The Orthodox Parish in Non-Orthodox Border Regions of the Russian Empire: the Case of Finland

Abstract

In this article the problem of the collision of different paradigms of religious and national identity in a multinational and multi-confessional Russian Empire is shown on the example of a debate about the model of the Orthodox parish in Finland. The debate revealed a conflict between the two legal systems - imperial and that of the Grand Duchy of Finland. The Finnish legislation was perceived in the Grand Duchy as a guarantee of national identity. Therefore, the question about the status of the Orthodox parish was central for the conflict between the imperial centre and the periphery, as well as the process of Finland's national determination. The paper shows that the Empire and its general religious legislation lost in this matter to the Senate and the laws of the Dutchy. At the same time, the discussion resonated the internal Orthodox debate about the improved, ideal organisation of the parish. From this point of view, the Finnish project aroused ambivalent reaction of the Orthodox. On the one hand, they rejected the Protestant influence and a too deep intrusion of the civil authorities into the life of parish community. On the other hand, the supporters of the liberation of parish from the Church-State tutelage hoped that a detailed description of the parish self-government, given in the Finnish project, could be extended to the rest of Empire.