Patriarch Filaret: brief biography, activities

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

History knows several cult personalities who are namesakes by name, employed in the same field of activity, and, nevertheless, radically changed the course of history in different ways.

Patriarch Filaret, whose years of life coincided with a period of major social upheaval, is one of the most controversial figures in Russian history, whose actions and historical significance for all of Russia are difficult to assess impartially. Nevertheless, this man significantly changed the course of political and social events, primarily by acting in the interests of his family, and ensuring the Romanov dynasty had a firm position on the throne.

Throughout his life, Patriarch Filaret Romanov - Fyodor Nikitovich in the world - experienced constant career and status ups and downs following them. Being a non-religious person, but who, by chance, took the post of metropolitan, he continuously maintained contact with the highest Moscow clergy, creating for himself a righteous and venerable image corresponding to the status of the Third Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia. This talented, powerful, ambitious man could not help but remain in the annals of history.

His namesake by monastic name, self-proclaimed as a result of the split of the Russian Orthodox Church PatriarchKyiv Filaret, in the world Mikhail Denisenko, is known to the uninitiated as an ardent supporter of Ukrainian self-identification. The main result of the activities of Patriarch Filaret is the creation of an independent Ukrainian Orthodox Church and public support for military operations in the south-east of Ukraine. He publicly expressed his negative attitude towards Putin after the annexation of Crimea. Patriarch Filaret of Ukraine, who believes Ukraine should be independent and autonomous, is also known for his harsh remarks about other officials.

Be that as it may, but speaking out for the independence of Ukraine, Filaret defends the interests, first of all, of the majority of the citizens of this country, therefore, in this text there is no search for sacred truths, but there is a set of facts that allow you to get acquainted with the rich the life of this spiritual leader.

Patriarch Filaret Romanov: genealogy and family

The life of a clergyman was not easy. The biography of Patriarch Filaret is notable for the fact that he was the nephew of Anastasia Zakharyina-Yuryeva, the first wife of Tsar Ivan the Terrible. Thus, the Romanov clan joined the dynasty of Russian tsars. The family of Anastasia Zakharyina (they are Yurievs, Koshkins) was in the service of the Moscow sovereigns from the 14th century. The importance of this family in governing the country increased after 1584, when Ivan the Terrible left boyar Nikita Romanovich, the brother of the deceased Anastasia, whose good fame became the basis of the popularity of the Romanov family, under his young son Theodore, as guardian.

RelationshipsThe Godunovs and the Romanovs were not hostile. On the contrary, when he was crowned king, Boris gave the Romanovs many privileges, however, this could not mitigate the intensifying struggle for the royal throne.

Youth and youth

Fyodor Nikitovich Romanov was born in 1553. Possessing a secular, practical mindset, Fyodor Nikitovich never aspired to take any priestly rank. In his youth, he was one of the most famous Moscow dandies.

Having received an excellent education, perfectly combining the love of books and the love of secular clothes, Fyodor Nikitovich even learned the Latin language, resorting to the help of Latin books specially written for him. According to the memoirs of his contemporaries, he was an inquisitive, handsome, dexterous and friendly young man.

Metropolitan of Rostov

Being one of the main rivals of Boris Godunov, Fyodor Nikitovich, along with the rest of the Romanovs and many other boyar families, was subjected to royal disgrace in 1600. This process was started by a false denunciation. Fedor was forcibly tonsured a monk and exiled to the north of the principality, to the Antoniev-Siysky Monastery, located 90 kilometers from Kholmogor. In former times, monastic tonsure was one of the means of depriving a person of political power. Along with receiving a new name, Filaret Romanov also received the sympathy and support of his compatriots as an exiled royal descendant and the rightful tsar of Russia.

In the monastery, the future metropolitan was under the strictest supervision - bailiffs prevented any of his independent actions,at the same time constantly complaining to Moscow about his tough temper. But most of all, Filaret Romanov missed his family.

On June 30, 1605, after the coup d'état, Filaret was returned to Moscow with honors as a relative of the imaginary Tsar False Dmitry, and in 1606 he became Metropolitan of Rostov. After the overthrow of the impostor in 1606, Filaret, while in Moscow, was sent to Uglich for the body of Tsarevich Dmitry Ioannovich at the direction of the new Tsar Vasily Ivanovich. While Filaret was in Uglich, Shuisky elevated the Moscow Kazan Metropolitan Hermogenes to the post of Patriarch, and Fyodor Ivanovich went to the department allocated under his protectorate in Rostov the Great, where he stayed until 1608.

Tushino events

Due to the dislike of the population for Shuisky, and the appearance of a new impostor in the political arena, the military forces of the rebels approached Moscow itself. The Patriarch of Moscow urgently sent letters around the state in which he ordered the archpastors to pray for Tsar Vasily and described the course of events. Patriarch Filaret, whose brief biography was already full of fateful facts, spoke about global state upheavals, the uprising of Bolotnikov, the gangs of the "Tushino thief", from which he, remaining faithful to the tsar, subsequently suffered himself. In 1608, the troops of False Dmitry II took Rostov, ravaged the city, and Patriarch Filaret was captured and taken to the Tushino camp with mockery.

In Tushino, the impostor and his people began to give Fedor the appropriate honors and gavethe title of "Filaret, Patriarch of Moscow". There is no doubt that Fyodor Nikitovich himself did not value this position at all - in Tushino he was guarded and held by force. Letters that have come down to us from 1608 - 1610 do not give the right to assert that Filaret (Patriarch of Moscow) had anything to do with church and political affairs - on the contrary, Hermogenes - the legitimate Moscow Patriarch - considered him a victim of the current situation.

In March 1610, after the collapse of the Tushino camp, Filaret was captured by the Poles and taken to the Joseph Volokolamsk Monastery, but soon escaped from there with the support of Grigory Voluev's detachment, and, returning to Moscow, found himself in the former honor of the Moscow diocese.

Dual power

In September 1610, Filaret, as well as Prince Golitsyn, as part of the "great embassy" moved from Moscow near Smolensk to meet with King Sigismund, after which he sent ambassadors to Poland as prisoners. Filaret spent eight whole years in captivity, and was exchanged in 1619, and then immediately taken to Moscow, where his own elected son Mikhail Fedorovich was already sitting on the throne in order to take the empty place of the Moscow Patriarch. In 1619, on June 24, in the Assumption Cathedral, he was named to the dignity - "Filaret, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia." Now Filaret, called by the royal title "Great Sovereign", began to rule equally the church and the state.

Thus, dual power was established in Moscow for a period of 14 years, in which only the tsar and the zemstvo had the highest government authoritycathedral, and the letters of the father-patriarch to the son-sovereign reveal the full power of the influence of the patriarch on the conduct of public affairs, and fully describe the activities of Patriarch Filaret.

Historians know the conciliar verdict of 1619, about "how to arrange the earth", which was created by the report "articles" of the patriarch. It correctly assessed the uneven material and property situation of the population in different parts of the kingdom, so such measures were taken as:

• correct arrangement of service from the estates;
• drawing up accurate cadastral inventories of land and, on their basis, achieving the correctness of taxation;
• informing both the treasury's cash and future resources to determine income and expenditure;
• taking effective measures to eradicate administrative offenses that hinder the establishment of state and social order in the country.

All these introductions pursued a single goal - to increase government funds in the easiest and most correct way for the population.

Fyodor Nikitovich also patronized book printing, and also edited Old Russian texts for errors.

Church government reforms

The events of the patriarch's life polished him as a political businessman and subtle diplomat. Interests in strengthening dynastic power stimulated him to direct all his forces to managing the affairs of the state, in which he was capable and tactful.leader. But, being deprived of a theological education, he was especially restrained and cautious in church affairs. In this area, Filaret took care of the protection of orthodoxy and looked out for the main danger beyond the Polish-Lithuanian border. Otherwise, he followed the immediate needs of the church and never took steps forward. Thus, Filaret's political activity was more fruitful and active than the church one. From 1619 to 1633, state power was strengthened under him, and the Romanov dynasty gained support among the general population, and this is the historical merit of Fyodor Nikitovich.

On all issues related to religion and church dispensation, he preferred to consult with the Moscow clergy, which earned him considerable fame among them.

Family and children

Fyodor Nikitovich married the daughter of a poor nobleman from Kostroma, Xenia Ivanovna Shestova. They had six children. After the disgrace of Boris Godunov on the family of Fyodor Nikitovich, Xenia Ivanovna was forcibly tonsured a nun under the name of Martha and sent to the Zaonezhsky Tolvuysky churchyard. Son Mikhail and daughter Tatyana, together with aunts Nastasya and Martha Nikitichny, were taken to the village of Kliny, located in the Yuryevsky district.

Filaret, Patriarch of All Russia, immediately after returning home from Polish captivity and campaigning to enthrone his son Michael, turned into a prudent and disgraced regent.

The death of Patriarch Filaret on October 1, 1633 put an end to the dual power in the state and finally installed the Romanov family on the throne, who reigned until1917.

The historical significance of Filaret

Being the regent of the infant Tsar Michael and actually the ruler of the country, Patriarch Filaret signed state letters on his own behalf and also had the title of Great Sovereign.

Speaking of Patriarch Filaret, most historians talk about his patronage of printing. Since 1621, the clerks of the Posolsky Prikaz, especially for the tsar, were engaged in the production of the first Russian newspaper "Vestovye Pistachi".

The patriarch understood the value and favored the development of the weapons and metallurgical industries. Therefore, Andrei Vinius in 1632 received permission from Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich to establish the first iron-smelting, iron-working and weapons factories in Russia near Tula.

Patriarch Filaret of Kyiv: birth and family

This priest comes from Ukraine. Philaret Patriarch of Kyiv, in the world Mikhail Antonovich Denisenko, was born into a mining family on January 1, 1929. The place of birth is the village of Blagodatnoe, located in the Amvrosievsky district of the Donetsk region.

Despite the mandatory requirements of a vow of celibacy, according to media reports, Filaret publicly lived openly with his family - his wife Evgenia Petrovna Rodionova, who died in 1998, and three children - daughters Vera and Lyubov, as well as son Andrei are mentioned.

Study, monastery and monasticism

Denisenko graduated from high school in 1946, and in 1948 from the Odessa Theological Seminary and was admitted toMoscow Theological Academy. In January 1950, being in his second year, he took the monastic vows, taking the name Filaret. In the spring he received the rank of hierodeacon, and in 1952 he was ordained a hieromonk.

Positions held and titles

In 1952, Denisenko received a Ph. D. in theology and stayed at the Moscow Theological Seminary to teach the Holy Scriptures of the New Testament. At the same time, Filaret was acting dean of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. He received the title of associate professor in March 1954.

In August 1956, Filaret, being abbot, became an inspector of the Saratov Theological Seminary, then - the Kyiv Theological Seminary. He began managing the affairs of the Ukrainian Exarchate in 1960, being in the rank of archimandrite.

In 1961, Denisenko was appointed rector of the metochion of the Russian Orthodox Church in Alexandria under the Patriarchate of Alexandria.

In 1962, Filaret received the rank of Bishop of Luga, vicar of the Leningrad diocese. At the same time, he was appointed manager of the Riga diocese; in the summer of 1962 - vicar of the Central European Exarchate; in November of the same year he became Bishop of Vienna and Austria.

In 1964, Filaret received a vicar position in the Moscow diocese and, already as Bishop of Dmitrovsky, became rector of the Moscow Theological Academy and Seminary.

Member of the Holy Synod elevated him to the rank of Archbishop of Kyiv and Galicia in 1966. In December of the same year, Filaret became head of the Kyiv Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate. At this time, he was part of the delegations of the Moscow Patriarchate, the RussianOrthodox Church and the Ukrainian Exarchate has repeatedly traveled abroad, participating in congresses, conferences and assemblies. In 1979, Filaret received an award in the form of the Order of Friendship of Peoples, and in 1988 - the Order of the Red Banner of Labor for active peacekeeping.

After the death of Pimen - Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia - in the spring of 1990, Filaret became the locum tenens of the Patriarchal throne and one of the most likely candidates for patriarchs, for whose election a local council was convened. In June 1990, the Council elected a new head of the Russian Orthodox Church - Metropolitan Alexy II. However, traditionally, it was Filaret, Patriarch of Kyiv and All Ukraine, who was considered the next most important bishop of the Russian Church and the most influential permanent member of the Holy Synod.

Filaret as a spiritual figure of the UOC

During this period, with the support of Leonid Kravchuk, Filaret begins active work aimed at autonomizing the Ukrainian Church. The media talk about the beginning of their "friendly" relations back in the period of Denisenko's work in the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine. With the proclamation of the independence of Ukraine in 1991, Kravchuk in every possible way stimulated the process of creating an autonomous church, which has the basis of the canonical UOC - the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC) and the Uniates did not have the necessary support from the population to ensure their autonomy. It was understood that the canonical autocephaly, as an independent association of the UOC, would absorb all the Orthodox Churches of Ukraine and reduce the level ofsectarian conflicts.

In January 1992, Filaret gathered the bishops for a meeting and, with the support of the now Ukrainian President Kravchuk, drafted an appeal to the patriarch, all the bishops and the Holy Synod, in which he accused the ROC of deliberately delaying the process of a positive decision on the issue of autocephaly of the UOC. The Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church already raised this issue in the spring of 1992 in the absence of Filaret. In response to an appeal by the Moscow Patriarchate, Filaret was charged with using the granted autonomy as a tool to increase his power in the management of the Ukrainian Church, with pressure on local priests to force them to support autocephaly. In the course of this dispute, the Ukrainian Patriarch Filaret was accused of immoral behavior and his gross miscalculations in administration and was obliged to voluntarily resign as head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Filaret himself voluntarily gave the word of the bishop that he would not interfere with the free choice of the Ukrainian Church in the process of electing a new first hierarch, but after a while he refused to part with the post of primate of the UOC. This was followed by his renunciation of the bishop's oath. Thus arose a religious schism, known in the history of Orthodoxy as "Filaret's". Filaret himself substantiates his initial promise by pressure from the Russian Orthodox Church, and therefore considers it forced.

In 1992, the Council of Bishops of the UOC was still able to remove Filaret from the post of the first hierarch of the UOC and the Kyiv cathedra. He remained in the state, but was not en titled toholding divine services, and in June of the same year, by a judicial act of the Bishops' Council for human vices, blackmail, diktat, perjury and public slander on the Bishops' Council, causing a church schism, and also for conducting religious services in a state of ban, Filaret was deposed from his rank and deprived of all degrees of priesthood and rights related to being in the clergy.

In June 1992, Filaret's supporters assembled the Unification Cathedral in Kyiv. This marked the beginning of the creation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate (UOC-KP) as a result of the unification of some representatives of the UOC, belonging to the Moscow Patriarchate, and the UAOC. In 1995, Filaret took the post of patriarch in it.

On February 19, 1997, the Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church excommunicated Filaret from the church for conducting schismatic activities in the inter-council period.

Relations with Russia

Filaret took the place of the most likely candidate for the post of primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, but not everyone was satisfied with his candidacy. His flawed moral character, lust for power, demeanor, rudeness and worldly lifestyle were especially reprimanded and indignant.

During the election of a new patriarch, the struggle of the UOC for its autonomy intensified. And even after the adoption in 1990 by the Council of Bishops of the ROC of a new provision and granting the Ukrainian Exarchate more rights in self-government and the manifestation of national traditions in the church sphere, granting independence and autonomy in the management of the UOC, andPhilaret - the title of "His Beatitude Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine" - he did not stop fighting for the independence of the Ukrainian religious ideology, now - in the sphere of public and secular life.

Patriarch Filaret considers Russia the main aggressor in the conflict in the south-east of Ukraine, arguing that Russia, as an enemy of the Ukrainian people, is doomed to defeat.

The mutual appeals of Patriarch Kirill of All Russia and Patriarch Filaret of All Ukraine are widely known. In a letter to the Ukrainian bishop, the Moscow Patriarch called for a balanced and methodical approach to the issue of continuing to support the conflict in the south-east of Ukraine, and called for the entire Russian Church to unite against the dark side of the human person in this difficult, anxious time, performing universal Christian prayers. However, in his response to the Moscow Patriarch, Filaret spoke extremely negatively about the position of the Russian Orthodox Church, sharply speaking about the impossibility of uniting these churches, and the arrogant position of the Moscow Patriarch in relation to the Kyiv Patriarchate.

Recently, due to the frequent trips of the Patriarch of All Russia Kirill to the church halls of Ukraine, Patriarch Filaret maintains a cautious distance in relations with the Russian Orthodox Church, rightly believing that he may be removed from the political arena.