Baptistic Theologies, 2009

my argument. By this time Alexander III was Tsar of the Russian Empire, and his spiritual and legal teacher was Konstantin Pobedonostsev. In the next section I will look in detail at Pobedonostsev, who was one of the major opponents of Pashkov. Pobedonostsev, as Chair of the Holy Synod of Russia, wanted to suppress the activities of the sectarians, whom he saw as a threat to the Church and the State. 46 Konstantin Pobedonostsev ‘His name for more than a quarter of a century held the attention of his contemporaries... some people praised and blessed him, seeing him as an 43 Once again it is worth mentioning that looking at this relational aspect of the development of the movement, I do not reject the role of the Holy Spirit. Rather I want to point to the fact that some of the serious mistakes that Pashkov and his followers made were often a result of the power they possessed. 44 Heier, Religious Schism in the Russian Aristocracy, p. 112. 45 Karetnikova, ‘Pashkov ee Pashkovtsi’, n.p. 4f ’ Parker, Baptists in Europe, p. 151. Relationships between Evangelicals and the Orthodox Church in Russia 81 angel-saviour of Russia, others cursed, thinking he was Russia’s bad fairy. Nobody stayed indifferent to him.’ 47 Konstantin Petrovich Pobedonostsev was a famous Russian lawyer and politician. He worked in the Moscow Senate, and was a teacher of Law at Moscow University. He taught Law at the court of the Great Russian Princes and later, as one of the teachers of the Emperor Alexander III, he influenced the Tsar’s politics significantly. In 1865 Pobedonostsev became a consultant of the Department of Justice; in 1868 a Senator; and in 1872 a member of the State Council. From 1880 Pobedonostsev held the post of General Procurator of the Holy Synod, through which he very actively participated in the 48 administrative work of the Russian Empire at its highest level. Pobedonostsev was a famous public speaker and writer, publishing multiple articles and documentaries on History and Jurisprudence. 49 Pobedonostsev is well-known as an initiator of counter-proposals to the Russian reforms of the 1860-70s. He argued against the adoption of Western economic, political and social models for the transformation of Russian social and political life. In a letter to A. Shahov, the chairman of the Moscow Court, he wrote: I was protesting against the thoughtless adoption of some forms from the French Codex, which were alien for Russia... Since that time I have become convinced in the validity of my fears, and now it is absolutely clear for me that this is a strange cloth that was put on us and constrained us completely. 50 His negative reaction towards anything coming from the West could be explained by his belief in the superiority of the Russian Orthodox way. Pobedonostsev was a convinced Orthodox and a passionate patriot of Russia. His worldview is presented in his book Moscow Album written in 1896. He critic