| From 1897 to 1997, the Russian realm has gone through a number of geopolitical transformations, which produced continuing territorial non-correspondence between the Russian state, society, and the Russian Orthodox Church. This study shows that shifts in the geographical scales of the state and society prove to be decisive for understanding how different schismatic movements in the Church emerged and evolved.;The shift from nation-state to empire in the 17th century resulted in the Old Belief schism. The Renovationist schism of the 1920s can be interpreted as a mismatch between the global aspirations of the state and the parochial, national nature of society. In the late 1930s, non-correspondence of the state and society saved the Church from total extinction, while the collapse of the Iron Curtain posed a new serious challenge to the Church in areas such as Estonia. At the local level, such as Moscow, the main Church itself poses a threat to other Orthodox communities.;This study utilizes previously classified Soviet archives, a number of the author's own participant observations, interviews, and an extensive local press survey from 1992-1995 field studies in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Kiev, presenting data in a series of unique maps.;Several case studies at the local level of Moscow show that the idea of democratization is largely irrelevant to this revival. At best, it serves as a rhetorical strategy of alternative Orthodox communities for preservation of diversity and difference in Orthodoxy; at worst it justifies new post-Soviet hegemonies. In many cases, such as the return of church property and reconstruction of demolished cathedrals, democratic rhetoric was used to legitimize the hegemonic power of new political groups.;This analysis provides a useful perspective on understanding Church schisms. Challenging the traditional rooting of power in the state, it shows the importance of understanding the spatiality of power relations, and demonstrates the importance of the often neglected intra-scalar differences, contributing to a more dynamic understanding of geographical scales. |
