The sociocultural image of the North Kazakhstan Orthodox clergy in the early 20th century (in the aspect of the biography of priest Alexander Petrovich Chinishlov)

Authors

  • Priest Mikhail Berezin Almaty Orthodox Theological Seminary

Keywords:

North Kazakhstan, Omsk diocese, Orthodox clergy, resettlement policy

Abstract

The article examines the socio-cultural image of the Orthodox clergy of North Kazakhstan in the early 20th century. From the point of view of civil history, this period for the region was marked by mass migrations of peasants from the central provinces of Russia and Ukraine. The mass migration of the Orthodox faithful raised the issue of large-scale organization of church construction. One of the important aspects of the latter was a significant increase in the number of Orthodox pastors, which was not an easy task in the absence of theological educational institutions in the region. The author concludes that most of the newly appointed pastors of North Kazakhstan were from the settlers and came from the peasant class. A characteristic path to spiritual rank is shown on the basis of a previously unpublished diary of the future priest Alexander Petrovich Chinishlov.

Author Biography

Priest Mikhail Berezin, Almaty Orthodox Theological Seminary

Master of Theology, Graduate of the St. Cyril amd Methodius postgraduate studies
of the Russian Orthodox Church,
Teacher of the Almaty Orthodox Theological Seminary (Kazakhstan)

Published

2025-09-06

Issue

Section

Historical Theology