The Effect Of The Russian Orthodox Religion On The Cult Essays -- essa

The Effect of the Russian Orthodox Religion on the CultOrthodox Christianity has had an immense effect on the culture of Russia.The espousal of the Orthodox faith from Constantinople by Prince Vladimir in 988introduced cultural influences that profoundly affected the Russianconsciousness. As the population embraced Orthodoxy it developed a uniquely Russianflavor and rooted deep in the fertile Russian soul. Orthodoxy had a majorimpact on politics, art, and nearly every other side of Russias culture.Orthodoxy helped forge Russias world view and define her place in the world.The church service affected the thought patterns and motivations of a whole culture and mixtured the way Russians thought about themselves and the ways that they livedtheir lives.The church acted as a unifying chemical element for the Russian nation. Churchholidays and fasts enriched and brought meaning to the cycle of seasons andsowing in the subsistence society. Russians possessed a deep religious faithan d from it they derived a sense of purpose in the universe and the promise ofsalvation. The church nourished and preserved the culture of Russia duringcenturies of natural strife and foreign intervention. Orthodox people feel a operose sense of community and brotherhood towards one another through a sharedbond of faith. As a result of this emphasis on community, the rights of thegroup t residue to take precedence over the rights of the individual in Russianculture. The Orthodox and Catholic faiths had an adversarial relationship foryears. As this rift deepened and grew increasingly antagonistic, the riftbetween the East and the West also grew. The difference in religion betweenRussia and Europe can largely explain the wide differences that developed intheir cultures.The Tsar of All Russia derived his power and right to expression from hisstatus as divinitys chosen representative on earth. As it is God alone who bestowedpower on the tsar, it was in the best interest of the monarch y to value andpromote the church. This conception of the tsar possessing a divine right torule contributed to the political passivity of the Russian people. In theByzantium tradition the concept of symphonia defined the relationship betweenthe church and the state and acted as a brace on the unlimited power of thetsar. As the head of the church and the... .... Those who refused tochange their rhythms of worship were called Old Believers and they were executedand silenced by the authorities. The Old Believers insisted on following theold forms because they feared committing heresy. The way they saw the situationwas that Rome had locomote because of heresy. Moscow was the last seat ofOrthodoxy and if Russia fell from the grace of God, it would mean the end of theworld. The basic issue in the schism was the relationship between the Russianand Orthodox churches. Some felt that since Russia had adopted Orthodoxy fromByzantium she should remain a junior(a) partner. Others felt that i t wasRussias destiny to be a leader and to free her east brethren.The Orthodox relegion has been essential to the people to bring them asense of anticipate and destiny and a glimpse of heaven on earth. The choice ofOrthodoxy was as influential as the Mongul Yoke on the formation of the Russiancharacter. Orthodoxy brought the people a lot of joy, created a sense ofcommunity, intensified the countries isolation, created beautiful art, startedwars, entangled politics, and best of all, reminded the people to love eachother.