Old Believers are different from Orthodox Christians. Bows during services

22.02.2018

Patriarch Nikon in the 17th century carried out a number of reforms caused by the need to bring the Church to a unified image of liturgical practice. Some of the clergy and lay people did not accept these changes, proclaiming that they were deviating from old customs, and nicknamed Nikon’s innovations “corruption of faith.” They announced that they wished to preserve the old traditions and regulations in worship. It should be noted that it will be quite difficult for an uninitiated person to distinguish an Old Believer from an Orthodox believer, because the differences between the new and old faiths are not that great. In this article you can find out what the Old Believers are, how the Old Believers differ from the Orthodox, and find out the answers to the most interesting questions of Orthodox people.

The difference between Old Believers and Orthodox

Orthodox believers are those Christians who accept the teachings put forward by the Christian Church.

The Old Believers are believers who wanted to leave the Christian Church due to their disagreement with the reforms carried out by Patriarch Nikon.

Experts in church history installed about a dozen distinctive features Old Believers from ordinary Christian believers in matters of conducting worship and other ritual ceremonies, reading and interpretation of the Holy Scriptures, everyday issues, as well as appearance.

It should be noted that the Old Believers are heterogeneous, that is, among them there are various movements that also introduce some differences, but among the adherents of the old belief themselves.

Let's take a closer look at how Old Believers differ from Orthodox Christians:

• It has Old Believer cross, difference from the Orthodox one, but the Old Believers still enjoy using the form of the Christian symbol to this day. As a rule, it has eight ends, and two more small crossbars are added to our usual cross: oblique at the bottom and straight at the top. However, according to research, some accounts of the Old Believers also recognize some other forms of the Cross of the Lord.
• Bows. Unlike ordinary Christians, Old Believers only accept bows to the ground, while the latter use bows from the waist.

• How to be baptized. Nikon, during the period of his church reform, put forward a ban according to which one cannot be baptized with two fingers according to the old custom. An order was given to everyone to comply Orthodoxy sign of the cross three-fingered sign. That is, cross yourself in a new way - with three fingers placed in a pinch. The Old Believers, in turn, did not accept this provision, seeing it as a fig (i.e., a fig) and completely refused to follow the newly introduced decree. To this day, Old Believers make the sign of the cross with two fingers. A pectoral symbol. As described earlier, the Old Believers always have an eight-pointed cross, which is located inside the four-pointed one. The main difference is that such a cross never bears the image of the crucified Savior.
• Differences in the spelling of the name of the Almighty. There are discrepancies in some prayers, which, according to calculations by one historian, are about 62.
• During the service, Old Believers keep their arms crossed on their chests, and Christians keep their hands at their sides.
• Practically complete failure from alcoholic beverages and tobacco products. The Old Russian Church of Orthodox Old Believers, only in some Old Believers, allows three glasses of alcohol on great holidays, but no more than that.
• Appearance. In Old Believer churches of God, compared to Christian ones, there are no women and girls wearing hats, scarves or scarves that are tied at the back with a knot. Old Believer women must wear a headscarf, pinned under the chin with a pin. Nothing colorful or bright is allowed in clothing. Men should wear old Russian shirts untucked and be sure to complement it with a belt, which will separate several parts of the body into the upper, that is, spiritual, and lower, dirty. To a male Old Believer in Everyday life It is forbidden to wear ties, considering them a Judas stranglehold, and to shave off the beard.

FAQ

Some Christians, and also Old Believers, may be interested in a lot of questions that come up quite often in everyday life. Let's look at some of them.

Is it possible for Old Believers to go to the Orthodox Church and is it possible to be baptized with two fingers?

Old Believers are allowed to visit God’s temple, but if adherents of the old faith express a desire to be Orthodox, then first they need to receive Confirmation, that is, a Sacrament that will unite a person with the Christian new faith.

To be baptized with two or three fingers today does not have any special meaning, since these two rites were recognized as equally honorable. But it is still worth noting that if you visit God’s temple and are baptized there with two fingers, when everyone else is baptized only with the crown of their fingers, it will look ridiculous and even ugly;

Can an Old Believer be godfather to an Orthodox Christian?

One should not completely reject the possibility of a non-Orthodox Christian being present as a godparent during the Orthodox rite of Baptism, but this is only possible if the Old Believer is only one of the godparents, and the other godparent will definitely be a Christian of the new faith.

There is also one more condition under which the Old Believer is allowed to take part in the ceremony if he does not make any attempts to raise the child in non-Orthodox traditions.

The Lord is always with you!

Not everyone knows what the Old Believers are. But those who are more deeply interested in the history of the Russian Church will certainly encounter the Old Believers, customs and their traditions. This movement occurred as a result of the schism of the Church in the 17th century, which occurred due to the reforms of Patriarch Nikon. The reform proposed changing many rituals and traditions of the people, with which many categorically disagreed.

History of the movement

Old Believers are also called Old Believers; they are adherents of the Orthodox movement in Russia. The Old Believers movement was created for forced reasons. The fact is that in the second half of the 17th century, Patriarch Nikon issued a decree according to which it was necessary to carry out church reform. The purpose of the reform was bringing all rituals and services into conformity with Byzantine ones.

In the 50s of the 17th century, Patriarch Tikhon had powerful support from Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. He tried to implement the concept: Moscow is the third Rome. The reforms of Patriarch Nikon should have fit perfectly into this concept. However, as a result, a split occurred in the Russian Orthodox Church.

This became a real tragedy for believers. Some of them did not want to accept new reform, because it completely changed their way of life and ideas about faith. As a result of this, a movement was born, whose representatives began to be called Old Believers.

Those who disagreed with Nikon fled as far as possible into the wilderness, mountains and forests and, not submitting to the reforms, began to live according to their own canons. Cases of self-immolation often occurred. Sometimes entire villages burned. The theme of the differences between the Old Believers Some scientists have also studied the Orthodox.

Old Believers and their main differences from the Orthodox

Those, who studies church history and specializes in this, they can count many differences between the Old Believers and the Orthodox. They are found:

• in the interpretation of the Bible and issues of its reading;
• in organizing and conducting church services;
• other rituals;
• in appearance.

It is also worth noting that among the Old Believers one can distinguish different currents, because of which the differences become even greater. So, the main differences:

Old Believers in the present

IN present time Old Believer communities are widespread not only in Russia. They are available in Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Canada, USA, and in some countries Latin America and etc.

One of the largest Old Believer religious organizations of our time in Russia and beyond its borders is the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church(Belokrinitsky hierarchy, founded in 1846). It has about a million parishioners and has two centers. One is in Moscow, and the other is in Braila (Romania).

There is also the Ancient Orthodox Pomeranian Church or DOC. On the territory of Russia it is located approximately it is estimated that there are about two hundred communities. However, most of them are not registered. Centralized advisory and coordinating center in modern Russia- This Russian Council DPC. Since 2002, the spiritual council has been located in Moscow.

According to a rough estimate, the number of Old Believers in the Russian Federation is more than two million people. The overwhelming majority are Russians. However, there are also other nationalities: Ukrainians, Belarusians, Karelians, Finns, etc.

Many people ask the question: “Who are the Old Believers, and how do they differ from Orthodox believers?” People interpret Old Belief differently, equating it either to a religion or to a type of sect.

Let's try to understand this extremely interesting topic.

Old Believers - who are they?

Old Belief arose in the 17th century as a protest against changes in the old church customs and traditions. A schism began after the reforms of Patriarch Nikon, who introduced innovations in church books and church structure. All who did not accept the changes and advocated for the preservation of old traditions were anathematized and persecuted.

The large community of Old Believers soon split into separate branches that did not recognize the sacraments and traditions of the Orthodox Church and often had different views on the faith.

Avoiding persecution, the Old Believers fled to uninhabited places, settling in the North of Russia, the Volga region, Siberia, settling in Turkey, Romania, Poland, China, reaching Bolivia and even Australia.

Customs and traditions of the Old Believers

The current way of life of the Old Believers is practically no different from the one that their grandfathers and great-grandfathers used several centuries ago. In such families, history and traditions are respected, passed down from generation to generation. Children are taught to respect their parents, brought up in strictness and obedience, so that in the future they become a reliable support.

From the early age sons and daughters are taught to work, which is held in high esteem by the Old Believers. They have to work a lot: Old Believers try not to buy food in the store, so they grow vegetables and fruits in their gardens, keep livestock in perfect cleanliness, and do a lot of things for the house with their own hands.

They don't like to talk about their lives to strangers, and even have separate dishes for those who come to the community “from the outside.”

To clean the house, use only clean water from a consecrated well or spring. The bathhouse is considered an unclean place, so the cross must be removed before the procedure, and when they enter the house after the steam room, they must wash themselves with clean water.

Very great attention Old Believers pay attention to the sacrament of baptism. They try to baptize the baby within a few days after his birth. The name is chosen strictly according to the calendar, and for a boy - within eight days after birth, and for a girl - within eight days before and after birth.

All attributes used during baptism are kept in storage for some time. running water so that they become clean. Parents are not allowed to attend christenings. If mom or dad witnesses the ceremony, then this bad sign, who threatens divorce.

As for wedding traditions, relatives up to the eighth generation and relatives “on the cross” do not have the right to walk down the aisle.

There are no weddings on Tuesday and Thursday. After marriage, a woman constantly wears a shashmura headdress; appearing in public without it is considered a great sin.

Old Believers do not wear mourning. According to customs, the body of the deceased is washed not by relatives, but by people chosen by the community: a man is washed by a man, a woman by a woman. The body is placed in a wooden coffin with shavings at the bottom. Instead of a cover there is a sheet. At funerals, the deceased is not remembered with alcohol, and his belongings are distributed to the needy as alms.

Are there Old Believers in Russia today?

Despite the different trends and branches, they all continue the life and way of life of their ancestors, carefully preserve traditions, and raise children in the spirit of morality and ambition.

What kind of cross do the Old Believers have?

In church rituals and services, Old Believers use an eight-pointed cross, on which there is no image of the Crucifixion. In addition to the horizontal crossbar, there are two more on the symbol.

The top one depicts a tablet on the cross where Jesus Christ was crucified, the bottom one implies a kind of “scale” that measures human sins.

How Old Believers are baptized

In Orthodoxy, it is customary to make the sign of the cross with three fingers - three fingers, symbolizing the unity of the Holy Trinity.

Old Believers cross themselves with two fingers, as was customary in Rus', saying “Alleluia” twice and adding “Glory to Thee, God.”

For worship they dress in special clothes: men put on a shirt or blouse, women wear a sundress and a scarf. During the service, Old Believers cross their arms over their chests as a sign of humility before the Almighty and bow to the ground.

Where are the settlements of the Old Believers?

In addition to those who remained in Russia after Nikon’s reforms, Old Believers continue to return to the country, for a long time living in exile outside its borders. They, as before, honor their traditions, raise livestock, cultivate the land, and raise children.

Many people took advantage of the resettlement program to the Far East, where there is a lot of fertile land and there is an opportunity to build a strong economy. Several years ago, thanks to the same voluntary resettlement program, Old Believers from South America returned to Primorye.

In Siberia and the Urals there are villages where Old Believer communities are firmly established. There are many places on the map of Russia where the Old Believers flourish.

Why were the Old Believers called Bespopovtsy?

The split of the Old Believers formed two separate branches - priesthood and non-priesthood. Unlike the Old Believers-Priests, who after the schism recognized the church hierarchy and all the sacraments, the Old Believers-Priestless began to deny the priesthood in all its manifestations and recognized only two sacraments - Baptism and Confession.

There are Old Believer movements that also do not deny the sacrament of Marriage. According to the Bespopovites, the Antichrist has reigned in the world, and all modern clergy is a heresy that is of no use.

What kind of Bible do the Old Believers have?

Old Believers believe that the Bible and the Old Testament in their modern interpretation are distorted and do not carry the original information that should carry the truth.

In their prayers they use the Bible, which was used before Nikon's reform. Prayer books from those times have survived to this day. They are carefully studied and used in worship.

How do Old Believers differ from Orthodox Christians?

The main difference is this:

1. Orthodox believers recognize the church rites and sacraments of the Orthodox Church and believe in its teachings. Old Believers consider the old pre-reform texts of the Holy Books to be true, without recognizing the changes made.
2. Old Believers wear eight-pointed crosses with the inscription “King of Glory”, there is no image of the Crucifixion on them, they cross themselves with two fingers, and bow to the ground. In Orthodoxy, three-fingered crosses are accepted, crosses have four and six ends, and people generally bow at the waist.
3. The Orthodox rosary consists of 33 beads; the Old Believers use the so-called lestovki, consisting of 109 knots.
4. Old Believers baptize people three times, completely immersing them in water. In Orthodoxy, a person is doused with water and partially immersed.
5. In Orthodoxy, the name “Jesus” is written with a double vowel “i”; Old Believers are faithful to tradition and write it as “Isus”.
6. There are more than ten different readings in the Creed of the Orthodox and Old Believers.
7. Old Believers prefer copper and tin icons to wooden ones.

Conclusion

A tree can be judged by its fruits. The purpose of the Church is to lead its spiritual children to salvation, and its fruits, the result of its labors, can be assessed by the gifts that its children have acquired.

And the fruits of the Orthodox Church are a host of holy martyrs, saints, priests, prayer books and other wondrous Pleasers of God. The names of our Saints are known not only to the Orthodox, but also to the Old Believers, and even to non-church people.

The Old Believers arose in the mid-17th century in response to the unification of worship and church texts undertaken by Patriarch Nikon in 1653-56. Having adopted Christianity through Byzantium, Rus' adopted worship and statutory texts from the Church of Constantinople. Over the course of 6.5 centuries, many discrepancies in texts and ritual differences arose. Newly printed Greek books were taken as the basis for the new Slavic text. Then variants and parallels from the manuscripts were given. As for the ritual, the changes actually affected only a few minor elements: the two-fingered sign of the cross was replaced with a three-fingered one, instead of “Jesus” they began to write “Jesus”, walking towards the sun, and not “salting”, along with the eight-pointed cross, they began to recognize the four-pointed one. We can agree that these steps were taken without sufficient preparation and the necessary...

More than three centuries have passed since the church schism of the 17th century, and most still do not know how the Old Believers differ from Orthodox Christians. Let's figure it out.

Terminology. The distinction between the concepts of “Old Believers” and “Orthodox Church” is quite arbitrary. The Old Believers themselves admit that their faith is Orthodox, and the Russian Orthodox Church is called New Believers or Nikoninans.

In the writings of Old Believer teachers of the 19th century, the term “true Orthodox Church” was often used. The term “Old Believers” became widespread only end of the 19th century century. At the same time, Old Believers of different consents mutually denied each other’s Orthodoxy and, strictly...

How is the Old Believer Church different from the Orthodox Church?

The liturgical reform of Patriarch Nikon in the 1650s-1660s caused a schism in the Russian Orthodox Church, as a result of which clergy and laity who disagreed with the new rules of liturgical life separated from the bulk of believers. The Old Believers began to be considered schismatics and were persecuted, often brutally. In the twentieth century, the position of the Russian Orthodox Church in relation to the Old Believers softened, but this did not lead to the prayerful unity of believers. The Old Believers continue to consider their doctrine of faith to be true, classifying the Russian Orthodox Church as heterodox.

What is the Old Believer and Orthodox Church

The Old Believer Church is a set of religious organizations and movements that arose within the mainstream of the Orthodox Church, but separated from it due to disagreement with the reforms carried out by Patriarch Nikon.

The Orthodox Church is an association of believers belonging to the eastern branch of Christianity, accepting dogmas and...

The cross - a symbol of the atoning sacrifice of Christ - not only marks our belonging to Christianity, but through it the saving Grace of God is sent down to us. Therefore he is the most important element faith. Whether it is an Old Believer cross or one of those accepted in the official church, they are equally blessed. Their difference is purely external, and is due only to the established tradition. Let's try to figure out what it is expressed in.

The departure of the Old Believers from the official church

In the middle of the 17th century, the Russian Orthodox Church experienced a severe shock caused by the reform carried out by its primate, Patriarch Nikon. Despite the fact that the reform affected only the external ritual side of worship, without touching the main thing - religious dogma, it led to a schism, the consequences of which have not been smoothed out to this day.

It is known that, having entered into irreconcilable contradictions with official church and having separated from it, the Old Believers did not remain united for long...

Apparently not everyone knows that the Russian Orthodox Church already took such steps a quarter of a century ago. At the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1971. The decision of the Patriarchal Holy Synod of April 23/10, 1929 was approved. about “the recognition of old Russian rites as salutary, as well as new rites, and equal to them... about the rejection and imputation, as if not former, of disparaging expressions relating to the old rites and, in particular, to double-fingered, wherever they are found and whoever they are spoke...about the abolition of the oaths of the Moscow Council of 1656. and the Great Moscow Council of 1667, imposed by them on the old Russian rites and on the Orthodox Christians who adhere to them, and consider these oaths as if they had not been…”

Thus, the Russian Orthodox Church turned its face to the Old Believers in an effort to overcome the schism that arose 300 years ago.
Everyone knows that the cause of the schism was the church reforms carried out by Patriarch Nikon. What caused them?...

Differences in the faith of Old Believers and Old Believers

Very often, Old Believers are confused with Old Believers, attributing to them the same worldview. However, there are a large number of differences between Old Believers and Old Believers. Confusion in these concepts is created by the media, which, without knowing Russian terminology, interpret the definitions with incorrect concepts.

Old Believers are the custodians of the old faith of their ancestors - the pre-Christian faith, faith in the Orthodox Vedas. Old Believers are representatives of the old Christian rite and refuse to accept the innovations of the Christian Church.

There is also a second reason why there is now confusion in the concept of Old Believers and Old Believers. In 1653, under the leadership of Tsar Alexei Romanov, church reforms were launched, which met strong resistance from supporters of the old rituals. All Old Believers were declared apostates and excommunicated from the church. Under pain of physical harm (at this time there was...

The tragedy of the schism of 1661 was caused by the Nikon Council, which brought a number of changes to the Russian Orthodox Church regarding canons, liturgics, rituals and readings sacred prayers, canons and even Holy Scripture. All these changes were caused, in fact, by an unfounded desire to completely imitate the Church of Constantinople without understanding that those changes that had already occurred in the Church of Constantinople before 1661 were, in fact, the result constant pressure both from Catholicism and from Monophysics and even Islam.

The desire of Patriarch Nikon to introduce all these “innovations” of the Church of Constantinople could not but cause unrest in the ranks of ordinary laymen and many clergy who, not wanting to put up with dubious innovations, were forced to move away from the unity of the church. This is how the Old Believers appeared.

The main canonical differences (the most important ones are highlighted in black), after Nikon’s innovations, were:

three-fingered instead of two-fingered. (Before…

russian7.ru 09/3/2015 Alexey Rudevich.

More than three centuries have passed since the church schism of the 17th century, and most still do not know how the Old Believers differ from Orthodox Christians. Do not do it this way.

Terminology

The distinction between the concepts of “Old Believers” and “Orthodox Church” is quite arbitrary. The Old Believers themselves admit that their faith is Orthodox, and the Russian Orthodox Church is called New Believers or Nikonians.

In the Old Believer literature of the 17th - first half of the 19th centuries, the term “Old Believer” was not used.

Old Believers called themselves differently. Old Believers, Old Orthodox Christians...The terms “orthodoxy” and “true Orthodoxy” were also used.

In the writings of Old Believer teachers of the 19th century, the term “true Orthodox Church” was often used. The term “Old Believers” became widespread only towards the end of the 19th century. At the same time, Old Believers of different agreements mutually...

What are the differences between Orthodoxy and the Old Believers?

Priest Afanasy Gumerov, resident of Sretensky Monastery

The Old Believers arose in the mid-17th century in response to the unification of worship and church texts undertaken by Patriarch Nikon in 1653-56. Having adopted Christianity through Byzantium, Rus' adopted worship and statutory texts from the Church of Constantinople. Over the course of 6.5 centuries, many discrepancies in texts and ritual differences arose. Newly printed Greek books were taken as the basis for the new Slavic text. Then variants and parallels from the manuscripts were given. As for the ritual, the changes actually affected only a few minor elements: the two-fingered sign of the cross was replaced with a three-fingered one, instead of “Jesus” they began to write “Jesus”, walking towards the sun, and not “salting”, along with the eight-pointed cross, they began to recognize the four-pointed one. We can agree that these steps have been taken...

Ksenia Koncarevic (Belgrade)

ABOUT SOME ASPECTS OF THE COMMUNICATIVE CULTURE OF THE OLD BELIEVERS

A lot has been written about the Old Believers... and very little. The extensive library consists of theological works aimed at canonical, dogmatic, church-historical denunciation or justification of the Old Believer doctrine, liturgical practice, culture, and everyday life. Quite a large bibliography of cultural studies scientific works about the Old Believers - works of archaeographers, historians, works devoted to the study of the philosophical content of Old Believer thought (its ontological, epistemological, historiosophical, aesthetic concepts). But the study of the linguistic aspects of the Old Believers, with the exception of the question of “Nikon’s Law”, mainly in its historical and textual aspects, practically did not develop from its very rudimentary state, despite the fact that, in essence, the schism in the Russian Orthodox Church was caused precisely by philological considerations - different...

"RUSSIAN COMPOUND"

In issue No. 13 of the newspaper “Knowledge-Power” for 2000, an article was published “The Slavic Priesthood in the Global Management Structure”, which talked about the “Global Predictor” and the role and place of the Slavic Priesthood in the secret, “shadow” Old Believer structure of the “Russian Compound” "in the Global Social Management System of the "Global Predictor".

The article was prepared by the newspaper's editors based on materials I transmitted to them. But due to the natural limitations of the newspaper, which is published in paper form, in terms of the volume of published information, a lot of what was transmitted was not included in the article. And yet, according to the newspaper's editors, the article aroused some interest among readers. Therefore, I continue to publish information about the “Russian Compound”. And not only about him...

Old Believers and Old Believers.
Ancient history...

What does modern civilized society know about Old Belief and...

What do Old Believers believe and where did they come from? Historical reference

IN last years All large quantity our fellow citizens are interested in issues healthy image life, environmentally friendly methods of management, survival in extreme conditions, the ability to live in harmony with nature, spiritual improvement. In this regard, many turn to the thousand-year experience of our ancestors, who managed to develop the vast territories of present-day Russia and created agricultural, trade and military outposts in all remote corners of our Motherland.

Not least in this case we're talking about about the Old Believers - people who at one time settled not only the territories of the Russian Empire, but also brought the Russian language, Russian culture and Russian faith to the banks of the Nile, to the jungles of Bolivia, the wastelands of Australia and to the snowy hills of Alaska. The experience of the Old Believers is truly unique: they were able to preserve their religious and cultural identity in the most difficult natural and political conditions, without...

Old Believers

Myths and truth about church schism.

When did the Old Believers arise and what was its essence?

The schism arose under Tsar Alexei Romanov and his friend Patriarch Nikon in the mid-17th century. The church reform was preceded by a hundred years of isolation of the Moscow Metropolis, which until the end of the reign of Ivan the Terrible did not receive recognition from the Eastern patriarchs. After the restoration of church ties with the East, the Greek and Russian traditions already revealed contrasting differences. Rus' increasingly looked to the West as an object of imitation. But Nikon’s struggle with Italian icons was not understood by the people - when the patriarch in the Kremlin Cathedral pierced the non-canonical image of the Mother of God with a knife, he was recognized as a harbinger of the end of the world. Therefore, the Old Believers arose both as personal opposition to the patriarch and as a struggle to preserve the usual order of things. The isolated Old Believers felt themselves to be the center of world Christianity, and the state persecution that began only strengthened them in this...

Nowadays, most people are unlikely to give a clear answer to the question of who the Old Believers are, because today the concept of “Old Believers” is associated with something dense, very ancient, left somewhere far in the past. Of course, today on the streets of the city you can no longer meet men with a special bowl cut and a thick beard, and you won’t find women in long skirts with a headscarf tied under the chin. But there are adherents of the Old Believers, and there are quite a few of them in different cities of Russia.

Features of the Old Believers

Let's look at people like Old Believers, who they are and what they do. These are communities of people who have supported the traditions of the Orthodox Church since the baptism of Rus', and remain faithful to this day to the ancient church rites.

In fact, there are no special differences between the new and old faiths, but the teachings of the Old Believers are much stricter than the Orthodox. Besides this, there are a few more differences, namely:

Old Believers cross themselves with two fingers. The name of Christ on the icons of the Old Believers is written “Jesus”, with one “I”….

What are the differences between Orthodoxy and the Old Believers?

Priest Afanasy Gumerov, resident of the Sretensky Monastery, answers:

The Old Believers arose in the mid-17th century in response to the unification of worship and church texts undertaken by Patriarch Nikon in 1653-56. Having adopted Christianity through Byzantium, Rus' adopted worship and statutory texts from the Church of Constantinople. Over the course of 6.5 centuries, many discrepancies in texts and ritual differences arose. Newly printed Greek books were taken as the basis for the new Slavic text. Then variants and parallels from the manuscripts were given. As for the ritual, the changes actually affected only a few minor elements: the two-fingered sign of the cross was replaced by a three-fingered one, they began to write “Jesus” instead of “Jesus”, walking towards the sun, and not “salting”, along with the eight-pointed cross, they began to recognize the four-pointed one. We can agree that these steps were taken without sufficient preparation and the necessary flexibility, sometimes even abruptly. However, it must be said decisively that there was nothing heretical in these church events to bring the terrible accusation of loss of grace to the Church. It is impossible to avoid fundamental questions: did Archpriest Avvakum and his followers believe that the changes made deprived people of the opportunity to be saved in the Church. If he thought so, then it means he suffered from ritualism - a serious spiritual disease that blinded and destroyed the Jewish leaders during the time of the Savior. If I didn’t think so, then why did I cause a schism in the Church, which the holy fathers always considered a grave sin. There were very difficult periods in the history of the Byzantine Church. Sometimes the patriarchal throne was occupied by heretics (monothelite Sergius, iconoclast Anastasius, etc.). With the support of some emperors, this sometimes continued for many years, but the fighters for Orthodoxy did not think of causing a schism. Having a deeply ecclesiastical consciousness, they knew well that this always turns into a tragedy. Saint John Chrysostom says that breaking the unity and completeness of the Church is no less evil than creating heresy.

A living tree must bear fruit. Since the purpose of the Church is to lead its children to salvation, it must be assessed by the spiritual gifts that members of the church community have acquired. The host of saints is the fruit of the Church. Holiness clearly proves that the life of the Church is grace-filled, that life-giving force Holy Spirit. Lamps cannot be hidden under a bushel. Our saints are known to Orthodox, Old Believers and even non-church people. Why are there no such saints in the Old Believers as Tikhon of Zadonsk, Mitrofan of Voronezh, Seraphim of Sarov, John of Kronstadt, the great Optina elders, Ksenia of Petersburg and Matrona of Moscow and many other wondrous saints of God?

At the end I would like to give an example. I have long known an Orthodox woman who was born into an Old Believer family. Many years ago she began visiting Orthodox churches. Her sister (already deceased) remained a non-church person: she did not pray in any way. Old Believer temple, nor in the Orthodox. When she became seriously ill (liver cancer) and before her death wished to confess and receive communion, her sister Marina literally carried her into the Old Believer church in her arms. We looked at the lists there. Irina was not listed in them. They categorically refused to confess and receive communion. The sisters returned home. Opportunities to lead in Orthodox church was no longer there. Marina went alone. The first person she turned to was Father Konstantin (I have known this priest for several years). He was busy, but he left his business and went. Only on the way did Marina decide to tell the priest that she was taking him to her sister, who had been baptized in the Old Believers. Without any hesitation, he continued on his way, confessed and gave communion to the dying Irina.