The Right Conservative Views of the Holy Righteous John of Kronstadt

The  article  analyzes  the  political beliefs  of  the  Holy Righteous  John  of Kronstadt.  It is noted that  to  the  end  of his days he remained  a convinced  monarchist, a supporter of autocracy and an opponent of revolutionary ideas, defending the purity of the  Orthodox faith and opposing  the  penetration of Catholic, Protestant, liberal and  Masonic  ideas  into  the  church.  John  of Kronstadt supported by word and deed various rightist monarchical (blackhundredist)  organizations, both official (parties, unions, societies) and unofficial (circles, salons, including the salons of General Evgeny Bogdanovich and Countess  Sophia Ignatieva). He also allocated  money for the development of the largest Black Hundred organization, the Union of the Russian People, and other right-wing associations, joined the Union himself and expressed support for various Black Hundred initiatives by telegrams and letters.

The article studies  some  of his public speeches, sermons, articles and diary entries. In his public speeches, Saint John of Kronstadt repeatedly pointed out that the death of the Russian monarchy would inevitably lead to the most negative consequences for Russia, up to its collapse. Special attention is paid to the attitude of the clergyman to the imperial power and the royal ministry, as he supported the  idea of the  divine origin of the  royal power.  Like many other conservatives, Saint John of Kronstadt considered the Holy Blessed Grand Duke Alexander Nevsky a kind of ideal monarch, pointing out the virtues of his rule. In his sermons, he rebuked the revolutionaries and spoke about  the danger of the revolutionary threat, pointing out that  Russia would perish if the  revolutionary  forces won. Saint John of Kronstadt explained the Russian defeat  in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905 by the decrease of faith in the Russian society and the decline of patriotism.

The article notes  that the numerous  sermons  of the priest repeatedly showed  his concern about  the fate of Russia, prone to secession due to the activity of the liberal intelligentsia.

1. Akishin, G. G. (2014). Istoricheskie i obshchestvenno-sotsial’nye aspekty blagotvoritel’noi deiatel’nosti sv. prav. Ioanna Kronshtadtskogo [Historical and Social Aspects of the Charitable Activity of St. Pravda. John of Kronstadt]. Khristianskoe chtenie, (1), 71–84.

2. Chernaia sotnia. Istoricheskaia entsiklopediia 1900–1917 [Black Hundred. Historical Encyclopedia 1900–1917]. (2008). Moscow: Kraft+, In-t russkoi tsivilizatsii.

3. Fedotov, G. P. (1989). Imperiia i svoboda: Izbrannye stat’i [Empire and Freedom: Selected Articles]. New York: Posev-SShA.

4. Izbrannye telegrammy iz chisla poluchennykh gr. Ignat’evoi [Selected Telegrams from Among the Received by Gr. Ignatieva]. (1906). Russkoe znamia, (December 17th).

5. Kitsenko, N. (2006). Sviatoi nashego vremeni: otets Ioann Kronshtadtskii i russkii narod [The Saint of Our Time: Father John of Kronstadt and the Russian People]. Moscow: Novoe literaturnoe obozrenie.

6. Novye groznye slova ottsa Ioanna (Kronshtadtskogo) “O Strashnom poistine Sude Bozhiem, griadushchem i priblizhaiushchemsia”. 1906–1907 goda [The New Menacing Words of Father John (Kronstadt) “About the Truly Terrible Judgment of God, Coming and Approaching”. 1906–1907]. (1993). Moscow: Skit.

7. Odintsov, M. I. (2014). Ioann Kronshtadtsky [John of Kronstadt]. Moscow: Molodaia gvardiia.

8. Otets Ioann Kronshtadtsky. Izdanie Russkogo narodnogo soiuza im. Mikhaila Arkhangela [Father John of Kronstadt. Publication of the Russian People’s Union Named after Michael the Archangel]. Moscow: Profizdat: Zhurnal “Video-Ass”.

9. Pis’ma sviashchennomuchenika Serafima (Chichagova) grafine S. S. Ignat’evoi [Letters of the Holy Martyr Seraphim (Chichagov) to Countess S. S. Ignatieva]. (2002). In “I dany budut zhene dva kryla”. Sb. k 50-letiiu Sergeia Fomina (pp. 506–525). Moscow.

10. Platonov, O. A. (1997). Ternovyi venets Rossii. Istoriia russkogo naroda v 20 veke [The Crown of Thorns of Russia. The History of the Russian People in the Twentieth Century]. Moscow: Rodnik.

11. Repnikov, A. V. (2010). Ioann Kronshtadtsky [John of Kronstadt]. In Russkii konservatizm serediny XVIII — nachala XX veka (pp. 211–215). Moscow: ROSSPEN.

12. Sergienko, D. V. (2016). Propovednicheskaia deiatel’nost’ sviatogo pravednogo Ioanna Kronshtadtskogo i ee znachenie dlia sovremennoi Rossii: vypusknaia kvalifikatsionnaia rabota [The Preaching Activity of the Holy Righteous John of Kronstadt and Its Significance for Modern Russia: Thesis]. Belgorod.

13. Sergiev, I., prot. (1919). Mysli moi po povodu nasilii khristian s evreiami v Kishineve [My Thoughts on the Violence of Christians Against Jews in Chisinau]. In Materialy dlia istorii antievreiskikh pogromov v Rossii (vol. 1. Dubossarskoe i Kishinevskoe dela 1903 goda). Petersburg: Tip. “Kadima”.

14. Stepanov, S. A. (2013). Chernaia sotnia. Chto oni sdelali dlia velichiia Rossii? [Black Hundred. What Have They Done for the Greatness of Russia?]. Moscow: Iauza-press.

15. Stogov, D. I. (2020). Vzaimootnosheniia liderov i uchastnikov pravomonarkhicheskikh salonov s o. Ioannom Kronshtadtskim [Relationship of Leaders and Participants of Law Monarchical Salons with Father John of Kronstadt]. Tetradi po konservatizmu, (1), pp. 502–507.

16. Sviatoi pravednyi Ioann Kronshtadtsky. Predsmertnyi dnevnik. Venok na svezhuiu mogilu Kronshtadtskogo pastyria. Propovedi i poucheniia, proiznesennye v poslednii god zhizni [Holy Righteous John of Kronstadt. A Deathbed Diary. A Wreath on the Fresh Grave of the Kronstadt Pastor. Sermons and Teachings Delivered in the Last Year of Life]. (2003). Moscow: Palomnik, 2003. — 349 s.

17. Sviatye chernosotentsy. Sviashchennyi Soiuz Russkogo Naroda [Holy Black Hundreds. The Sacred Union of the Russian People]. (2011). Moscow: Institut russkoi tsivilizatsii.

18. Zhivoi koloss s dukhovnoi nivy protoiereia Ioanna Il’icha Sergieva-Kronshtadtskogo: Vypiski iz dnevnika za 1907–1908 gg. [A Living Colossus from the Spiritual Field of Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev-Kronstadt: Extracts from the Diary for 1907–1908]. (1909). Saint Petersburg: Sinodal’naia tipografiia.