The book is devoted to a complex problem of the late 19th – early 20th centuries. – the attitude of the Russian Orthodox Church to the “labor issue”. The study is written on the basis of numerous archival documents, published sources and periodicals. The conditions for the formation and development of the position of the Russian Orthodox Church regarding workers are characterized, and the discussion of the “labor issue” in the Holy Synod and interdepartmental commissions, at missionary congresses and in the works of church leaders in Moscow is also analyzed. The study shows the process of formation by the beginning of the 20th century. a new type of church parish, based on the social affiliation of parishioners, and also noted the features of church life in industrial enterprises of the Moscow province. The main aspects of the educational and charitable activities of the clergy among workers, the participation of the Orthodox clergy in the education of workers are considered. The study provides a large amount of factual material that allows us to evaluate the efforts of the Moscow clergy in the fight against drunkenness – a social illness that was constantly discussed in pre-revolutionary Russia by state, public, and church leaders.
The monograph raises the problem of the crisis of faith and “re-Christianization” among factory workers of the Russian Empire. The study of the activities of the Church in conditions of increased secularization and religious destabilization is essential for the historical reconstruction of the sociocultural space of pre-revolutionary Russia.
.For everyone interested in Russian history.