aici - Asociatia Tinerilor Istorici din Moldova

arithmetic, had to educate the children in the spirit
that Russia has achieved its power by embracing the
orthodox faith and obeying czar’s authority.
Between the late 19 th and the early 20 th century,
Russia’s domestic policy was influenced by Constantin
Pobedonostsev, the Synod’s ober-prosecutor during
1880-1905. Being a dedicated follower of Slavophilism,
he was sympathetic to Alexei Homeakov’s ideas.
Pobedonostsev supported the idea that the state and
the church were closely connected, religion representing
the foundation of the state. Beginning with
1884, the Russian Churched was actively involved in
the policy of Russification promoted by the authorities
with support from the Holy Synod, especially
through parochial schools. In the context where
Bessarabia had no national church, the immediate
result of Pobedonostsev’s policy was that the level of
passiveness and religious servitude has increased.
In parallel with revolutionary tendencies in the
Russian Empire at the beginning of the 20 th century,
the Bessarabian clergy started to ask more insistently
for the introduction of the “Moldovan” language in
the religious schools. The Holy Synod informed the
Eparchial Schools Committee that it was willing to
allow teaching in “Moldovan” in the eparchial schools
located in localities with primarily Moldovan population,
however at the elementary level only (when the
pupils where learning spoken Russian) and further
studying of “Moldovan” as a separate subject was
prohibited.
Being caught in a true Imperial ‘psychosis’ the
Church has lavishly celebrated the one hundredth
anniversary of Bessarabia’s annexation to the czarist
Russia. An ample propaganda took place throughout
the entire eparchy, this event being widely praised.
Archbishop Serafim was very active in this sense. The
Russian authorities have received several telegrams
signed by him and by local authorities, expressing
their gratitude in relation to this event. This apparently
festive atmosphere was not however reflective
of the local reality. The Bessarabian orthodox believers
had archbishops that did not speak their language
while Seraphim treated Moldovans as separatists
for wanting to reunite with their motherland and
thus, many of the notable clergy members have been
banished from Bessarabia for sympathizing national
values. The region has witnessed a rise in the number
of sects, the Romanian language being prohibited in
Churches in order to implement the idea of ‘great
Russians’ (velicorus) among the local population.
The imperial authorities saw the priests as the most
suitable for their mission of Russification which has
triggered a great influx of Russian clergy into Bessarabia.
The Romanian society has not remained indifferent
to what was happening in Bessarabia. There have
been several protest movements against the Russian
Empire.
Despite being subject to an intense process of
Russification, the Romanian people of Bessarabia
have managed to maintain their identity. We must
acknowledge the fact that one of the consequences
of Russification was emergence of a gap between the
Church and the population. Still, if some priests did
not maintain the faith in Romanian language among
their believers, the Romanian people of Bessarabia
would have completely merged with their rulers.
The clergy, especially priests in rural areas, prayed
in “Moldovan” – the only language spoken by the
peasants whose lack of education has ironically
shielded them from Russification. In urban areas
however, the situation was very different and a great
part of intellectuals have lost their Romanian identity.
The Orthodox Church has served the interests of
the Imperial authorities through the policy of Russification
of Bessarabia, being a very effective tool for
promoting the Russian expansion in the region.
However, we have to recognize the national and
cultural merits of the Bessarabian clergy who, through
their attachment and faith to the Church, have maintained
the language and the culture of the ancestors.
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