Old Believers emerged in the 17th century as a result of a schism in the Russian Orthodox Church. The main difference of this religion lies in some of the rituals, as well as the church organization.
How the Old Believers appeared
Old Belief is one of the varieties of Orthodoxy. This trend appeared as a result of the reform, which was carried out by Patriarch Nikon in 1653-1660. The result of the reform was a split in the Russian Orthodox Church.
The adopted decision on rapprochement with the Church of Constantinople required some ceremonies to be changed: they began to be baptized not with two fingers, as before, but three; began to pray according to new books, and in the name of Jesus appeared the second "i".
Discontent with such a reform was aggravated by the situation in the country: the peasantry was greatly impoverished, and some boyars and merchants opposed the law on the abolition of their feudal privileges, announced by Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich.
All this led to the fact that some part of society split off from the church. Being persecuted by the tsarist government and clergy, the Old Believers were forced into hiding. Despite severe persecution, their creed spread throughout Russia. Moscow remained their center. In the middle of the 17th century, a curse was imposed on the breakaway church by the Russian Orthodox Church, it was lifted only in 1971.
What is the difference between the faith of the Old Believers
The very name "Old Believers" appeared only in 1905. The Old Believers initially did not differ in unity, they were highly fragmented, individual groups were very different in relation to the church and the clergy. At the end of the 17th century, representatives of this religion formed two main branches: priests and bespopovtsy. The first recognize the priesthood, the performance of the services and the sacraments, the presence of an Orthodox church hierarchy. The latter, on the contrary, reject the church hierarchy and worship.
The main efforts of the Old Believers were directed at the struggle against the Russian Orthodox Church. However, his adherents did not have enough time to comprehend and put in order their, sometimes conflicting, views. Thanks to this, many directions and rumors disappeared.
Old Believers are ardent adherents of ancient folk traditions. They did not even change the chronology, therefore the representatives of this religion keep counting the years from the creation of the world. They refuse to take into account any changed conditions, the main thing for them is to live the way their grandfathers, great-grandfathers and great-great-grandfathers lived. Therefore, studying literacy, going to the cinema, listening to the radio is not encouraged.
In addition, modern clothing is not recognized by the Old Believers and it is forbidden to shave a beard. Domestic construction reigns in the family, women follow the commandment: "Let the wife fear her husband." And children are subjected to corporal punishment.
Communities lead a very secluded life, replenishing only at the expense of their children. There is no propaganda work to attract new members of the community. All this leads to the fact that the number of Old Believers is constantly decreasing.
