A History of Russian Christianity

This third volume of A History of Russian Christianity deals with the period 1741 through 1917, which is known as the Synodal Era of Russian Orthodoxy. This is the era of Empresses Elizabeth and Catherine the Great, and the great tsars of 19th century Russia, along with the last tsar Nicholas II. This is the era of the rise of the dissenters and sectarians. The history of Old Believers is discussed, along with the Iconoclasts, Judaizers, Dukhabors, Molokans, Khlisti, Skoptzi, and Stundists of Russian Christianity, and the many other small sects, as well as the Christian philosophies of Grigori Skovoroda and Leo Tolstoy. The concluding chapters cover the decline of the power of Russian Orthodoxy, the rise of Rasputin, and the attempt for Christianity to survive as the Russian Empire falls to the Soviets.