To his son Fedor. The sovereign was distinguished by poor health and inability to govern the country independently. Rumor attributed the first place in the advisory boyar council to Nikita Romanovich Zakharyin-Yuryev. The influential founder of the Romanov dynasty, however, outlived Ivan the Terrible by only two years. Status eminence grise under Fyodor Ioannovich, it went to his brother-in-law Boris Godunov, and Nikita Romanovich’s children found themselves in a vulnerable position.
Fyodor Nikitich became the first Romanov to bear this surname
The eldest son of the deceased, Fyodor, became better known by his middle name Filaret, although in his youth nothing hinted at his future tonsure as a monk. Romanov was the tsar’s cousin on his mother’s side, which naturally distinguished him from other boyars. In Moscow, the sovereign's namesake had a reputation as a dandy, a lover of hunting and a deft rider. Having six brothers and five sisters, Fyodor inherited the universal love enjoyed by his father and received his place in the Boyar Duma.
“Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich puts a gold chain on Boris Godunov.” A. Kivshenko
Until the death of Fyodor Ioannovich, his two closest courtiers (besides Godunov) were the eldest of the Romanov brothers and Prince Mstislavsky. This balance between the most influential aristocratic families was disrupted soon after the death of the last Tsar Rurikovich in 1598. Successor to the Monarch Zemsky Sobor elected Boris Godunov, although according to the testimony of foreigners who were then in Moscow, Fyodor Nikitich could also become head of state.
Time of Troubles
Under the new king, any potential opponents of his power were exposed to exceptional danger. The Romanovs fell into disgrace in 1600, when the flywheel of the false “case of roots” began to spin. The bribed treasurer hid a bag of “magic” roots in Alexander Nikitich’s pantry. Deception formed the basis for accusing all the Romanovs of preparing poison intended for Godunov.
As a result of court intrigue, the Nikitichs were exiled to different parts of the country. Fyodor was tonsured a monk, received the name Philaret, and for several years found himself removed from political life in the Anthony-Siysky Monastery (modern Arkhangelsk region). His little son Mikhail (the future tsar) was sent to Beloozero, and then to Kliny - to his uncle’s estate.
Each impostor tried to use Filaret for their own interests
In 1605, False Dmitry reigned. For the impostor (“the son of Ivan the Terrible”), the Romanovs were the closest relatives, so the family members who survived the exile were returned to Moscow. Filaret was elevated to the rank of Metropolitan of Rostov. Under Vasily Shuisky, he was patriarch, but the suspicious tsar at the last moment changed his choice in favor of Hermogenes.
"In the Time of Troubles." S. Ivanov
In Rostov, Filaret was reunited with his family for some time, but already in 1608 the city was captured by a detachment of a new impostor -. Shuisky's opponents took the metropolitan to Tushino and named him an imaginary patriarch. Filaret did not stay there either. After Shuisky’s death, he went with an embassy to Smolensk, where negotiations were organized on the election of the Polish prince Vladislav as Russian Tsar. The Metropolitan agreed with the candidacy on the condition that the applicant convert to Orthodoxy.
Negotiations soon reached a dead end. The parties could not agree, and Filaret, along with other members of the embassy, was arrested and sent to prison in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Romanov's second forced imprisonment lasted eight years. During this time (1611 - 1619), the Time of Troubles ended in Russia, the Zemsky Sobor elected young Mikhail Fedorovich as tsar, and the new sovereign ended the long war with Poland. According to the peace treaty, an exchange of prisoners was carried out. The Metropolitan gained his long-awaited freedom.
Co-ruler son
Immediately after Filaret returned to his homeland, preparations began for his election to the patriarchate. Part of the ceremony was his refusal of the highest church title due to his “unworthiness.” Boris Godunov and Mikhail Fedorovich himself did exactly the same thing in the case of the royal throne when he was still in Kostroma. The enthronement ceremony, however, took place just a few days after Filaret’s arrival in Moscow. Contrary to the customs of the black clergy, the patriarch was called not only by name, but also by his patronymic - Filaret Nikitich.
In correspondence with his father, Mikhail Fedorovich called him “my lord”
The monarch's father became not only his advisor, but also his official co-ruler, which was emphasized by the title “Great Sovereign.” At subsequent Zemsky Councils, speeches were made on behalf of the Tsar and the Patriarch. Sergei Solovyov wrote: “With the return of Filaret Nikitich to Moscow, dual power begins here.” Vasily Klyuchevsky spoke in a similar spirit: “... Patriarch Filaret, with the title of the second great sovereign, covered up the most ordinary temporary worker within himself.”
Filaret did a lot to strengthen the position of his son and the new dynasty. It was on his initiative that Fyodor Ioannovich began to be called Uncle Mikhail, and Ivan the Terrible - grandfather (in fact, Fyodor was his maternal cousin). Also, with the appearance of the Patriarch in Moscow, the convenings of Zemsky Sobors gradually ceased. This advisory body was extremely useful in the emergency conditions of the Troubles. Now that the situation in Russia has begun to stabilize, making important government decisions has become a routine activity exclusively for the young tsar - and his co-ruler. The surviving Boyar Duma only carried out the decisions of the tandem.
In correspondence with his father, Mikhail Fedorovich said “my holy master and sovereign,” “my dear father and sovereign,” and himself simply “your son.” Filaret replaced his son during his absence in Moscow. While outside the capital, the tsar often wrote to the patriarch so that he could make decisions at his own discretion (“about everything as you, sir, indicate”).
In 1632, another Russian-Polish war began. Mikhail Fedorovich hoped to return Smolensk, which was lost during the Time of Troubles. Filaret, despite his venerable age, took part in preparations for military action. The patriarch died in 1633 at the age of about 80 years.
The founder of the House of Romanov was one who left Prussian land native Andrei Ivanovich Kobyla with his brother Fedor Shevlyaga. He left behind five sons, from whom, in addition to the third childless, came numerous offspring, which gave rise to many families, such as: Sheremetev, Kolychev, Neplyuev, Kokorev, Bezzubtsov, Lodygin, Konovnitsyn.
The fifth son of Andrei Kobyla was Fedor Koshka, a famous boyar in his time, who left four sons; of these, the eldest Ivan had four sons, the last of them, Zakhary, gave his offspring the name Zakharyins. Of the three sons of Zakhary, the middle one, Yuri, left offspring, which were called the Zakharyins-Yurins. One of these sons, Zakhary Roman, was the father of Tsarina Anastasia, the first wife of Ivan the Terrible, and her brother Nikita. From this Nikita Romanovich the clan began to be called the Romanovs.
The close relationship between Nikita's children and the royal house and the good memory that Nikita left behind put the suspicious Boris Godunov in a hostile attitude towards his children. He decided to destroy this family and sent all the sons of Nikita to heavy imprisonment. Alexander, Vasily and Mikhail Nikitich did not survive the royal disgrace. Chroniclers say that Alexander was strangled in exile, off the coast White Sea. Vasily and Ivan were sent to Pelym. Boris Godunov ordered them to be kept strictly, but not to be tortured.
But Boris’s servants showed him more zeal than he apparently required. Vasily soon died from the mistreatment of the bailiffs. Mikhail Nikitich was kept in an earthen prison in the Nyrob volost in the vicinity of Cherdyn. They still show his heavy chains there in the church. He showed himself more than all his brothers talents and intelligence Fedor Nikitich. He had a friendly manner, was inquisitive, and even learned Latin. No one knew how to ride a horse better than him; There was no more handsome and dapper man in Moscow.
A contemporary Dutchman says that if a tailor, having made a dress for someone and tried them on, wanted to praise him, he would say to his customer: now you are perfect Fyodor Nikitich. This first Moscow dandy forcibly tonsured in the Siysky monastery under the name of Philaret and they assigned the bailiff Voeikov to him, who was supposed to watch his every step, listen to his every word and report everything to Godunov.
Patriarch Filaret was the father of the Russian Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov.
The first tsar of the Romanov dynasty.
His wife Ksenia Ivanovna, who came from the humble Shestov family, was tonsured under the name of Martha and exiled to Zaonezhie to the Yegoryevsky churchyard of the Tolvui volost. Their young children, Mikhail and his sister, were exiled to Beloozero with their aunt, the girl Anastasia, the sister of the Romanovs. Filaret, as the bailiff Voeikov reported, I missed my family very much and said: “My dear children, the poor little ones remain, someone will feed them and give them water! And my poor wife, is she still alive by luck? I bet they rushed her there somewhere, and it won’t even get rumors. Oh, I love that my wife and children, when you remember them, it’s like a spear piercing your heart. If only God had cleaned them up earlier. Tea, my wife herself is glad that God would give them death, and they wouldn’t interfere with me. I would hunt alone with my soul!..” Meanwhile, with all the strict supervision of Filaret, priest Ermolai and some peasants of the Tolvui volost informed him about his wife, and conveyed news about him to her.
In 1605, when Boris Godunov’s struggle with the impostor was in full swing, Filaret suddenly changed and boldly drove away the monks who came to keep an eye on him with a stick. Voeikov denounced him in these words: “He lives Elder Filaret not according to the monastic rank, he laughs for unknown reasons, he talks all about birds of prey, and about dogs, how he lived in the world. Startsev scolds and wants to beat and says to them: You will see what I will be like in the future.”
The accession of the said Demetrius freed the surviving two Romanov brothers from difficult exile and made them noble people in the state. Ivan Romanov was elevated to the rank of boyar, Filaret – to the rank of Metropolitan of Rostov. We do not know the latter’s relationship to the named Demetrius, but after his murder, Filaret, even before Hermogenes was elected patriarch, went to Uglich to collect the relics of Prince Demetrius. Then he remained in his diocese, in Rostov.
When Russian cities, one after another, began to recognize the Tushinsky thief, Filaret kept Rostov in obedience to Shuisky. The thief ordered, at all costs, to get Filaret and bring him to his camp. On October 11, 1608, the Pereyaslavl people with Moscow people sent by Sapega from near Trinity attacked Rostov by surprise. Filaret dressed in bishop's robes and stood in the church with the people. When Pereyaslavl residents broke into the church, Filaret began to persuade them not to deviate from the legal oath. But the Pereyaslavl people did not listen, tore off his holy clothes, put a homespun on him, covered his head with a Tatar cap and took him to Tushino, putting some woman on a cart with him in mockery.
Patriarch Filaret was tonsured a monk by force
The Tushino thief received him with honor and named him patriarch. “Filaret,” says Avramy Palitsyn, “was reasonable, did not lean either to the right or to the left.” He held a service and commemorated the Tushino thief with Dimitri. However, however, Patriarch Hermogenes, strict towards traitors, in his appeals to the people he spoke about Filaret, that he was in Tushino not by his own will, but out of necessity, that the patriarch did not blame him for this, but prayed to God for him.
When the Tushino camp began to disintegrate, Filaret, together with Mikhail Saltykov, his son Ivan and Prince Rubets-Masalsky, princes Yuri Khvorostinin, Fyodor Meshchersky, clerk Gramotin, went to Sigismund to beat the brow about the granting of Vladislav to the Russian land as king. We do not know, where was Filaret after the destruction of the Tushino camp before the deposition of Shuisky. But after this event he was in Moscow, and the boyars, with the blessing of Hermogenes, appointed him at the head of the embassy along with the boyar Prince Vasily Vasilyevich Golitsyn and the okolnichy prince Danil Mezetsky. Here Filaret had to endure a difficult feat.
At first, the Poles received the Russian embassy very kindly, but then they began to demand that the ambassadors themselves order the Smolensk residents to surrender the city of Smolensk to the king. Disputes about this were lengthy, Filaret and his comrades argued that this was contrary to the already concluded agreement with Zolkiewski, and most of all they insisted that the embassy has no right to do this without advice with the patriarch and with all the Russian land. No coercion or threats from the Poles forced the embassy to carry out the will of the king: Filaret most of all urged his comrades to be steadfast.
The Poles cunningly offered to allow at least a small number of their soldiers into Smolensk. “If we,” Filaret said to his comrades, “let even one royal person into Smolensk, then We will never see Smolensk again. Let the king take Smolensk by force against the treaty and the kiss of the cross, but let us not give up Smolensk with our weakness.”
Tushinsky thief - False Dmitry II made Filaret Patriarch
The Poles stopped conferring with the ambassadors and, in their eyes, made attacks on Smolensk. In February 1611, the lords, having received a letter from the boyars in which the ambassadors were ordered to surrender Smolensk and swear allegiance to the king along with their son, showed it to the ambassadors. "This the letter was written without patriarchal consent“, - said Filaret, “even if I accept death, I will not do anything without a patriarchal letter of kissing the cross in the royal name.” The lords began to threaten them that they would be sent to Vilna, and again stopped the meeting with the ambassadors.
When the Poles, standing near Smolensk, learned that the Russian land was taking up arms under the banner of Lyapunov, they imagined that all this was being done with the knowledge of the ambassadors, and on March 26, Chancellor Lev Sapega told them: “We we know your treachery, indecent to the title of ambassadors. You violated popular law, neglected the decree of the Moscow boyars, from whom you were sent, incited the people to disobedience and rebellion, aroused hatred of the king, rejected Shein from surrendering Smolensk, encouraging him with help from Lyapunov. You will go to Poland."
They were put in custody. After the topic of burning Moscow came up, they were called again and announced what had become of the capital, Filaret said: “We ourselves don’t know what we are and what we should do now. The entire Russian land sent us and, firstly, the patriarch. Now the patriarch, our leading man, is in custody, and the people of the Moscow state have come near Moscow and are fighting with royal people. One remedy is to move away from Smolensk and approve the agreement with which we arrived; then we will write to the army near Moscow so that it disperses.”
Filaret did not help the Poles in appropriating Smolensk
They were again left in custody. Meanwhile, the following event happened: Ivan Nikitich Saltykov, a zealous saint of Sigismund and who experienced severe reproaches from Filaret for this, having received an order from Sigismund not to allow the militia formed in Dorogobuzh to unite with Lyapunov, repented of his treason, declared himself clearly a supporter of the uprising and wrote Smolensk residents are exhorted not to give up. This made the Poles even more embittered. On April 12, Lev Sapega called Filaret and in a threatening tone demanded that he immediately write on his own behalf to the Moscow army about retreating from the capital, and to Shein in Smolensk about the surrender of the city.
Filaret answered: “I agree to endure everything, but I won’t do this until you approve everything that was given to you in the contract.” “Well, you will go to Poland tomorrow,” said Sapieha. The next day, April 13, the ambassadors were sent by water to Poland, all their property was robbed and their servants were killed. The ambassadors were accompanied by Polish soldiers with loaded guns, like prisoners of war. When they sailed past Zholkiewski's estate, the crown hetman, who inwardly respected them for their firmness, sent to ask about their health.
From then on, Filaret’s free activity ceased for a long time. Lev Sapega took him to his house. After the election of Michael, the Zemsky Sobor wanted to bypass the Poles and, keeping silent about the election of a new king, in March 1613, proposed an exchange of prisoners, hoping to free the royal parent. But it failed. After Michael’s accession to the throne, Zhelyabuzhsky was sent as ambassador to Warsaw and brought Philaret a letter from his son.
“You didn’t do well,” Filaret said to Zhelyabuzhsky, “I was sent from the whole state as an ambassador to ask Vladislav, but my son was chosen as sovereign. They could have chosen someone else other than my son. For this you are wrong before me for doing this without my knowledge.”
The ambassador told him: “Royal nothing stops the matter, even if you were with us, you would not be able to change this. This is the will of God. Your son himself did not want this.”
Mikhail Romanov became Russian Tsar against the will of his father Filaret
Then Filaret, turning to Sapega, said: “Here, they say, my son turned out to be a sovereign not according to my will, and how could my son do this? He remained young after me, only sixteen years old!”
The Poles never agreed to communicate with the newly elected Tsar Michael. The Moscow government also sent Prince Vorotynsky to Poland, but even he could not arrange reconciliation.
Having missed a convenient time, Sigismund in 1617 decided to release his son Vladislav, who had already reached the age of twenty-two, to gain the throne with weapons, to which he was elected seven years ago. Vladislav managed to take Dorogobuzh and Vyazma, the governors of these cities were handed over to him. The following year 1618 Vladislav invited 20,000 Dnieper Cossacks under the command of Hetman Sagaidachny to go to the Moscow state. The Cossacks successfully captured many Ukrainian cities; The prince marched towards Moscow from Smolensk, and on September 20, 1618, both troops, Polish and Cossack, were already near Moscow.
Tsar Michael's position was dangerous. The Russians began to lean towards Vladislav. Fortunately, the Moscow army bravely repelled the attack on the capital with great damage to the Poles. Cold weather was approaching. It was difficult to stand near Moscow, especially since The Cossacks did not tolerate long sieges and they could disperse; The attempt on the Trinity Monastery also failed for the Poles. All this prompted Vladislav to enter into negotiations.
Three versts from Trinity, in the village of Deulino, after several congresses, a truce was concluded for 14 years and 6 months. According to this truce, prisoners were exchanged on both sides. However, the case of the prisoners dragged on until June. The Poles complained that the Russians, and especially Prince Pozharsky, were unwillingly turned many prisoners into slaves, and many, having been released from prison, were released into the cold almost naked and barefoot. The boyars swore that this had never happened. The dispute reached the point that the Poles, having brought Filaret and other prisoners to the Polyanovka River in order to return them to the Russians, wanted to send them back. In order to free the Tsar's father from captivity, the boyars had to agree to the Poles' demand to find and return their compatriots who were not surrendered among the prisoners.
Hetman Sagaidachny and Zaporozhye Cossacks helped the Poles
On June 14, Filaret arrived in Moscow. The king met him outside the city in front of countless people and bowed at his feet, and Philaret bowed at the king’s feet, and both lay on the ground, shedding tears. At that time, Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophan was visiting Moscow. At the royal request he ordained Filaret on June 24 Moscow Patriarch.
Until now, Tsar Mikhail, a man of a very meek character, kind-hearted, was only an autocrat in name. The boyars around him indulged in self-will. The entire administration of the state depended on them. But Filaret, a man of strong character, immediately seized power and had a great influence not only on spiritual, but also on secular affairs. Nothing was done without his will. Foreign ambassadors came to him as to a sovereign. He himself, like his son, bore the title of great sovereign. There was something commanding in his personality, the royal son was afraid of him and did not dare to do anything without his will and blessing.
The boyars and all the people of the Duma and close to the tsar were in obedience to him; truthful and merciful with the submissive, he was formidable for those who decided to go against him, and immediately sent the obstinate into exile. In the entire patriarchal diocese, which embraced most of the Moscow state, except for Kazan and Novgorod, all monasteries with all their estates were given to his administration, excluding criminal cases. All the important decrees of the king were written only with the advice of his father. One of the first affairs of the period of Filaret’s power in the field of secular government was a meeting of the Zemstvo Duma, which was supposed to present a complete picture of the ruined state of the state, report measures, “ what does the Moscow state need to fill up with?, and organize the Moscow state so that everyone comes to dignity,” and the sovereign, with the assistance of his father, promised to “provide for a better way to improve everything.”
Then, at the insistence of Filaret, scribes were sent to those cities of the Moscow state that survived the devastation, and “watchmen” to the devastated cities, to inform the state of the state and return the fled townspeople and volost people to their former places of residence so that they would pay correctly taxes to the state. In spiritual administration, Filaret was strict, trying to establish deanery both in worship and in the way of life of the clergy, pursued fist fights and various folk games , distinguished by obscenity, punished both immorality and freethinking.
Patriarch Filaret was very strict in spiritual management
An example of cases of the first kind can be the case of one boyar’s son, Nekhoroshka Semichev, whom the patriarch ordered to be exiled for a depraved life to the White Sea, to the Korelsky monastery, keep him chained in a bakery, order him to sow flour and rake out the ash from the oven, and feed him only bread, and then half of what is given to each brother. The unfortunate prisoner had to remain in this position until death.
As an example of the second kind, one can cite the trial of Filaret over Prince Ivan Khvorostinin. This prince was one of the confidants of the said Demetrius and, following his example, thought freely regarding religious subjects: he said that it was all the same images, whether Roman or Greek, did not keep fasts, and read heretical books. Vasily Shuisky exiled him to the Joseph Monastery. Mikhail turned him back, but Khvorostinin reached even greater freethinking: said that there was nothing to pray for, that sunday of the dead- lies, laughed at the saints of God, beat his servants for going to church, drank wine and ate meat on Holy Week, did not want to go to the king on Easter, was planning to leave his fatherland and had already begun to sell his estates for this purpose.
“For me,” he said, “there are no people in Moscow, no one to say a word with, the people are stupid, I will ask the tsar to let me go to Rome, or to Lithuania, or somewhere.” While Mikhail alone reigned, Khvorostinin got away with everything. But Filaret soon set to work on it. Khvorostinin found a satirical poem in which he laughed at the piety of Muscovites: “They bow to icons only by signature, and their image is unsigned and not an image.”
Moscow people sow the whole land with rye, but they all live with lies.
By the way, he put it: “Moscow people sow the whole earth with rye, but they all live in lies.” For all this, Filaret ordered Khvorostinin to be exiled to the Kirillov Monastery, kept in his cell without leaving, and given read only church books and make you pray. This was in 1623. Khvorostinin spent nine years there and was released in 1632, when he made a promise and oath to observe the statutes of the Greek Church and not to read any heretical books.
As for the degree of Philaret’s church learning, contemporaries say that he only partially understood Holy Bible. Filaret died in October 1633 and was buried in the Assumption Cathedral.
His patriarchate was an important era in the history of the Russian hierarchy. As the parent of the Tsar, Filaret naturally had more power than anyone else would have while in his rank, and as the Patriarch he ruled independently in church affairs. This generally raised and elevated the rank of patriarch for Filaret’s successors. Less relevant to the personality of Filaret lies in the biography of Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich.
Date of publication or update 04/01/2017
On June 24, 1619, after a seven-year period of the so-called “interpatriarchate,” Metropolitan Philaret was elevated to the primate see. Patriarch Filaret (in the world Feodor Nikitich Romanov-Yuryev) was born around 1553, belonged to one of the prominent boyar families, was a relative of Ivan the Terrible (son of boyar Nikita Romanovich Yuryev-Zakharyin, sibling the first wife of Ivan the Terrible, Tsarina Anastasia Romanovna). His father Nikita Romanovich gained good fame in Moscow: the people saw in him an intercessor before the formidable Tsar John IV. Relationship with royal family and the personal qualities of the witty, dexterous and handsome Feodor Nikitich gave him an honorable place in the state. Under Tsar Theodore Ioannovich, he was a member of the boyar duma, governor of Novgorod and Pskov and governor; dying childless, Theodore Ioannovich made him his executor. Boris Godunov, having ascended the kingdom, at first apparently treated him with respect, but, fearing him as a legitimate contender for the throne, he soon exiled him to the monastery of St. Anthony of Siysk near Kholmogory in the Arkhangelsk province. Here he was forcibly tonsured a monk and, by order of the king, was kept in strict “protection”, so that he was not supposed to speak or correspond with anyone; in addition, he suffered extreme oppression from the bailiff, who thought to please the king with the severity of his actions. There he was ordained a hieromonk and archimandrite.
In 1605, Archimandrite Philaret was summoned as an imaginary relative to the reigning False Dmitry I and ordained Metropolitan of Rostov. At the same time, the nun Martha, his former wife (in the world Ksenia Ivanovna), and his son Mikhail, the future sovereign, were summoned from the Zaonezhsky churchyard, and his son Mikhail, the future sovereign, from the Belozersk monastery, and settled in Kostroma. Upon the accession of Vasily Shuisky to the throne, he was sent to Uglich to discover the relics of Tsarevich Dimitri.
Metropolitan Filaret showed wonderful example fortitude and pastoral love during the rebel attack on Rostov under the second impostor. Most of the city's inhabitants retired to Yaroslavl; Metropolitan Filaret, seeing Polish detachments with Pereyaslavl traitors approaching the city, locked himself with some faithful citizens in the cathedral church and prepared to die by Holy Communion; the doors of the cathedral were broken, the rebels broke in, and the massacre began; The Metropolitan began to persuade them, but they seized him, took off his holy clothes, put on a tattered Polish dress and a Tatar cap, and took him barefoot and with abuse to Tushino. The self-proclaimed Dimitri II received Metropolitan Philaret kindly and named him “Patriarch of Moscow,” supposedly as his relative, but kept him captive and strictly watched him. Abraham Palitsyn wrote that the people of Tushino kept their “Patriarch” in captivity, “they always kept strong guards over him and did not give him any words or anointings of boldness.” Patriarch Hermogenes knew this and wrote in his letters that he prayed to God for those “who were taken captive, like Metropolitan Filaret and others, not by their own will, but by necessity, and do not stand by the non-Christian law.” Two years later, he was recaptured from the rebels by Skopin-Shuisky’s detachment.
The Time of Troubles shook the political system in Russia, discipline weakened and arbitrariness played out, financial situation the country urgently required improvements. When he assumed the throne, Mikhail Feodorovich was still too young, inexperienced and indecisive to correct the disordered state order.
For this it was necessary strong will and an experienced person. His father, Patriarch Filaret, became such an assistant for the young sovereign, in whom circumstances developed a strong character, age and previous participation in state affairs gave him knowledge of the boyar environment and all of Russian life and taught him experience in management, and finally, in whom the misfortunes of the Fatherland gave rise to ardent patriotism . The Patriarch became an adviser and right hand sovereign. The tsar himself, in his letter to the governors on July 3, 1619, reporting the return of his parent from Poland, expressed himself as follows: “We, the great sovereign, with our father and pilgrim ... having advised, ... are teaching about the Moscow state in order to fix everything for the best.” The chroniclers call Filaret “the most stately Patriarch,” noting that he “mastered all kinds of royal and military affairs” and that “the whole thing was ruled by the Tsar and the Patriarch.” Truthful and merciful to the obedient, he was formidable to those who, to the detriment of the state’s benefit, dared to disobey, and sometimes exiled the obstinate. In this way, the tsarist power, previously trampled upon by the boyars, was restored throughout its entire autocracy. Boyar Duma cleared of unworthy boyars, the Russian land “liberated from various rapists.” Patriarch Filaret began to be called the great sovereign and co-ruler, took a constant part in affairs, was present at all receptions and audiences with the tsar, and without his decisive word nothing was done in the government. His name was written in documents along with the royal name; Reports were made to both and foreign ambassadors introduced themselves. The court staff of Patriarch Philaret matched in its splendor the staff of the papal palace.
At the court of the Patriarch, the same rules and the same staff were established as the tsar: boyars, okolnichy, tiuns, attorneys, boyar children, clerks, clerks, etc. All people living on the lands of the Patriarch or subordinate to him were tried only by His Holiness , from his boyars, and were exempt from all government taxes.
The years of Filaret's patriarchate were marked by a number of significant church and state reforms. Everything that was done that was beneficial for Russia in the first half of the reign of Mikhail Feodorovich, such as the final reconciliation with Poland, Sweden and the Tatars, taming internal rebellions, restoring devastated cities, increasing state revenues and military forces, was accomplished with the direct and active participation of Patriarch Filaret. First of all, on his initiative, taxation was regulated on the basis of the population census. Important had the establishment of patriarchal orders that streamlined church affairs: judicial, church affairs, state and palace. In each order, the patriarchal boyar sat with clerks and clerks, decided matters and made reports to the Patriarch. With the blessing of the Patriarch, a Greek-Latin school was opened at the Chudov Monastery in Moscow. “Obsessed with a green zeal for divine books” and aware of the need for them, he expanded the printing house, collecting “charitable books of good translations” from everywhere for book correction, laying the foundation for the later famous printing library; More books came out of the Moscow printing house during his presidency than in the previous period, including a full range of liturgical books. The books were sent to monasteries and churches at the price it cost to print them, without profit, and to Siberia for free. At the inspiration of the Jerusalem Patriarch Theophan, he abolished the custom of presenting to the laity Holy Communion three times (in the image of the Holy Trinity) and established a single communion. In 1620, with the blessing of Patriarch Philaret, a new diocese was established - Tobolsk. Under him, relations between Moscow and Moscow, interrupted during troubled times, were resumed. Eastern Churches; the Orthodox churches of the East and the southwestern metropolis were provided with financial assistance. Seeing the ignorance of the clergy, Filaret called on the bishops to establish schools at their homes. In order to raise the level of the religious and moral state of the people, Filaret issued decrees against various remnants of pagan antiquity, severely punishing for magic, adultery, quadgamy, incest (the boyar's son Nekhoroshka Semenov) and freethinking (Prince I. Khvorostinin). A lot of different letters were also issued against drunkenness, fights and other shortcomings among the people, clergy and monasticism.
During the period of Patriarchate of Philaret, St. Macarius of Unzhensky and St. Abraham of Galitsky, the Robe of the Lord was transferred to Moscow. In 1625, the ambassador of the Persian Shah presented the Patriarch with a golden “ark, in it the great and glorious Christ is a srachitsa” (shirt, shirt). The shrine was placed in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, and a celebration was established in its honor on March 27.
Patriarch Filaret died on October 1, 1633, being about 80 years old. He himself indicated his successor - Archbishop Joasaph of Pskov. Patriarch Filaret was buried in
Patriarch Filaret is not the most famous historical figure. But his influence on the course of history Russian state and peace is difficult to underestimate.
He is one of those thanks to whom it ended, and Mikhail Romanov reigned on the Russian throne.
Years of Filaret's life
Years of life of Patriarch Philaret 1553-1632
Years of Patriarchate of Filaret
Filaret was patriarch from 1619 to 1632
Filaret biography briefly
In the world, Patriarch Filaret bore the name Fyodor Nikitich Romanov. He was born in 1553, and was a cousin of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich, who was the son of the great Ivan the Terrible.
Fyodor Nikitich was a representative of, as they would say now, the golden youth. A noble man with an interesting pedigree. He was the son of Nikita Zakharyin-Yuryev, an authoritative boyar, and the nephew of Queen Anastasia. Queen Anastasia was the wife of Ivan the Terrible.
At a conscious age, the young man devoted himself to government service. He was a governor in several regiments, the governor of the sovereign in Pskov, and participated in diplomatic activities. He took an active part in negotiations with German ambassadors.
Years passed, and the Time of Troubles began in the Russian state. Son, Fyodor Ioanovich died. There was a struggle for the throne. Fedor was one of the favorites, but he won the battle.
The new king considered contenders for the throne as personal enemies. Fedor and his family fell into disgrace and were exiled. In exile, he and his wife Ksenia were forcibly tonsured as monks. Now Fyodor became Filaret, and Ksenia became Martha.
The Troubles were in full swing. IN Russian history, False Dmitry I appears in all his glory. The impostor needs to somehow make himself more legitimate. He captures the Anthony-Siysky Monastery and frees Philaret and Martha. Under False Dmitry I, Filaret becomes Metropolitan of Rostov.
During the reign, the dignity can be preserved. The Time of Troubles is entering its final stretch, and appears on the stage. The new impostor settled in the Tushino camp. Without a relative, it was difficult for him to explain his appearance. Filaret is captured and arrives at the impostor’s camp. Here they call him patriarchs. All territories controlled by the impostor’s troops are in his power.
In 1610, patriotic forces recaptured Filaret from the hands of the impostor. The patriarch himself did not insist on his rank, but declared to the soldiers who freed him that he had been named patriarch, against his will.
A year later he was sent as part of the embassy to Sigismund III. The embassy negotiated with the king of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth about the future of the Russian state. Filaret was among those who were not opposed to the son of Sigismund, Prince Vladislav, ascending the Moscow throne. But he put forward a condition: the prince had to convert to Orthodoxy. The Poles were unreliable partners. We prepared our own version of the agreement for the meeting. And when Filaret refused to put his signature on the document, he was arrested.
Patriarch Filaret documentary film
Filaret after the Time of Troubles
The troubled time in Russian history ended in 1613, when the Zemsky Sobor was convened. The result of the Zemsky Sobor was the beginning of the ruling Romanov dynasty. He became the new tsar of the Russian state. Mikhail was the son of Filaret. He treated his father very warmly and reverently; he was the greatest authority for the monarch.
For many years it was not possible to rescue my father from captivity. The Poles deliberately delayed negotiations, realizing that without his father it would be very difficult for Mikhail to cope with the internal and external enemies of the state.
Filaret returned to Russia only in 1619. The Russians and Poles exchanged prisoners. Among the returnees to their homeland was Filaret. For the Russian people, Filaret became an example of masculinity and perseverance. After all, he endured the horrors of Polish captivity with honor, did not break down and remained true to his moral, moral and ethical ideals, did not give Orthodox faith and the Fatherland.
After returning to Russia, the metropolitans named Philaret Patriarch.
Patriarch Filaret and his politics
As a patriarch, Filaret had enormous influence on his son, Tsar Mikhail Romanov, on the entire external and domestic policy states. On his initiative, a census was carried out, which made it possible to increase tax collection and the filling of the treasury. Contacts were restored with the Byzantine Church.
At the insistence of the patriarch, the first schools and colleges were created in the state. He advocated literacy for the population. He was actively involved in the purity of Orthodoxy, eliminating freethinking and distortions of church scriptures.
The Patriarch spent a lot of time and effort on printing books. He considered enlightenment his greatest task. Under his leadership, the Moscow printing house resumed work. The Patriarch himself personally monitored the correctness of the texts, corrected errors, and suppressed distortions and freethinking. Books were distributed at cost price in order to be more accessible to the population.
During the years of Patriarchate of Filaret the following were canonized:
- Macarius of Unzhensky
- Abraham Bishop of Galicia
Church reforms of Patriarch Filaret
During the patriarchate of Filaret, a new class of people was formed - patriarchal nobles and children. People received stipulated salaries for their service. In addition, the patriarch was given the right to deal with the courts of the clergy and the peasant population, except in cases of theft and robbery. Under Filaret, a patriarchal region was formed, which presented itself as a state within a state.
A complete inventory of church property was carried out, and letters of grant were reviewed.
Interesting Facts
- In 1625, the Persian king gave the Russian patriarch a part of the Lord's robe
- Orthodox shrine for a long time was kept in the Assumption Cathedral. Currently located in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.
- The Patriarch had six children. Five sons and a daughter
- Shortly before his death, he appointed the successor of Archbishop Joasaph of Pskov
- Filaret was buried in the Assumption Cathedral in Moscow
- He was the initiator of the convocations of Zemsky Sobors
Results
Patriarch Filaret left a huge mark on the history of the Russian state, in its restoration after the ruinous Time of Troubles. It was Filaret, together with his son Mikhail, who laid the foundation of that Russian power, which soon became an Empire that all European countries reckoned with.
Patriarch Filaret (Romanov) and Patriarch Filaret (Denisenko)
Patriarch Filaret (Romanov) and Patriarch Filaret (Denisenko) are political namesakes. Read about the biographies of those so similar and so different people, get to know the story better
Patriarch Filaret (Romanov) and Patriarch Filaret (Denisenko) are political namesakes
History knows a number historical figures, people who are namesakes by name, engaged in similar activities in the same field, but having different results from their broad actions.
Two Patriarchs
Patriarch Filaret (Romanov) is a political figure during the Time of Troubles of the 17th century. The years of his life were a period of great social upheaval. His Holiness is one of the most controversial figures in Russian history. Many scholars believe that his actions and historical role are difficult to assess impartially. However, it so happened that it was he who changed the course of political and social events in Russia. Some believe that he acted in the interests of the family, making the family name and then the Romanov dynasty position on the throne.
Fyodor Nikitovich, or Philaret in monasticism, experienced regular ups and downs in his career. According to scientists, he was a believer, but not a religious one. At that time this was possible, because church leaders were often political figures, as in the case of Patriarch Filaret. However, the Moscow clergy loved him, and history preserved his righteous image, which describes the character of the Third Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. It is clear that he was a talented man, perhaps a powerful one.
His tonsured namesake, self-proclaimed Patriarch of Kiev “and All Rus'” through the schism of the Russian Orthodox Church, Filaret (Denisenko) - Mikhail in the world, is known to most of our contemporaries as a supporter of Ukrainian nationalism even in the church sphere. He created an independent Ukrainian Orthodox Church and actively supported the revolution in Ukraine and military actions against the Donetsk Republic. Patriarch Filaret actively accused President Putin and Russian authorities in the annexation of Crimea.
At the Council of Bishops, held in Moscow in November-December 2017, the Kiev self-proclaimed Patriarch Filaret repented of his affairs and asked for Russian Orthodox Church enter into liturgical communion with him and his flock. In this regard, many people became interested in who Patriarch Filaret is, what is the history of the schism, and whether the Russian and Ukrainian Churches can unite.
Usually the Church does not interfere in politics, but both Patriarchs Filaret did just that. And yet Patriarch Filaret (Romanov) was the legitimate head of the Church, unlike Filaret of Kyiv.
Who is the Patriarch
The Patriarch is the Supreme Bishop, which translated from Greek means the chief of the priests. They perform all the Sacraments without exception. Bishops ordain people as deacons and priests, but only the Patriarch, concelebrated by several bishops, can ordain bishops.
Bishops who have distinguished themselves in ministry and served for a long time are called archbishops. Also, for even greater merits, they elevate them to the rank of metropolitans. They have a higher rank for their services to the Church; also, only metropolitans can govern metropolitan areas - large dioceses, which include several small ones. An analogy can be drawn: a diocese is a region, a metropolis is a city with a region (St. Petersburg and Leningrad region) or the entire Federal District.
Often, other bishops are appointed to help the metropolitan or archbishop, who are called suffragan bishops or, in short, vicars.
The highest spiritual rank in the Orthodox Church is the Patriarch. This rank is elective, and is chosen by the Council of Bishops (a meeting of bishops of the entire regional Church). Most often, he leads the Church together with the Holy Synod (Kinod, in different transcriptions, in different Churches) leads the Church. The rank of Primate (head) of the Church is for life, however, if serious sins are committed, the Bishops' Court can remove the Patriarch from ministry. Also, upon request, the Patriarch can be retired due to illness or old age. Until the convening of the Council of Bishops, a Locum Tenens (temporarily acting as the head of the Church) is appointed.
The Patriarch is addressed: “Your Holiness.” In a more everyday situation, during a conversation, all bishops are addressed as “Vladyka (name),” for example, “Vladyka Pitirim, bless.” The Patriarch is addressed either in the same way or, a little more formally, “The Most Holy Bishop.”
Patriarch Filaret Romanov: the Romanov family, the family of the future Patriarch
The life of the future clergyman and political leader was not easy. The Zakharyins family (aka Yuryevs, Koshkins, Romanovs) served the Moscow kings since the 14th century. The biography of Patriarch Filaret Romanov is the fate of the nephew of Anastasia Zakharyina, the first and beloved wife of Tsar Ivan the Terrible. The Romanov family united with the Rurikovichs - the first Russian ruling dynasty.
The influence of the Romanovs further intensified in 1584, when Ivan the Terrible made boyar Nikita Romanovich, his brother, guardian of his little son Theodore. deceased wife Anastasia. It was from then on that the family acquired the famous surname of the Romanovs. The kind and fair character of the boyar Nikita - the father of the future Patriarch Filaret - became the basis for the popularity of the Romanov family.
After the death of Ivan the Terrible and his son, the relationship between Tsar Boris Godunov, who ascended the throne, and the Romanovs did not become negative. When he became king, Tsar Boris gave his friends a number of privileges. However, the struggle for the royal throne intensified, and the Romanovs found themselves drawn into intrigue.
The youth and youth of Patriarch Filaret (Romanov)
At birth, the Patriarch's name was Fyodor Nikitovich Romanov. He was born in 1553. Fyodor had a secular, practical and inquisitive mindset, and therefore in his youth he did not strive for tonsure or priestly ordination. Moreover, according to the memories of that time, he was one of the famous dandies in Moscow, a handsome, friendly young man with an inquisitive mind. After all, Fyodor had an excellent education, loved books, and not only fashionable clothes. He studied Latin from books specially ordered from abroad and written for him in Russia.
Family and children of Patriarch Filaret
Fyodor Nikitovich was married to the daughter of a poor Kostroma nobleman, Ksenia Ivanovna Shestova. He had not yet been tonsured when he got married. At the same time, he and Ksenia had six children.
Metropolitan Philaret of Rostov - future Patriarch
Fyodor Nikitovich, along with other Romanovs and a number of boyar families, was put into disgrace by Boris Godunov in 1600. Fedor was considered one of the rivals of Tsar Boris Godunov. Apparently, the Romanovs were not particularly eager to take the throne, and the disgrace began with a slanderous denunciation, which Godunov himself may have created. Fyodor Romanov was forcibly tonsured a monk and exiled to the territory of what is now Arkhangelsk region, to the Anthony-Siysky Monastery. This monastery is located 90 kilometers from the city of Kholmogory and from Arkhangelsk.
Fyodor's wife, Ksenia Ivanovna, was also tonsured a nun. She received the new name of Martha and was exiled to Zaonezhie. Here to this day there is the source of the nun Marfa and the remains of the Tolvui churchyard, at whose church she lived. The Romanovs' son Mikhail, the future Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich, and daughter Tatyana with their aunt Nastasya and Marfa Romanov went, or rather were forcibly sent to the village of Kliny, Yuryevsky district - probably the family estate.
Becoming a monk in those days was a simple way of depriving a person of political influence. After all, tonsure is a special rite of the Church, when a person takes vows of non-covetousness, obedience (to the abbot of the monastery), and celibacy. According to church tradition, a monk must live in a monastery, but a monastic priest - hierodeacon or hieromonk - can be sent by the ruling bishop of the diocese to a parish, like an ordinary white priest.
However, the newly tonsured Filaret Romanov also gained the support of Russians: his tonsure was perceived as an unjust disgrace of the Tsar’s descendant and even, perhaps, the Russian Tsar himself.
In the Anthony-Siysky Monastery, the future patriarch was in custody. The guards watched him and reported to Moscow about the monk’s every movement, while, we note, they complained about his disobedience and rigidity. It is known that Filaret missed his family.
At the end of June 1605, after the death of Boris Godunov and the overthrow of his son Godunov, Filaret-Theodore was again invited to Moscow, this time by False Dmitry, as his relative.
It is not known how Filaret himself felt about this, but he accepted ordination as Metropolitan of Rostov in 1606. In the same year, the new Tsar Vasily Shuisky sent Filaret to Uglich for the body of Tsarevich Dmitry, who, according to legend, was martyred by Boris Godunov. While Metropolitan Philaret was on his way, Shuisky ordained Metropolitan Hermogenes of Kazan as Moscow Patriarch. This was probably a cunning political move - after all, Shuisky himself was soon overthrown, he felt dislike and tried to get rid of Romanov as a people's favorite. However, the post of Patriarch in the Church is for life, and Metropolitan Filaret went to the see blessed by the new Patriarch in Rostov the Great. Here he lived until 1608.
The overthrow of Shuisky, the Tushinsky thief and Metropolitan Filaret
In 1608, a new liar appeared in Russia, the impostor False Dmitry II. The Tsar of Yeisk was not loved, and the impostor found many adherents. Their troops approached Moscow when Patriarch Hermogenes of Moscow began sending out requests to bishops to pray for Tsar Vasily. Metropolitan Philaret of Rostov, in accordance with his rank, submissive to the legitimate king, also joined these appeals.
The troops of False Dmitry II, who ravaged Rostov, also captured its Metropolitan Philaret. At first they did not show him due respect, considering him a political opponent, but over time they even began to call him the Patriarch of Moscow. Nevertheless, he tried to break out of the impostor’s camp, and in Tushino he was held by force. In March 1610, with the destruction of the camp in Tushino, Metropolitan Philaret was captured by the Poles and sent to the Volokolamsk monastery in honor of St. Joasaph. Fortunately, he already managed to escape from there with the help of Grigory Voluev, the head of a detachment of opponents of the Time of Troubles. Once in Moscow, Patriarch Filaret remained in honor of the Church; his reputation as a prisoner of war was not spoiled.
Dual power of the Romanovs - Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich and Patriarch Filaret
In 1610 the metropolitan began new round the fate of Theodore Romanov, Patriarch Filaret. Together with Prince Golitsyn, as part of the “great embassy,” he left Moscow for Smolensk to meet with the King of Poland Sigismund. The situation was such that the embassy was captured, and Sigismund sent the ambassadors to his country as prisoners.
In Poland, His Eminence remained in captivity for eight years. Only after the accession of his son Mikhail Fedorovich, whose election to the kingdom passed through the will of the people, Metropolitan Philaret returned to the country. He was exchanged as a prisoner, under a treaty with Poland, in 1619.
The place of the Moscow Patriarchate was free, and it was natural to designate the father of the Tsar, who had monastic rank and metropolitan power, as Patriarch.
On June 24, 1619, in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, His Eminence was named Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. Since his son was still very young, Filaret became regent under the young sovereign and ruled equally over church and state. Historians call a certain period of the reign of Tsar Mikhail Romanov - 14 years - dual power. The Tsar and the Zemsky Sobor had the highest authority in the government. However, from the letters of the father-patriarch to his son-tsar, one can see what the influence of the patriarch was on the conduct of state affairs. We can say that this form does not have a pronounced negative assessment, because the Patriarch continued both paternally and pastorally with his son, directing him to good with his influence. This is proven by the results of the reign of the first king of the Romanov family.
For example, the cathedral verdict of 1619 “How to arrange the earth” was entirely created by the reports of Patriarch Filaret. According to historians, the “verdict” correctly assessed the difference in the wealth of the population of different regions. To correct it, services were established, accurate inventories of land were drawn up, and taxes were imposed in accordance with this.
Also, on the initiative of the Patriarch, an audit of the treasury and its resources was carried out, a state budget was drawn up, in modern terms, a number of measures and administrative penalties were adopted for offenses, including in the bureaucratic apparatus of government officials (then called clerks).
It was necessary to replenish the treasury, but this need did not lie heavy burden on the shoulders of the population.
Another area of activity of the Patriarch during the period of dual power was printing and editing of liturgical and book texts.
Reforms of the Church by Pariarch Filaret
Life path The Patriarch created from him not only a church leader, a bearer of the spirit, but also a diplomat. It is unlikely that he was a calculating businessman - an intriguer would not have been able to win people's love. However, his management skills are highly commendable. He carried out the administration of the Church and the state with dignity.
It is interesting that the Patriarch of the Russian Church did not have a theological education. Therefore, he was careful in reforming the Church and editing liturgical texts.
However, His Holiness was especially concerned about the protection of Orthodoxy, knowing after the Time of Troubles that the Church was in danger from Poland and Lithuania, from the influence of Catholicism in theology and church art. However, here too he followed the “golden mean” and caution. Patriarch Filaret was especially loved by the Moscow clergy: he humbly accepted and understood his shortcomings, and in church affairs he resorted to the advice of venerable elderly archpriests. Thus, reasonable conservatism was preserved in the Church.
And yet, secular and church historians note that from 1619 to 1633, that is, during his life during the reign of Mikhail Fedorovich, government very strong. The Romanov dynasty received great support and love from Russians. The Church at this time remained almost unchanged, which indicates that the Patriarch not only did not pay attention to it, but maintained: government structure required a lot of care.
Death of Patriarch Filaret
The death of His Holiness Philaret occurred on October 1, 1633. Historians call this date the end of the period of dual power in Russia. However, with his death there were no noticeable changes in the prestige and order of the Romanov family: everyone knows that the dynasty reigned until 1917.
The role of Patriarch Filaret in the history and life of the Russian state
As regent during the Dual Power period, Patriarch Filaret issued a number of decrees in his own name. He actually had the title "Great Sovereign."
In 1621, officials of the Ambassadorial Prikaz began publishing the first newspaper in Rus'. It was called "Message Letters" and was intended only for the king.
The Patriarch intensified the progress of the arms and metallurgical industries. Thus, the industrialist Andrei Vinius in 1632 requested and took permission from Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich to build the first factories in Russia for smelting cast iron and Elena, manufacturing weapons near Tula (that is why the person “Tula gunsmith Lefty” appeared in Russian literature - the tradition was preserved near Tula and forging skill).
Kyiv Patriarch Filaret Denisenko: birth and family
The self-proclaimed patriarch comes from Ukraine: perhaps that is why he subtly senses the mood of Ukrainians, their love for national self-identification. In the world his name was Mikhail Antonovich. He was born into the family of miner Anton Denisenko on January 1, 1929, and according to his passport he comes from the village of Blagodatnoye (Amvrosievsky district of the Donetsk region) - the more incomprehensible is his support for the Ukrainian army storming his homeland.
Alas, regarding the family of the clergyman himself, it must be said that he, according to rumors, violated the ban on celibacy. Every bishop must be a monk. Patriarch Filaret (Romanov) had children and a wife before his tonsure and elevation to the Patriarchal throne. But Mikhail-Filaret, after his tonsure, had a family - since 1989 he lived with his wife, Evgenia Petrovna Rodionova (died in 1998), had three children from her: Vera, Lyubov and Andrei.
Where did Kiev Patriarch Filaret (Denisenko) study and where was he tonsured?
Mikhail Denisenko graduated from school in 1946, graduated from the Odessa Theological Seminary in 1948 (according to documents, but this raises doubts: why did he complete the course in 2 years?), was admitted to the Moscow Theological Academy in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. Here he probably met many future archpastors of the Russian Orthodox Church. In 1950, in his second year of study, Mikhail took monastic vows with the name Philaret, received the rank of hierodeacon, and a couple of years later was ordained a priest, receiving the rank of hieromonk in 1952.
Positions and titles of Kyiv Patriarch Filaret
In 1952, the future Patriarch Filaret received a candidate of theology degree. He teaches at MDS, his native educational institution, New Testament Scripture.
At the same time, he performs the duties of dean of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra.
March 1954 - Filaret received the title of associate professor.
1956 - received the rank of abbot and the position of inspector of the Saratov Theological Seminary, then a seminary in Kyiv.
Management of the affairs of the Ukrainian Exarchate - since 1960. At this time he has the rank of archimandrite.
In 1961, he was sent to the metochion of the Russian Church in Alexandria as rector.
1962 year - Philaret are ordained bishops. He becomes bishop of Luga, vicar of the Leningrad diocese, in the same year the governor of the Riga diocese and vicar of the Central European Exarchate; in November of the same 1962 - Bishop of Vienna and Austria.
In 1964, His Eminence became vicar of the Moscow diocese, Bishop of Dmitrov, rector of the Moscow Theological Academy and Seminary.
1966 - Filaret receives a higher rank of archbishop with an appointment to the See of Kyiv and Galicia.
December 1966 - head of the Department of External Church Relations of the Kyiv Exarchate of the Moscow Patriarchate. As part of delegations of the Russian Church, he traveled abroad and represented the Church at congresses and forums.
In 1979, His Eminence received the Order of Friendship of Peoples, and in 1988 - the Order of the Red Banner of Labor (for active work in the field of peacemaking).
Split into the Kyiv Church of the UOC and the Russian Orthodox Church
The final chord of Archbishop Philaret’s service to the Russian Orthodox Church happened like this. After the death of His Holiness Pimen, Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', in 1990, His Eminence Philaret became the locum tenens of the Patriarchal Throne - that is, the most likely Patriarch of Moscow. To elect the Patriarch, a Local Council of the Church was convened, but the Council elected Metropolitan Alexy of Leningrad - Patriarch Alexy the Second.
Filaret refused to accept such a decision of the Council, but this contradicts the centuries-old history of the Church and only shows that this man did not have humility at that moment. He verbally accepted the decision of the Council, admitted that he had no complaints and left for Ukraine, as if returning to his native department. However, there he began schismatic activities.
Why was Philaret Alexy II elected together?
They say that Philaret was not elected, knowing his rudeness, vices and even open life with a woman (which is forbidden for a monk). Patriarch Pimen, who elevated Filaret, might not have known this. The rest of the archpastors were repelled by both Philaret’s manners and lust for power.
His Holiness, Patriarch Alexy II, on the contrary, despite his high position, was easy to communicate with, and therefore loved by everyone who knew him closely, a principled man of a bright soul. He became the fifteenth Primate of the Church after the restoration of the Patriarchate in Russia.
The name of Alexy II also occupies a solid place in the science of Church history and theology. Just before his accession to the Holy See, he had more than 150 publications on church history and theology.
His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II developed activities to spread the missionary service of the Church, work with youth (on which the new, current Patriarch Kirill places great emphasis), restructuring the Church, and creating new dioceses.
Church and secular historians highlight the following advantages of the activities of Alexy II as Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus':
- Increase in the number of churches, monasteries and dioceses.
- Active return to the church of historical temple buildings, their restoration. There have been incidents when the Church and cultural organizations found themselves different sides barricades Nevertheless, it was during the period of Patriarch Alexy’s activity that the experience of overcoming such confrontation was laid.
- The “increasing flow of cadres” of priests and places for prayer created space for the further coming of many, many people to the Church. Today, not only the revival of churches in historical church buildings begins, but also the construction of new ones.
- The number of educational centers has increased, and the missionary activity of the Church has intensified. Many believed that the Church should not attract new people to itself, but occupy a niche in a certain service sector. Nevertheless, it was Patriarch Alexy who again began the catechetical work of the Church: after all, Christ also commanded the apostles to enlighten all nations with the light of Christianity, to save the souls of people.
- During the period of Patriarchal service of Alexy II, military conflicts occurred in the world and in Russia. This Patriarch is famous. by the fact that in 1993 he admonished the State Emergency Committee, ruling Vladimir icon from the storerooms Tretyakov Gallery and praying before her for the peace and help of God with all the people. In addition, he regularly came up with peacekeeping initiatives regarding the wars in the North Caucasus, in South Ossetia, during US Air Force bombings in Iraq and Serbia.
- In an interview shortly before his death, His Holiness Alexy II himself summed up the results of his work, assessing the fruits of his labors as a completely new relationship between the Church and the state, which he was forced to build. By the will of God, he was able to turn his interaction with both society and government towards the acceptance of the Church.
Kyiv Patriarch Filaret - schismatic Denisenko
Filaret justified his initial promise not to strive for the Patriarchate and for the autonomy of the Ukrainian Church by pressure from the Russian Church.
In 1992, the Council of Bishops of the Ukrainian Exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church was able to remove Filaret from the post of First Hierarch of the Church and the Kyiv See. He was left on the staff of the clergy without the right to conduct services. In June 1992, according to the Judicial decision of the Council “for vices, blackmail, dictatorship, perjury and public slander of the Council of Bishops, causing a church schism, as well as for conducting priestly services in a state of prohibition,” Filaret was defrocked and deprived of all rights to minister.
Instead of humility and repentance, Filaret and his supporters decided to act immediately. They convened a Unification Council in Kyiv, founding the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate and installed Patriarch Filaret as Patriarch.
He proclaimed himself Patriarch of Kyiv “and all Rus'.” With the support of Leonid Kravchuk, Filaret intensified efforts to autonomate the Ukrainian Church, that is, the Church of the “Ukrainian Patriarchate”. He even sent letters to the Ecumenical (Constantinople) Patriarch and Councils of various Churches, but he is also recognized as a schismatic.
In turn, the Moscow Patriarchate left the “Ukrainian Exarchate of the Moscow Patriarchate”, making it its head, Metropolitan Vladimir (Sabodan), a kindest man (he died in 2014).
Letter from Patriarch of Kyiv Filaret Denisenko to the Council of Bishops
Patriarch Kirill, who headed the Russian Church after the death of Alexy II, actively visited Ukraine. Patriarch Filaret began to observe obvious caution in relations with Russia.
At the end of November 2017, the Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church was convened, to which, unexpectedly for everyone, the schismatic patriarch turned with a request to “forgive” him and restore communication between the Churches. It was decided to assemble a commission and discuss the possibilities of reconciliation, since a person is ready to admit his mistakes.