Never Again! Remembering October 1917 in the Contemporary Russian Orthodox Church

Abstract

ABSTRACTRevolution is a negatively connoted term within the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) in contemporary Russia. Leaders of the ROC argue for unity and reconciliation regarding the still ambivalent memory of the October Revolution. This position mirrors official political discourse. This claim is intended to encompass all citizens (and believers), without regard for their political and historical preferences. For State and Church the culprit is located in the so-called West, where all revolutionary ideas come from. Therefore, so the argument goes, the February Revolution was the starting point and the seizure of power by the Bolsheviks in October only its logical and tragic consequence. The Church’s argumentation follows its own logic, but coincides with that of the government in condemning any kind of revolution in order to avoid a repeat of 1917.