"Alanian Princess, Princess of Vladimir": Maria Yasynia, Russian-Ossetian Connections, and Conservative Family Values

Abstract

This article is devoted to a canonization initiative - to bring the local (Vladimir diocese) saint, Maria Shvarnovna (Yasynia) (c. 1158-1206), grandmother of Alexander Nevsky, to the Church-wide veneration. Maria Yasynia is seen to be of Alanian (Ossetian) origin, and hence the great interest to her personality among Orthodox activists in today’s North Ossetia-Alania, as well as among some people from local government and Moscow ecclesiastical establishment. Analyzing the debates around this initiative allows for some conclusions about current understanding of the nature of saintliness. The question is: who and on what grounds could be a legitimate expert in the field of applied hagiology? Determining hagiological dignity of a candidate for sainthood cannot be reduced to the confrontation between Orthodox Church “elite" and the “masses," or between diocesan center and periphery. Each group tries to use the potential of the saint’s image to achieve its own goals, while possibly avoiding confrontation with others. Overall, the debates over the canonization produce the most important symbols of national and regional identities, which go beyond the internal life of the Church.