In any religion there is a publication in whichWorshipers can find answers to common theological questions. It also contains provisions for primary education before baptism. Such an edition is called "catechism." What it is? How did this edition appear? Who was the originator? Is the Catholic catechism different from the Christian? About this later in the article.
Terminology
Итак, катехизис – что это?The definition itself has ancient Greek roots. Then the word passed into Latin. Literally, the definition means "instruction", "teaching". In other words, the catechism is a religious document. It is also called the “publicizing book” containing the basics of dogma. Such a publication exists in the framework of various denominations. For example, there is a catechism of the Catholic Church. As a rule, information is contained in a question-answer form. In general, the term "catechism" was used not only in religion. This definition can be called any deep guidance, compiled on the example of a religious document. For example, in 1869, the Nechaev Catechism was created. In this work, as opposed to a religious document, a program on large-scale terror was being promoted, which involved a huge number of victims, against "vile tyrants of the people."
General information
The main provisions that containedThe initial Orthodox catechism was developed from 1822 to 1823. Its author was St. Philaret (Drozdov). The publication was approved by the Synod and published in 1823. This catechism of Filaret was approved first as a guide. Subsequently, the work was subjected to significant processing. Corrections and corrections were made by the author, chief prosecutor and other members of the Synod. This work is constantly being finalized and withstood many reprints. Some of the theologians, among whom are such personalities as Metropolitan Bulgakov Makarii, position the catechism of Philaret as one of the “symbolic books”. According to many, the work of the saint is one of the most authoritative sources of dogmatic teaching. It is in it that its main postulates are most fully set forth on behalf of the church.
Controversial issues
However, some of the Orthodox theologiansdispute the authorship of Metropolitan Philaret. But despite this, they also recognize the significance that the catechism has (what it is, said above) in the history of the Russian Orthodox Church. This statement is based on the fact that, in the opinion of Bishop Vasily Krivoshein, the main religious document has undergone cardinal editing. Due to the intervention of the ober-procurator of the Holy Synod - a secular person - the status of the book as an unshakable dogmatic monument of Ecumenical Orthodoxy can also be questioned, since the catechism of Moscow’s Philaret does not contain all the creeds and describes the influence of heterodox theology.
The issue of the role of the religious document in the modern ROC
At the beginning of 2014, not a single one was published."instructions", approved under the leadership of one of the highest governing bodies of the Russian Orthodox Church, whether it be the Bishops' Council or the Holy Synod. Release of the catechism is scheduled for 2015. For Protestants and Miafizites, in the absence of an official religious document, the ROC makes it possible to consider the existing edition, approved by the Synod, only as a guide. They consider, structurally considering the catechism, that this is not a dogmatic source, which should be a work setting forth a creed. Interestingly, the publication is usually called Christian, and not Orthodox. This is due to the fact that it sets out general Christian postulates for the inhabitants of the Russian Empire. It also stipulates the status of the authorities. For example, Nicholas I was not only the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, but also the patron and superintendent of his Lutheran subjects and participated in the election of the Armenian patriarchs. And, despite the disapproval of catechisms by the Russian Orthodox Church as official and dogmatic sources, it was decided to develop its own leadership, which would expound the basic truths of Orthodoxy.
Religious Document Structure
The section that opens the Orthodoxcatechism, informs the reader about the basic preliminary concepts of Christian doctrine. It also shows a look at the concept of Divine Revelation on the part of the Russian Orthodox Church, and tells about the Bible. The next section consists of three large parts. They are based on the enumeration of the main Christian virtues: "About Love", "About Faith" and "About Hope". In the part devoted to the Faith, a detailed review of the Nicene-Tsaregrad Symbol in the Orthodox sense, without the filioque, is given. It is divided into 12 elements (members) for more detailed consideration. They are followed by the narration of the seven sacraments of Christianity. In the section "About Hope" the corresponding concept in Christian specificity is considered and it is told about the role of prayer in the life of the believer. The structure of the “Our Father” offering is described in detail. For clarity, the prayer is divided into calling, 7 petitions, and glorification in custody. The section "About Hope" also explains the 10 commandments of bliss.
Briefly about creating a unified leadership
First quarter of the nineteenth centurywas marked by the use of a sufficiently large number of catechisms. The most common in the Orthodox environment were the leadership of the authorship of the metropolitans Peter Graves and Plato. Created under the influence of these works, new editions, like their primary sources, have been repeatedly criticized by the church. In the first case, a “Catholic” bias was seen. In the second, they criticized the presence of Protestant elements. The resolution of this situation was the creation of a new catechism. In addition, because of the new translation of biblical books into Russian in 1816, it was decided to transfer relevant citations from old editions of the manual to the new. At the same time, the correspondence with the edited version of the translation was maintained. The development of a new single catechism was initiated in 1822.
Authorship
The task of the catechism was setin front of one of the most educated and professional Russian theologians - the Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna Filaret. The first edition was published in 1823. The catechism was compiled according to the structure, which was subsequently retained in all editions and editors. It contained the obligatory three sections on Faith, Hope and Love. The author has also kept the presentation of the material in the form of "question-answer". The quotations from the Holy Scriptures were given in accordance with the translation of 1816, some of the phrases were translated by Philaret personally. The most important from the point of view of the originator of the manual were displayed in large print.
new document
1823 was marked by the reprint of the catechism.The work was spared from the errors observed in the first edition. Later, in 1824, four more editions were printed in Church Slavonic and civil font (two editions for each type of outline). A shortened version of a religious document saw the light after the middle of 1824 and was called the "Short Catechism". What was this edition? It was intended primarily for illiterate persons and children. The manual included the text selected in the main edition using a large font. The vulture "Published by the Highest Command" was not in the Short Catechism. The original Catechism began to be called "Extensive."
Criticism of a religious document and its results
The appearance of catechisms fell into the same temporarythe period when the translations of the books of the Holy Scriptures made by the Russian Bible Society were actively criticized. A number of conservative state and high-ranking clergymen particularly sharply criticized the activities of the RBO. Supported by A.A. Arakcheev Minister of Education A.S. Shishkov and Archimandrite Photius actively declared that the Russian language is unacceptable in prayer and sacred texts. Moreover, its use can cause a variety of heresies. A.S. Shishkov, being a supporter of the idea of the identity of Church Slavonic and the Russian language, defended his opinion before Metropolitan Seraphim. According to Photius, Drozdov’s catechism and the leadership of Peter Graves are comparable with each other just as “canal water” is comparable to “... good water from the Neva.
Discrepancy with the original source
From the initiative of A.S.Shishkov began the study of the catechisms of Metropolitan Philaret. The purpose of this activity was to identify the degree of deviation from the original source, which was the Orthodox faith. The main emphasis is made by the reviewer on the expediency of using Bible quotes in Russian in a religious document. In this matter, his opinion coincided with Photius and A.S. Shishkov. On the other hand, the remarks concerning the purely theological content of the catechism are not sufficiently strong in argumentation. The reviewer substantiates the description of the significant shortcomings of the manual with a form containing the question: "What is the best teaching about piety?" At the same time the answer follows: "Christian doctrine" From a formal point of view, the reviewer implies that, in addition to the “best,” there may be simply “good” teachings on piety, be it Buddhism or Islam.
Prohibitions
Thanks to such a strong turn againstthe appearance of the religious document of the campaign at the end of November 1824 came into force the Decree of the Holy Synod. He forbade the printing and distribution of Filaret's catechisms up to special order. The reason for the ban was declared inadmissibility of the transcription of the Lord's Prayer, the Creed and 10 Commandments in Russian, called the "common tongue." In 1825, the catechism of Metropolitan Platon was re-released. I must say that this work was first published in 1786 and passed through seven editions. The last of them was positioned as a counterweight to the work of Filaret. In the Platonic leadership the quotations from the Bible in Church Slavonic were observed.
