Cathedral Rank, a Handwritten Document of the Komi-Zyrians: Instruction and Foundations of Faith

Abstract

The literary tradition of the Komi-Zyrians dates back to the first translations of liturgical books into the Komi language by Stefan Permsky. These translation practices remained uninterrupted, becoming the basis for the literary language in the nineteenth century. In the late nineteenth century, an independent handwritten tradition developed in the Upper Vychegda region associated with the activity of Stefan Ermolin, the religious leader of the Singers of Good movement. The movement branched off from the official Orthodox Church and created its own literature in the Verkhnevychegod dialect of the Komi language. This article describes a work of literature created by the Singers, a liturgical text outlining the basics of their faith; it concerns everything a follower of bursylysyas (Singers of Good) needs to know about salvation and, most importantly, the path which leads them to God. The manuscript is called Cathedral Rank (Komi-Zyrian Сӧбирайтчан рад) and is introduced into scholarly circulation for the first time.