Oleg Groin

The Inochentist Movement and the "Moldavian Question" in the Early 20th Century Bessarabia.

Oleg Gram - Junior Research Fellow at the Institute of Socio-Economic and Humanities Research of the Southern Scientific Center of Russian Academy of Sciences (Rostov-on-Don, Russia), gromescu@gmail.com

The article deals with the "Inochentist movement" in the early 20th century in connection to the "national question" in Bessarabia. It shows the preconditions of the movement's emergence in its pre-1917 history and explores the reactions of ecclesiastic and secular actors to the phenomenon. The threat of Moldovans' falling away from the official Russian Orthodoxy made the authorities of eparchy and gubernia to seek a compromise. As a result, the struggle with the Inochentist movement led to the legalization of the "cultural current" in the Moldavian nationalist movement.

Keywords: Bessarabia, Moldavian question, Inochentist movement, Orthodoxy in Bessarabia

At the beginning of the 20th century, after several decades of attempts to Russify the Orthodox Church in Bessarabia, there is a return of interest in the cultural characteristics of Moldovans. However, their religious world remained largely terra incognita, and the common place was the idea of them as deeply religious, not inclined to fall away from Orthodoxy, loyal to the empire of foreigners. Against this background, in the early 1910s, a religious trend was spreading among Moldovans in Bessarabia and neighboring provinces, which was referred to in sources as the "Baltic movement", "Baltic psychosis" or "Innokentievism".

Innokentievschina is often mentioned in works on the history of Bessarabia, but special studies of this phenomenon, especially in the history of Bessarabia.-

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Relatively little has been written about his links to the national question and the Bessarabian national movement. The most famous researcher of the "Baltic movement" is the Romanian-Bessarabian church historian of the interwar period Nicolae Popovski. In 1926, his book "The Baltic Movement or Innokentism in Bessarabia"was published1. The main ideas of this book were included in a revised version in his generalizing work on the history of the Orthodox Church in Bessarabia during the period of Russian rule, 2 which has not lost its relevance to this day. Popovsky proceeded from the idea of Innokentievism as a purely religious phenomenon, without singling out a special "national" component in it. A contemporary researcher of sectarianism in Russia, the author of a number of works on the Baltic movement, J. R. R. Tolkien. Eugene Clay insists that Innokentievism, at least in the eyes of Bishop Seraphim (Chichagov) of Chisinau (1908-1914), was part of Moldavian "separatism", which the latter tried to fight during his tenure in the Chisinau see.3 However, Clay is mostly based on general reasoning. Probably, this interpretation was influenced by the nationalist tradition of Romanian historiography, which tends to exaggerate the" national "character of the Innocent movement, explaining it as a reaction to the" complete expulsion " of the Romanian (Moldovan) language from the church. For example, Mircea Pecurariu, a Romanian professor of theology and church historian, says that Innocent demanded the introduction of services in the Romanian language, being dissatisfied with the"Russification tendencies of the authorities"4. Such statements, most often based on nothing, are not uncommon in the Romanian literature.

Before going directly to the Innocent movement, it is useful to outline the ethno-religious context in which it emerged. By the middle of the 19th century, the policy of relative loyalty to the Romanian language was replaced by Russification, which reached its apogee under Bishop Pavel (Lebedev) (1871-1882).

1. Popovschi, N. (1926) Miscarea dela Balta: sau inochentizmul in Basarabia. Chisinau: Cartea Romaneascca.

2. Popovschi, N. (1931) Istoria Bisericii din Basarabia in veacul al XIX-fea sub rusi, pp. 441 - 456. Chisinau: Cartea Romaneascca.

3. Clay, J. E. (1998) "Apocalypticism in the Russian Borderlands: Inochentie Levizor and his Moldovan Followers", Religion, State & Society 26 (3/4): 258.

4. Pacurariu, M. (1993) Basarabia. Aspecte din istoria bisericii si a neamului romanesc, p. 96. Iasi: Trinitas.

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It coincided with efforts to russify the western suburbs of the Russian Empire, which became particularly relevant after the suppression of the Polish uprising of 1863-1864, and the general growth of Russian nationalism. Under Paul, all church documentation in the Kishinev diocese was translated into Russian, the Moldovan service in most churches was replaced by Slavonic 5, and attempts were made to Russify monasteries that had long remained strongholds of "Moldavism". Paul's followers continued his policies until the end of the century. Thus, under Sergius (Lyapidevsky), the printing of church books in the Romanian language ceased, which contributed to its further marginalization. Nevertheless, despite these restrictive measures, the Orthodox Church remained the only institution in Bessarabia where the Romanian language was somehow preserved (it was excluded from office work in the 1840s-1850s, and from the educational system in the 1860s). As one of the consequences of the Russification policy, a special role should be noted It was acquired by the monastic community, which maintained closer contacts with the Moldovan flock than the Russified parish priests.

The date of the emergence of the Baltic movement is usually considered to be 1909. Its founder was Hieromonk Innokenty of the Baltic Feodosiyevsky Monastery, in the world Ivan (Ion) Levizor 6. The future father Innokenty was born on February 24, 1875 in the village of Kosoutsy, Soroksky district, Bessarabian province in a peasant family. Little is known about Ivan Levizor's childhood and youth, mainly from hagiographic sources containing contradictory and sometimes fantastic information. In 1899, he became a novice in the Dobrushansky monastery. After several years spent in the monastery, Levizor goes on a pilgrimage to the monasteries of Russia and reaches St. Petersburg, where, according to the legends of his followers, he meets George Gapon and Fr. St. John of Kronstadt. After a few years

5. It is important to note that the results of Russification were often exaggerated. According to some authors, the service in many "Russified" churches was carried out only on paper. N. Bessarabia. Historical description. St. Petersburg: Comrade. "Общественная Польза", 1892. С. 174; Ciobanu, St. (1923) Cultura romaneascii in Basarabia sub stapanirea rusa, pp. 147 - 148. Chisinau: Editura "Asociatiei Uniunea Culturala Bisericeasca din Chisinau".

6. According to some sources, his real surname is Turcan. See: Popovschi, Istoria Bisericii din Basarabia, p. 441.

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In 1909, Levizor finds himself in a newly founded monastery in the city of Balta, Podolsk province, where he is tonsured a monk and ordained to the priesthood.7
In the Baltsky monastery, a young monk finds a favorable ground for religious activity, prepared by the presence of the local cult of Father Theodosius Levitsky (1791-1845) - a myth of the end of the reign of Alexander I. Theodosius was a priest in the city of Balta. In his sermons, as well as in correspondence with various ecclesiastical and secular persons, he defended the idea of the imminent demise of the world and the need to prepare for it. He sent one of his compositions to Alexander I personally in 1822, after which he was invited to St. Petersburg and presented to the tsar. Alexander, who himself had a penchant for mysticism, sympathized with the ideas of the Baltic priest. However, in 1824, after a sermon in which Levitsky declared the St. Petersburg flood the punishment of God for the lack of desire for repentance and correction, despite his prophecies and warnings, the priest was exiled to the Konevsky Monastery by the highest command. Only in 1827 was he allowed to return to his former place of ministry.8 Father Theodosius enjoyed authority among the parishioners and was revered by the inhabitants of the surrounding areas even after his death. At the beginning of the XX century, after the opening of the monastery in Balta, the pilgrimage to his grave only increased. Many people not only from the vicinity of Balta, but also from the neighboring Bessarabian province flocked to the monastery to worship Father Theodosius. Innocent, the only one of the monastery's brethren who knew the Moldavian language, quickly gained popularity both among local Moldovans and among the Bessarabian pilgrims, whom he professed and to whom he preached sermons and various moral teachings. 9 According to opponents of the hieromonk, he also carried out questionable religious practices, such as exorcism sessions. To further promote the cult of Theodosius (Levitsky) Innocent translated his life into Moldavian 10.

7. Ibid.

8. For more information about the life and teachings of Theodosius Levitsky, see: Brodsky L. Priest Theodosius Levitsky and his works presented to the Emperor Alexander I. St. Petersburg: Synodal Printing House, 1911. ss. I-XXXV.

9. Ibid., pp. 286-287.

10. Glasul Basarabiya. 1913, N 6.

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An important role in the spread of the Baltic movement was played by the special attitude of Moldovan peasants to Orthodoxy. On the one hand, they were for the most part extremely religious, and religiosity was manifested mainly in a careful attitude to the ritual part. For example, one priest wrote that among Moldavian peasants, theft, fornication, and perjury were sometimes considered lesser sins than eating meat and milk during Lent.11 On the other hand, the disdainful attitude towards the Moldovan language in the last decades of the XIX century, the imposition of Church Slavonic services and Russian sermons, and the inability of many "Russified" priests to find a common language with parishioners during their years of study at the seminary made Moldovans indifferent to the official church. Of great importance for the Bessarabian peasants was the performance of religious rites in their native language. Thus, the head of the Bessarabian Gendarme department wrote in 1912 that "funeral services for the dead in the Moldavian language (which the peasants value very much) are estimated by priests several times more expensive than in Russian, and the fee for this requirement sometimes reaches 100 rubles" 12. In this respect, the "business" of Innocent, who played on the religious feelings of Moldovans, was not a unique phenomenon for Bessarabia: priests, and especially monks, actively used the specifics of popular Orthodoxy and the linguistic situation in the Bessarabian church13.

At the initial stages of the development of the "Baltic movement", the church authorities did not take it seriously, and measures of counteraction were taken in ways that may now seem naive. For example, the 1909 Congress of clergy of the Chisinau Diocese decided to read special prayers in churches of Bessarabia in order to combat the Baltic movement.14 At the same time, there was nothing specifically "anti-sectarian"in the very content of these prayers. In addition, they were written in the church style.-

11. Murafa A. Towards the Christianization of Moldavian parishes... / / Kishinev Diocesan Gazette (hereinafter - KEV), 1914. N 32-33. p. 1356.

12. Negru, Gh. (2000) Tarismul si miscarea nationala a romanilor din Basarabia. 1812 - 1918, p. 177. Chisinau: Prut International.

13. For example, in 1913, the case of Hieromonk Feofan fleeing to Romania with a large sum of money earned at the expense of the Moldavian service was made public. 1913. N 12.

14. National Archive of the Republic of Moldova (hereinafter - NARM). F. 208, Op. 3, D. 4547. L. 12.

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their direct and hidden meaning remained completely incomprehensible to the majority of actual and potential followers of Innocent. Despite everything, the traffic was growing. So, in 1910 alone, 80,000 pilgrims visited Balta, which is several times the population of the city.15
Over time, the concern of the authorities of the Chisinau diocese, and above all Bishop Seraphim himself, who was clearly aware of the threat posed by Innocent to his Moldovan flock, began to grow. In his address to the clergy, His Grace emphasized that Hieromonk Innokenty was a Moldovan by birth and that his sermons were very popular among the Moldovan population. The bishop of Chisinau painted a terrible picture, which, in his opinion, took place at the meetings of the Innocents:

He [Innocent] is engaged in chastising those who are possessed with demons in the presence of a large crowd of people and by the cries of these possessed people who glorify him, acquires the glory of a holy soothsayer and healer among the dark mass of the people. By uttering incantations, all sorts of threats, and allowing a general open confession, Hieromonk Innokenty brings many to illness and frenzy.

In addition to Innocent himself, Seraphim blames the leadership of the neighboring diocese of Podolsk and the abbot of the Balta monastery, "who intended to financially equip his poor monastery with money from gullible Moldovans." 16 In addition to external reasons, Seraphim mentions internal ones - the fault of Bessarabian priests and abbots of monasteries who did not report on what was happening in time and did not take any measures. A circular decree issued by the Chisinau Ecclesiastical Consistory instructed the clergy of the diocese to convey to the population Seraphim's ban on any pilgrimage to Balta and explain that failure to comply with the archpastor's request "would be a great sin." In addition, priests and abbots of monasteries should collect all information about the manifestations of the "Baltic movement" in the parishes entrusted to them. 17 The 1910 Congress of Clergy also expressed concern about the scope of the sectarian movement. Depu-

15. Clay, J.E. "Apocalypticism in the Russian Borderlands", p. 251.

16. NARM. F. 208, Op. 4, D. 3009, L. 111.

17. Ibid., l. 111 vol.

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The tats decided that in order to fight against Innokentievism, it is necessary to open parish libraries, as well as publish special anti-sectarian articles in the Moldovan language in the church magazine "Luminetorul" (Enlightener) 18. But even these measures did not bring the desired calm. The pilgrimage to the Podolsk province continued, and even, moreover, cases of fundraising in favor of the Balta Monastery became more frequent, including by impostor Innokentievs. In the end, the diocesan authorities were forced to turn to the police for help.19
The spread of the movement was also facilitated by the patronage of the abbot of the Baltsky Monastery and the leadership of the Podolsk diocese, who were interested in increasing income from pilgrims. An inquiry conducted by Bishop Seraphim (Golubyatnikov) of Podolsk did not reveal anything seditious in Innokentiy's activities.20 With his assistance, the Synod rejected the request of the bishop of Chisinau to expel Innocent to a remote monastery and, by a decision of March 22 - April 26, recognized the absence of elements of a crime in the monk's actions.21 However, in 1911, at the insistence of the Bishop of Chisinau, Innocent was transferred to the Podol bishop's house under the supervision of His Grace, which, however, did not stop the pilgrimage.

Seraphim continued to write letters to the Synod, insisting on decisive administrative intervention. As a result, in early 1912, the Synod decided to transfer the "suspicious" monk to the Murom Holy Dormition Monastery in Olonets province. But by autumn, Bessarabian Moldavians-pilgrims-began to arrive there en masse. With the support of the local rector, Archimandrite Mercury, Innokenty continued his preaching activities. In the midst of the winter of 1913, Innokenty made an "exodus" from the monastery to Balta with some of his followers. After eleven days of wandering in the snow, the "elder" was arrested by the police and imprisoned in Petrozavodsk. As a result, the Synod did not recognize the teachings of the Baltic monk as "heresy" or "sectarianism". Innokenty was not defrocked, but after "rest-

18. NARM. F. 230, Op. 1. D. 18. L. 42 vol.

19. NARM. F. 208, Op. 4, D. 3009, L. 156.

20. Zyryanov P. N. Russkiye monastyri i monashestvo v XIX i nachale XX veka [Russian monasteries and monasticism in the 19th and early 20th centuries]. Moscow: Verbum-M, 2002, p.259.

21. Borta, M. Cea mai marcanta personalitate a Basarabiei prerevolufionare [http:// personalitatibasarabene.info/cea-mai-marcanta-personalitate-a-basarabiei-prerevolutionare_05 _2008.html, доступ от 24.12.13].

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In the summer of 1913, as a punishment, he was transferred to the Solovetsky Monastery 22.

There was no consensus in the Chisinau Diocese about the essence of innokentism. This is largely due to the fact that the" teaching " of Innocent, despite a significant share of religious mysticism and some specific rituals, at first did not differ much from the dogmatic faith of the official church. If these differences were obvious to theologians and missionaries, who not without some doubt classified "Innokentievism" as a kind of whiplash, then for the peasants who followed the Baltic monk, they simply did not exist. The main idea of Innocent's sermons was the statement about the approach of the time of the antichrist, the "last days", when every hour you need to wait for the end of the world. In this sense, he developed the ideas of Theodosius Levitsky about the proximity of the last Judgment. The approach of the end of the world dictated, according to Innocent and his followers, the need for strict observance of the norms of religious morality.23 It was not without the influence of Innocent's sermons that many believers refused to marry, and those who were already married refused to fulfill their marital duty.24 Some also refrained from eating pork (Bishop Seraphim of Chisinau attributed this to Khlystov's teaching that "a demon has taken possession of pigs").25. A special place in the sermons of the Baltic monk was occupied by the ban on the use of alcohol and tobacco. Much later, ideas began to spread that Innocent was the "prophet Elijah" sent by Father Theodosius to save Moldovans from the power of the devil, the earthly incarnation of the Holy Spirit, etc.Official sources attributed the spread of these rumors to Innocent himself. However, as the diocesan missionary Fr. Kirika, Innokenty's hereticism became apparent only in the autumn of 1912, that is, from the beginning of the pilgrimage to the Murom Monastery 26. At the same time, rumors about the miracles and divine nature of Innocent began to circulate among the adepts.-

22. Glasul Basarabiya. 1913. N 20.

23. Popovschi, N. Istoria Bisericii din Basarabia, p. 443;

24. A friend. 1913. N 18.

25. The appeal of His Eminence Archbishop Seraphim to the clergy of the diocese / / KEV. 1913. N 2. P. 9.

26. Report of the Diocesan missionary-preacher Archpriest Theodosius Kirika // Attached. to KEV. 1913. N 26. P. 9.

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work earlier. Thus, the report to the Synod of November 7, 1911, referred to the belief of the Innocentians that "Jesus Christ transferred all the power of the deity and authority to Theodosius of Balta, and Theodosius to Innocent, and Innocent to Ambros (one of the Bessarabian leaders of the movement - O. G.)" 27. Among the notable features of the beliefs of the Innocentians are: about "martyrs", that is, mentally ill people who were considered saints, because their sufferings were approaching the kingdom of heaven. The "martyrs" were revered by the adherents of Innocent 28. The Innocentians also introduced many elements of Moldavian folk Orthodoxy, such as the veneration of holy wells.

Assessing the teachings of Innocent is difficult, since the sources relating to the period under consideration belong almost exclusively to opponents of the Baltic preacher. They are full of statements about the depravity of Innocent and his supporters, the promotion of free love, the use of various unorthodox and even pagan rituals, etc. Now it is rather difficult to say which of these accusations was fair, and which was part of the typical anti-sectarian propaganda of that time.

Missionaries, journalists and public figures have offered a wide variety of explanations for the Innocent phenomenon, ranging from purely religious to attempts to interpret the "Baltic psychosis" from the standpoint of psychiatry. Missionaries sent by the synodal authorities also tried to explain what was happening. In 1913, the publisher of the influential synodal newspaper Kolokol, V. M. Skvortsov, came to Chisinau to study the movement "on the spot" and give an anti-sectarian lecture. However, the missionary's knowledge of" Bessarabian sectarianism " turned out to be very peculiar. Speaking about innokentievschina, he stated:

What is it, if not whiplash? If we assume that the Moldovans, out of their simplicity, extreme darkness and ignorance, went to Innoken-

27. The reactionary role of religion and the Church. Archival documents on the activities of clergymen in Moldova/Edited by A. I. Babiy. Kishinev: Kartya Moldovenyaskaia, 1969, p. 166.

28. Clay, J.E. "Apocalypticism in the Russian Borderlands", p. 255.

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If they were hypnotized by it, so much the worse, then we have to draw an even more unpleasant conclusion about Moldovans and their pastors.29
However, Skvortsov immediately dropped all charges against the clergy, in fact writing off all the reasons for the phenomenon on the ignorance of Moldovans. The general pathos of Skvortsov's speech was that "Freemasonry is undermining Orthodoxy and this is a threat to the autocracy." 30 Local missionaries, as well as the bishop of Chisinau himself, were inclined to see khlystovism in Innokenty's teaching.

In the winter of 1912-1913, when the scale of the Baltic movement and the impotence of the authorities became apparent, the local press began to report in large numbers on what was happening. It is characteristic that almost all authors described Innokentievschina as a purely Moldovan movement, but the significance of this circumstance was attached to various things: from a simple statement of fact to attempts to explain the Moldovan tendency to sectarianism by "national character".

The most authoritative and frequently cited text explaining Innokentievism was an article by the Bessarabian psychiatrist A. D. Kotsovsky, published in several journals and in a separate booklet. Speaking about the "national" component, Kotsovsky cited the Russification of the Bessarabian clergy as one of the reasons for the emergence of the Baltic movement.31 At the same time, he attributed part of the blame to the Moldovans themselves, their low level of intellectual development and extreme credulity. Referring to the article of the Kherson doctor Yakovenko, Kotsovsky wrote:: "In their ignorance, they (Moldovans)are very simple-minded and easily accept on faith everything that they hear from the church pulpit in their native language." 32 In a review of Kotsovsky's pamphlet, Vasily Kurdinovsky, the editor of Diocesan Vedomosti, pointed out that Innokentievism "has the character of a national movement." 33 While agreeing with the view that it is important to be a member of the Russian Orthodox Church.

29. Bessarabian life. 1913. N 93.

30. Ibid.

31. Kotsovsky A.D. On the so-called "Baltic movement" in Bessarabia / / Proceedings of the Bessarabian Society of Natural Scientists and Natural Science Lovers. 1911-1912, Vol. III. P. 180.

32. Ibid., p. 178.

33. KEV, 1913. N 11. P. 530.

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considering the Russification of the clergy, Kurdinovsky adds that Russification affected primarily the parish clergy and almost did not affect the monasteries, which remain the centers of the "old" Moldavian foundations. Further, speaking about the "purely Moldovan character of the movement", he writes about the internal painful process of the Moldovan nation and the need for its recovery. 34
However, not everyone agreed with such interpretations. Thus, the missionary I. Gromikov called it a stretch to hint at the national character of Innokentievism and its orientation against Russification, based on the fact that the majority of adherents were people who were not affected by Russification.35
Archbishop Seraphim's position on the essence of Innokentievism is noteworthy. While agreeing in general with the "Khlystov" version, Vladyka did not lose sight of the "national dimension" that occupied him in the context of the struggle against pro-Romanian sentiments among the Moldovan clergy. Innokentievschina was a blow to one of the pillars of the law enforcement myth about Moldovans - their unconditional commitment to official Orthodoxy. Addressing the clergy, Seraphim wrote::

It is time to forget, pastors, the belief that Moldovans are inherently incapable of falling away from the Church of Christ into sectarianism; I warned you that the darkness of the people promotes rapid seduction, if only there is a sectarian who can preach in their native language. 36
Here, Seraphim projected onto the church sphere the fears of some Bessarabian " rightists "regarding the danger of spreading" revolutionary " agitation in the Moldovan language and the inevitability of its success.

To fight against Innokentievism, Seraphim ordered anti-Innokentiev sermons to be read in Moldovan in churches, as well as to strengthen the distribution of anti-sectarian leaflets of the Nativity of Christ Brotherhood. To help the parish priests, the Archbishop personally compiled synopses of sermons 37. To the Diocesan missionary A. I. Prokhoznikov for the purpose of "calming the heart".-

34. Ibid., p. 531.

35. Gromikov I. Baltskoe dvizhenie i innokentievtsy [The Baltic movement and the Innocent people]. KEV. 1913. N 34. 1325.

36. KEV. 1913. N 2. P. 11.

37. KEV. 1913. N 11. P. 103.

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It was instructed to print anti-sectarian leaflets in the Moldovan language. Already in April of the same year, a leaflet was published that was distributed in Russian and Moldovan under the title "The Word of Salvation to the Orthodox Moldavian" .38 In the words of the Chisinau priest V. Guma, "the wise Archpastor turned this instrument of Innokentievism, while the Moldavian language, both spoken and printed, became an instrument of struggle against it."39 Similarly, a few years earlier, the secular authorities of the province used the Moldavian language to combat the revolutionary and nationalist agitation of the Bessarabian intelligentsia.

In the parochial and secular circles, under the influence of Innokentievism, an increasing number of people began to actively advocate for expanding the scope of use of the Moldovan language. Thus, the 1913 congress of church and school leaders decided to pay special attention to the teaching of the Russian language in non-native schools, but at the same time considered it appropriate to use the so-called "natural method" in Bessarabian educational institutions, when the use of the mother language as an auxiliary tool was allowed for the first two years of study.40 Decisions to strengthen preaching activities in the Moldovan language in order to combat sectarianism were taken even at the Synod level. 41 By a decree of July 26-August 23, 1913, the highest church body ordered bishops of three dioceses affected by the Innocentianism to "have special archpastoral care for the religious needs of Moldovans." 42
A landmark event that attracted the attention of the entire Bessarabian community of the province was the first episcopal service in Chisinau in almost half a century, held on July 21, 1913, entirely in the Moldovan language. His Grace Gabriel, the vicar bishop of Ackermann, even learned Moldovan specifically for this purpose. However, despite the change in attitude to the language of worship, the organizers of the Moldovan episcopal service did not dare to arrange a liturgy in the cathedral, probably fearing accusations of "separatism". Newspaper

38. Popovschi, N. Istoria bisericii din Basarabia, p. 453.

39. KEV. 1913, N 34. CC. 1323-1324.

40. NARM. F. 230. Op. 1. D. 20. L. 9 vol.

41. Glasul of Basarabia. 1913. N 21.

42. Zyryanov P. N. Decree, op. p. 261.

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"Bessarabskaya Zhizn" wrote in this regard: "In conclusion, it should be noted that the Moldovan divine service will not be held in the cathedral, as His Grace Gabriel fears the displeasure of the Synod." 43
Moldovan national activists also joined in the discussion of the causes and methods of combating the "Baltic movement". For example, Yuri Youzhny (pseudonym of G. Todorov, known in the Romanian-language literature as Iorgu Tudor) published a series of articles and polemical notes in the newspaper "Friend". In the feuilleton "Innocentievtsy", he suggests that the Baltic movement is the awakening of the" sleeping for centuries " nationality, coming from below, the awakening of the spirit of the Daco-Roman ancestors in Moldovans. Moldovans, deprived of books and newspapers, find the scope of their spiritual powers in religion. Tudor declares that the only effective means of combating Innokentievism is the printed word in the Moldovan language, concluding: "a newspaper and a book for him - a Moldavian!"44. Tudor's ideas were developed by another correspondent of Druga, hiding under the pseudonym "Moldavanin", who insisted that the newspaper and the book themselves would not benefit Moldovans, since they were only tools for satisfying cultural needs. The main task is to teach Moldovans how to use these tools, and therefore, Moldovans need a school first of all.45
Discussions about the "Moldovan question" in connection with the Baltic movement were especially intensified on the eve of Skvortsov's arrival in Chisinau. For example, a letter from a "group of Moldovans" called "laity and clergy" was published in Druga. The authors of the letter protested against the recognition of Innokentievism as a kind of khlystovism, fearing that this would entail "outrageous persecution" of the Moldovan people by the "missionary inquisition of official Russian Orthodoxy." According to the authors, missionaries like synodal Skvortsov and diocesan Prokhoznikov, being Russian, are not able to understand "the primitive soul of the Bessarabian population." The authors of the article, like the rest of the "sympathizers", saw salvation in educating the Moldovan people, who suffer from grievances.-

43. Bessarabian life. 1913. N 160.

44. A friend. 1913. N 39.

45. A friend. 1913. N 62.

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land use, the influx of foreigners and helplessness in modern life. The letter ends with an almost catechetical appeal to "Vladyka the blessed", that is, to Seraphim, with a request for protection and granting "archpastoral love" to Bessarabian Moldovans. 46 The majority of representatives of the Moldovan national intelligentsia were characterized by the lack of education and church services in their native language.

The letter of the" laity and clergy " caused a lively newspaper controversy. Just a few days later, an article" Russians and Moldovans in Bessarabia "appeared in the same" Friend", signed with the pseudonym Maloross. The author pointed out the indecency of attacks on "Russian service people in Bessarabia", to which he referred both the parish clergy and the increased "marginal consciousness" of a part of Bessarabian society. Moldovans everywhere seem to see the policy of Russification, which, according to Malorossians, they tend to write off everything, up to the decline of winemaking. Refuting the thesis of Russification in the church, Maloross is indignant that in Bessarabia there are still priests who do not speak Russian at all and are not subject to any persecution for this. Seraphim is presented as a consistent supporter of local cadres, who at any moment could flood Moldovan parishes with priests from central Russia, but does not do this out of love for the Moldovan flock. Moldovans pay for such a loyal attitude to them with black ingratitude. But the author's particular indignation was caused by the mention of Little Russians among foreigners who "flooded Bessarabia". Following the typical refrain of Russian historical works of the XIX century about Bessarabia, the author of the article declares the Little Russians not as strangers in the region, but as if they were an indigenous, moreover "Russian" population. They do not "survive" the Moldovans from their ancestral country, but on the contrary, the Moldovans assimilate the Little Russians, on whom, as the author believed, the entire civilized economy in the region rests.47
Now it is difficult to say who was hiding behind the pseudonym Maloross, but he was well known to the other feuilletonist Mukha (based on some stylistic features of Mukha's texts, we can assume that this is another pseudonym). Tudor), who defended the "laity and clergy". According to Muha, Maloross is a priest who came to Bessarabia, " seva-

46. A friend. 1913. N 91.

47. A friend. 1913. N 95.

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ryanin", which got involved in a controversy because of its national preferences 48. Perhaps it could have been the diocesan missionary Theodosius Volovei. Between Mukha and Maloross, a controversy developed over Innokentievism, which focused on the question of the "national" component of the movement. Mucha's articles on the missionary revision in Bessarabia are written in the same spirit as the letter of the laity and Clergy. The feuilletonist cites ignorance, low intellectual level of development of Moldovans and disregard of the authorities for their spiritual needs as the reasons for the Baltic movement. The situation of Moldovans in cultural and religious terms, according to Mucha, is even worse than that of the Tierra del Fuego savages, Samoyeds and Chukchi. Even in the church, Moldavian peasants cannot find solace, because ...in many parishes where the pastor is not a natural Moldavian, but a stranger from the north, to whom, for all his search for close communication with his flock, the savage Moldavian 49 sometimes treats with obvious distrust and prejudice.

This partly explains the alienation of many rural priests from parishioners and the enormous influence of their native Moldovan father, which was so criminally used by Monk Innocent 50.

Mucha saw the method of solving the problem of Innokentievism not in missionary revisions and theological speculations about the Khlystov essence of Innokenti's teaching, but in attracting preachers "close to the people" (that is, of Moldovan origin).

In response to the articles of pro-Moldavian correspondents of Druga, Maloross 'article" Not that! "was addressed to the" guardians of the Moldovan people". Speaking once again about Innokentievism, Maloross says that to see the Moldovan divine service as a panacea for sectarianism is nothing less than crossing all the boundaries of decency. In his opinion, the divine service in Bessarabia has always been performed in the Moldovan language, and the fact that

48. A friend. 1913. N 102.

49. Here it is noteworthy that Mucha, defending the interests of foreigners, draws analogies between "savages" and Moldovans. As a rule, nationalists and sympathizers of Moldovans tried to disown such comparisons that came from supporters of Russification.

50. A friend. 1913. N 98.

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Recently, it has been increasingly crowded with Slavic-this is a consequence of the discordant Moldovan language. Maloross actually reanimates the ideas of the bishop-Russifier Pavel (Lebedev), for whom the "discordance" of Moldovan church singing was one of the reasons for its mass replacement with Slavic 51. The cultural needs of the Moldavian flock, according to Malorossy, could be fully met by the bilingual leaflets of the Nativity of Christ brotherhood; they could also warn the Innocent people if the "Moldavian guardians" from among the clergy themselves read them to the people, and did not hand them over to the archives.52 Consequently, the blame for the spread of "sectarianism" was shifted to Moldovan priests who were indifferent to the needs of their Moldovan flock. Maloross also indirectly touches on the topic of Bessarabian "separatism", accusing Moldovan intellectuals of groundless" trans - Prut aspirations", and the newspapers they publish of instilling the spirit of" isolation "and" whispering", which, in his opinion, is also permeated with Innokentievism.53 Thus, he implicitly put an equal sign between Innokentievism and Moldovan nationalism.

In connection with Innokentievism, the "Moldovan question" was also discussed outside Bessarabia. The influential newspaper Odessky Listok published an article, probably written by a person close to the circle of Bessarabian nationalists, under the title "Separatism and Innokentievism". Its author ironically criticized the search for separatism among Moldovans, who for a century "loyally adapted to the Russian uryadnik and Russian vodka." As a result of the efforts of the right-wing "guardians", the Moldovan population "was declared not suspicious and not threatened, but directly disadvantaged by separatism-obviously, on the only shaky basis that they, the population, continue to stubbornly use their native language, while in the Bessarabian village there is no Russian school and absolutely no good Russian folk culture." school". According to the author of the article, the idea of "Bessarabian separatism" was refuted by Innokentievschina, which forced the authorities to apply for the fight against this movement.

51. Parkhomovich I. A brief sketch of the archpastoral activity in Bessarabia of His Eminence Paul, Archbishop of Kishinev and Khotyn from 1871 to 1881. Chisinau: Type. Bishop's House, 1882. P. 45_46.

52. A friend. 1913. N 104.

53. Ibid.

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to preach and educate in the Moldovan language. And this, by and large, was the realization of the ideal of those people who until recently were recognized as "separatists"54. The Ukrainian newspaper Rada, commenting on the publication of the Odessa Leaflet, went even further, stating that the secular and spiritual authorities "themselves became supporters of Moldovan separatism at a critical moment". "Life itself, "the newspaper wrote," came out against the excessively hot Russian "patriots" and laughed at them. The sad tragedy of those thousands of poor peasants who followed Innocent forced the "guardians"to see clearly and come to their senses." 55
Correspondents of these newspapers quite correctly noticed the revolution in the attitude towards the Moldovan language, which produced the Baltic movement in the minds of society and the authorities, especially the church. The fears of Romanian Irredentism were replaced by a struggle with an internal threat, and the myth of the unconditional commitment of Moldovans to official Orthodoxy was questioned. In the end, all this made us reconsider the attitude to the cultural needs of the Moldovan population.

Almost simultaneously with the public debate about Innokentievism and the "liberalization" of language policy, the voices of Moldovan nationalists are once again heard within the church. In the spring of 1913, after a break of several years, the newspaper "Glasul Basarabii" (Voice of Bessarabia) and the magazine "Kuvint Moldovenesk" (Moldovan word) began to be published in Chisinau in the Moldovan language. The appearance of such publications at this very moment was not accidental: if a few years ago the authorities did not support the idea of publishing Moldovan newspapers (for example, in 1912 the newspaper "Feklia Cerii" [Torch of the Country] was banned), then in 1913 a newspaper and magazine appeared and the volume of Romanian-language printed products in general increased.

For Grigore Constantinescu, editor of the newspaper "Glasul Basarabii", and his supporters, the topic of Innokentievism was important. In particular, it was stated as one of the issues that the newspaper was supposed to cover. 56 Following the general idea of demonstrating loyalty to the authorities, "Glasul Basarabii" did not go beyond the official condemnation of Innokentievism and propaganda for the return of adherents of the movement

54. Odessa leaflet. 1913. N 66.

55. Rada. 1913. N 68

56. Glasul Basarabiya. 1913. N 1.

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into the bosom of official Orthodoxy. During the spring and summer of 1913, the newspaper regularly published articles explaining the essence of the teaching and covering the latest news related to the fate of the disgraced monk. Of great importance was the publication of the Moldovan translation of Innokenty's penance, which he made on July 30, 1913, before being sent to Solovki.57
By the fall of 1913, the "passion for Innocent" had mostly subsided. However, neither the isolation of the leader, nor his repentance, nor his sermons and missionary conversations led to a complete cessation of the movement. The Innocent communities continued to exist, and the adherents of the sect were still preparing for the Last Judgment, which their prophet predicted. Innocent's brother, Semyon Levizor, played a major role in the future history of the movement, establishing a sectarian settlement near the village of Lipetsk in the Kherson province, called Ray 58. Moreover, Innocent's expulsion to the northern provinces gave him the aura of a martyr and led to the strengthening of the "new faith" of some of the most imbued with the teachings of Moldovans. In 1917, after the February Revolution, Innokenty returned to Balta, where he tried to regain control of the movement, but died a few months later (according to another version, he was killed by his associates).59. After Bessarabia became part of the USSR, Innocent residents were repressed as part of deportation operations in 1949 and 1951. After Stalin's death, they were mainly fought with propaganda methods. But despite the repressions and persecutions that ended only by the end of the 1980s, the sect has survived and now numbers several thousand people in Moldova and Ukraine.60
The Russification of Bessarabia in the second half of the XIX century, which was expressed primarily in the displacement of the Romanian language, both from secular life and from the church, created conditions for the separation of some Bessarabian Moldovans from official Orthodoxy. Innokentievschina, which became the largest unorthodox religious movement in Bessarabia, was not a complete religious system, but an eclectic mix of official Orthodoxy and popular beliefs. Church hierarchs and missionaries did not have a clear idea of what to do.-

57. Glasul Basarabiya. 1913. NN27 - 29.

58. Popovschi, N. Istoria Bisericii din Basarabia, p. 443.

59. Clay, J. E. "Apocalypticism in the Russian Borderlands", p. 259.

60. Ibid., pp. 260 - 261.

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the question of whether Innokentievism was a heresy or not. In this sense, the diametrically opposite attitude of the Chisinau and Podolsk diocesan authorities towards Innocent in the early stages of his activity is significant, in which, in all likelihood, the financial factor played an important role, since the income from Bessarabian pilgrims, presumably considerable, was deposited in the Baltsky Monastery and the Kamenets-Podolsk diocese.

The "Baltic movement" itself was, of course, a purely religious phenomenon. And it would be strange to expect from the peasants, who are mostly illiterate, any "national" justification for the pilgrimage to Balta, the participation of mostly Moldovans in it is explained by the specifics of the ethno-confessional situation that developed in Bessarabia by the beginning of the XX century. Nevertheless, a significant part of observers, as well as a number of researchers (especially those who are engaged in Romanian nationalism), tried to present the movement as "national" or at least as having a national background. However, the available sources indicate that the "national question" hardly played any role for Innocent and his flock.

At the same time, attempts to interpret Innokentievism as a phenomenon with national overtones led to a revival of the controversy around the "Moldovan question", and then to a change in the cultural and linguistic policy towards Moldovans. The use of the Moldovan language for anti-sectarian propaganda led to its "legalization" in the church. At the same time, the attitude towards the idea of a Moldovan school is becoming more loyal. The assessment of the "cultural work" of the Moldovan intelligentsia has also changed. In fact, Innokentievism indirectly led to the legalization of the" cultural current " of Bessarabian nationalism on the eve of the First World War.

Bibliography/References

Archive materials

National Archive of the Republic of Moldova (NARM): F. 208. Foundation of the Chisinau Ecclesiastical Consistory F. 230. Foundation of the Chisinau Diocese

Literature

Batyushkov P. N. Bessarabia. Historical description. St. Petersburg: Comrade. "Public Benefit", 1892.

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Brodsky L. Priest Theodosius Levitsky and his works presented to the Emperor Alexander I. St. Petersburg: Synodal Printing House, 1911.

Bessarabian life. 1913. NN 93. 160. Glasul Basarabia. 1913, NN1, 6, 12, 21, 20, 27 - 29. Gromikov I. Baltskoe dvizhenie i innokentievtsy [The Baltic movement and the Innocent people]. 1913. NN18, 39. 62, 91, 95, 98, 102, 104.

Zyryanov P. N. Russkiye monastyri i monashestvo v XIX i nachale XX veka [Russian Monasteries and monasticism in the 19th and early 20th centuries].

Kirika F. Report of the Diocesan missionary-preacher Archpriest Theodosius Kirika // Attached. to KEV. 1913. N 26.

Kotsovsky A.D. On the so-called "Baltic movement" in Bessarabia / / Proceedings of the Bessarabian Society of Natural Scientists and Natural Science Lovers. 1911-1912, Vol. III.

Murafa A. Towards the Christianization of Moldavian parishes / / KEV. 1914. N 32-33.

Odessa leaflet. 1913. N 66.

Parkhomovich I. A brief sketch of the archpastoral activity in Bessarabia of His Eminence Paul, Archbishop of Kishinev and Khotyn from 1871 to 1881. Chisinau: Type. Bishop's House, 1882.

Rada, 1913. N 68.

The reactionary role of religion and the Church. Archival documents on the activities of clergymen in Moldova/Edited by A. I. Babiy. Kishinev: Kartya Moldovenyaskaia, 1969.

Seraphim (Chichagov). Appeal of His Eminence Archbishop Seraphim to the clergy of the diocese / / KEV. 1913. N 2.

Archival Materials

National Archive of the Republic of Moldova: F. 208. Fund of the Kihinev Spiritual Conistory F. 230. Fund of the Eparchy of Kihinev

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Batiushkov, P. N. (1892) Bessarabiia. Istoricheskoe opisanie [Bessarabia. A Historical Description]. SPb: Tovarishch. "Obshchestvennaia Pol'za".

Bessarabskaia Zhizn' (1913) Nos 93, 160.

Brodskii, L. (1911) Svyaschennik Feodosii Levitskii i ego sochinenia, podnesennye imperatoru Aleksandru I [Feodosii Levitskii and his writings presented to the emperor Alexander I]. SPb: Sinodal'naia tipografia.

Borta, M. Cea mai marcanta personalitate a Basarabiei prerevolufionare [The most prominent personality from Prevolutionary Bessarabia] [http://personalitatibasarabene. info/cea-mai-marcanta-personalitate-a-basarabiei-prerevolutionare_05_20o8. html, accessed at 24.12.13].

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Clay, J. E. (1998) "Apocalypticism in the Russian Borderlands: Inochentie Levizor and his Moldovan Followers", Religion, State & Society 26 (3/4).

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Drug (1913) Nos 18, 39, 62, 91, 95, 98, 102, 104.

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Gromikov, I. (1913) "Baltskoe dvizhenie i innokentievtsy" [Balta Movement and Innokentievtsy], KEV. N34.

Kirika, F. (1913) "Otchet eparkhial'nogo missionera-propovednika protoiereia Feodosiia Kiriki" [The Report of the Eparchial Missioner-Preacher Archpriest Feodosii Kirika], Prilozh. go to KEV. N26.

Kotsovskii, A. D. (1911 - 1912) "O tak nazyvaemom 'baltskom dvizhenii' v Bessarabii" [About so called "Balta Movement" in Bessarabia], Trudy Bessarabskogo Obshchestva Estestvoispytatelei i Liubitelei Estestvoznaniia. Vol. III.

Murafa, A. (1914) "Kkhristianizatsii moldavskikh prikhodov" [About the Christianization of the Moldavian Parishes], KEV. N32 - 33.

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Popovschi, N. (1931). Istoria Bisericii din Basarabia in veacul al XIX-lea sub rusi [The History of Bessarabian Church in the XIXth century under the Russians]. Chisinau: Cartea Romaneascca.

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Seraphim (Chichagov) (1913) "Obrashchenie vysokopreosviashchennogo arkhiepiskopa Serafima k dukhovenstvu eparkhii" [The Address of Kishinev Archbishop Seraphim towards the Eparchy Clergy], KEV. N2.

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