Father Pontius Rupyshev on the causes and consequences of the Russian revolution of 1917

Abstract

The article introduces the reader to the archpriest Pontius Rupyshev (1877-1939), who is not yet widely known for his theology, a disciple of st. John of Kronstadt. Interesting reflections of Father Pontius on the history of the Ecumenical and Russian Church and the Russian state are given, as well as his original historiosophy and eschatology, including his own periodization of church history. In his diaries the theologian sheds light on the origins and causes of the Russian revolution, as well as on its consequences for the Russian Church in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Also these materials on the ministry and theology of Father Pontius Rupushev are of interest to the history of Orthodoxy in Lithuania, since he founded a community in the Lithuanian village of Mikhnovo, which he spiritually nourished and that exists to this day, preserving Father Pontius’ heritage.