As a result of persecution by the authorities, many Old Believers had to go to sparsely populated areas, which is how they appeared in the territory of what is now the Tomsk region and other places in Siberia.

In the Tomsk region, one of the two main directions of the Old Believers is represented, the followers of which do not have a clergy. When, after the schism, the Old Believers were faced with the problem of a shortage of priests, some of them began to accept fugitive priests from the Russian Orthodox Church (beglopopovtsy), while the other part decided to abandon the institution of the priesthood altogether, citing their refusal by the fact that, from their point of view, the bad one The “Nikonian” church cannot have good priests. The final formation of the non-priest movement occurred in the last decade of the 17th century. In 1692 and 1694, under the leadership of Khariton Karpov, Feodosius Vasilyev and other supporters of the old faith, councils of Novgorod Old Believers-bespopovtsy were held, at which the main provisions of this direction were developed. At these councils, in particular, it was proclaimed that the Antichrist had finally reigned in the world, grace no longer existed, the priesthood had been transferred, which made it impossible to perform the sacraments of communion and marriage. The councils declared celibacy mandatory for non-priests. Of all the sacraments, only the sacraments of baptism and repentance were retained, which in the Russian Orthodox Church, in the absence of a priest, in exceptional cases are allowed to be performed by the laity.

Bespopovtsy were characterized by belief in the imminent end of the world and the second coming of Christ. That is why among his supporters “gari” (self-immolation) became quite widespread, which was considered as the only way of salvation from the kingdom of the Antichrist. The leadership of non-priest communities is carried out by “mentors”, “statutors” and “readers”. The total number of Old Believers-bespopovtsy is more than 1 million people. They live in different regions of Russia, as well as in Lithuania, Latvia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Poland. The overwhelming majority are Russians; there are also Karelians, Finns, Komi, Udmurts and representatives of some other peoples. The decisions of the Bespopov councils of 1692 and 1694 were not recognized by all Old Believers and therefore the bespopovsky direction was divided into different agreements and rumors: Chasovnoe, Pomorskoe, Fedoseevskoe, Spasovo consent, Filippovsky, Strange and other rumors. Chapel concord introduced in Tomsk region.

By 1930, in the Alexandrovskaya volost (the Asinovsky and Krivosheinsky districts of the Tomsk region), there were several Old Believer monasteries. In the years Soviet power everything has changed. The Assumption Monastery for men was destroyed. In 1929–1930 On the territory of the Gorshkovsky village council, where the Novo-Arkhangelsk monastery and the Pokrovsky convent were still located, the process of liquidation of Old Believer monasteries was underway and was carried out in two stages: on November 27, 1930, 37 “disenfranchised” were evicted from the territory of the village council, i.e. deprived of voting rights. Among them were 31 monks, 2 clergy, 1 merchant, 2 kulaks. In 1930 and 1931, according to the nun of the Intercession Monastery N. Shmagrina, the convent was subject to an excessive tax. To pay it, the nuns had to sell all their property and then leave, i.e. the monastery liquidated itself.

In Tomsk there is an Old Believer Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary on the street. Yakovleva. Previously, the Holy Trinity Church on the street. October was Edinoverie.

Nowadays, a tradition has arisen of making a religious procession to the location of old monasteries on the Yuksa River. In 2004, during a trip to Siberia, the religious procession was led by Metropolitan Andrian (Chetvergov). In the fall of 2007, the religious procession was held for the third time.

The Old Believers of Tomsk began publishing their own magazine in 2008. The first issue of a public-church publication called “Sofia” came out of print. The pages of the magazine will publish materials devoted to the history and modern life Old Believers of Tomsk and Siberia. So, in the first issue there is an interview with the head of the Tomsk community Vasily Korobeinikov, a story about the history of the Cossacks, and an article by the pre-revolutionary publicist Senatov about the foundations of the Old Believers. The magazine's circulation is small - only 300 copies. It will be published once a quarter.

In Tomsk, on Krylova Street, 6, a memorial plaque was unveiled to the Old Believer deputy Ivan Merzlyakov, an Old Believer peasant, former deputy of the third State Duma Russia in 1907-1912.

In search of Belovodye

Old Believers without priests themselves, as you know, do not make contact with the outside world, much less tell anything about themselves. Bespopovtsy are divided mainly into wanderers and strangers. Wanderers are those who do not have money or passports and spend all their time wandering and praying. The hosts help them and provide them with everything they need. There are grandmothers who live on a pension and sell pies at the station every day, and all the income from the trade goes to the monastery of the Old Believers. She herself dreams of going to the monastery, but for now she understands that without her they will be lost...

Moreover, everything that is accepted from the stranger must be prayed away by the stranger. These are ritually pure people who cannot eat with the worldly, pray a lot, dress in special clothes, their communication with the world is reduced to a minimum or stops altogether. Wanderers are the so-called “small cup”, the path for the chosen ones. The strangers maintain a compromise; they still belong to this fallen Antichrist world. Wanderers live in their monastic cells, in shelters; if, if necessary, they go out into the world, they stay with strangers. It was the wanderers who were searching for the legendary Belovodye. Until the 19th century, Belovodye was searched for in Altai, in Central Asia.

Later, among the Old Believers it was believed that Belovodye was found in the north of the Tomsk region, which is perhaps why the north of the Tomsk region is so densely populated by Old Believers.

Links

• Pril L. N. History of the Tomsk Old Believers: bishops and monasteries
• Literary heritage of I. G. Pryzhov. Notes on Siberia: part II / Old Believers

On October 21, 2015, at a meeting of the Consecrated Council of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church, a decision was made to establish Tomsk diocese.

There has been talk about the creation of a diocese with a center in Tomsk for the past two years, and in September 2015 this issue was raised at the diocesan meeting of the diocese of Novosibirsk and all Siberia.

Decision of the Consecrated Council of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church

As a result of a lengthy discussion, despite the presence of opposing views on the issue of separation of Tomsk and the parishes of the Eastern Deanery of the Siberian Diocese, the Council, headed by its chairman, His Eminence Cornelius, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Rus', decided by a majority vote the following:

Establish the Tomsk diocese within the following boundaries: Tomsk region, Kemerovo region, Krasnoyarsk region, Republic of Khakassia, Republic of Tyva, with a cathedral church in Tomsk.

Also, the Consecrated Council approved Hieromonk Gregory as a candidate for bishop Tomsk department and ordered that he be consecrated as a bishop after the approval of his candidacy at the Council of Bishops (clauses 1.2, 2.1, 2.3, 2.4 of the Resolutions).

Bishop's consecration of His Grace Gregory

His Eminence Bishop Gregory (Korobeinikov) after his episcopal consecration in Moscow on October 25, 2015. Photo by Priest Alexei Lopatin

On October 25, 2015, at the Intercession Cathedral on Rogozhsky, the episcopal consecration of Hieromonk Gregory (Korobeinikov) as bishop to the see of the newly created Tomsk diocese took place.

The consecrated Council of the Russian Orthodox Church takes place every year in the spiritual and administrative center of the Old Believer Church - in the Rogozhsky village of Moscow, with the participation of clergy and laity from Old Believer communities that are part of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church.

Metropolitan Korniliy with the newly installed Bishop Gregory (Korobeinikov) on the porch of the Intercession Rogozh Cathedral

Basic information on the formed Tomsk diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church

Area: 3,007,086 km2
Diocesan center: Tomsk
Number of temples: 7
Cathedral Church: Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Tomsk)

From the history of the Tomsk-Altai diocese

After the church schism in the 17th century, already in the 1850s an Old Believer diocese was formed in the Urals and Western Siberia. It included Belokrinitsky communities of Tomsk, Irkutsk, Yenisei provinces, Amur, Yakutsk, Transbaikal, Akmola, Semipalatinsk and Semirechensk regions. By the beginning of 1887, it separated from the Tobolsk-Siberian diocese Tomsk diocese.

After the government decrees of 1905-1906, most communities received official registration. And after 1905, annual diocesan congresses began to be convened in Siberia, which served as the body of diocesan administration (Barnaul, Novonikolaevsk, 1906-1928).

In the Tomsk province by 1920, the Old Believers of the Belokrinitsky consent organized 5 deaneries, which formed Tomsk-Altai diocese. 4 deaneries were located on the territory of the present Altai Territory and one deanery was located on the territory of the modern Tomsk region.

At the diocesan congresses of 1913-1914, the question of transferring the episcopal residence from Tomsk to Barnaul was raised, but it was not possible to resolve it due to the events taking place in the country.

In 1923-1925, an attempt was made to divide the Tomsk-Altai diocese.
In 1925, one of the decisions of the next council held in Moscow, the Altai district was allocated as a separate diocese with the right to choose a candidate for bishop. The Council approved the resolution of the diocesan congress of 1924 on the division of the Tomsk-Altai diocese into two independent ones: Tomsk and Altai. Regarding this division, energetic debates took place at diocesan congresses with a detailed interpretation of the relevant canonical rules. Further events the country left the issue of dividing the diocese unresolved.

In 1992, by resolution of the Moscow Council, the diocese of Novosibirsk and All Siberia was created; Since October 1992, it has been headed by His Grace Bishop Siluyan (Kilin). At the time of the division of the diocese in October 2015, the diocese occupied an area of ​​13.1 million km 2, and the total number of churches exceeded 36. The Novosibirsk and All Siberia diocese also served 16 priests and two deacons in two deaneries: Western and Eastern.

In October 2015, by the decision of the Consecrated Council of the Russian Orthodox Church Tomsk diocese newly created.

P.E. Bardin (MBU "Museum of Seversk").

Old Believers of the Tomsk Territory are involuntarily free migrants.

From the history of the Old Believers. Many people have probably heard who the Old Believers or Kerzhaks are, and most often with not very flattering characteristics: they won’t let you drink water, they eat from separate dishes, and they wear beards like old people. But probably few people know what hardships and wanderings the followers of the old faith were doomed to for more than 350 years after the split of the Russian Orthodox Church. When it comes to church schism, then first of all we remember the noblewoman Morozova from the famous painting by V.I. Surikov, Life of the frantic archpriest Avvakum, Solovetsky archers and “Taiga Dead End” by V. Peskov about modern hermits Lykov, of whom only Agafya remained. But there were many such taiga hermits in the Tomsk forests. Their descendants, having almost lost the old faith and customs, still live in many villages and cities of the Tomsk region. Most often, they preserve the memory of their ancestors and respect for them. Moreover, in the hard-to-reach taiga between the villages of Samus and Krasny Yar there are still existing Old Believer monasteries, maybe the only ones in all of Russia.

The Old Believers near the city of Tomsk were first mentioned at the end of the 17th century, but the taiga regions of the Ob region especially attracted the attention of followers of the old faith from the second half of the 19th century. It was from this time that the Old Believers began to actively develop the northern, hard-to-reach and swampy areas in the interfluves of the tributaries of the Ob River - along the Parabel, Vasyugan, Chizhapka, Kenge, Chaya, Keti, etc. rivers. The main areas of exit were the neighboring, busier regions of Siberia and the Urals - Tyumen, Tara, Kurgan, Perm, Altai. They most often moved to already explored places, scouted by walkers, to the already existing settlements of relatives or fellow countrymen - co-religionists. Paths of advancement were often multi-stage, with moves from one place to another. Rivers along which hunting trails and trade routes had previously been laid, for example, connecting the “Tara Side” and Vasyuganye, served as guiding maps. During the settlement process, small villages arose, most often named after the names of the founders, and quite large villages that still exist today. Zaimki were located in secluded places, in river bends, near lakes, sometimes on ridges - high places among impassable swamps.

The followers of the old faith, with all the diversity of their future paths, left a noticeable mark on the history of the Tomsk-Narym Ob region. They undoubtedly contributed to the settlement and development of the most unfavorable, inaccessible areas of this region.

In the photo: Clothes for Old Believers’ prayers: a loose scarf, a sundress, a belt, a ladder. Pos. Samus. 1996 Photo by P.E. Bardina.

Who are they - Old Believers? Religious fanatics and renegades or guardians of ancient piety and ancient culture? There is still debate about this. In any case, this is a page in the history of our country, a page in the history of many families, and a page that is still little known. The history of the Old Believers began in the mid-17th century, when Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich (father of Peter I) and Patriarch Nikon carried out church reform. Its main points were the correction of liturgical books according to Greek models, the introduction of uniformity of worship, in particular the replacement of the ancient two-fingered fingers with three fingers, the replacement of the movement of the sun - “salting” with “anti-salting” and other ritual subtleties. However, a significant part of Russian society perceived the reform as the destruction of the true old faith, the destruction of ancient, from grandfathers and great-grandfathers, piety and a harbinger of the end of the world and the coming of the kingdom of Antichrist. This is how a split occurred in the Russian Orthodox Church, which is why the followers of the old faith began to be called schismatics. This name was canceled as offensive only at the beginning of the twentieth century. The more common name is Old Believers, Old Believers. The name Kerzhaki, widely known in Siberia, is associated with the Kerzhenets River in the Nizhny Novgorod province, where large quantities The first followers of the old faith fled. From there, they probably later moved to Siberia, in an eternal search for secluded places, free from persecution for the old faith.

The authorities brutally dealt with the followers of the old faith: thousands of them were executed and tortured, large groups were exiled to Siberia, for example, the “Semeyskie” in Transbaikalia and the “Poles” in Altai. Very often, the Old Believers themselves fled from persecution - to Poland, Turkey, Canada, and many - to remote places in the North, the Urals and Siberia. This time coincided with the Russian penetration beyond the Urals, and the Old Believers played a significant role in the development of Siberia. Old Believer settlements, villages and secret hermitages arose in the most uninhabited places. The Old Believers uprooted forests, plowed up arable lands, built good houses, started farms and large families, in which children were taught to feed themselves by the labor of their hands. At all times, it is enough to recall Melnikov-Pechersky, the special diligence of the Old Believers, the strength of families and the resilience of the Kerzhak spirit, which cruel persecution could not break.

However, the Old Believers were never a single movement. Among them were “priests” who had their own churches and priests, there were also “non-priests” who did not recognize the church, as well as “Pomeranians”, “chapels”, “wanderers” or “runners” and other rumors and agreements. In Tomsk, as you know, there is an Old Believer church, and in the taiga monasteries live “those without money” who do not have passports and do not take money in their hands, because they believe that it is marked with the seal of the Antichrist. Among the Old Believers there were also rich people, major Russian industrialists, merchants and philanthropists, for example, P.M. Tretyakov - founder of the Tretyakov Gallery, Savva Morozov, Ryabushinskys, Guchkovs, writer I. Pososhkov, etc.

Old Believers in the Lower Tomsk region. In the vicinity of the village. Samus is well aware of the names of the lakes - Yakovo, Dmitrievskoye, Maltsevo and the village with the poetic name - Semiozerki. The names of the first two lakes arose from the names of the Old Believers who settled near the lakes at the end of the 19th century. And the village of Semiozerki on the shore of Lake Maltsev was founded at the same time by the Old Believer Emelyan Maltsev, whose descendants now live in the village. Samus. Secluded settlements on the manes among the swamps have been preserved in the Lower Tomsk region until modern times. Few knew the road to them, since it often consisted of a narrow path, sometimes made of specially flooded logs, which were tapped with a stick under water while moving. The center of attraction of the Old Believers in the Lower Tomsk region was, apparently, Old Believer monastery on the Yuksa River, destroyed in the 1930s. Resident of the village As a child, Samus was in the monastery with her father, a hunter, when the nuns were taken away from it, and all the ancient icons and leather-bound books were thrown out into the street, piled up and burned. This pile burned for three days.

1. Remains of the Ustinovskaya settlement in the Lower Tomsk region. Photo from the 1950s.

On the farmsteads in the taiga near Krasny Yar - Guzhikhina, Lesnikova, Shcheglova, Gary and others - Old Believers lived and partially live to this day - “penniless” and “true Orthodox Christians” who, in order to save their souls, left the sinful world for the “deserts” , to the taiga, to the monastery. Some residents of the surrounding villages know the coordinates of the settlements, have heard a lot about the peculiarities of the faith and life of the Old Believers, and many hunters, fishermen and berry pickers have been there many times. Researchers from universities and museums, linguists and historians, including the author of these lines, were also there. The fact is that in these villages, as in a living museum, ancient methods of housing construction, birch bark roofs, the entire way of life, utensils and tools, as well as beliefs and rituals have been preserved. Previously, there were separate men's and women's monasteries, but later only women's monasteries remained. For prayers, they wore special ancient clothing - sundresses, shirts, woven belts and loose scarves for women, kaftans for men. In addition, men were required to wear a beard, without which, as they said, “it would be a sin to die.” To count prayers, a ladder was used - a kind of rosary with protrusions, for each of which it was necessary to read a prayer and bow to the ground. And for bowing, a flat pad was used - a handicraft. Old Believers cross themselves with the ancient two-fingered fold of their fingers, saying that laymen or “Nikonians” cross themselves with a “cookie” or “pinch.”

In the photo: Installation of a birch bark roof on the “hens” at the Old Believer village in the Lower Tomsk region. 1978 Photo by P.E. Bardina.

The economy of the Old Believers, even in conditions unfavorable for agriculture, was built on the basis of self-sufficiency. Immediately after the resettlement, they manually uprooted the forest, plowed, or even simply hoeed the land and started arable land and vegetable gardens. They kept cows, horses, sheep and necessarily raised bees, because honey was a necessary food product during fasting days. A significant share of the economy was occupied by hunting, fishing, collecting wild berries and mushrooms, and handicrafts. If it was impossible to grow grain, they purchased flour and cereals in exchange for their wood and birch bark products (tues, tubs, etc.), as well as berries, nuts and furs. Here the ban on growing the “devil's apple” - potatoes - was overcome, and it was grown even in hermitages.

The Old Believers maintained very stable food prohibitions, which is typical for many religious movements. The most famous of the prohibitions among the Old Believers is that they do not eat from the same dishes with the worldly. They had separate dishes for newcomers. In addition, they strictly observed the division of dishes into clean and dirty, and they did not eat the meat of animals “with a claw” - a bear, a hare, a rabbit, and with one, uncut hoof - a horse. In hermitages, monks leading a monastic lifestyle did not eat meat at all, and fish only “on specified days.” And of course, the Old Believers observed fasts very strictly and devoted a lot of time to prayers. On major holidays - Christmas, Easter, Trinity - the hermits gathered together and, in addition to prayers, sang spiritual poems, which spoke mainly about wanderings for the faith.

In the recent past there were monasteries in almost every district of our region. However, the Old Believers of the Tomsk Ob region did not form such compact groups as the “Semeyskie” of Transbaikalia or the “Poles” of Altai. Hermitages and monasteries were repeatedly ravaged and burned - in the 1930s, during the war, during logging, etc. They were often rebuilt or moved to a new location, preserving some kind of core, which was replenished with new inhabitants over time. In many ways, the monasteries now serve as a kind of nursing home, since mostly elderly women live there. By the middle of the twentieth century. Most of the Old Believer castles disappeared. Their residents partially moved to neighboring large villages or cities. Some of the Old Believer settlements became isolated, preserving the peculiarities of life and faith (for example, the villages of Chanovka, Shalamovka, Los-Gora, Kipryushka Gar, etc.). Some Old Believers settled in small groups, sometimes on a separate street in large villages (for example, in the village of Krasny Yar, in Togur). The other part retreated to even more remote places, for example, to the upper reaches of the Keti River. Many descendants of the Old Believers have practically lost religious traditions ancestors, although with age, to some extent, some returned to the faith.

Wandering in search of the legendary Belovodye. During ethnographic expeditions around the Tomsk region, I had the opportunity to record many stories from Old Believers and their descendants about repeated migrations in search of secluded places where there are no authorities. Probably, this was the search for the legendary Belovodye, a country of general prosperity, without authorities. For many decades, Old Believers rushed east, to Siberia, in search of such places. Well-known researcher of the history of the Old Believers N.N. Pokrovsky wrote that at the beginning of the twentieth century. Old Believers of Altai were looking for Belovodye in the Narym taiga. During one of the expeditions in 1982 to the Kargasok district, my attention was drawn to the story of a resident of the village. Berezovka Makhonina (Tomilova) Alexandra Filippovna, born in 1914. As a four-year-old girl, her parents brought her to Altai from the Perm province. But it didn't work out there. After 4 years we moved to the Chainsky district of the Tomsk region in the village. Atarmu. At the age of fourteen they moved to Kangu in the village. Ust-Kanga. Then in the 1930s. on Chuzik in the village. Osipovo (Plotbishche), then lived in the village. Churulka on the river Chizhapke. Finally got married to R. Combars. And at the end of her life she came to her daughter in the village. Berezovka about 12 years ago. We can say that A.F. I studied the geography of the region not from a map, but from my travels. Why did they always move? It turns out that her ancestors were “non-writing”, i.e. “they didn’t register”, they didn’t want to register with the authorities. They believed that the “kingdom of the Antichrist” was coming, and nothing could be taken from it - neither food nor clothing. They didn’t buy anything in stores, some didn’t even have salt or matches, but they produced everything on their own farm - they grew bread and vegetables, and kept livestock. A.F. recalled: “We had everything of our own, we grew flax, we spun and weaved ourselves.” She also said that at first in the 1920-30s. they “were not oppressed, although they knew that they were “not written.” “When they came to us, my father read old printed books to them, but they did not oppress us. And then, before the war, they said - go away from here to somewhere else. They moved across the Chuzik River and lived there again for some time. They lived freely, settled in groups: here there were 2 families, a little further away there were three families.” They moved further if they were discovered or new residents were added to them. During the war, A.F. recalls, everyone was already registered, taxes began to be paid, and all the men were taken to the front.

The consecration of the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary took place on September 22, 1913. Its laying was carried out four years earlier - in 1909. The rite of consecration was performed by the first Tomsk-Altai bishop Joasaph (I.S. Zhuravlev). Bishop Joasaph was co-served by 8 priests, including the rector of the church, Fr. Trifon Sukhov (future Tomsk-Altai Bishop Tikhon, canonized in September of this year), famous diocesan figure, reciter, one of the editors of the magazine “Siberian Old Believer” Fr. Daniil Suvorov and others. The triumph of the event is conveyed by church periodicals of that time: “At 6 o’clock in the morning... the consecration of the water was performed, and then the very consecration of the temple... Thanks to the Lord God, now the Old Believers of Tomsk are rejoicing. Approaching the temple and hearing the powerful waves rushing from it ringing, they come into delight and cry with joy, because something happened in reality that our ancestors did not even think about" (Church. 1913. No. 47.). However, it should be noted that pressure from the authorities was observed even after the granting of religious freedoms, because Tomsk was at that time a provincial center, it housed the episcopal see of the ruling church, a center for combating the “malicious schism” - the so-called. an anti-schism brotherhood, opened in 1884. Thus, a religious procession to the site of the founding of the church in 1909 was not allowed, and other facts of persecution and simply disdainful attitude towards the Old Believers were repeatedly noted. The consecration of the temple became the most important stage in the history of not only the Tomsk Assumption community.

In 1911, after the division of the Siberian diocese into Tomsk and Irkutsk, and the formation of the Tomsk-Altai diocese, Tomsk long years becomes the diocesan center of the Ancient Orthodox Old Believer Church (repeated attempts to organize an episcopal see in Tomsk are also known during the “persecutive” period). Diocesan activities will be forcibly destroyed in the 1930s, but the spiritual influence of the Tomsk community will continue both in these and subsequent years. It so happened by God's providence that services in the church were interrupted only for the period 1941-1946 (?) - during this period the church building was used as a military food warehouse. Almost always the community had its own priests; as is known, for Siberia this issue has always been extremely acute. Time has spoken. The temple is in urgent need of repair and restoration, and therefore was included at one time in the list of restoration works of the Center for the Protection of Historical and Cultural Monuments. In May 2003, its major renovation began, the rotten main vault was removed, all 5 domes of the main vault were removed, and a temporary roof was installed. Currently, the repairs are ongoing, the vault has been cut down, and the main drum is being cut. The task is to find craftsmen to make drums who have the skills to do roofing work on domes. This work is expected to begin in the spring. Of course, much will be decided by the availability of funds, but by pinning their hopes on God, parishioners believe that the Tomsk church will be preserved for future generations.

Based on materials from the site www.staroobrad.ru

Bishop Gregory: “The authorities are trying not to notice the Old Believers”

In October 2015, he established the Tomsk Old Believer diocese and approved the rector of the Tomsk parish, Hieromonk Gregory (Korobeinikov), as a candidate for bishop. Why did the Council make this decision? How will the formation of a diocesan center change the life of Tomsk Old Believers? Who can become an Old Believer? And what is the modern Old Believers of Tomsk? The newly appointed Bishop Gregory (Korobeinikov).

Reference: Bishop Gregory (Gennady Vasilyevich Korobeinikov) was born on September 8, 1948 in the city of Izhevsk, Udmurt Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, into an Old Believer family. He studied at the College of Food Industry, after which he served in Soviet army. After demobilization, he worked at a factory and was a parishioner of the Old Believer Church in Izhevsk. He got married in 1971. In 1976, he was ordained a priest and appointed rector of the Saratov community church, and in 1986 he headed the Tomsk Old Believer parish. In 1993 he was elevated to the rank of archpriest. In 2014, he became a widower. In 2015, he took monastic vows and was elected bishop to the recreated Tomsk See. He raised nine children and 28 grandchildren.

At the end of October, the Consecrated Cathedral formed the Tomsk Old Believer diocese. What motivated this decision?

It would be more accurate to say that the Council revived the Tomsk diocese. If we look at history, the Tomsk diocese was organized by the Consecrated Council of the Old Believer Church in 1925. Before that there was the Tomsk-Altai diocese, and even earlier - the Tomsk-Siberian diocese. All this time the bishop's chair was in Tomsk. During the years of Soviet power, all this was lost. In 1993, a single Siberian diocese was formed with its center in Novosibirsk. It extended from the Urals to Pacific Ocean, included Central Asia. This entire diocese was cared for by one bishop, Bishop Siluyan. As the Old Believers strengthened in these lands, the Irkutsk-Amur and Khabarovsk-Far Eastern independent dioceses were separated from the large Siberian diocese. And now the time has come for our Tomsk diocese. By the will of God, at the Consecrated Council, a decision was made to revive the Tomsk diocese with a see in the city of Tomsk.

What is the newly formed diocese like today?

The newly formed diocese is a vast territory, including entire regions, territories and republics. It includes the Tomsk and Kemerovo regions, the Krasnoyarsk Territory, the Republics of Tyva and Khakassia.

What difficulties might arise in managing such a diocese?

Let us hope and pray to God, and with His help we will overcome all difficulties that arise. Now it is difficult to imagine what problems may arise. But, trusting in God, together with the rectors and parishioners, we will solve them together.

What are the priority directions for the development of the new diocese?

I have not yet been able to visit all the parishes of the diocese. I think that after visiting all the parishes and communicating with the rectors and the flock, a number of areas for development will be formed. But the most important direction for us remains the organization of constant prayer in those places where Old Believers live, where there is no constant service.

On November 1, the first diocesan meeting took place. Who took part in it? What issues were discussed? What decisions were made?

First of all, it is important for us that on this day a solemn service took place, which was led by the head of our Church, Metropolitan Cornelius. At this service, the ceremony of elevating me to the Tomsk See as a bishop took place.

Afterwards the first diocesan meeting took place. It was of an organizational and informational nature. All the clergy of our diocese and representatives of the communities were present at the meeting. Metropolitan Cornelius raised the question of organizing monastery on the territory of the Asinovsky district, destroyed in the 30s of the XX century.

When do you plan to begin the revival of this monastery?

I'm going to go to Gar. There were two monasteries (male and female) in the vicinity of this village. We will resolve this issue on the spot. It will still need to be agreed upon with the secular authorities. They will have to allocate a site for the monastery and determine the conditions. For now we have one monk there. He lives in the village of Gar. There is a church there. There is a priest. Old Believers live there.

What role did these monasteries play in the life of the Tomsk Old Believers?

The first monasteries were organized by the holy monk Theophylact (Savkin) in 1875. Before the ruin in the 30s of the 20th century, active spiritual and educational activities were carried out. There were male and female monasteries. There was well-established publishing activity. Under the influence of the monasteries, the Tomsk community was formed. Several Old Believer bishops were educated within the walls of the monastery. They worked, carrying the word of God, not only within the Siberian borders, but throughout Russia. Some of them, such as Vladyka Tikhon and Vladyka Amphilohiy, suffered martyrdom for the word of God and are now glorified as holy martyrs. They are canonized in our country.

The Consecrated Council, in electing you as a candidate for bishop, took into account your pastoral experience. In particular, you have been heading the Old Believer community of Tomsk for almost 30 years. What has been done during this time?

While serving in Tomsk, I had to deal with more than just my parish. I was the dean of the eastern deanery of the Novosibirsk diocese. Communities were organized and churches were built. A permanent religious procession was organized from the village of Gar to the site of the destroyed monasteries. Worship crosses were erected there. A worship cross was erected at the place where Archpriest Avvakum stayed in exile in Yeniseisk (Krasnoyarsk Territory - editor's note). Tikhon-Avakum readings are held on an ongoing basis in memory of Archpriest Avvakum and our Bishop of Tomsk-Altai Tikhon, who was repressed in 1937. Sunday schools for children and youth are organized in the parishes. To communicate between youth and the younger generation, Assumption meetings were organized for the first time in August, at which creative and singing competitions were held. Let's hope they become annual.

How many Old Believers live in Tomsk today?

We do not keep quantitative records, because the Church is a living organism, consisting of all layers of our society and ages: from babies to gray-haired elders and grandmothers. These are labor veterans, participants in the Great Patriotic War, home front workers. Some are already over 90 years old. By professional affiliation they range from simple workers to engineering and technical workers and master carpenters. These are also Cossacks who have preserved the traditions characteristic of the Russian Cossacks.

We have not only hereditary Old Believers. People come to us when they are already adults. They come to us from other faiths. Before we baptize, we announce them. After a certain time, if they have an interest in following our rules, if we see their interest and diligence, we baptize them. You need to be an Old Believer not only by name and affiliation, but also by following our rules and customs.

How are things now in other Old Believer communities in the region?

Things are different. Our community now has a full hierarchical staff: bishop, priest, deacon, readers, singers and parishioners. Sunday school classes are held, consisting of several age groups. There is not enough space to conduct full-fledged classes in Malinovka. There is also a Sunday school and several groups. They have a strong singing school. But since the parish is young, they have financial difficulties. The temple is not fully built, there is no place for a Sunday school. They have to do it in the private homes of Christians. The arrangement of the temple territory and the construction of utility rooms require large financial investments. In the village of Gar there is a priest and a house church. In some areas of the region where Old Believers live compactly, there is a prospect of organizing Old Believers communities.

What will change in spiritual life with the formation of a diocesan center in Tomsk?

It's hard to say what will change. It takes some time to pass. I would like everyone who considers themselves Old Believers or holds such views to improve spiritually. By doing so, they would contribute to the strengthening and healing of our Fatherland.

Now the bishop's department is located in the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. If I'm not mistaken, by status it is a parish church. Are you planning to build a cathedral?

The present one is the cathedral, consecrated in 1913. It is already over a hundred years old. Here was the see of Bishop Tikhon of Tomsk-Altai. This temple is enough for us. Another thing is the diocesan center as an administrative complex. We need it, and there is a lot of work ahead. We hope for all possible assistance from philanthropists, city and regional authorities in resolving this issue.

How relevant is the issue of building new churches in the Tomsk region now?

The question is relevant. In our village of Kornilovo, a place has been consecrated for the construction of a temple in the name of St. Sergius of Radonezh. There is a project. It all comes down to lack of finance. In other places, the construction of temples will occur as communities arise.

For three centuries the authorities persecuted the Old Believers. What is their situation today? And what is the relationship with the authorities like these days?

Thank God, now is the time when you can freely pray and observe and do everything necessary for the salvation of the soul. But mostly the authorities try not to notice us unless we remind them of ourselves. As we apply, the authorities consider our requests and help in some way. In particular, during the restoration of our temple we received assistance from the city and regional administration.

Do you somehow interact with the Tomsk Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church?

Well, we know Metropolitan Rostislav. Even when I was serving as a priest, Bishop Siluyan and I were at his reception. We met at conferences that brought together the authorities. Well, that hasn’t happened yet.

What is currently hindering dialogue with the Russian Orthodox Church?

On this moment a commission of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church was created for dialogue with the Russian Orthodox Church. She is entrusted with dealing with all issues in this direction. All decisions of this commission are published on the websites of the Russian Orthodox Church and the “Bulletin of the Metropolis” (official publication of the Russian Orthodox Church - editor's note). We answered the first group of questions, but they did not answer our questions.

What needs to happen for reconciliation to take place?

There must be changes in the consciousness of people, and first of all the hierarchy of that church. They have withdrawn their vows, but in fact they consider our Church to be without grace. We asked why they thought so, but we never received an answer.