Ipatievsky Vestnik № 1 (21), 2023

The article analyzes the hermeneutic basis of dispensationalism — the main eschatological doctrine in modern Baptism. Dispensationalism categorically distinguishes between the ways of salvation of Israel and the Church, postulating the doctrines of the invisible "rapture of the church" and the millennial Jewish kingdom, insisting on a strictly literal interpretation of the Old Testament prophecies and blessings for Israel. In fact, dispensationalists use not only a literal, but also an allegorical method, sometimes even with violation of the Scripture. For example, the seven churches of Revelation (chap. 2-3) they mistakenly recognize as seven periods of church history, the city of Babylon (Rev. 17) as a religious system, and for 144 thousand virgins who have not defiled themselves with their wives (Rev. 14), their bodily virginity is denied. On the other hand, sometimes the Lord Himself, angels and elders reveal to John the Theologian, the meaning of some of his visions not literally, but allegorically. Therefore, literal interpretation cannot be the only way of biblical hermeneutics. It should be applied along with other methods in the general context of theology.

The process of Russian theology formation was taking shape over several historical periods. In the Synodal era, during the XXVIII – beginning of the 20th century, there was a stagnation of theological development, mainly due to the enormous influence of Western science on the way of thinking of representatives of the clergy and intelligentsia of the Russian Empire. After the October Revolution of 1917, a new era of the existence of the Russian Church began under aggressive pressure both on the church institution and, directly, on the believers themselves. However, even in unfavorable conditions for further existence, the entire fullness of the Orthodox Church in Russia bore the feat of testifying to the faith of Christ. One of the most striking examples of this kind, is the life, work, literary and theological heritage of the outstanding hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church - Archbishop Mikhail (Mudyugin). He made a huge contribution to the restoration of Russian theological thought, bringing it to its Orthodox origins. The article attempts to analyze the theological heritage of Archbishop Mikhail (Mudyugin). The systematization of his works is given and their orientation in the revival of the tradition of Russian Orthodox theology is explained.

This article views historical and liturgical notes about three main themes. The first one, the Bethlehem relic, discusses one of the many Orthodox relics of the Eastern Churches and is distinguished by its very interesting and non-trivial name: “the milk of the Most Holy Theotokos”. Based on the analysis of the testimonies of contemporaries, it was possible to establish the semi-legendary nature of the origin of this phenomenon, as well as to testify to its active veneration not only in Russia, but throughout the East. Another part of the article is dedicated to the topic of the basic concepts of the Sacrament of the Russian Orthodox Church — the Consecration of the Sick. Being an affiliation of all Orthodox Churches both in the East and in the West, this Sacrament has a long history and its own peculiarities of use. Starting from the historical roots of the Sacrament, originating from the ancient practice of using oil and adapting it in the Christian community, the primordially Russian tradition of performing the Unction can be traced. The end of the article is devoted to the development of the tradition of giving the socalled "Easter" eggs, painted in red. It is seen as the earliest prehistory based on the Tradition of the Church, as well as having purely Russian roots of the tradition. Along with historical evidence, literary works are involved, which in their totality allow a thorough analysis of this unique cultural phenomenon.

The article describes the history of the previously unknown edition of the "Legend of the Appearance and Miracles of the Theodorov Icon of the Mother of God", compiled around 1777 as an appendix to the liturgical sequence in honor of the miraculous image, and its text is published. When the Holy Synod considered this sequence in 1777, it was decided not to publish the text of the Legend in this edition, so the printed edition of the new service (1778) was accompanied only by a brief edition of the Legend from the printed Prologue of 1662. Until now, the text of the Legend in the edition of 1777, preserved in the only manuscript in the archives of the Holy Synod, was not known to researchers. The originator of this text is not specified in the source, but it can be assumed with high probability that he was Archpriest John Krasovsky Jr. (1746–1810), a native of Kostroma, sacellary of the great court church in St. Petersburg and a member of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

The article reveals the main directions of the reforms of theological education during the liberal reforms of Alexander II and their implementation on the ground using the example of the Kostroma Theological Seminary. Considerable attention is paid to the analysis of the new educational Charter of 1867. The issues related to the volume of educational institutions’ financing are revealed. It is obvious that the changes in the complex affected both the student body and the teaching staff; the results of the reforms in theological education in general for the Russian Orthodox Church and for the Kostroma Theological Seminary in particular are analyzed.

The article is dedicated to the memory of Bishop Evtikhiy (Kurochkin) (1955– 2022), one of the hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, who strongly supported the path of ROCOR towards reunification with the Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate. He worked to heal this painful church division and restore unity within the Local Russian Church. Churches. Being a zealous hierarch, over the years of his service, Bishop Eutychius was not only a church administrator, but above all a kind and humble pastor, confessor, a tireless worker, a sincere and attentive interlocutor. Having experienced the temptations of church divisions and inter-j urisdictional confrontations, Bishop Eutychius, by his personal example of modesty and peacemaking, showed the way to church unity and the fullness of Christian life in its spiritual dimension.

This article provides an overview of an Orthodox convent that once existed in the Russian Empire. In the Orthodox Church, monasteries and convents have always been spiritual and educational centers and monastic life has attracted the eyes of not only ordinary people (pilgrims), but also spiritual individuals. So it happened with the Theolinsky Convent. It was a source of light among the Catholic and Uniate population. It had a two-class school, a hospital, a brick factory and other buildings. People came to the monastery for help, for training, for the treatment of diseases, and someone to find work. The convent was a focus of spiritual life, both among nearby parishes and among the local population.

The life path of the vast majority of the abbots of Russian monasteries of the 16th–17th centuries, and even earlier, is unknown due to the lack of sources. However, as the experience of working on the compilation of the Corpus Inscriptionum Rossicarum (CIR) shows, a solid basis for the reconstruction of the abbot's life path and his family and spiritual ties is provided by a comprehensive analysis of sources that attract limited attention of researchers — epigraphic monuments and synodics writings, as well as data from other sources. This paper examines the epigraphic monuments associated with the temple-b uilding activities of archimandrite Theodosius, who was the abbot of Trinity Ipatiev Monastery monastery in 1684–1692, which are the starting point in restoring his origin, individual facts of biography, the circle of kinship and communication. Based on the analysis of these sources, it is concluded that Archimandrite Theodosius came from the owner peasants of the village Alferyevo (Suzdal uezd), took the veil in the Resurrection New Jerusalem Monastery and residing in several Moscow monasteries. At the end of his life, being the archimandrite of the Trinity Ipatiev Monastery, Theodosius built a stone Annunciation church in his native village with his cell money.

The article publishes for the first time an archival document (with comments) related to the period of study of Marshal of the Soviet Union A. M. Vasilevsky at the Kostroma Theological Seminary. The discovered document indicates that the famous military commander was a cleric (clergyman) of the Orthodox Church. He was ordained to the ecclesiastical degree of reader in the Epiphany Cathedral of the Kostroma Kremlin. This article is the material for the second edition of Marshal A. M. Vasilevsky: from Seminarian to Marshal.

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