O CONTRIBUȚIE LA ISTORIA MĂNĂSTIRII NEAMȚ. DOUĂ IZVOADE CU ODOARELE EI (1800 ȘI 1856)
A CONTRIBUTION TO THE HISTORY OF THE MONASTERY OF NEAMȚ. TWO REGISTERS AND THEIR RELIGIOUS ITEMS (1800 AND 1856)

Summary/Abstract: The history of the monastery of Neamț – from the last quarter of the eighteenth century to the secularisation of monastic fortunes – represents an important research topic, without which one cannot understand the history of Moldavia. The monastery of Neamț was one of the most important monastic establishments in the country. However, after the Austrians occupied most of the regions of Suceava and Cernăuți, its place became central in the ecclesiastical life of Moldavia. At the same time, when the monk community led by Paisius Velichkovsky entered the monastery (1779), this was the place where a genuine monastic and cultural current was formed. This was called Paisianism and it influenced the entire Orthodoxy, especially the one north from the Moldavian borders. Much has been written about Paisius Velichkovsky and Paisianism, but not as much about the monasteries of Neamț and Secu during the period when he was abbot and subsequently, though a significant number of various sources were preserved, namely the ones that survived the devastating fire of November 1862. Among these various sources, I have chosen two, referring to religious items (clothes, silverware, cult books, etc), located in the monastery of Neamț. The first one – currently in the archives of Iași – is a register comprising two smaller registers. The first is dated March 1800, drafted up when Sofronie ended his time as an abbot and Dorothei took over the role. The second one – dated 1802 – was drafted up when Dorothei ended his time as an abbot. The second register, from 1856, preserved in the archives of Chișinău, is a catagraphy of all religious items within the great church of the monastery of Neamț and within all churches situated on the property of the monastery. This catagraphy was drafted up by the friar Calistrat Galactionov and copied by the hieromonk Andronic at the beginning of the conflicts between the State and the monastery concerning the administration of monastic assets. These registers – not published until now – will contribute someday, along with many other documents preserved in the country and abroad, to the elaboration of a new history for the monastery of Neamț and to an addition to the history of Moldavia from the loss of Bukovine to the Union with Walachia. I dedicate this small documentary contribution to the history of the great monastery of Neamț and to the history of Moldavia to my teacher and colleague for twenty-five years at the Faculty of History (“Al. I. Cuza” University) and for almost a decade at the Institute that edits this “Yearbook”, Gheorghe Cliveti, for the celebration of his auroral age of 65!

• Details
• Contents