The Processes of “Secularization” as a Consequence of SocioÆEconomic Tension among Russian Old Believers of the Late 19th – early 20th Centuries in the Village of Novaya Bryan’

Abstract

The article presents a historical and ethnographic analysis of the frst published autobiography of Sozon Ivlich Zherlov, a descendant of exiled settlers in Transbaikalia from the 18th century. The autobiography was written, according to the author, between 1930 and 1967. The emerging manifestations of property inequality, while only visible social equality was maintained, contributed to tension in relations and to the growing discontent among the Old Believers of the village of Novaya Bryan', as well as to their secularization. When analyzing a text written by a simple, barely literate peasant in the frst half of the 20th century, it is necessary to consider the time of its creation and the ideological component of people's lives at that time. It is obvious that the process of secularization of the Old Believers of Novaya Bryan’ – i.e., the strengthening of secular (non-religious) elements in their culture – was due to a number of factors: the modernization of everyday life, which usually accompanied people changing their place of residence; and the property and social stratifcation of the Old Believers. The text used in the article is based on chapters from the memoirs of the author's grandmother, who, despite the hardships she had experienced, maintained Christian humility and loyalty to her ancestors' traditions of “enduring to the end”. However, her grandson, S.I. Zherlov, already discussed in his narrative the cause-and-efect relationships between the hardships endured by some people and the morality-corrupting wealth of others.