments, they do not accept the division of Christians into "full" and "incomplete" and other innovations that are planted in our country by the followers of the teachings of Father Georgy Kochetkov.