The Russian Orthodox Church: Building a Doctrinal National Identity in the Beginning of the 1990s
The Russian Orthodox Church: Building a Doctrinal National Identity in the Beginning of the 1990s

Summary/Abstract: The building of a national identity for the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) at the beginning of the 1990s can best be understood by examining what are roughly the early years, from 1991 to 1994, when the foundations for the identity building were established. During these years, which were a time of chaos and reconstruction for the Russian nation, the ROC started to develop its understanding of national identity. This development took place in reaction to different kinds of crises, conflicts and problems, which the ROC faced due to a changed societal situation and which needed an answer, although the inner rebuilding of the ROC was still unfinished. The aim of this paper is to analyse the doctrinal argumentation on national identity that took place during those tumultuous times, when the ROC found itself situated within new national borders. My specific questions are: Were religious doctrinal arguments about a nation completely unthinkable in the chaotic situations at the beginning of the 1990s? Does a doctrine lose its religious nature and motivation when the ROC uses it as a means of co-operation with the state and politics? Did the ROC’s doctrinal interpretations generate a nation of peace or conflict in the 1990s?

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