Starcy Pustelni Optyńskiej i rosyjska inteligencja XIX wieku

Abstract

This article provides an explanation of the meaning of the word “elder” (starets) used in reference to the monks of the Optina Monastery on the basis of the Tradition of the Orthodox Church as a word understood not in the sense of physical age, but in the sense of perfect spiritual and moral growth. The article also shows the worldview of the Russian Intelligence of the 19th century and the benevolent influence the Elders of the Optina Monastery had on it.