Wandering Lizard
Russia

A Trip to Russia - Sergiyev Posad - Spring

In 1652 Nikita Minin, a favorite of Czar Alexius, was elected Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church. Patriarch Nkon was active in reforming the church and his actions stirred considerable resistance. Eventually the Czar lost faith in him and in 1658 he resigned as patriarch. In 1660 a synod was held that declared that a new patriarch should be elected and Nikon stripped of his standing in the church. Alexius procrastinated until 1666 when an ecumenical council met with the czar. Nikon was stripped of all of his positions and exiled, but all of his reforms were confirmed.

Those orthodox church members that did not agree with Patriarch Nikon's reforms were called Old Believers. Many of the most ardent leaders were arrested and several of them were executed, but large numbers remained. Under Peter the Great they were forced to pay extra taxes including a tax for wearing a beard. (Old Believers held that it was irreverent to change the way in which God made you.) They remained discriminated against until 1905 when Czar Nicolas II signed an Act of Religious Freedom. Large numbers of Old Believers still exist in Russia today.

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