Positions in the Russian Orthodox Church in relation to new religious movements: history of development and current state Vovchenko Vitaly Anatolyevich. Classification of consumers according to their attitude towards new products Limits of government intervention from

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Vovchenko Vitaly Anatolievich. Positions in the Russian Orthodox Church in relation to new religious movements: history of development and current state: dissertation... candidate of philosophical sciences: 09.00.13.- Moscow, 2003.- 199 pp.: ill. RSL OD, 61 03-9/394-2

Introduction

Chapter 1. Historical background of the conflict between the Russian Orthodox Church and new religious movements .

1. Characteristic features of religious quests outside official Orthodoxy until the beginning of the 20th century 9

2. New religious movements in modern Russia as an expression of the main trends of religious quest..27

3. Extra-church religious searches as an objective and natural process 40

4. Specifics of the attitude of the Russian Orthodox Church to extra-church religious search 55

Chapter 2. Analysis by Orthodox theological thought of the teachings and practices of new religious movements

1. The essence and nature of theological criticism of new religious movements 70

2. Social activities of new religious movements in the assessment of representatives of Orthodoxy 95

3. Doctrinal provisions of the Russian Orthodox Church and new religious movements: conceptual differences 107

4. Contradictions in the understanding of religious practice between followers of the Orthodox faith and new religious movements 148

Conclusion 171

Bibliography 180

Introduction to the work

Relevance of the research topic. Having crossed the threshold of the 21st century, Russia continues to remain captive of many complex unresolved problems. Having radically changed the course of history in 1991, the country reached new level of its development. However, a sharp break with the past led to serious crises both in the sphere of politics and economics, and in the sphere of spirit. Having abandoned the ideological heritage of the previous era, society was faced with the problem of searching for a new spiritual paradigm. The departure from the dominance of atheistic ideology inevitably led to the revival and natural strengthening of the religious component in the mentality of society.

In the religious revival of Russia in the 90s of the 20th century, two important trends can be traced - on the one hand, an appeal to traditional Russian religions, and especially Orthodoxy, and on the other, the growth of non-traditional religiosity, expressed in the rapid spread of a large number of new religious movements. Accordingly, the situation on the religious landscape of our country has changed dramatically. If in the late 1970s. There were a little more than twenty religious movements, but today there are more than seventy. The influence of new religions on the mentality of Russians has become so noticeable that it has created significant inconveniences and problems for traditional faiths, which are forced to take active steps to strengthen their positions in the religious consciousness of society.

The country's entry into the path of building a democratic society with a market economy and a genuine guarantee of freedom of conscience and religion, as well as the long period of dominance of atheism, created the preconditions for people to determine their religious position on the basis of an informed choice. In this regard, researchers view the current situation as a competitive struggle of religious organizations and ideologies for the minds and souls of people.

At the same time, one cannot help but see that among the new religious movements, quite a lot of organizations dangerous for society and citizens have appeared. These movements, hiding behind religious terminology, sometimes cause irreparable harm to people caught in their networks.

The Russian Orthodox Church rightly drew public attention to the danger that awaits people who have embarked on the path of spiritual quest. At the same time, insufficient attention from government agencies to the problem of destructive religious organizations largely contributed to the intensification of the Orthodox Church’s own efforts in countering the spread of these organizations on the territory of Russia.

At the same time, the Russian Orthodox Church perceives itself as the only guarantor of the religious security of Russian citizens, which often leads to active attacks by its supporters on all non-Orthodox religious movements under the slogan of fighting totalitarian religious organizations. Such a situation in the context of the multi-confessional structure of our society significantly affects the stability and stability of the Russian state. The intensification of religious confrontation against the backdrop of existing interethnic and international problems does not contribute to the consolidation of society to solve pressing economic and political problems. The significance of the position of the Orthodox Church on a particular issue for many people requires a closer acquaintance with various speeches on its behalf.

In this regard, the problem of objective philosophical and religious analysis, the emerging open religious confrontation between the Russian Orthodox Church and new religious movements, becomes relevant. This work can be considered as a step towards a scientific understanding of the relations between the Orthodox Church and religious new formations that developed in Russia at the end of the 20th century.

Consideration of this problem is of vital importance from the point of view of identifying the real danger posed by new religious movements. Equally important is the search for possible ways to overcome the irreconcilable confrontation between religious organizations. Undoubtedly, it is important at the present stage to comprehend the ongoing processes from the point of view of determining their place in history and, accordingly, their influence on the course of further development. In this case we're talking about about the prospects for the development of the religious component of society.

In the history of Russia, one can distinguish a period that has similar features to the current situation. This is the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century, when the number of sects and religious and mystical movements increased sharply. The socio-political situation that emerged at the beginning of the 20th century forced the autocracy, after a long period of supporting the state religion, to declare freedom of religion. Further, largely tragic, events associated with the victory of the October Revolution led to the collapse of the power of the Russian Orthodox Church. To a certain extent, this is explained by the position that the Church has occupied over the centuries. Thus, at the present stage of state building, it is important to assess the degree and nature of the influence of the Russian Orthodox Church on socio-political processes.

The degree of scientific development of the problem. Research on new religious movements in Russian and Western religious studies is very numerous. There are separate works that examine certain aspects of the activities of the Russian Orthodox Church in the 90s of the 20th century. However, there is no targeted comprehensive study of the relationship between the Russian Orthodox Church and new religious movements, systematization of ideological differences, understanding of the origins and causes of existing relations and existing contradictions.

In the works of famous scientists L.N. Mitrokhina, P.S. Gurevich, E.G. Bala-gushkina, I.R. Grigulevich, K. Privalov and other researchers examine in sufficient detail the phenomenon of new religious movements. The specifics of religious new formations are revealed in the textbook “General Religious Studies” edited by I.N. Yablokov and in the author's training course AND I. Kanterov, whose provisions are reflected in the textbook “History of Religion”. T.2. M., 2002. At the same time, the analysis of individual religions is noticeably widespread, and their classification is based on the criterion of origin from a particular religious tradition. One can note studies that attempted to systematize the ideological orientation of religious new formations. Attempts at such an approach can be found in modern dissertation research by Grigorieva L.I. "Non-traditional religions in modern Russia: Social nature and evolutionary trends." M., 1994, Golubeva E.I. "Ideology and practice of modern interfaith youth movements." St. Petersburg, 1996. The doctrinal specificity of the so-called religions of the “New Age” or the “New Age” movement is more fully revealed in the monograph by Grigorieva L.I. "New Age Religions and the Modern State." Krasnoyarsk: SibSTU, 2002.

A significant number of modern scientific research devoted to the study of individual new religious movements. The following dissertations can be noted: Martynenko A.V. "Bahaism: philosophical and historical analysis." Saransk, 1996; Karasev N. A. "Theosophy as a form of occultism in the conditions of transformation of public consciousness." M., 1998; Baklanova G.Yu. "Orthodox Church of the Mother of God "Sovereign" as a socio-religious phenomenon." M., 1999; Zherebyatyev M.A. "Modern communities of Christian denominations in Russia: (Comparative sociological analysis)" M., 1994; Zhukov A. V. "Unification Church: Belief, ideology and practice." St. Petersburg, 1995. Many, although not all, new religious movements are described in the dictionary “Religions of the Peoples of Modern Russia” (1999), ed. M.P. Mchedlova.

Selected aspects social activities The Russian Orthodox Church in the last decade of the 20th century, as well as the processes occurring in Orthodox theology, are analyzed in the dissertations of Anfinogenova A.P. "Social activity of the Russian Orthodox Church." M. 1993; Boyko V.V. "Socio-cultural activity of the Russian Orthodox Church in modern Russian society (1988-1997)". M., 1997; Smetanina T.A. "The evolution of exegesis of the Russian Orthodox Church in the 19th-20th centuries." St. Petersburg, 1997.

The study of the problem of interfaith relations includes the studies of Medvedko SV. "Interfaith relations as a dialogue of cultures." M., 1997 and Raguzina V.N. "Ethno-confessional relations in modern Russia: state, problems, contradictions. (Social and philosophical analysis)." M., 1999. However, in general, the problem of the relationship between the Russian Orthodox Church and new religious movements in all its completeness and depth remains insufficiently studied.

Object and subject of research

The object of this study is the relationship between the Russian Orthodox Church and new religious movements at the turn of the 20th-21st centuries. The work examines both the history of the development of their relationship and the current state. It is through the prism of historical development that the modern positions in the Russian Orthodox Church in relation to new religious movements become clear.

The subject of the analysis is the positions that have developed in the Russian Orthodox Church in relation to new religious movements, which are reflected in the decrees of the Councils of Bishops, the decisions of the Holy Synod, the speeches of the Patriarch, the opinions of individual clergy and Orthodox laity.

Purpose and objectives of the study

The main goal of the dissertation research is to consider the reasons, features and nature of the attitude of the Russian Orthodox Church to new religious movements, to show the historical formation of these relations and their state at the end of the 20th - beginning of the 21st centuries.

Achieving this goal involves solving the following tasks:

Reveal historical background confrontations between the Russian Orthodox Church and new religious movements;

To reveal the dynamics, features and nature of the attitude of the Russian Orthodox Church to religious search outside the official church;

Carry out a philosophical analysis of the most common arguments used by defenders of the Orthodox faith in ideological polemics with new religious movements;

To reveal the methodology and features of criticism by representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church of the teachings and practices of religious new formations.

The methodological basis of the dissertation research is a dialectical approach to the problem, which includes the principles of historicism, systematicity and complexity, objectivity and continuity in development. The dissertation widely used the method of general induction, based on the selection of the main arguments of Orthodox authors, as well as the method of historical and philosophical comparative studies, based on the comparison of ideological contexts and morphological features of heterogeneous philosophical and religious systems. In interpreting a number of issues, the author followed well-known domestic researchers of Russian sectarianism (A.I. Klibanov, A.F. Zamaleev, etc.)

The novelty of the dissertation research is determined by a comprehensive historical approach to the consideration of the diverse aspects of the relationship between the Russian Orthodox Church and new religious movements at the present stage of the history of the Russian state, their historical conditionality.

Some elements of the novelty of the dissertation work are as follows:

An analysis of the origins and causes of the current opposition of the Russian Orthodox Church to new religious movements was carried out through identifying the specific features and place of ideological positions of modern religious new formations in the context of extra-church religious quests in the history of Russia;

The influence of the contradictions in the internal life of the Russian Orthodox Church on religious searches outside official Orthodoxy is shown;

A systematization of ideological differences has been carried out and the degree of persuasiveness of Orthodox argumentation, designed to substantiate the danger of all non-Orthodox religious movements and their fundamental incompatibility with the teachings of the Orthodox Church, has been considered.

Work structure. The dissertation consists of an introduction, two chapters, a conclusion and a bibliography.

Characteristic features of religious quests outside official Orthodoxy before the beginning of the 20th century

The religious history of Russia, from the very adoption of Christianity by Russia, was characterized by the coexistence of the Orthodox religion with religious searches outside the official church. Many modern Orthodox researchers of sectarianism, like their historical predecessors, seek to affirm the opinion that “in Russia, sects were implanted from outside” and “the people did not sympathize with heresies” [see. 149, p.188; 203, p.66]. It is the influence of the West that many representatives of Orthodoxy explain the spread of sectarianism [see. 29, p. 104; 104, p. 187]. However, a closer look at history allows us to talk about a noticeable connection between sectarian teachings and popular religious consciousness.

We consider the point of view to be quite well-reasoned, according to which the change in the religious worldview of the Slavic tribes from paganism to Christianity could not have happened quickly and without causing resistance. Researchers note that the Christianization of Rus' was opposed by the pagan-Wolkhovist opposition, in which general Christian heresies found support. According to a number of researchers, Russia’s perception of Byzantine Christianity could be largely a consequence of the “coincidence of the deep civilizational essence.” At the same time, we can say that not only Orthodoxy, but also heresies were superimposed on certain layers of Slavic pagan culture. Modern researchers note that in their ideological orientation the teachings of Paulicianism and Bogomilism were close to the dualistic ideas of Slavic paganism [see. 81, p.42]. One of the first Christian heresies is Arianism, as A.F. notes. Zamaleev, “took deep roots in ancient Russian society.” It is necessary to add to this that the very perception of Christianity by Russia did not mean the beginning of the replacement of one worldview with another, but led to the formation of ideological syncretism, dual faith, in which paganism played a decisive role [see. 81, with L 9]. For our research, it is important to highlight the leading ideological positions of extra-church religious quests.

First of all, we can note religious ideas, apparently determined by a pagan worldview.

Denial of the divinity of Christ and the deification of man. One of the main motives of most non-Orthodox religious teachings was the denial of the divinity of Christ put forward by Arius and the affirmation of the thought that “we too can become sons of God” [see. 81, p.41]. The presence of God's son, different from the rest of creation, was not recognized by supporters of the doctrine of anti-trinitarians or "Judaizers", who spread in the 15th century. [cm. 81, p.68]. The prominent representatives of medieval heretical thought, Fyodor Kosoy and Matvey Bashkin, also denied the incarnation of God. The gradual growth of individual self-awareness, awareness of one’s responsibility for what is happening and what is happening around results in the desire for the sacralization of the human personality in the era of the formation of bourgeois relations [see. 138, p. 13]. B.C. Solovyov determines the root of the Russian schism - in the self-affirmation of the human principle, its prevalence over the divine. The same motive: “All people are like God,” sounds clearly in the teachings of the Doukhobors and teetotalers [see. 139, p.46,49].

One can pay attention to the wide distribution of “Christs”, “prophets” and other bearers of “divine” status in Russian sects, which is noted by L. Grigorieva as a characteristic feature of Russian sectarianism.

The cultural layer of society of the 18th century, according to G. Florovsky, was also characterized by an anthropocentric sense of well-being - man is “an extract from all beings.” It was a sermon of transformed humanism - “Be a man, you will be a god, and, moreover, half-creating yourself.” It can be noted that the idea of ​​God-manhood, developed later by religious philosophy, reflected the desire to introduce man to the divine fullness of life. The rapprochement of God and the world in a pantheistic spirit. In religious quests, elements constantly appear in one form or another that indicate a desire to bring the divine and earthly worlds closer together. As noted by K.A. Kazakov and Y.S. Lurie, “spontaneous folk pantheism, characteristic of many sects of early Christianity... was a characteristic feature of the first sects in Russia” [Cit. according to 262, p.224]. Researcher A. Zamaleev notes that the popular consciousness strives to overcome the alienation of “created” being from the Divine, imagining that the whole world, every creature lives under the protection of angels. The cult of the Mother of God, for example, meant that not only the human soul is “saved,” but the whole world becomes a participant in heavenly bliss [see. 79, p. 19]. In the teachings of the Strigolniks, Christian ideas are inextricably combined with pagan motives of worshiping the earth and deifying the sky. On the other hand, the idea of ​​the closeness of God and the world appears in the denial of the divinity of Christ and the deification of man. Researcher F. Fe Dorenko, following Y. S. Lurie, sees a reflection of pantheism in the form of one of the persons of the Trinity - the Holy Spirit [see. 262, p.224]. This is manifested in the teachings of the Doukhobors, Molokans-jumpers, and in the teachings of the charismatic sects of the Khlysty, Skoptsy, in which either the human soul is considered as a particle of the Holy Spirit, or a mystical experience of the Holy Spirit outside and its infusion into a person is assumed [see. 262, pp. 225-234].

It should be noted that the desire to overcome the alienation of the created and the divine was also characteristic of the educated strata. Masons of the 18th century. recognized the theory of emanation, the outflow of the world from God [see. 227, p. 157]. Similar motives can be discerned in the intellectuals’ search for God at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. For example, V. Rozanov, in his rehabilitation of the flesh, actually approaches pantheism and the doctrine of emanation, deifying the world: “The world is holy in the flesh, but holy not in the flesh of the Son, but by coming from the flesh of God” [Quoted on 285, p.87 ]. The desire to bridge the gap between the divine and created worlds can be seen in sophiology. Starting with V. Solovyov, the subject of philosophical consideration for many religious philosophers was Sophia - a kind of intermediate state between God and the world - the “world soul”.

At the same time, philosophers rather sought to dialectically combine “Neoplatonism with monotheism, the idea of ​​eternity with creation, the concept of the “one” with the idea of ​​a personified deity.” For them, God appears as a kind of cosmic being, which is both immanent and transcendental to the world.

Chiliasm as a search for truth and justice in this world. Characteristic feature non-church religious search was the dream of the Kingdom of God on earth. This feature of Russian sectarianism is highlighted, for example, in the study of L. Grigorieva. It can be assumed that the free spirit of the Slavs, combined with the Orthodox worldview, contributed to the spread of the doctrine of an earthly paradise. In Rus' this teaching was in the 13th-14th centuries. developed in numerous apocrypha. Among them one can highlight such as “The Sermon on the Vision of the Apostle Paul”, “The Walking of Zosimas to the Rachmans”, “The Sermon of Methodius on the Kingdom of Michael and the Antichrist”, etc. [see. 131, p.32]. In addition, the dream of heaven on earth was reflected in the famous “Legend of the City of Kitezh” [see. 184, p. 171].

The emergence of religious communities based on fraternal solidarity and the conscious assimilation of faith can be seen as an attempt to realize the ideals of truth and justice in this world. Such views were characteristic of the most typical sects of Christian faith and temperance. Even in the Old Believers, according to G. Florovsky, despite apocalypticism and the idea of ​​a world “lying in evil,” the dream was “about the local city, about the earthly city.”

New religious movements in modern Russia as an expression of the main trends of religious quest

Many of the highlighted features of extra-church religious searches in the history of Russia have also manifested themselves at the present stage. After 70 years of dominance of the atheistic worldview, Russian society is once again returning to religious quests. According to various studies, since the mid-90s, between half and two-thirds of the country’s adult population have linked their worldview to religion. It must be emphasized that the specificity of the current situation in the sphere of religion is determined by the fact that global processes are superimposed on Russian reality.

A characteristic feature of Russia is the persistence of a large number of non-believers - about a third of Russians. At the same time, it should be noted that high level religiosity of young people. According to various sources, believers among 17-26 year olds range from 32% to 46%. Moreover, the younger the age, the greater the religiosity. In addition, there is a clear predominance of believers among the most educated part of young people [see. 116; 41]. There is no doubt that the processes taking place today in the minds of young people will have a decisive impact on the spiritual development of everything Russian society soon. An important point in this regard is not just the transition of society from atheism to a religious worldview, but also the nature of religious consciousness itself.

The peculiarity of the current situation is determined by a number of factors. Firstly, there is a massive return of the population to the traditional religions of our country and, above all, Orthodoxy. Secondly, the so-called non-traditional religiosity, associated with the emergence and rapid spread of new religious organizations and movements in Russia, is growing no less intensively. Today, with sufficient grounds, we can speak of it as a natural consequence of the transformation of religious consciousness. Many studies show that the group of new religions is the fastest growing [see 53, p. 18-24]. Objective reasons that contributed to the spread of new religions in the world, combined with the specific features of the current situation in Russia, led to a significant increase in the number of adherents of these organizations in Russian society. By the beginning of the 21st century, we can talk about the activity in Russia of about 7 5 varieties of new religious movements [see. 53, p.36]. It is quite difficult to determine the total number of followers. Various sources contain figures from 3-5 to 15 million people. However, L.I. Grigorieva comes to the conclusion that in reality we can only talk about two hundred thousand active followers of new religions. Nevertheless, their ideas and literature are undoubtedly familiar to more people, so it is natural that researchers note the increase in the number of their followers by new religious movements. It should be noted that the core of this kind of movement is, first of all, young people, including students, intelligentsia, and representatives of the “middle class”.

With all the diversity of religious organizations classified as new\religious movements, researchers identify several large groups. ! There are different classifications, however, they are most often based on the criterion of the origin of a religious movement from a particular religious tradition. There are “neo-Christian”, “neo-orientalist”, “occult-mystical”, “quasi-religious” movements [see. 66]. Nevertheless, in order to determine the specific features of new religious formations, it seems to us more expedient to look for differences in religious doctrines. In this, our approach coincides with the position of L.I. Grigorieva, presented in her monograph [see. 53]. The author proposes to distinguish between “non-religious associations”, which call the well-known traditional text - the Bible (Koran, Vedas, etc.) as the only true source of doctrine, regardless of interpretation options, and those new religious movements that assert the unity and equivalence of all religions

The first group of religions mainly consists of late Protestant, especially charismatic, neo-Pentecostal denominations. These may include organizations that are often mentioned in reference books on new religions, such as the Boston Movement, “Family”, “Salvation Army”, Christian mission “New Life”, Church “New Generation”, “Church of Our Lady Sovereign”, “ New Apostolic Church" and others.

The second group includes that part of the new religious movements that are designated in Russian literature as “New Age” religions. In the West, this movement was called New Age (New Age). The movement itself is presented a huge amount religious associations. At the same time, many religious new formations do not consider themselves to be part of this movement, but actually support the ideas and attitudes characteristic of the New Age movement. L.I. Grigorieva showed the ideological similarity of the most large-scale and influential new religions, such as “Theosophy, Anthroposophy, Agni Yoga, International Society for Krishna Consciousness (MOCK), Bahai Faith, Moon Unification Church, World White Brotherhood, Transcendental Meditation (TM), Church of the Last Testament (Vissarion), Scientology". Other, less well-known and popular, religious movements sometimes reflect not the entire spectrum of ideas of the “New Age” religions, but some part. These include neo-pagan groups, mystical psychotherapy, ufological, mystical, “contact” groups. It seems reasonable to us to include in this list religious movements associated with the teachings of Eastern neo-mystics, such as Sri Aurobindo, Krishnamurti, Rajneesh (Osho), Sathya Sai Baba, Kirpal Singh, Thakar Singh, as well as Gurdjieff.

Thus, L.I. Grigorieva, as a specifically new group of religious movements, singles out the religions of the “New Age” and defines them as “religious formations that demonstrate a complete break with the historical religious tradition of any nature, creating qualitatively new religious doctrines that fundamentally change the paradigms of religious consciousness.”

The essence and nature of theological criticism of new religious movements

In relation to new religious organizations the position of the Russian Orthodox Church as a whole is not much different from its perception of schism and sectarianism in Tsarist Russia. The Church is characterized by irreconcilable opposition to any heretical teachings. The Council of Bishops in 1994 attested to the incompatibility of new religious movements with Orthodoxy and stated the fall of their followers from the Orthodox Church. The invariability of the tough position in the Russian Orthodox Church is evidenced by the fact that the final statements of the international Christian seminar "Totalitarian sects in Russia" in 1994, with the participation of many Orthodox churches, and the final statement of the Orthodox Siberian international scientific and practical conference "Totalitarian sects in Siberia" in 1999 years are absolutely identical [cf. 59 and 93]. True, by the end of the century one can assume some softening of the position on the part of official Orthodoxy, since at the Council of Bishops, held in 2000, no separate statements or resolutions were adopted on new religious movements. However, already in 2001, at the next Orthodox conference, religious movements incompatible with Orthodoxy were again listed.

Despite the dominance of a rather harsh and negative position in the Orthodox Church towards all, from its point of view, heretical teachings, the attitude towards the sectarians themselves should be built according to the patristic maxim: “love the sinner and hate the sin.” That is, an irreconcilable and negative attitude towards non-Orthodox dogma must be combined with a fraternal attitude towards the apostate in the spirit of Christian love. Therefore, in the definition of the Council of Bishops in 1994, it was emphasized that “opposition to false views should not be accompanied by an intolerant attitude towards the very bearers of teachings incompatible with Christianity.” Participants of the Second Missionary Congress remind pastors that “patience and love” are important when working with such people. Thus, Orthodox anti-sectarian missions do not see their task as enmity with ordinary sectarians, for they are victims of propaganda and promises of sect leaders. The main goal is “healing souls caught in the networks of destructive cults, and enlightening with the Light of the Truth of Christ millions of fellow citizens whose souls have been destroyed by militant state atheism,” which is highlighted, for example, by the editors of the magazine “Epiphanies” in the first issue.

Based on these same principles, the position of the Orthodox Church in relation to religious organizations is determined. The Church recognizes those that do not violate individual rights and do not oppose traditional religions, which was emphasized by the participants of the two international conferences on totalitarian sects in Russia [see. 93; 71].

However, it can be noted that the official position of the Russian Orthodox Church does not always find its worthy embodiment in the daily activities of clergy and Orthodox laity. For many Orthodox priests there is little difference between Catholics, Protestants, Hindus or new sects that are simply heresies outside the Orthodox Church. Orthodox clergy themselves testify to this, for example, Archpriest V. Fedorov. According to Abbot Veniamin (Novik), the highest church hierarchy simply turns a blind eye to all this. Researcher D. Pospelovsky writes about the dominance of right-wing forces in Orthodox brotherhoods, which equate not only Judaism, but even Catholicism and Protestantism with Satanism.

Some Orthodox experts involved in the study of sectarianism try to distinguish between traditional confessions and sects. A. Dworkin points out the difference between Catholicism, Protestantism and sectarian formations, as well as between Buddhism and Hinduism and neo-Buddhism and neo-Hinduism. However, the theologian agrees with Deacon A. Kuraev, who considers neo-Eastern religions to be sects on the basis that if the traditional religions Hinduism and Buddhism arose before the Gospel and not in opposition to it, then neo-Buddhism and neo-Hinduism are trying “to revive non-evangelical religiosity in the Western world” and assert themselves "in an obvious and inevitable polemic with Christianity." Since nothing is said about changes in doctrines, and polemics have always existed since the advent of Christianity, the division of Eastern religions into traditional and new ones becomes invisible and is linked only to preaching activities. This approach leads to the fact that Orthodox criticism is conducted against both new and historical religions of the East. As for any difference between new religions, here the question is resolved unambiguously for A. Dvorkin: “As a rule, all the newest religious movements, starting with Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses, are considered by specialists as destructive cults.” A.I. stands in the same position. Khvylya-Olinter, for whom “essentially all sects are totalitarian to one degree or another.” The same author classifies Protestant confessions and Buddhism as sects, albeit old ones. It can be stated that the position of not distinguishing between non-Orthodox religious organizations and spiritual practices is quite common. Priest V. Eliseev, for example, insists on the similarity of psychotechnical techniques of “occult and eastern religious-mystical systems,” and the classification he proposed is considered rather arbitrary.

Open attacks on all new religious movements without exception by Orthodox sectarians sometimes had a wide public and even international resonance. The publications of A. Dvorkin, who heads the Information and Advisory Center of the Hieromartyr Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons, which, according to human rights activists, sometimes have an offensive connotation, became the reason for the trial.

However, it should be emphasized that among the Orthodox clergy one can find supporters of, in our opinion, a more objective and balanced, but less widespread position. Archpriest V. Fedorov, who heads the St. Petersburg Orthodox Research Institute of Missiology, Ecumenism and New Religious Movements, for example, emphasizes that it is impossible to consider new religious movements “as a single holistic phenomenon, and even more so to transfer the accusations brought against one of the groups to the rest , even if they have common characteristics."

The highlighted approach, apparently, is typical for that part of the clergy that relies on the position of the hierarchs of other Orthodox churches, primarily Antioch. For example, the works of foreign Orthodox hierarchs are published by the institute we mentioned under the leadership of Archpriest V. Fedorov. In these works one can trace the desire not for denial, but for study, with the goal of transforming non-Orthodox spiritual experience. Patriarch of Antioch Ignatius IV calls to be attentive to modern paganism “not so much in order to curse it, but to overcome it through the deepening of our faith, following the example of St. Justin (2nd century), who distinguished the “seeds of the Word” in everything. Supporters of this approach are undoubtedly inspired by the example of Elder Silouan of Athos, who proposed to carry out missionary work without denying, but only complementing the worldview of non-Christians with what Christ brought to earth... Therefore, among the Orthodox there are those who, like Father George (Khodr), see their task in , in order to: “recognize all those signs that God has scattered in time, among other things, in other religions, in order to reveal his Divinity.”

The ability to see manifestations of divinity in other faiths is characteristic, first of all, of Orthodox hierarchs living in non-Orthodox societies. Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh, who lives in England, has changed his attitude towards heterodoxy and believes that “we can learn a lot by looking at the lives of heterodox people - at how their faith is realized in life.”

Social activities of new religious movements in the assessment of representatives of Orthodoxy

We noted that one of the areas of Orthodox criticism of new religious movements is criticism of their social activities. At this level, we can highlight the most frequently raised problems - the question of the totalitarian nature of new religious movements, their desire for power, enrichment, the problem of supporting a certain social order, apocalyptic aspirations and anti-Christian orientation.

One of the main accusations against new religious movements from the Orthodox Church is the totalitarian nature of the activities of many of them. This is due, to a certain extent, to insufficient attention on the part of the state to the problem of destructive religious organizations from the very moment of their appearance on the territory of Russia. From 1990 to 1997, the state actually withdrew from any regulation of the activities of religious organizations. This situation pushed the Russian Orthodox Church to take independent steps to counter their destructive activities. Despite all the social significance of these measures, we can talk about noticeable excesses in anti-sectarian activities, when Orthodox experts classify almost all new religious movements as destructive cults. It should be noted that in Orthodox literature the use of the term “totalitarian sect” is widespread [see. 63; 64; 74; 93]. However, secular experts consider this term illegal and in the dictionary “Religions of the Peoples of Modern Russia” it is not recognized as scientifically valid. At the same time, the terms “destructive religious organizations” and “destructive cults” are used in some official documents [see 163, pp.9-11]. However, what is probably more important for society is not the issue of terminology, but the problem of determining the indicators of destructiveness of religious organizations.

Orthodox experts who study the phenomenon of new religious movements identify quite a lot of different criteria for destructive religious organizations. However, among the proposed characteristics there are many that, in our opinion, do not indicate the specific features of the organizations under consideration and can be attributed to any religious associations, including traditional ones. For example, in a detailed definition of totalitarian sects, obtained as a result of the work of a group preparing a bill on regulating the activities of sects in the territory Yaroslavl region, most of the identified features are characteristic of any religious organization and are determined by the characteristics of the modern world [see. 274]. Let's look at some of them. For example, “the use of modernist methods (modern music, dancing, discussions, tea parties, watching religious videos, weddings, etc.) to strengthen the faith of members and attract new people to it” or “holding mass events in order to attract potential believers." As you can see, any holidays and festivals of traditional religions also have an impact on non-church people. Another criterion is "the presence of a charismatic leader who is a preacher and chief administrator of the sect." However, in any religion there is a spiritual leader who has certain charismatic qualities - the Pope, the Dalai Lama, etc. The next indicator - "the artificial fragmentation of the sect into permanent divisions and cells, headed by clergy and administrative officials devoted to the leader" speaks only of a strict hierarchical structure of the organization. As an obvious incident criteria such as “production of printed, audio and video products”, “charity and guardianship”, etc. should be considered.

Among the criteria for destructiveness proposed by other Orthodox researchers, there are also many that are too vague, for example, “claims to the ultimate truth” or “external decency: all new cult formations proclaim only the best goals.” There are also even less significant indicators: “the presence of dogma (basic formulas of doctrine), an established system of cult, the creation of an organization capable of planning and implementing a large-scale action to attract new members” [see. 236].

There is no doubt that the highlighted points in themselves cannot indicate the totalitarianism and destructiveness of a religious organization. At the same time, among the criteria proposed by Orthodox authors, more significant ones can be identified, but they also require further clarification.

Let's consider this criterion - “sharp criticism of other religions and the promise of “God’s” punishment for their followers.” As you can see, the lack of tolerance and reminders of subsequent punishment are also characteristic of traditional religions. Here the question comes down to determining which criticism and which promises are dangerous syndromes. The only significant factor can be “the presence of joy that everyone will perish except them.”

The next, often used indicator is “active missionary activity of sect members in the form of conversations on the streets, places of work and recreation of citizens, distribution of leaflets.” However, as already noted, the hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church advocate the need to expand the sermon beyond the church fence. The important point is the intrusiveness, aggressiveness and obligation of preaching for all members of the organization.

The concept of "love attack" (surrounding newcomers with attention and care) makes sense when it comes to hypocrisy. Another feature - "the use of a special dictionary ("cult language") - can be significant only in the absence of an accessible interpretation of certain concepts or a strong distortion of the original meaning of words.

• Specialty of the Higher Attestation Commission of the Russian Federation09.00.13
• Number of pages 199

CHAPTER I. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE CONFLICT BETWEEN THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH AND NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS.

1. Characteristic features of religious quests outside official Orthodoxy until the beginning of the 20th century.

2. New religious movements in modern Russia as an expression of the main trends of religious quest.

3. Extra-church religious searches as an objectively natural process

4. The specifics of the attitude of the Russian Orthodox Church to extra-church religious search.

CHAPTER II. ANALYSIS OF ORTHODOX THEOLOGICAL THOUGHT OF THE TEACHINGS AND PRACTICES OF NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS

1. The essence and nature of theological criticism of new religious movements

2. Social activities of new religious movements in the assessment of representatives of Orthodoxy.

3. Doctrinal provisions of the Russian Orthodox Church and new religious movements: conceptual differences.

4. Contradictions in the understanding of religious practice between followers of the Orthodox faith and new religious movements.

Recommended list of dissertations

• Western Christian religions and society in Russia in the 18th century. 2011, Doctor of Historical Sciences Andreev, Alexander Nikolaevich

• Orthodoxy in the spiritual life of Russian society: Social and philosophical analysis 2003, Doctor of Philosophy Trishin, Alexey Fedorovich

• The Russian Orthodox Church and the new religious situation in modern Russia: the ethno-confessional component of the problem 2007, Doctor of Historical Sciences Kazmina, Olga Evgenievna

• Russian Orthodox Church in Western Europe in the 20s - 30s. XX century: Religious analysis 2006, candidate of philosophical sciences Panteleeva, Ekaterina Valerievna

• Philosophical analysis of the social doctrine of the Russian Orthodox Church in the 20th century 2005, candidate of philosophical sciences Gavrilova, Valeria Vasilievna

Introduction of the dissertation (part of the abstract) on the topic “Positions in the Russian Orthodox Church in relation to new religious movements: history of development and current state”

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• Social and philosophical aspects of the worldview of the Russian Orthodox Church in post-Soviet Russia 2010, Candidate of Philosophical Sciences Sidorov, Igor Nikolaevich

• Mutual influence of religious ideas about church and state: Eastern Christians. tradition and modernity. rus. Orthodoxy 1998, candidate of philosophical sciences Bezlepkin, Alexander Sergeevich

• Religious life of the population of the Yenisei region at the turn of the era: 1905-1929. 2007, Candidate of Historical Sciences Dobronovskaya, Anna Pavlovna

• Renovation movement in the Russian Orthodox Church in 1905 - 1925. 2002, candidate of historical sciences Golovushkin, Dmitry Alexandrovich

Conclusion of the dissertation on the topic “Philosophy and history of religion, philosophical anthropology, philosophy of culture”, Vovchenko, Vitaly Anatolyevich

List of references for dissertation research Candidate of Philosophical Sciences Vovchenko, Vitaly Anatolyevich, 2003

Please note that the scientific texts presented above are posted for informational purposes only and were obtained through original dissertation text recognition (OCR). Therefore, they may contain errors associated with imperfect recognition algorithms. There are no such errors in the PDF files of dissertations and abstracts that we deliver.

Host: Today is July 28, 2017. I, Sophoos. I greet Teacher Panteleimon and wanted to define the topic “Ideology and concept building in relation to man.” I wanted to immediately ask questions that are necessary to clarify some points.

Strengths: I welcome you and am glad to once again define this important topic, ask questions.

Q: I would like to understand, at the beginning of immersion in the ideologies of the new, in what proportions, in what compatible quantities are the Teacher system, civilizations, the Main Determinant and the Souls themselves, which one way or another express their point of view in relation to certain aspects of the perception of reality?

WITH: It's really important question. Let's start with the most difficult one, with Souls. The Souls themselves determine their states based on the experience that they have planned for themselves, which they want to receive in this reality, in this system of interaction of consciousness, the Monad, their sensory fields and the scenario plan, which is essentially a kind of platform for a person to express himself oneself in relation to some surrounding reality. This expression, as you have already heard, is woven and formed with the help of introduced meanings, with the help of upbringing in childhood, information system, information space, through training of parents, community, society, state, etc.

These introduced meanings somehow guide a person and create his reaction, which is defined as good and bad, tolerance and intolerance, indifference, rejection, disgust, pleasure, happiness, etc. These incoming values ​​are the very test, formed by the meaning, to which a person reacts in one way or another, based on his own motives.

If a person, after a long and hard work in a metropolis, finds himself on vacation, at sea, he naturally finds relaxation, goodness, and harmony. In the same way, there is a state of a person who defines himself in a state of some kind of search aimed at finding a way out of the current situation, from complexes, from those circumstances that constrain, force a person to be in a closed space, to be in a state of attachments, to be in a state of dependency. These are the very experiments, the very urges of the Soul, which it defines as its own experience. But as has already been reported, each Soul has its own parameters of interaction with the space of perception, which are built not only on negative emotions, but also on positive, constructive emotions in relation to the space of the fourth dimension - these are emotions of happiness, joy, harmony, freedom, love, creativity, etc.

These feelings, sensory constructions are naturally very weakly supported by existing civilizations, since you also heard that existing civilizations not only do not want, but in fact cannot support these states in the necessary equivalent. Therefore, a single combined concept was born for the release of a certain number of observers who will define space in new coefficients, in new compatible concepts. Therefore, Souls that remain in this right space and will determine experience in a natural way, advocate for the maximum number of constructive meanings, emotional and sensory frameworks that will be superimposed on the events provided by the scriptwriters, including the Teacher system.

As you know, in the next 2-3 years the teacher system should essentially take one of the main roles in the script construction system. This percentage will be more than 50%, and will occupy an increasingly larger role in a person’s life over time. Consequently, the Teacher system will guard the interests of Souls. The Souls themselves do not exactly pursue the joy and harmony of man. They want to get the equivalent of growth, development, the equivalent of a certain relationship between the observer and higher fields.

But, as you understand, the relationship between creativity and high-vibration fields is almost impossible in the system in which you are now, this is the space of the third dimension. One way or another, this space is supported and will be further supported by those civilizations that already serve it, that guard its interests, essentially protecting, reacting and suppressing the very states, feelings that Souls are trying to determine in the process of becoming an observer on the path of development. This process of becoming is naturally of interest to Souls, since in this process new qualities, states, new interactions with various fields of high dimensions, with etheric fields, astral, etc. are revealed. This is all very interesting and intertwined in the state of experience of Souls who naturally support this experience.

Therefore, the answer to the question of how interested Souls are in a new scenario is that they are interested in the scenario that will maximally reveal those qualities of a person that bring him closer to the fourth dimension. This is their natural state, although there are Souls that will vibrate in the same space, will raise and lower their observers from the point of view of destructive and constructive experience, as if studying what happens, how a person reacts, what fields of possibilities open up again and again, beyond every attempt, every descent or ascent.

These states will haunt more than 30% of Souls, since their meanings, their experiences were defined as destructive. These Souls, as you have already heard, will lead their observers beyond the right petal back. This percentage of Souls is currently constantly increasing. Because by themselves, the first observers who entered the right petal, into a space of a new type, were one way or another determined in the state of constructive experience, in the state of those possibilities that the system determined for them as a certain state of development, a certain state of a new state, interaction with other people .

This portion of people will be supplemented and supplemented by those who will experience the sinusoidal experience. Sooner or later they will no longer be 30%, but 50%, then 60% and even 70%. Thus, by the end of the space section, there will be 70% of observers in space who will go in the opposite direction - to the left lobe of the scenario, and 30% of observers will go to the right part and will remain there until it fully interacts with the space of the fourth dimension.

In fact, this will not be very noticeable, but it will be very sensitive in terms of the space coming into complete isolation. Therefore, Souls, studying the scenario plan, define it in a format that is stricter, more constructive from the point of view of destructive interactions, destructive energies. They stand essentially in the most extreme position in relation to the script, in relation to its relationship with the observer.

The second position is the position of the Teacher system, which understands that taking the extreme right position is very unprofitable from the point of view of the reality of those interactions that should result, since a person depends on civilization, and on directive thought forms, and on many states that space now brings . Consequently, this space will be created not only under the strengthening of the sensory fields of Souls, but also under the influence of those systems that are now entering and organizing new fields of possibilities for each person. These fields of possibilities open up in different ways. Someone begins to be disidentified, thrown out of space, leaving him without money, without means of subsistence, as if leading him to other possibilities, to other fields of interaction, sensory fields, emotional frameworks. For others, this process takes place in the form of activation of creativity, free thought forms, those platforms that were previously practically not manifested in a person and were considered of little significance for him, unacceptable from the point of view of the reality in which he found himself.

Therefore, the Teacher System for the most part advocates a compromise, a real compromise with the maximum possible movement towards the right scenario, towards constructive interaction.

There is the opinion of the Chief Determinant, who expresses his judgment. This is a translation of the scenario from the point of view of man-made structures into a softer, more lightweight scenario, which, one way or another, creates in a person a certain pleasant perception of both man-made structures of cities, and those very events that are defined by a person as a kind of dependence, bank loans, etc. d. According to the Teacher System, this is a utopian position, which one way or another will not give anything in terms of moving the scenario to the right.

Even more rigid positions are determined by some of the scenario new civilizations, which also support the Main Determinant from the point of view of their interaction, only 2-3 civilizations go in opposition to the Main Determinant, realizing that nothing can be achieved with the opposite scenario, the inhibiting scenario, and therefore not those very fruits will appear, those very necessary interactions that are born only when connected with the vector of Souls, with the vector of experience of their orientation, etc. This is well known to the Chief Determinant, since the Chief Determinant, more than anyone else, needs the compatibility of the experience of Souls and his constructs, his experience. This is an eternal problem that has existed and will exist in this Universe.

Therefore, it cannot be called a contradiction, it can be called a natural state of experience, which is one way or another built in such proportions, in such patterns. It’s the same as if a person doesn’t have an arm or a leg, or he’s sick, or he has certain lesions. In the same way, here, there is a certain fixed state of behavior of civilization, the Main Determinant, which one way or another behaves in a certain phase very identically, very constantly, essentially predictably, from the point of view of its own research, its own manifestations.

Even if this space is a kind of sacrifice, a certain state of concession of the Main Determinant towards Souls, he will still, in one way or another, try to interact with technogenic space, with the further concept of a human observer, with his further worldview. This is a natural state. I answered your question from the point of view of the interaction of the vision of ideology. This ideology will be built from the point of view of each system, civilization will build an ideology towards man-made structures, increasing the presence of these man-made structures, but from the point of view of a constructive type, as if an assistant, as if replacing certain situations.

This is the replacement of gasoline with solar energy, this is the replacement of many states of human consumption of natural resources with substitutes that reduce these consumption of natural resources significantly. It's more environmentally friendly various ways mining, etc. But, as you understand, the space of the right-wing scenario itself today will be very, very limited in terms of the number of people. It will be quite problematic to build a large system of industrial states in it, since it will be necessary to use a large number of phantoms, and this is prohibited by the law of illusion. Consequently, the spaces of people who will be included in the right scenario will be compacted, united into certain structures, into certain settlements. What this will look like is still not clear, since the decision at the very top has not yet been made. Ask the next question.

B: Thank you. The question then is this. Are there any specific agreements regarding the new ideology, or are there several models?

WITH: These will be two main models. One model will take a person out of the existing technogenic states of the third dimension, from those 3D dependencies, and bring him into lighter, newer, more modernized states that are associated with ideas about 4D space of a destructive type. This is a parallel model of behavior that will be present in this space.

• Teacher Panteleimon: Term from the glossary
• Sofoos: User
• Osipova Svetlana: Custom term
• Varganov Konstantin: Custom term
• Larisa Bokhanko: Custom term

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