Abstract
The article is devoted to a comparative examination of important historical and literary sources reflecting the attitude of Old Believers to the leaders of two opposing ideological currents of the era of church reform in Russia: the autobiographical Life of Archpriest Avvakum and the anonymous “Decorated Tale” (or “anti-life”) of Patriarch Nikon, written by Old Believers in the 18th century. This consideration makes it possible to assess the position of the Old Believers in resolving the issue of true faith, true priesthood, attitude towards the Church and secular authority. The heroes of the two considered non-canonical Old Believer “lives” go to their goal and achieve it, resorting to the help of miraculous otherworldly forces — light (divine) and dark (antichrist), entering into direct communication with them, like the New Testament apostles or ancient prophets.
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