Pagans of Darkness, Cruel Lutherans

Images of religious ‘others’ in the historical accounts concerning the Russion Orthodox Valaam monastery 1

Bibliographic Data

ID11992141
AuthorsKati Parppei (0000-0002-4322-9046, Schlumberger (Ireland), corresponding author)
Year2010
Volume35
Issue2
Pages135-155
Publication date2010-06-23
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueScandinavian Journal of History (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0346-8755 • E-ISSN: 1502-7716
PublisherRoutledge (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/03468750903549797
OpenAlexW2089856362
LanguageEN
References cited12

Textual descriptions of ‘others’ tend to reflect perceptions, values and social identities of the group within which they are produced. Popular historical accounts concerning the past of the Russian Orthodox monastery of Valaam, located in the borderland area nowadays known as Russian Karelia, reveal two main lines in producing images of religious otherness from the 16th to the 19th century. The first one is based on the stereotypic medieval idea of the monastery as a missionary centre and a ‘torch of light’ in a wilderness inhabited by pagans. The other one emerges in the 19th century, bringing Western neighbours – first Catholics, then Lutheran Swedes – in the spotlight. The descriptions, getting more detailed and violent during the last decades of the century, were a historiographical reflection of the contemporary issues in the air, such as the contradictions between the Russian and Finnish nationalistic ideas and goals. Keywords: imagehistoriographymonastery Notes 1 The article is based on the writer's doctoral thesis ‘“The Oldest One in Russia.” The Formation of the Historiographical Image of the Russian Orthodox Valaam Monastery.’ The thesis is a historical imagological case study of how a written past was constructed for a value-laden place in the context of national history writing and nation-building processes of the 18th and 19th centuries. 2 See, for example, Löytty, ‘Toiseuttamista ja tilakurittomuutta’, 9–10; Feres, ‘Building a Typology’, 259–77; Paasi, Territories, Boundaries and Consciousness, 12–13. 3 Boulding, The Image, 6–16; 64–81; Fält, Eksotismista realismiin, 10–14; Isoaho, The Image of Aleksandr Nevskiy, 10–11. 4 de Anna, ‘Vieraiden kansojen kirjallisesta kuvasta’, 22–3. 5 Lind, ‘The politico-religious landscape’, 7–9; Maaranen, ‘Hengellisen ja maallisen vallan manifestoitumisesta keskiajan maisemassa’; Korpela, The World of Ladoga, 265–6. 6 One should point out, however, that in the 19th century the ‘scholar’ and ‘popular’ historiography were intertwined in a way that creates a danger of anachronism in attempts to draw a strict line between the two. 7 Sulakadzev's unprinted work and its copies are preserved in the library of New Valaam (‘Opyt drevnej i novoj letopisi Valaamskogo monastyrâ’, XII: 360, 360a, 360b). It is written in a scholarly way and carefully keeps record of all the references – both real and imaginary. See also, for example, Kozlov, Tainy falsifikatsii, 155–74. 8 In general, in Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries historiographical forgeries formed an interesting sidetrack in the emergence of the national history writing and literature. The attempts to forge textual material arose from the enthusiasm to search and collect historical texts and manuscripts, and from the aspirations for finding impressive epics to illustrate the nation's past. One of the most famous – and most disputed – cases was the collection called The Works of Ossian, published in 1765 by Scottish poet James Macpherson (see, for example, Porter, ‘Bring Me the Head of James Macpherson’, 396–435; Constantine, ‘Welsh Literary History’, 109–28). 9 Kozlov, Tainy falsifikatsii, 161–3. 10 On the debate of foundation, see, for example, Golubinskij, Istoriâ kanonizaciâ svâtih v russkoj cerkvi, 147; Kirkinen, Karjala idän kulttuuripiirissä, 113–39; Kirkinen, ‘The Founding of the Valamo Monastery’, 30–52; Lind, Hvornår blev Valamo klosteret grundlagt?, 260–1; Lind, ‘Sources and Pseudo-Sources’; Okhotina-Lind, Skazanie o Valaamskom monastyre. Issledovanie, perevod, kommentarii, 6–8, 151. 11 Okhotina-Lind, Skazanie o Valaamskom monastyre. Issledovanie, perevod, kommentarii, 29–30. 12 See, for example, Lind, ‘The politico-religious landscape of medieval Karelia’, 8–9; Paasi, Territories, Boundaries and Consciousness, 12–13; Korpela, The World of Ladoga, 210–30; 265–6; Katajala, ‘Cross-Border Trade in Karelia’, 75–7; Nakadzava, Rukopisanie Magnuša. Issledovanie i teksty, 67–8; Billington, The Icon and the Axe, 126. 13 There can be seen a certain difference between the equally ambiguous concepts of border and frontier; according to Jukka Korpela, the former refers to the line between two territorial units, while the latter depicts a diffuse zone between ‘us’ and ‘aliens’. For example, in medieval thinking a frontier existed between Christians and ‘others’, such as Moslems or pagans (Korpela, ‘The Formation of Medieval Karelia’, 49). 14 ‘Valamo’ is a Finnic toponym referring to the pre-Russian history of the archipelago (Korpela, The World of Ladoga, 154). 15 Okhotina-Lind, Skazanie o Valaamskom monastyre, 160–1. In translating the quotes of the Skazanie, I have used John Lind's previous translation as a support (Okhotina, ‘The Tale of the Valamo Monastery’, 106–36). 16 Okhotina-Lind, Skazanie o Valaamskom monastyre, 163–5. 17 Ibid., 160–1. 18 Ibid., 164–9. 19 Korpela, Viipurin linnaläänin synty, 22–5. 20 Okhotina-Lind, Skazanie o Valaamskom monastyre, 32–3; Picchio, ‘The Impact of Ecclesiastic Culture’, 251–3. 21 Siilin, ‘Kuka oli pyhittäjä Aleksanteri Syväriläinen? Hagiografian faktaa ja fiktiota’, 61; Terras, A History of Russian Literature, 25. 22 Lotman and Uspenskij, ‘The Role of Dual Models’, 6. 23 Lavrentievskaâ letopis, 3–4; Čičurov, ‘Hoždenie apostola Andreâ’ v vizantiskoj i drevnerusskoj cerkovno-ideologičeskoj tradicii, 9–14; Poppe, ‘Two Concepts’, 499; Dvornik, The Idea of Apostolicity, 156–61, 181–222, 261–3. 24 See Genesis 12: 5–7 (The Revised English Bible with Apocrypha); Leviticus 18: 1–4, 27–8, (The Revised English Bible with Apocrypha). 25 Deuteronomy 7: 1–6, 16–25; 20: 16–18 (The Revised English Bible with Apocrypha). See also Kilpeläinen, Valamo – karjalaisten luostari?, 132–4. 26 See, for example, Isoaho, The Image of Aleksandr Nevskiy, 62. 27 Korpela, ‘The Christian Saints and the Integration of Muscovy’, 44–8. 28 See, for example, Korpela, Viipurin linnaläänin synty, 128–34. 29 See, for example, Lind, ‘The politico-religious landscape’, 7–8. 30 Moreover, Peter had founded a new monastery in St Petersburg, consecrating it to Aleksandr Nevskij, who was seen as a defender of Rus’ against the Western invaders. This act can also be seen as symbolically equalizing the position of the new capital in relation to Moscow and Kiev (see, for example, Billington, The Icon and the Axe, 185). 31 See, for example, ‘Žitie i molitva Valaamskih čudotvorcev’, 8; ‘Istoriograf Valaamskago monastyrâ’, 6. 32 Ostrov Valaam i tamošnij monastyr, 17. 33 Valaamskoe slovo o Valaamskom monastyr, 8. It is notable that this particular publication does not quote any information or ‘sources’ produced by Sulakadzev. It may indicate that at least Damaskin, being personally very interested in the history of his monastery, did not want to openly support the ideas that were already known to have a suspicious background. On the other hand, many of the monastery's own publications, including the popular and repeatedly reprinted Valaamskij monastyr (1864), did not avoid using Sulakadzev's ideas. 34 See, for example, Polnoe sobranie istoričeskih svedenij o vseh byvših v drevnosti i nyne suŝestvuûŝih monastyrâh i primečatelnyh cerkvah v Rossii, 472. Prepodobnye otcy Sergij i German, 3–7. Pavlovskij, Vseobŝij illûstrirovannyj Putevoditel, 711. Pravoslavya Russkiâ obiteli, 104. 35 Pavlovskij, Vseobŝij illûstrirovannyj Putevoditel, 711–12. Pravoslavya Russkiâ obiteli, 104. In the light of the Skazanie o Valaamskom monastyre, it seems likely that the legend of the apostle's visit was a relatively old piece of the monastic tradition, preserved perhaps in oral form through the time of the desertion. 36 Murav'ev, Putešestvie po svâtym mestam russkim, 135–6. 37 See, for example, Valaamskij monastyr, 5–7; Ostroumova, Svâtyni naševo severa, 160. 38 Thaden, Conservative Nationalism, 8–9. 39 Prepodobnye otcy Sergij i German, 6–7. 40 Živopisnoe obozrenie russkih svâtyh mest. Valaamskij monastyr, 11. 41 Okhotina-Lind, Skazanie o Valaamskom monastyre, 160–1. 42 About the ideas concerning the Greek connections see, for example, ‘Istoriograf Valaamskogo monastyrâ, ili rosyskanie o ego drevnosti i pokazanie nastoâŝago ego položeniâ’, 6–8; Kirkinen, Karjala idän kulttuuripiirissä, 112–13; Lisovoj, ‘Vosemnadcatyj vek v istorii russkogo monašestva’, 208–12. Pellikka, ‘Athos – Venäjä – Valamo’, 92; Valaamskij monastyr, XXIII. Pravoslavya Russkiâ obiteli, 103. 43 Okhotina-Lind, Skazanie o Valaamskom monastyre, 160–1. 44 See, for example, Crummey, The Formation of Muscovy, 157–9, 164–5; Korpela, Viipurin linnaläänin synty, 308–9. 45 The idea of these early transfers was based on some relatively late and sporadic mentions in chronicles. Some scholars (see, for example, Heikki Kirkinen) have considered these mentions as a proof of the existence of the monastery already in the 12th century. 46 These events are mentioned in some textual sources that are written in the 17th century. 47 ‘Istoriograf Valaamskogo monastyrâ’, 7–9. 48 Murav'ev, Putešestvie po svâtym mestam russkim, 138–9. 49 Valaamskoe slovo o Valaamskom monastyre, 10. 50 In this context it should be noted that in Russian there are separate words for Orthodox and Lutheran churches; the former are called cerkvi and the latter kirki. 51 Valaamskoe slovo o Valaamskom monastyre, 13–14. 52 Ibid., 14–15. 53 Skazanie o žizni i čudesah prepodobnyh Sergiâ i Germana, 18–19. 54 See, for example, Heikkilä, Pyhän Henrikin legenda, 145. 55 Putešestvie na Valaam, 15. See also, for example, Prepodobnye otcy Sergij i German,12–13,18–19. 56 Ostroumova, Svâtyni naševo severa, 164. 57 Valaamskij monastyr, 19; Prepodobnye otcy Sergij i German, 13; Živopisnoe obozrenie russkih svâtyh mest, 14–15. 58 Živopisnoe obozrenie russkih svâtyh mest, 18. 59 Polnoe sobranie žitij svâtyh Pravoslavnoj Greko-Rossijskoj Cerkvi, 166. 60 Pirinen, ‘Lännen näkemys idän kristityistä keskiaâlla’, 42–7; Karemaa, Vihollisia, vainoojia, syöpäläisiä, 12–18. The Swedish imagery of Russians was largely based on more general Western European perceptions of Russianness (Polnoe sobranie žitij svǎtyh Pravoslavnoj Greko-Rossijskoj Cerkvi, 12). 61 Tarkiainen, Se vanha vainooja, 293–305. 62 Ibid., 305–10. 63 See, for example, Wunsch, ‘Image Research and the Enemy Image’, 74–6; Karemaa, Vihollisia, vainoojia, syöpäläisiä, 17–20. 64 Tarkiainen, Se vanha vainooâ, 312–14. Wunsch, ‘Image Research and the Enemy Image’, 76. 65 See, for example, Billington, The Icon and the Axe, 126; Paasi, Territories, Boundaries and Consciousness, 12–13; Korpela, The World of Ladoga, 265–6. 66 Hastings, The Construction of Nationhood, 190–1. 67 Loima, ‘Nationalism and Orthodox Church’, 99–104. 68 See, for example, Koukkunen, ‘Luostari- ja käännynnäiskysymykset’, 69–78; Kilpeläinen, Valamo – karjalaisten luostari?, 153–4. 69 Ozereckovskij, Putešestvie po ozeram Ladožskomu i Onežskomu, 72. 70 Lönnrot, Vandraren. Resebärettelser från Karelen, 118–19. 71 The translated text of the engraving told that: In this place is buried a corpse 72 For a relatively detailed account see, for example, Valaamskij monastyr, 44–5. 73 See, for example, Lind, ‘The Russian Testament of King Magnus’, 198. 74 Karamzin, Istoriâ gosudarstva rossijskogo, 138–9. 75 There are some minor differences between the texts indicating that the version of the Fourth Novgorod chronicle may be the oldest of them (Kagan, ‘Rukopisanie Magnusa, korolâ Svejskogo’, 313–14). 76 ‘Novgorodskaâ IV letopis’ [NIV], 281. 77 NIV, 282. 78 Ibid. 79 Ibid. 80 Korpela, Viipurin linnaläänin synty, 102–8. 81 Korpela, The World of Ladoga, 265–6. 82 Paasi, Territories, Boundaries and Consciousness, 12–13; Korpela, The World of Ladoga, 265–6. 83 See, for example, Nakadzava, Rukopisanie Magnuša, 4; Isoaho, The Image of Aleksandr Nevskiy, 34–5, 44–5; Terras, A History of Russian Literature, 48–9, 66. 84 See, for example, Istoriko-statističeskiâ svedeniâ S.-Peterburskoj Eparhii, 9; Valaamskoe slovo o Valaamskom monastyre, 10. 85 See, for example, Putešestvie na Valaam, vo svâtuû obitel, 16; Pavlovskij, Vseobŝij illjustrirovannyj Putevoditel, 714

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