St. Luke (Voino-Yasenetsky) and the Problem of the Identity of Soviet Citizens — Orthodox Believers

Abstract

The article is devoted to the journalistic activities of the world-famous confessor, archpastor and surgeon St. Luke (Voino-Yasenetsky) in the «Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate» in the 1940–1950s. Having endured many years of exile and oppression for his church activities, St. Luke nevertheless speaks out in these articles about Soviet power extremely positively. The author asks about the reasons for this, about the true political views of the saint and the role of his publications. The publications are studied in comparison with the biography of the saint and the general historical context in the light of the problem of the double identity of believers in the citizens of the Soviet Union. As for the political views of the saint, three main versions that exist in literature are considered: monarchism, adherence to constitutional democracy or socialism. The conclusion is drawn: most likely, St. Luke preferred a constitutional-democratic system, but the political system of any state was fundamentally secondary for the saint in relation to religious faith and the ability for the Church to carry out activities to save human souls. Some pro-Soviet extremes in the articles of the saint can be explained by the specifics of the historical moment — the temporary "turn" of the Soviet regime towards the Church in the 1940s, as well as by the state recognition of the saint's personal merits; in addition, St. Luke could be guided by diplomatic principles and pastoral considerations for the sake of resolving or smoothing out internal ideological contradictions among Soviet citizens associated with a dual Orthodox-Soviet identity.