In Russian history, G.E. Rasputin is one of the most slandered people, in whose official biography there is not a single real event.

Grigory Efimovich Rasputin (01/09/1869 - 12/17/30/1916) was born in the village of Pokrovsky, Tyumen Region. In a peasant family of 9 born, he and his sister Theodosius, who later married and left for another village, remained. The surname "Rasputin" comes from the word "crossroads", which means the development of roads, a crossroads.

God's gifts of clairvoyance and healing were manifested in childhood. He knew which of his fellow villagers would soon die, who had stolen what. He could sit near the stove and say: "A stranger is coming to us." And indeed soon he was knocking. One day his father said that their horse had sprained his ligament. He went to her, prayed and told her: "Now you will feel better." The horse got better. Since then, he has become like a rural veterinarian. Then it spread to people.

Rasputin met his future wife Dubrovina Paraskeva Feodorovna during a pilgrimage to the Abalak Monastery at the age of 18. 7 children were born in the marriage, 3 of them survived.

Lots of people in tsarist Russia lived on Orthodox traditions Holy Rus' - mainly in the spring (during Great Lent) or in the fall (after the suffering), people went to the holy cloisters. Ordinary people made pilgrimages mainly on foot, eating and spending the night with their hosts, who readily performed this charitable deed.

Rasputin did the same. He was in the nearby Tyumen and Abalak monasteries, in the Verkhotursky St. Nicholas Monastery, the Seven Lakes and Optina deserts, the Pochaev Lavra. Repeatedly went on a pilgrimage to Kyiv, to the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. Later he was on New Athos, in Jerusalem. Until his death, he always farmed himself (sowing and harvesting), without hiring assistants.

He came to Petersburg late autumn 1904 to the rector of the St. Petersburg Theological Academy, Bishop Sergiy Stragorodsky (the future patriarch) with a letter of recommendation from the vicar of the Kazan diocese Khrisanf (Shchetkovsky), who introduced him to some people of St. Petersburg society. Rasputin was looking for money to build a new church in the village of Pokrovskoye, and as a result, the tsar himself gave the money for the construction.

He was also in Kronstadt at Fr. John, who also at one time was called a sectarian, a libertine, a greedy man for communicating with Tsar Alexander III. Received Communion from Fr. John. According to the memoirs of Rasputin's daughter Matryona, Fr. John came out of the altar and asked: "Who is praying so fervently here?", went up to Rasputin, raised him from his knees, then invited him to his place. During the conversation, he said: "It will be for you by your name" (the name "Gregory" means "awake").

For many representatives of high society, “after the eternal intrigues and evils of secular life,” and also at that troubled time, when monarchists in high positions were killed by bomb explosions and shots, conversations with him served as a consolation. Scholars and priests found it interesting. Although Gregory was illiterate, he knew the Holy Scripture by heart and knew how to interpret it. Bishop Alexy (Molchanov) of Tobolsk considered Rasputin " Orthodox Christian, a very intelligent, spiritually inclined person, seeking the truth of Christ, able to give good advice to those who need it.

He did the same in his native village of Pokrovsky. According to the memories in the 90s. an old-timer of the village, he helped the children get dressed for school, arrange a wedding for his son, buy a horse, and so on.

In addition to cases of stopping bleeding in an heir with hemophilia (including when the heir was in Poland, and Rasputin was in the village of Pokrovsky, and a telegram was sent to him), there are cases when, through the prayers of Rasputin, the Lord healed and eased the suffering of O.V. Lakhtina (neurasthenia of the intestines), the son of A.S.Simanovich (Witt's dance), A.A.Vyrubova (crushing of bones during a train crash), the daughter of P.A.Stolypin (legs were torn off during a bomb explosion by terrorists in the country).

Rasputin was an opponent of the war, he said that this was the death of Russia, but if you really fight, you need to bring it to a victorious end. Approved when the tsar introduced dry law in 1914 and replaced the Commander-in-Chief in 1915 led. book. Nikolai Nikolaevich, who brought the army to a retreat. On his advice, during the war years, the empress with her older daughters completed courses and worked as sisters of mercy, while the younger ones darned clothes for soldiers and prepared bandages and lint in the Tsarskoye Selo hospital (the only case in history).

He could refuse to meet with the prince or count and walk on foot to the outskirts of the city to meet with an artisan or a simple peasant. Princes and counts, as a rule, do not forgive such independence to the “simple peasant”. The epicenter of slander comes from the palace of uncle Nicholas II led. book. Nikolai Nikolaevich and his wife Stana Nikolaevna with her sister Milica.

It was through these sisters that Grigory Rasputin in October 1905 first met the royal couple. But after the quarrel between the tsarina and the sisters and the failure for Nikolai Nikolaevich to use Rasputin to influence the tsar, this family with its entourage in 1907 becomes unfriendly to the tsar's family and especially to her friend Rasputin. Many people from secular society were indignant at the royal family, which brought a simple peasant closer to them, and not from among the well-born and eminent.

In 1910, in order to shake the throne and the entire Russian state, some newspapers joined in slandering Rasputin, in which people believed just as much as we now believe in the media. Provincial newspapers often took articles from metropolitan newspapers.

In 1912, Hieromonk Iliodor (Trufanov), who knew Rasputin, renounces Christ (sends a written renunciation to the synod), apologizes to the Jews and begins to write a slanderous book on Rasputin and the royal family, The Holy Devil, some episodes of which were published back in Imperial Russia, and it is published in full in Russia after the February Revolution.

In 1914, the bourgeois Khionia Guseva made an attempt on Rasputin's life in the village of Pokrovsky (hit him in the stomach with a dagger). When the police find out that she is a follower of Iliodor-Trufanov, he flees from responsibility abroad. Unlike us, the enemies of our Fatherland know perfectly well who is for them and who is against them, and Iliodor-Trufanov, who has already returned to Soviet Russia, gets a job on the recommendation of F.E. Dzerzhinsky in the Cheka on special cases.

To create the image of Rasputin as a drunkard, a whip and a depraved person, his doubles worked. Authoritative journalists and writers were invited to a meeting with a double with his fans, so that they would later write and tell their friends about Rasputin's behavior (memoirs of the writer N.A. Teffi). The existence of a double was also testified by the ataman of the Don army, Count D.M.

Entering the dining room, Grabbe was amazed to see Rasputin in the next room. Not far from the table stood a man who looked like two drops of water to Rasputin. Andronnikov looked inquisitively at his guest. Grabbe pretended not to be surprised at all. The man stood, stood, left the room and did not reappear.

Also, General V.F. Dzhunkovsky, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the head of the gendarme corps, was also active in this post. Under his patronage, a case was fabricated in 1915 about the unbridled behavior of Rasputin in the Moscow restaurant "Yar" without a single testimony. real person, meanwhile, widely covered in the press, and the diaries of external surveillance of Rasputin, ostensibly to protect his life after the assassination attempt, were subjected to literary processing.

In conjunction with a double, the owner of the St. Petersburg restaurant "Villa Rode" A.S. Rode also worked. Articles about Rasputin's brawls in this restaurant were regularly published in newspapers.

After the Bolshevik revolution, Prince Andronikov and General Dzhunkovsky were accepted and worked in the bodies of the Cheka, and the merchant A.S. Rode was appointed director of the House of Scientists in Petrograd.

Fake letters from the Empress and her daughters to Rasputin circulated in secular salons, speaking of a fornication between them, allegedly presented by Rasputin to Iliodor-Trufanov when he was in contact with him. Rumors spread at the front that the Empress (German by birth) and Rasputin had surrendered Russia to Germany, despite the alleged weakness of the tsar because of their love of alcohol. Rasputin was credited with influence on state affairs, all unpopular dismissals and appointments, actions of the authorities objectionable to society. Members of the Duma, future Februaryists, spoke out and spoke from the rostrum against Rasputin.

A woman came to confession to the confessor of the royal family, Archimandrite Feofan (Bystrov), who told about Rasputin’s inappropriate behavior with her, and he, not admitting the thought that it was possible to lie in confession, and violating the secrecy of confession, told the empress and familiar hierarchs about this.

Rasputin spoke of the highest Christian virtue - love, understandable not even to all Christians, not to mention the people of this world, and it was conveniently turned into carnal "love", understandable to everyone. Also, humility was turned into thoughtless humility.

It must be said that all those close to the royal family, the tsarist ministers, and the monarchists in general, were attacked and ridiculed. As the tsarist doctor E.S. Botkin said: “If there was no Rasputin, the opponents of the Tsar’s family and the preparers of the revolution would have created him with their conversations from Vyrubova, if not for Vyrubova, from me, from whoever you want.”

Many people, incl. subsequently, those who left their memoirs in exile, who did not personally know Rasputin, formed their opinion about him according to the rumors circulating in their social circle. The tsar himself repeatedly arranged covert checks of "facts", but they were not confirmed.

Believing in the slander against the royal family and their friend Rasputin, the Russian people calmly accepted February revolution, the overthrow of the king and even the murder of the royal family.

Rasputin told his relatives that he would not live to see 1917 and would die in terrible agony. Before going with F.F. Yusupov to his house, he burned all the correspondence, put on a new shirt. They were martyred: beaten with a whip with ends, gouged out an eye, pulled out tufts of hair, made an incision under the left hypochondrium (in the image of Christ). Then the living was thrown into the hole, because. lungs were full of water. All this was shown by the investigation contrary to the official version - the execution, which was told by those who declared themselves murderers (but according to their testimony it is clear that they did not know what kind of shirt Rasputin was wearing, i.e. they did not see him without outerwear). Found near a hole in the ice. Fingers right hand, freed from the rope, were folded into the sign of the cross as a symbol of victory over death.

Immediately after the abdication of the tsar, on the orders of A.F. Kerensky, Rasputin's body was dug up and burned in the suburbs of Petrograd, the case for his murder was closed, Khioniya Guseva was released (in 1919 she would also encroach on the life of Patriarch Tikhon with a dagger), his spiritual father was arrested Rasputin about. Macarius (Polikarpov) Verkhotursky. The revolutionary synod sent all monarchist hierarchs to rest, incl. Bishop Isidore (Kolokolov) who buried Rasputin. After the Bolshevik revolution, Rasputin's daughter Matryona emigrated with her husband, the second daughter died of typhus, his wife and son were exiled as special settlers, where they died. Church and house of Rasputin in the village. Pokrovsky destroyed. The main reason for the burning of the bodies of the royal family and Rasputin is the concealment of the method of murder (who was really shot - they were not burned).

In films, books, the creation of an external image of a huge, tall and scary man. In fact, Rasputin was in poor health, physically not very strong, short in stature (as can be seen from the photograph, and the Empress, as you know, was of average height).

All films, all foreign and domestic literature (with the exception of books: I.V. Evsin “The Slandered Elder”, T.L. Mironova “From Under Lies”, O.A. Platonov “Life for the Tsar” and documentary film “ Martyr for Christ and for the Tsar Gregory the New" directed by V. Ryzhko, as well as the book of the same name by schema-nun Nikolai (Groyan) and V. L. Smirnov "Unknown about Rasputin"), fake diaries of the tsarina's friend A. A. Vyrubova, Rasputin himself and memoirs his daughter Matrena, allegedly his secretary A.S.Simanovich, the names of restaurants, alcohol and tobacco products - everything is aimed at denigrating Rasputin, which has 3 goals:

1) Discredit monarchy. Calling it imperialism, tsarism, the tsarist regime, we are told that the tsar himself, with his wife and friend Rasputin, caused the fall of the autocracy, revolutions and the subsequent troubles of Russia.

2) Discrediting the Orthodox Faith- "The royal family and Rasputin were Orthodox, but what did they do."

3) Discrediting the Russian people. Because Rasputin is a representative of the common people, the presentation of this people as the source of all that is filthy and unclean, and not the source of a charitable life and loyalty to the tsar.

The denigration of Rasputin is constantly being done (new books and films are being released) in order to instill in all generations of Russian people (and the whole world) a persistent rejection and therefore a non-return to their Christian statehood - Orthodoxy, monarchy, nationality.

On the contrary, in tsarist Russia there was a secular society, which stood between the tsar and the people. It despised the common people, at the expense of which it lived, considered the monarchy an obstacle to progress according to the Western model, and a dismissive and mocking attitude towards Orthodoxy was a sign of good taste (many were engaged in the occult). In the last letter, Rasputin said that in 25 years there would be no nobles left in Russia.

Many people refer to the negative attitude towards Rasputin of the now canonized saints, but no one talks about a change in their opinion in the future. After the Bolshevik revolution, Bishop Germogen (Dolganov) (whose cell-attendant was Iliodor-Trufanov at one time) sent a letter to the royal family in the city of Tobolsk apologizing for his statements, served memorial services for Rasputin, for which he was drowned in the river. Toure opposite the village. Pokrovsky. The tsarina's sister Elizaveta Feodorovna sent a small copy of the newly-appeared icon to the tsar's family in Yekaterinburg Mother of God"Sovereign" and a letter of forgiveness for their condemnation, believing in the slander of Rasputin.

There is only one truth, and it is with God. The Lord does not give His gifts to ordinary sinful people, let alone outright sinners. And images of ordinary people do not stream myrrh, but only the righteous, and there are no exceptions to this phenomenon (as the myrrh-streaming icon of Rasputin, painted by Tobolsk Orthodox, who did not wait for his canonization). If you read Rasputin's works "The Life of an Experienced Wanderer" and "My Thoughts and Reflections", then you can see for yourself that he is a deeply believing Orthodox Christian.

The Lord will ask every person for non-compliance with His commandment “Do not condemn”, especially in the case of the innocence of the condemned. The guilt of a person is greater in the case of public statements and seduction of others to this sin.

Those people who believe that Rasputin stopped the blood of the heir by witchcraft blaspheme the Holy Spirit, because. disagree with the decision Orthodox Church on the canonization of the royal family. Because according to the canons of the Orthodox Church, for turning to the sorcerers, excommunication from church communion is prescribed, and even more so not canonization. And as you know, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not forgiven either in this or in the next century.

1. Brief curriculum vitae 2

• 2. Rasputin and the Church 5
• 3. The attitude of the church towards Rasputin 8
• 4. Rasputinism and its consequences 9
• 5. Modern views of the church on Rasputin 11
• 6. Literature 13

Grigory Efimovich Rasputin (after the father of Vilkin, then Novykh) was supposedly born on January 10, 1870 in the village of Pokrovsky, Tobolsk province. His parents, Yefim and Anna Vilkin, may have originally lived in Saratov. Then the family moved to the village of Pokrovskoye, 80 versts from Tyumen, south of Tobolsk, where the local peasants began to call them New. There their children were born, both Mikhail and Gregory.

He is drawn to wanderers, elders, who are called "God's people" - they often pass by their distant roads and through Pokrovskoye, and they stay at their quarters in their hut. He annoys his parents by talking about the fact that God calls him to wander the wide world. In the end, his father blesses him. On his travels, at the age of 19, he meets Praskovya Dubrovina in Alabatsk in a church on a holiday and soon marries her. At the same time, their first-born soon dies, and this loss shocked Gregory - the Lord betrayed him!

He goes on foot to the Verkhoturevsky Monastery, four hundred kilometers northwest of Pokrovsky. There he learns to read and write Holy Scripture and much more from the famous in those parts of the old hermit Makar. He tells him a year later that he can only find salvation in wanderings. Gregory becomes a distant wanderer.

Called by the vision of the Virgin Mary in 1893, he and his friend Dmitry Pechorkin went to Greece, to the mountains of Macedonia, to Orthodox monasteries. Returning to Russia, for three years Rasputin got acquainted with the Trinity-Sergius Lavra in Kyiv, Solovki, Valaam, Optina Hermitage, the Nilov Monastery and other holy places and miracles of the Orthodox Church. But every summer he comes to Pokrovskoye, to his wife Praskovya, leads a normal village life there. Children are born: Dmitry in 1895, Matryona in 1898, Varvara in 1900. Then he begins to treat people, to engage in healing - it turns out!

As a result, he gained a reputation as a holy man, but the local priest accused him of organizing orgies. The invited Bishop conducted an investigation, but did not find any violations. During the following wanderings, Rasputin developed the power of a healer through prayers and kneeling at the bedside of the sick.

This is where his fame begins, both loud and bad. He is accused of recreating the whiplash sect, which was banned in the 17th century by Patriarch Nikon. Rasputin's sect is expanding and strengthening. Gregory teaches his flock that the Lord loves only those who, having known sin, are cleansed of it. It suits his temperament. Another thing is coming up. Rasputin prefers to hide quietly and goes on new wanderings. First Kyiv, then Kazan, where one of the 4 spiritual academies of Russia was located. There he impresses with his knowledge, eloquence, the gift of healing and divination; on the other hand, and in Kazan he was not modest - "he rode broads", as they said later.

This was probably known to the clergy of the academy, but then they turn a blind eye to this and advise him to go to the theological academy in St. Petersburg, and give a letter of recommendation personally to Archimandrite Feofan, calling him an old man, convinced and clairvoyant. There is no doubt that all this was in Rasputin. Here is such a thirty-three-year-old old man Grigory arrives in the spring of 1903 in St. Petersburg.

In the capital, he is included in the highest aristocratic circles. On November 14, 1905, he was presented to Nicholas and Alexandra. He does not hesitate to speak to them on "you"; from now on they are for him - Dad and Mom ...

Since July 1906, invitations to him from the royal family have become almost regular. On October 15, 1906, Nicholas II received Rasputin in Detskoye Selo, in his Tsarskoye Selo Palace. His wife and children are with him - for the first time, Grigory meets the children.

Here begins a new chapter in the relationship between Rasputin and the royal family. Two-year-old baby Alexei is sick with hemophilia. The disease was incurable. In 1907 he was cured by Rasputin's prayers. And not once. In 1915, after an injury, the prince developed a fever, severe nosebleeds, which no one could stop. They sent for Rasputin. As soon as he entered the room, the bleeding stopped. As a healer and seer, Rasputin gained unlimited influence over the king, queen and their entourage. Then an expression of the extreme decomposition of the ruling elite of Russia appeared - "Rasputinism."

Grigory Rasputin did not doubt his abilities and it is not surprising that he had enemies. The manifestation of such abilities has always been treated with envy. In addition, Rasputin was never a tactful and prudent person. And his intervention in the reign of the Romanovs during the revolutionary hectic era further fueled hatred. In 1914, in Siberia, Rasputin was stabbed for the first time.

Within weeks, Rasputin was close to death. When he came to his senses, he learned that the king had rejected his advice not to go to war. Chaos broke out in Russia.

According to the official version, on December 29, 1916, Grigory Rasputin was killed by a group of Black Hundreds: Prince Felix Yusupov Jr., Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich Romanov and deputy State Duma Vladimir Mitrofanovich Purishkevich. In addition to them, lieutenant Alexander Sukhotin and doctor Stanislav Lazavert participated in the conspiracy. All of them were united by hatred for the "dirty, lustful and corrupt man." But what is curious is that it is still not known exactly who killed the elder and as a result of which he died.

Before his death, he wrote a letter in which he assumed that on January 1, 1917 he would not be alive. In the letter, he predicted some future for Russia - if the peasants kill him, Russia will remain a prosperous monarchy, but if the aristocrats (boyars), their hands will be stained with the blood of the victim, there will be no noble people left in Russia, and the tsar, along with his entire family, will die in for two years. And all this came true.

Historian Bernard Pare saw this letter and confirmed its authenticity. Rasputin's death is legendary. Poisoned with cyanide (although no poison was found in his body), then shot, he miraculously escaped through a locked door. They shot him again, hit him with an iron rod and threw him into an ice hole. Later, when the body was discovered, it turned out that Rasputin did not die from bullet wounds, he ... choked.

As Yusupov wrote in his memoirs, the murder was planned and carried out solely on his personal initiative. According to him, he was a victim of an obsession: “Whatever I do, no matter who I talk to, one obsessive thought, the thought of ridding Russia of its most dangerous internal enemy, tormented me. Sometimes in the middle of the night I woke up thinking all about the same and could not calm down and fall asleep for a long time.

In the teachings of "Elder Gregory" his instructive "I" shows through too much. He never denigrated the Church, he spoke with reverence about worship, about communion with the Holy Mysteries, he did not dare anyone from the Church, but on the contrary, he attracted. But in his actions and words, in the very position of a special, unlike any other, "old man", religious self-sufficiency was noticeable.

He needed the Church only as a source of grace-filled energies (in the sacraments), and, for all the sincerity of his humility before God, there was no humility before the Church in Rasputin. He was exhorted, he did not heed. In general, since Gregory becomes a wanderer, there is no visible human church authority over him. Thus, the moral fall of "Elder Gregory" could be God's allowance for the sake of self-denunciation and unhypocritical churching, which did not happen.

The name of Grigory Rasputin is associated with quackery, immoderation and the fall of the royal Romanov dynasty, he was a brilliant mystic and healer.

No matter how Rasputin concealed his affiliation with sectarianism, people in close contact with him, perhaps, unconsciously felt that, in addition to his own dark power, some terrible element lives and acts in him, which attracts him. This element was Khlysty with its drunken-sensual mysticism. Khlystism is all built on sexual principles and combines the crudest materialism of animal passion with faith in higher spiritual revelations.

Among characteristic features Khlystovism, it is impossible not to pay attention to the exceptionally hostile (albeit outwardly masked) attitude of the "God's people", to which Rasputin was ranked, to the Orthodox clergy. “According to the whips, the clergy are black vrans, bloodthirsty beasts, evil wolves, godless Jews, evil Pharisees and even groggy donkeys.”[ Encyclopedic Dictionary Brockhaus and Efron, Whips, p. 405]

All questions closely related to church life and appointments not only interested Rasputin, but touched him closely, since in this area he considered himself not only competent, but also, as it were, infallible, thereby regarding insultingly low not only individual "pastors ”, but also the whole synod together.

The extent to which Rasputin reached the level of "maltreatment" of our clergy in his "infallibility" is shown, if only by his cruel reprisals against his former friends-bishops Feofan, Hermogenes and Hieromonk Ilidor, who had treated him kindly, the rape of the nun Xenia, etc. facts.

Apparently, Rasputin found real pleasure in "dirtying", where possible, the representatives of our official church. Apparently, this was a specific task for him, included, so to speak, in his personal plans. How else to explain, for example, the fact of Rasputin's undoubted malicious, in a certain sense, non-admission of the autonomy of the theological school in general and in particular - the St. Petersburg Theological Academy.

How else can one explain Rasputin's opposition to the restoration of the ancient rank of deaconesses in our church, about which all the members of the synod, Metropolitan Vladimir, the abbess Grand Duchess Elizabeth and a number of priests authoritative in the affairs of the church were busy?

How more the hated priests could be "annoyed" by the "infallible" Rasputin - the more categorical were his decisions when a suitable case presented itself. Suffice it to recall at least his role in the question of the desirable for almost all of our clergy, in 1904-1907, the convening of an All-Russian Church Council!

“And it’s good without a cathedral, there is God’s anointed one and it’s enough; God controls his heart, what else do you need a cathedral.

By "God" Rasputin apparently meant himself personally, "controlling" the heart of the "anointed one".

“Why are they now leaving for different religions? - Rasputin asked in his book "My Thoughts and Reflections" and answered: "Because there is no spirit in the temple, and there are many letters - the temple is empty."

So, of course, only a sectarian who despised the ordinary clergy could speak like that.

Only a mockery of the Orthodox Church can explain such "appointments" of Rasputin as the introduction to the miter of the in every possible way compromised priest Vostorgov, announced by John of Kronstadt as a "mazurik", the appointment of Makariy Gnevushin as bishop, the very one whom Moscow merchants accused of criminal offenses, holding in Exarchs of Georgia, the famous bribe taker, the disgraced Bishop of Pskov Alexei, etc.

Especially characteristic of Rasputin's Khlystism was the granting of the bishopric to Barnabas, an almost illiterate gardener.

“Although the bishops will be offended that they shoved a peasant into their midst, academicians, but it’s okay, they don’t give a damn, they will reconcile,” Rasputin explained this appointment to Alexandra Fedorovna.

By the time of the war of 1914-1916, Rasputin had finally mastered the directive of the entire state and church life of Russia. The fact that in the affairs of the church Rasputin became “king and god” for the clergy can be concluded not only from V.K. facts.

In November 1915, the Metropolitan of Kiev dies, and Rasputin prompts Alexandra Fedorovna to appoint his stubborn opponent, Metropolitan Vladimir of Petrograd, to this city as punishment. And in his place to put "pleasant in all respects", complaisant and quick-witted Bishop Pitirim (Oknov). Nicholas II agrees, and, without even asking for the consent of the prosecutor of the Holy Synod, he appoints Pitirim. It became clear to the society of the capital and the whole of Russia that Rasputin was "twisting" the Church as he pleased.

In the capital in 1903, Rasputin was introduced to the spiritual leader of Orthodoxy, St. John of Kronstadt. The elder made a great impression on Fr. John. He takes communion and confesses Gregory, says: "My son, I felt your presence. You have a spark of true faith!" - and adds, as eyewitnesses said: "Look that your name does not affect your future."

After that, Rasputin no longer doubts his divine destiny. Spiritual fathers offer him to study at the academy and become a priest - he modestly refuses. Feigned humility hides the pride of a man who considers himself absolutely free and chosen for a great purpose. There can be no intermediaries between him and the Heavenly Father.

The people called him a "wanderer", but more often an "old man". Among his admirers as a bearer of the true faith were the Kazan Bishop Khrisanf, the rectors of the St. Petersburg Academy, Bishop Sergius, Archimandrite Feofan and many others.

In the spring of 1908, Archimandrite Feofan, the confessor of the imperial family, on behalf of the tsarina, went to Pokrovskoye to check the rumors and find out about the past of the "God's man". Feofan lives in the house of Gregory in Pokrovsky for two weeks, visits the elder Makar in Verkhoturye and decides that Rasputin is truly a saint. During their conversations, Gregory tells that he not only saw the Mother of God, but that the apostles Peter and Paul came to him when he was plowing in the field. Upon his return, Feofan draws up a detailed report on the trip and declares that the pious Grigory Rasputin is the chosen one of God and was sent to reconcile the tsar and tsarina with the Russian people. The chosen one himself, enthusiastically received in all the aristocratic salons of the capital, begins an open sermon of his teaching: God needs sin and its awareness, only this is the true path to God. An erotic-religious myth arises around him.

In 1910, the rector of the Theological Academy, Bishop Feofan, did not immediately, but quite definitely, come to the conclusion that Rasputin, implicitly, was leading a depraved life. Bringing before the “highest persons” as if “repentant” in recommending to them the once dubious righteous man, he thereby brought cruel disgrace upon himself and, despite his merits, despite the fact that he had previously served as the confessor of the empress herself, he was soon after that moved, or rather exiled to the Tauride province.

Before the Extraordinary Commission of Inquiry in 1917, Bishop Feofan testified: “He (Grigory Rasputin) was neither a hypocrite nor a scoundrel. He was a true man of God, coming from the common people. But, under the influence of high society, which could not understand this common man, there was a terrible spiritual catastrophe and he fell.

When Rasputin stood like a black shadow near the throne, all of Russia was indignant. The best representatives of the higher clergy raised their voices in defense of the Church and the Motherland against the encroachments of Rasputin.

The crisis that befell the people, the church and the intelligentsia at the beginning of the 20th century alarmed progressive thought too late.

The all-round crisis found its expression in the terrible and shameful phenomenon of "Rasputinism", when the spiritual and secular authorities finally compromised themselves. The blind people, deprived of guidance, mentors and leadership, easily became the prey of anti-Christian revolutionary propaganda. This, probably, was the "secret" of the Bolsheviks' success: there was no need to conquer or overthrow anything, the country was hopelessly ill. The dark, unconscious, destructive forces lurking in the depths of the masses were set free and directed against the state, the church, and the intelligentsia.

Rasputinism... This is not just a characteristic of the pre-revolutionary era in Russia at the beginning of the 20th century. The man who gave his name to this part of Russian history is still ambiguous. Who is he - the good genius of the royal family or the evil genius of the Russian autocracy? Did he have superhuman powers? If not, how did a drunkard and a lecher almost become a saint?

Of course, Rasputin was a strong sensitive. He really helped the sick Tsarevich Alexei and used other patients. But he used his powers to his advantage.

Rasputin liked to be the center of attention, his nature began to be flattered by popularity. He was unable to overcome this temptation. last years gradually became a victim of his own pride. It is not difficult to notice the consciousness of his own significance in his own words. Many times, for example, he repeated to the queen: “They will kill me, and they will kill you,” and “I” sounds here first of all.

From the summer of 1915, the empress, G.E. Rasputin and his entourage interfered in the government of the country. Concerning the nature of Rasputinism, the degree of influence of the "old man" on state affairs, there are different opinions. In any case, the influence of the "dark forces" left a noticeable imprint on the work of the government machine and compromised the government, causing a sharp narrowing of its social base. The intensified struggle at the top, clashes between Rasputin's henchmen and other members of the government, the inability of certain representatives of the top administration to cope with the most difficult problems generated by the war public life called "ministerial leapfrog".

During the two and a half years of the war, 4 people were in the chair of the prime minister, 6 were in the post of minister of internal affairs, 4 were ministers of agriculture, justice and the military. ruling circles disorganized the work of the bureaucracy. His positions both in the center and in the field in conditions global war and the unprecedented problems generated by this war were weakening. The authority of the government, which did not want to cooperate with the opposition and at the same time did not dare to shut its mouth, was finally undermined.

As a result, minimally honest officials and ministers were replaced by those who, in order to get a place in the hierarchy closer to the “anointed of God”, did not shy away from pleasing the “holy elder” in any form. Now people from the government also bowed to him. At the suggestion of Rasputin, the chairman of the Council of the Duma is also changing - the Duma members are furious. The last, deadly fight begins on the carpet and under the carpet of the empire. Some of our historians point out that many of Rasputin's advice in this last year of his life on the inner and foreign policy were correct, smart, even wise. Maybe. But now all this was already useless - both for the country, and for the royal family, and for Rasputin himself.

How does the Church feel about the personality of Rasputin? How big is his role in the death of the state, the royal family, the emperor? He appears to the Church as a "micro-antichrist" who caused the fall of Russia and the death of all the people who trusted him - as a prototype of the end of the world, that through him demons entered the world and took possession of millions of souls. Perhaps this madness began in Russia with him - revolution, blood, the rebirth of people, the destruction of temples, the desecration of shrines ...

There is no official formulation of the attitude of the Russian Orthodox Church towards Rasputin, just as there is no official formulation of the attitude of the Church towards the overwhelming majority of historical figures. The question of Rasputin's role in the "death of the state, the royal family" is a question of a rather historical, but not at all theological and historical nature, therefore, for clarifications in this case it is better to turn to historical literature.[ 1998, RUSSIAN LAWABOUTGLORIOUS INFORMATION AND PUBLISHING CENTER "ORTHODOX"]

Nevertheless, a pamphlet compiled by I.V. Evsin, in which the reader is invited to look at Rasputin as a righteous man and even a saint, and consider any negative word about him as slander. The brochure is called “Slandered Elder” (Ryazan, “Zerna”, 2001). Such a view is far from new. One of his main adherents is the historian O.A. Platonov, whose book about Rasputin "Life for the Tsar" was already published in more than one edition. He writes in his book: “Later, both the Bolshevik leaders and their enemies from the opposite camp branded Rasputin with equal fervor, without bothering to prove his guilt. Both of them needed the myth of Rasputin for political and ideological reasons. For the Bolsheviks, he was a symbol of the decay of tsarist Russia, its poverty and depravity, from which they saved it.When it came to the last Russian tsar, they pointed to Rasputin in confirmation of the correctness of their bloody policy, which, according to them, only one could lead the country out of the nightmare of Rasputinism and For political opponents of the Bolsheviks, Rasputin was a scapegoat, the culprit of their fall. They tried to explain their political failure, isolation from the people, the wrong line of conduct and the grossest mistakes before the revolution with the collapse that followed it, by the influence of dark forces headed by Rasputin.

Moreover, in church book stalls you can sometimes find the book “Martyr for the Tsar Gregory the New”, it also contains an akathist to the “old man”. in one of the temples of the city of Ryazan, a prayerful veneration of "Elder Gregory" takes place.

Three "icons" depicting the "holy elder" were painted. Even a special akathist (prayer text) was composed, addressed to the "elder" Gregory, who is called nothing more than a new prophet and a new miracle worker. Moreover, in this case, we can talk about a certain sect that openly opposes itself to the hierarchy.

IN live radio "Radonezh" priests, it happened, asked a question about Rasputin. Usually their response was negative and reasonable. At the same time, one of the authoritative Moscow priests defends the view of Oleg Platonov. Another authoritative Moscow priest has repeatedly stated that the veneration of Rasputin is a new temptation for our Church. We see, therefore, a division. We see that this temptation is a reality. The main thing here is the harm done to the veneration of the royal martyrs

After the decision of the Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church to canonize Nicholas II and his family, a group of Orthodox citizens are not averse to raising the question of canonizing Grigory Rasputin.

According to the newspaper "Segodnya", members of a number of marginal near-Orthodox organizations have created a kind of informal "Rasputin club"

The Moscow Patriarchate knows nothing about such an initiative yet. It is unlikely that any of the bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church will even dare to raise the question of the canonization of Rasputin. At the same time, attention is drawn to the fact that recently in historical and church writings, the positive aspects of Grigory Efimovich’s activities (for example, a healing gift) are increasingly noted, and all the “negativity”, including drunken brawls and debauchery, is written off as slander. by Freemasons and other conspirators.

Evreinov N.N. The Secret of Rasputin - Reprint ed. - Leningrad: Past, 1924. - p.80

Manovtsev A. Rasputin and the Church - M .: Glagol Magazine No. 2 (48), 2000. - p.150

Pikul V.S. Devilry- M.: Military Publishing, 1990. - p.592

Yusupov F. The End of Rasputin - Leningrad: JV "SMART", 1991. - p.111

Library “Chalcedon”

___________________

Deacon Andrei Kuraev

Grigory Rasputin as the banner of the Russian Reformation

Notes:

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Archpriest Alexander SHARGUNOV

No matter how much time passes, we will return again and again to the greatest event in the life of our Church - the canonization of the Holy Royal Martyrs and the whole host of new martyrs and confessors of Russia.

Our participation in their glorification is necessary. Genuine knowledge about the King as a righteous man should be spread as widely as possible among all our people. We must not allow the illusion that the Tsar has been glorified, and now everything will be fine by itself. Enemies of Orthodoxy and Russia are still trying to cast a shadow on this deed of the Church, to sow doubts in society about canonization, to make it ineffective.

We are talking about the movement of admirers of G. E. Rasputin, through whom the “enemy of the human race” introduces new confusion into the Church, raising a new slander against the holy Royal Passion-Bearers in order to undermine confidence in their canonization. Again, what happened 86 years ago is repeated, when Rasputin was a tool, using which the enemies of the Church and the Throne undermined the authority of the Tsarist power among the people.

A number of publications have appeared claiming that Rasputin is a prophet, a miracle worker, a holy fool for the sake of Christ - that is, a holy saint of God. "Icons" and "akathist" have already been written. All this is sometimes sold even in church stores. An inexperienced reader may even get the impression that this person has already been canonized by the Church. By the way, we recall that the Commission for Canonization under Holy Synod most carefully investigated the life and work of Rasputin and, of course, there was not even close to hinting at his holiness. His Holiness the Patriarch spoke about the same recently.

We have evidence of what Rasputin is — the testimony of our new martyrs: the venerable martyr Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna, the Hieromartyrs Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and Bishop Hermogenes of Tobolsk, the testimony of Archbishop Theophan of Poltava - the confessor of the Royal family, a man of crystal purity and high spiritual life.

What is the answer to those who put the supernatural abilities of the “Siberian elder” on a par with the miracles of the holy Royal Martyrs, which we are witnessing today?

BRasputin's affection for the Royal Family is greatly exaggerated. 90 percent of the publications glorifying him are actually about the Royal Martyrs. But next to them is placed, “Elder Gregory” is intertwined. He is almost a member of the August Family. Such a binding is the crowning technique of those who promote the holiness of "Elder Gregory."

The author of one of the books on this subject calls him “an equal member of the Royal Family.” The thought runs like a red thread through all the pages: whoever loves and reveres the holy Royal Martyrs must also love and revere Rasputin, “Prophet Gregory,” whom the Royal Passion-Bearers called their own. friend.

How can one not remember that the Savior Himself sincerely calls Judas his friend(Matthew 26:50). Well, should we canonize the traitor Judas? This is how he theologised about Judas, for example, Prot. Sergius Bulgakov, but this is already a disintegration of consciousness - this contradicts the Gospel, the holy fathers, just normal common sense.

Did Rasputin truly love the Tsar and Russia? If he loved, he, seeing how the enemies of Orthodoxy and the throne exploit the current situation, would retire from the capital into obscurity, into the desert, into the taiga, and from there (if he really is such a miracle worker) he prayed for the healing of the Tsesarevich and for the salvation of Russia. But that's the point, for him the most important thing was his own self-affirmation. That which defines all false spirituality that comes from the devil.

Moreover, the holiness of the Royal Martyrs does not mean their omniscience. In the history of the Church, one can find many examples of how saints, people glorified by the Church, were wrong in assessing other people in one direction or another.

In general, there was no particular closeness. It is enough to look at the memoirs of A. A. Vyrubova, where she testifies that Rasputin visited Their Majesties once or twice a year, and only recently four times a year.

The tsar was really looking for communication with the common people, rapprochement with them, but he did not blindly trust Rasputin. In a letter to the Empress, the Sovereign writes: "As for Rasputin's advice, you know with what caution one must treat his advice." “I talk to him like a simple Russian peasant who wanders around holy places.”

Everything was connected with the tragic illness of the Heir, whom Rasputin really helped. The nature of this assistance will be discussed below. But how are we to understand the undoubted facts of Rasputin's clairvoyance and some miracle-working works?

PThe Orthodox miracle is always connected with the mystery of the Cross. "Who loves me, says Christ, he will keep my commandment". A person fulfills his Christian duty, no matter what it costs him. Without this there can be no holiness, no miracles will help. On the contrary, dark mysticism always seeks only earthly well-being and for this is ready to sacrifice truth, righteousness, God's commandment.

Could Rasputin's life be pleasing to God?

There are numerous hard testimonies of his unrepentant mortal sins in last period his life. (For some reason, his admirers call this “long-exposed slanders.” Who “exposed” this? Where is at least one study that confirms that these testimonies are false? Why, finally, do the “canonizers” themselves take descriptions of his prophecies from the same sources and miracles, omitting dozens of pages describing depravity?)

Here are the reviews of the two people who knew the "old man" most closely.

Bishop Feofan (Bystrov) was the confessor of the Royal Family. It was he who introduced Grigory Rasputin into the circle of the Royal Family as a simple pious Russian peasant. At the beginning of 1911, Bishop Feofan changed his mind about Rasputin, in accordance with the confessions that he received and which concerned Rasputin's lifestyle, and recommended the Empress to stop communicating with him. Subsequently, he wrote: “Rasputin was neither a hypocrite nor a scoundrel. He was a true man of God, coming from the common people. But under the influence of high society ... there was a terrible spiritual catastrophe, and he fell. (These words of Bishop Theophan, by the way, are made as an epigraph to one of the books of Rasputin's admirers; the words about the "terrible spiritual catastrophe" and the fall, of course, are omitted).

Most of the arguments in favor of the "holiness" of Rasputin, given in the book by T. Groyan "The Martyr for Christ and the Tsar - the Man of God Grigory", are taken from the memoirs of Rasputin's daughter Matryona, where there are absolutely other evidence. Below are the testimonies of Matryona Rasputina, whom the admirers of "Elder Gregory" call him "the most spiritually close daughter." She writes in her memoirs: "In the eyes of the whole world, the father was a sinner and, in terms of church laws, he undoubtedly sinned." “... Already in his youth, he alternated periods of extreme revelry with bouts of repentance, prayerful ecstasy and attraction to pilgrimage to holy places.”

Maybe something has changed in the last years of life? No.

At the end of 1914: “He changed a lot ... The matter was aggravated by the fact that along with his father’s health, the ability to heal people also left. Trying to drown out the pain and shame, the father began to drink. This brought only temporary relief. The more he drank, the more he had to drink to drive the pain deeper.”

1916: “Father frequented the Villa Rode (hot spot, night restaurant). In response to our exhortations, he became irritated and literally groaned in response: “It's boring, they hunted it down ... I smell trouble. I can’t drink what will happen next.” (Here he foretells the future while drinking. Is this sacred?)

Matrena recalls: “Father was considered a specialist in the field of love .... Of course, my father never touched on this topic in conversations with me. Although he was not a hypocrite. He sometimes uttered things that in the so-called decent houses and did not stutter. For example, he could frankly describe the dignity of the figure of this or that visitor or a lady who happened to be met on the street: “And what kind of breasts she has! So meaty!” — such remarks were still modest.

Matrena quotes the story of Rasputin himself about the healing of a child by him during his wanderings in Russia. His admirers love to cite this story in their books, omitting the following detail. The mother of the healed girl asks why he was given the gift of healing - perhaps for chastity or purity of life? Rasputin replies that he does not believe in the necessity of chastity.

The same Matryona conveys the following words of Rasputin about prayer: “How can you pray when you knock down? There is only one remedy: put aside your prayers and find a woman. Then, pray again. God won't judge. But the time will come when a woman will no longer be needed, when there will be no such thought itself, and therefore no temptation. Then the real prayer will begin.”

Matrena cites the following reasoning of her father: “It was so foreseen by God that they would know what kind of sin it is. Just know the measure! I wore chains, and humbled myself with a whip. But nothing. All the images were running in my head. Absolutely, I thought, it is necessary to castrate, or what? And then I decided: it was not for this that God gave the peasant what he gave, but the woman - the woman, ... I think, nevertheless, for measure.

Admirers of Rasputin will object that Matryona's memories and others like them could be fake. But why then do they themselves quote them abundantly, speaking of the supernatural abilities of the “old man”? Why is Matryona called "the most spiritually close" if she slanders? The answer is clear: they have nothing else to refer to.

PNew arguments also appear: it turns out that Rasputin had doubles. Judge for yourself how convincing this is. Rasputin lived at a certain address, he was closely monitored by the Okhrana. Whom did she escort to the palace - the same Rasputin, or did he begin to double? Or maybe, own daughter could not distinguish her father from a double, who also slandered him?

It's not that Rasputin had doubles but in the fact that he was two-faced. The worst thing is a lie mixed with the truth. All heresies, ancient and new, are built on this confusion. The worst thing (the word of God constantly speaks about this) is when a person calls himself a believer, but behaves like an unbeliever.

He was pious, but he fell and began to look for an excuse for his fall, to bring under it a kind of theology that justifies sin: “If you don’t sin, you won’t repent.” Rasputin does not say that there is no need to repent! He says that sin is not terrible, one can sin boldly, and only by sinning can a person know himself and the mercy of God. A person does not come to know himself by fighting sin, as Orthodox asceticism teaches, but by giving in to sin in order to find out what sin is and to bring repentance after that.

Undoubtedly, such reasoning of Rasputin is a bridge connecting with the ancient destroyers of the Church. For this heresy is not new. But it is about her that the holy fathers say that she will be the number one enemy of the Church and through her they will be revealed to all mankind. "depths of Satan" in the words of the Apocalypse.

These heretics say that a person can be so "spiritual" that sin cannot defile him. “Just as the sun, passing through wicked places, is not defiled, and gold does not become less gold from any dirt.” they preached in the ancient Church. To your own destruction they perverted, as the apostle Peter says (2 Pet. 3:16), the words of the apostle Paul that where sin abounds, there grace abounds (Rom. 5:20). And they used the grace of God, according to the expression of the holy Apostle Jude, in occasion of debauchery(Jude 1:4).

Talk about the canonization of Rasputin, who became famous for his adventures, is especially dangerous today, because there is an unprecedented propaganda of corruption and vice in society, which is increasingly penetrating even into the Church. And, of course, anti-Orthodox means mass media it is very convenient that in the Church someone is engaged in the glorification of Rasputin, who has already become famous for his adventures. This only gives them an additional reason for another sling of mud at the Church and for all sorts of slander, as in the pre-revolutionary years: the same media, in the same hands, were doing the same thing.

TNow let's move on to explaining Rasputin's supernatural powers. Even St. John Chrysostom said that the most dangerous thing is to justify lawlessness, hiding behind a miracle.

Here are a number of testimonies of healings published in the book by his daughter Matryona and repeatedly quoted by his admirers.

About the healing of the girl: “His face changed, it became like that of a dead man, yellow, waxy, motionless to the point of horror. His eyes rolled back completely, only whites were visible. He jerked me sharply by the arms and said in a hollow voice: "She will not die." His face, when he held hands, I will never forget. From the living it became the face of the dead. Trembling takes, as I remember.

About the healing of a young man from the “dance of St. Vitus”: “Rasputin went out of his room to him, sat down opposite him in an armchair, put his hands on his shoulders, directed his gaze firmly into his eyes and shook violently. The trembling gradually weakened, and Rasputin calmed down. Then he jumped up and shouted at him: “Go, boy! Go home or I'll beat you up." The boy jumped up and ran home.

In books about Rasputin, fragments of these stories are given as proof of his holiness. However, all the pathological details of these "prayers" are deliberately omitted.

Citing cases of healings, Rasputin's daughter refers to the testimony of the investigator of the Provisional Government Commission Rudnev: "Rasputin, undoubtedly, possessing some kind of incomprehensible inner strength in the sense of influencing someone else's psyche, represents a kind of hypnosis."

Everyone knows how many attempts there were in the Church to combine magic with the Christian shrine, starting with Simon the Magus and ending with the numerous so-called grandmothers, "healers", psychics who combine prayer in front of icons with conspiracies; they say that they have the blessing of priests and bishops, etc.

At the Last Judgment, many will say: "God! Have we not prophesied in Your name? Did they not cast out demons in your name? and did they not work many miracles in your name? — and in response they will hear: “I never knew you. Depart from Me, you who do iniquity."(Matthew 7:23).

Thus, two conclusions directly follow from the veneration of Rasputin. First, “one can be holy and depraved.” Secondly, - you can mix holiness with hypnosis, dark mysticism with Christianity.

HIt is impossible not to see that the activities of the fans of Rasputin - some kind of ominous parody of the genuine process of glorifying the saints, in particular - of collecting materials for the glorification of the Royal Martyrs. By the way, all the materials that have been circulated in recent years in the church environment in defense of the canonization of the Royal Martyrs, reports of miracles through their prayers have always been strictly verified.

For example, the admirers of “Elder Gregory” try to justify their self-imposedness with a precedent: indeed, many in our Church read akathists to Blessed Xenia, St. righteous John Kronstadt Royal Passion-Bearers long before their canonization by the Moscow Patriarchate; the icons of the Tsar-Martyr were in churches even before they were glorified. But all of them had already been glorified by the Church Abroad! If they are holy in a part of the Church, then in the whole - at least, as locally venerated saints. The grace of the Church Abroad cannot be denied without the risk of falling into the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

In addition, the saints testified to the holiness of the Tsar-Martyr - St. Nicholas Velimirovich, St. Nektarios, Kuksha, Barnabas of Gethsemane, Anatoly of Optina, St. John Maksimovich and many others. Who is famous here? What Church, what saints?..

But in the books about Rasputin, there are many statements by unknown persons who speak of his “holiness”: “One spirit-bearing elder said… One elder was asked……”, etc. What kind of elders are they, why did the authors hesitate to give their names ? After all, the whole value of testimony, all its power lies in the fact that a person announces his name and thereby testifies to the action of Divine grace in a specific historical environment. No self-respecting authority takes anonymous letters into account.

MWe are well aware that people who are engaged in the propaganda of Rasputin's "holiness" cannot be persuaded: they will continue to repeat the same thing. But we don't write for them. We want to draw everyone's attention to the purposeful anti-church nature of the movement of Rasputin's admirers. Occurs crime when something that is alien to it is imposed on the Church. What is put into the mouth of the Church is what she does not confess.

Before us - gross violation of church discipline when a group of people arbitrarily proclaim someone a saint, paint his icons, compose akathists for him, etc.

A new sect appears, similar to the "Mother of God Center", but inside Churches. It is especially dangerous because it tries to influence all sorts of people prone to exaltation, neophytes who are not established in faith and Orthodox sobriety.

Painful delirium is replicated on behalf of the Orthodox Church. And most importantly, this an insult to the memory of the holy Royal Family.

Yes, we believe that the appearance of this movement immediately after the canonization of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers is aimed at discrediting the Church and this grace-filled deed of the Church, in order to provoke fermentation of minds. We hope that the Hierarchy will stop this spiritual infection.

Tatyana Groyan in her book “Martyr for Christ and for the Tsar, the Man of God Gregory. The Prayer Book for Holy Rus' and Her All-Blessed Child (Moscow, 2000) abundantly quotes Matrena's book Rasputin. Memoirs of a daughter ”(M., 2000) on pages: 20, 31, 37, 46, 47,48, 49, 50-51, 53-54, 66, 69-70, 83-84, 85, 87, 92 , 109, 110, 110-111, 152, 169, 171-172, 283, 284, 285-286, 303-307, 307-308, 308-309, 309-312, 315-317, 320-321, 323 -324, 335, 338-341, 356-358. If T. Groyan had not come forward with her “labor”, and most importantly, if very noisy supporters of the canonization of Rasputin had not appeared, Father Alexander Shargunov would not even have had to object to this apology of “Elder Grigory”.

Opponents Prot. Alexander Shargunov is cited as an argument for the “holiness” of Rasputin, that St. John Chrysostom was condemned, believing in slander, by some saints, for example, St. Cyril of Alexandria. However, we have evidence of other St. fathers and ascetics who lived in his time, and who spoke of the unequivocal holiness of Chrysostom (in particular, St. Isidore Pelusiot). Not a single one of his contemporary saints spoke of the holiness of Rasputin. —Note. ed.

Asks: Nastya, Kazan

Responsible: website editor

Hello! How does the Orthodox Church feel about Rasputin? And did he really help the Tsesarevich overcome his illness (hemophilia)? After all, I heard that he was not a very good person! Thanks in advance!

Dear Anastasia!

A good question and to understand this, suggesting you read the following.

The royal family and G.E. Rasputin

Application №3
to the report of the Metropolitan of Krutitsy and Kolomna
Yuvenaly, Chairman of the Synodal Commission
for the canonization of saints

The relationship of the royal family to G.E. Rasputin cannot be considered outside the context of the historical, psychological and religious situation, which developed in Russian society at the beginning of the 20th century, the phenomenon of Rasputin, which many researchers talk about, can hardly be understood outside the historical background of Russia at that time.

No matter how negatively we view the personality of Rasputin himself, we must not forget for a moment that his personality could be fully revealed in the conditions of life in Russian society on the eve of the 1917 catastrophe.

Indeed, the personality of Rasputin is in many ways a typological expression of the spiritual state of a certain part of society at the beginning of the 20th century: “It is no coincidence that in high society they were fond of Rasputin,” writes Metropolitan Veniamin (Fedchenkov) in his memoirs, “there was the appropriate ground for this. And therefore, not in him alone, I even say, not so much in him, but in the general atmosphere, lay the reasons for his enthusiasm for him. And this is typical of the pre-revolutionary stagnation. The tragedy in Rasputin himself was deeper than simple sin. Two principles fought in it, and the lower prevailed over the higher. The process of his conversion that had begun broke down and ended tragically. There was a great personal emotional tragedy. And the second tragedy was in society, in different layers him, starting from the impoverishment of power in spiritual circles to licentiousness in the rich” (2, 138).

How could it happen that such an odious figure as Rasputin could have a significant influence on the royal family and on the Russian state-political life of his time?

One of the explanations for the Rasputin phenomenon is the so-called "eldership" of Rasputin. Here is what the former comrade of the chief prosecutor of the Holy Synod, Prince N.D., writes about this. Zhevakhov: “When Rasputin appeared on the horizon of St. Petersburg, whom popular rumor called the “old man”, who came from distant Siberia, where he allegedly became famous for his high ascetic life, the society faltered and rushed towards him with an unstoppable stream. He became interested in both the common people and the believing representatives of high society, monks, laity, bishops and members of the State Council, statesmen and public figures, united among themselves as much by a common religious mood as, perhaps, by common moral suffering and hardships.

Rasputin's glory was preceded by many attendant circumstances and, among other things, the fact that Archimandrite Feofan, known throughout Petersburg for the height of spiritual life, allegedly went to Rasputin in Siberia several times and used his spiritual instructions. The appearance of Rasputin in St. Petersburg was preceded by a formidable force. He was considered, if not a saint, then, in any case, a great ascetic. Who created such fame for him and brought him out of Siberia, I do not know, but in the context of subsequent events, the fact that Rasputin had to pave the way to glory with his own efforts is of extreme importance. He was called either an "old man", or a "seer", or a "man of God", but each of these platforms placed him on the same height and fixed the position of a "saint" in the eyes of the St. Petersburg world (5, 203-204, 206).

In fact, having appeared in St. Petersburg, Rasputin, who until recently had spent his life in a riot and drunken revelry - at least his fellow villagers testify to this - already had the reputation of an "old man" and a "seer." In all likelihood, in 1903, he met the rector of the St. Petersburg Theological Academy, Bishop Sergius (Stragorodsky), who introduces Rasputin to the inspector of the Academy, Archimandrite Feofan (Bystrov) and Bishop Germogen (Dolganov). Rasputin made a particularly favorable impression on Archimandrite Feofan, the confessor of the royal family, who felt deep sympathy for this Siberian peasant preacher and saw in "Elder Gregory" the bearer of the new and true power of faith. Through the mediation of Grand Duke Peter Nikolayevich and his wife Milica Nikolaevna, on November 1, 1905, a fatal acquaintance with the royal family took place, as we read in the diary of Emperor Nicholas II: “We drank tea with Milica Nikolaevna and Stana. We met a man of God - Grigory from the Tobolsk province ”(3, 287).

The first two years after they met, Rasputin did not become for the royal family that “dear Gregory”, for whom their souls were open. They happily met and listened to other "God's people." So, the Emperor wrote in his diary on January 14, 1906: “At 4 o’clock, the man of God Dimitri from Kozelsk near Optina Pustyn came to us. He brought an image painted according to a vision he had recently had. I talked with him for about an hour and a half" (3, 298).

Until the end of 1907, the meetings of the imperial family with "Elder Gregory" were random and rather rare. Meanwhile, the rumor about the “Siberian elder” also increased, but as his fame grew, the unpleasant facts of his immoral behavior became public knowledge. Perhaps they would have remained facts of Rasputin's biography and best case would have gone down as a curiosity in the history of St. Petersburg society, if it had not coincided with the beginning of the period of systematic meetings between Rasputin and the royal family. In these regular meetings, held in the Tsarskoye Selo house of A.A. Vyrubova, the royal children also took part. Rumors spread that Rasputin belonged to the Khlysty sect. In 1908, by order of the Emperor, the Tobolsk Ecclesiastical Consistory conducted an investigation into Rasputin's belonging to the Khlysty. In the conclusion of the investigation, it was noted that “upon a careful examination of the investigative case, it is impossible not to see that we have before us a group of people who have united in a special society with a peculiar religious and moral worldview and a way of life that is different from the Orthodox ... The very way of life of the followers of Gregory the New and the personality he himself seems to be close ... to Khlystism, but there are no firm principles on the basis of which it would be possible to assert that we are dealing with Khlystyism here, ”so the investigation was sent for additional investigation, which, according to unidentified reasons, it was never completed. However, in recently published memoirs about Rasputin, V.A. Zhukovskaya again raises the question of Rasputin's belonging to an extreme form of Khlystism. These memoirs provide evidence (of Rasputin's phraseology and his erotic zeal) about the belonging of the "old man Grigory" to the Khlyst sect (7, 252-317).

What is the solution to the mystery of Rasputin? How could the uncombinable—truly satanic rampage and prayer—combine in him? Obviously, the confrontation between these two principles took place in his soul for years, but in the end, the dark one still prevailed. Here is what Metropolitan Evlogy (Georgievsky) wrote in his memoirs: “A Siberian wanderer who sought God in a feat, and at the same time a dissolute and vicious person, the nature of demonic power, he combined tragedy in his soul and life: zealous religious deeds and terrible upsurges alternated with him falling into the abyss of sin. As long as he was aware of the horror of this tragedy, all was not yet lost; but later came to justifying his falls, and that was the end” (4, 182). An even sharper assessment of the controversial nature of Rasputin was given by the former tutor of the Grand Duke P. Gilliard: “Fate wanted the one who was seen in the halo of a saint to be in reality an unworthy and depraved creature ... the unholy influence of this person was one of the main causes of death those who believed that they would find salvation in him” (6, 40).

So why did Rasputin turn out to be so close to the royal family, why did they believe him so? As noted by A.A. Vyrubova in her testimony to the ChSKVP in 1917, Nikolai and Alexandra Fedorovna “trusted him as Father John of Kronstadt, they believed him terribly; and when they had grief, when, for example, the heir was sick, they turned to him with a request to pray” (1, 109).

It is precisely in this latter that one should see the reason for the “fatal connection” that connected Rasputin with the royal family. It was at the end of 1907 that Rasputin was next to the sick heir, for the first time he helped to improve the health of Alexei Nikolaevich. Rasputin's intervention repeatedly changed the course of the heir's illness for the better - there are quite a few references to this, but there are almost no specific, truly documented data. Someone heard something, someone knew something from someone, but none of the people who left written testimonies saw anything themselves. It is no coincidence that Pierre Gilliard writes about how he repeatedly “had the opportunity to see what an insignificant role Rasputin played in the life of Alexei Nikolayevich,” but, we repeat, there have always been more rumors in this area than reliable facts.

It was the case of the healing of the prince that was the turning point in Alexandra Feodorovna's attitude to Rasputin, to this, in her words, "a man of God." Here is what P. Gilliard, already mentioned by us, writes about the influence of Rasputin on Alexandra Fedorovna through her son’s illness: “The mother grabbed the hope that was given to her, like a drowning man grabs the hand that is extended to him, and she believed in him with all the strength of her soul. For a long time, however, she had been convinced that the salvation of Russia and the dynasty would come from the people, and she imagined that this humble peasant was sent by God ... The power of faith did the rest and, thanks to self-hypnosis, which was facilitated by random coincidences, the Empress came to the conclusion that that the fate of her son depends on this man. Rasputin understood the state of mind of this desperate mother, crushed in the struggle and, it seemed, reached the limits of her suffering. He fully mastered what he could learn from this, and with diabolical art he achieved that his life was to some extent connected with the life of the crown prince ”(6, 37-38).

It was the illness of her son that turned out to be the defining moment in relation to Alexandra Fedorovna and Rasputin - he became the hope and support of her family, moreover, she believed that under the protection of this man her family and Russia were not in danger - she knew this for sure, she felt it with all her a heart that "never deceived."

Therefore, for all the ugliness of various rumors and gossip that surrounded Rasputin, Alexandra Fedorovna saw him only from one side. According to the palace commandant V.N. Voeikova, Alexandra Fedorovna looked at Rasputin as “at her own person”, who played the role of a mentor-comforter in her family - and how can we not understand the suffering mother, whose son is saved from death by this man? She was convinced that Rasputin was a messenger from God, his intercession before the Almighty gives hope for the future...

Alexandra Fedorovna expressed her understanding of the role of Rasputin in letters to her husband. So, in June 1915, she wrote: “Obey our Friend: trust him, the interests of Russia and yours are dear to your heart. God did not send him for nothing, only we should pay more attention to his words - they are not spoken to the wind. How important it is for us to have not only his prayers, but also advice.” In another letter to her husband, she wrote that "that country, the Sovereign of which is directed by a Godly Man, cannot perish." We see how Rasputin gradually turns from an "old man-comforter" into an influential political figure. Being smart and quick-witted, he undoubtedly understood that he could not evade the role of adviser to the “mother of the Russian land”, otherwise he would lose the favor of the royal family. It was in this dramatic confusion of Rasputin's roles that the tragedy of the last reign was found. The Empress assigned a role to the “simple and praying man” that he under no circumstances had the right to play, and even had no opportunity to successfully fulfill it.

All attempts by close relatives, friends, church hierarchs to warn Alexandra Feodorovna against the influence of Rasputin ended in a break, resignation, and complete isolation. In letters to Emperor Nicholas dated June 15, 1915, Alexandra Fedorovna wrote: “Samarin will undoubtedly go against our Friend and will be on the side of those bishops whom we do not like - he is such an ardent and narrow Muscovite” (1, 192). It is well known how the actions against Rasputin of the Hieromartyr Metropolitan Vladimir, the Bishops Hieromartyr Hermogenes and Theophan ended. A complete break occurred with Alexandra Feodorovna and with her sister, the Reverend Martyr Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna, who, in a letter to the emperor dated March 26, 1910, wrote about Rasputin's stay in spiritual delusion.

The relationship between the Emperor himself and Rasputin was more complicated - he combined admiration for the "old man" with caution and even doubts. So, after the first meeting with Rasputin in 1907, he told Prince Orlov that he had found in Rasputin "a man of pure faith." To M. Rodzianko, Chairman of the State Duma, he characterizes Rasputin as follows: “He is a good, simple Russian man. In moments of doubt and anxiety, I like to talk with him, and after such a conversation, my heart always feels light and calm. But still, the Emperor was worried about Rasputin - after all, he could not help but be disturbed by reports from confidants about his scandalous behavior. The emperor repeatedly tried to get rid of him, but each time he retreated under pressure from the Empress or because of the need for Rasputin's help to heal the heir. Here is what P. Gilliard writes about this: “At first he endured him, not daring to strike a blow at the faith of the Empress, which the Empress had in him and in which she found hope that gave her the opportunity to wait. The emperor was afraid to remove Rasputin, because if Alexei Nikolaevich died, then the Emperor in the eyes of his mother would undoubtedly be the murderer of his child ”(6, 157-158).

Summing up the analysis of the reasons for the influence of G. E. Rasputin on the royal family, in conclusion, I would like to note that the Emperor was unable to resist the will of the Empress, tormented by despair due to her son’s illness and, therefore, under the sinister influence of Rasputin, as the whole family had to pay dearly for it!

Bibliography

1. Bokhanov A. N. Twilight of the Monarchy. M., 1993.

2. Veniamin (Fedchenkov), Metropolitan At the turn of two eras, b/m, 1994.

3. Diaries of Emperor Nicholas II. M., 1991.

4. Evlogii (Georgievsky), Metropolitan The path of my life. M., 1994.

5. Zhevakhov N.D., prince. Memories, volume 1. M., 1993.

6. Gilliard P. Thirteen years at the Russian Court. Paris, b/g.

7. Zhukovskaya V.A. My memories of Grigory Efimovich Rasputin, 1914-1916 // Russian archive. History of the Fatherland in evidence and documents of the 18th - 20th centuries, volumes 2-3. M., 1992, p. 252-317.

Bishops' Council 2008

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