THE MAIN CONCEPTS OF "RUS CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS REVIVAL" OF THE LAST THIRD OF THE SEVENTEENTH – EARLY EIGHTEENTH CENTURY AS A PRECONDITION FOR "THE UNION TRIUMPHALISM" IN THE SCIENTIFIC WORKS OF ANDRZEJ GIL AND IGOR SKOCHILIAS

Abstract

Summary. The purpose of the article is to analyze the contribution of Andrzej Gil and Ihor Skochylias to the study of the preconditions for the "triumph" of the union confession in the western dioceses of the Kyiv metropolis in the context of development of new concepts and ideas by these scientists. The research methodology is based on the use of historical-comparative method and methods of analysis, synthesis and generalization. The scientific novelty of the article lies in an attempt to study the innovative concepts of modern scholars on the topic of the history of the union church of the late XVII ‒ early XVIII centuries. Conclusions. The significant source material is the authors’ concept that at the turn of the XVII‒XVIII centuries there was a cultural and religious revival and large-scale modernization reforms in the Kyiv metropolis leading to the formation of an innovative religious model "Slavia Unita". The scholars state that the main initiators and promoters of the Reformation innovations were the uniate metropolitans of Kyiv, representatives of the Basilian order and the local church hierarchy. Implementation and control over the innovations were carried out during regular episcopal and archimandrite visits and episcopal courts. Everything was codified at local diocesan councils. According to historians, this religious model contributed to the formation of a clear union identity and a closer union with European religious culture. At the same time, it contributed to the preservation of the important principles of the Kyivan Christian tradition. There are at least two objective conclusions made by the authors. One of them is that a direct result of this model was "the union triumphalism" and the "golden age of union" in the Kyiv metropolis, and the second one is that the political consequence of "Slavia Unita" is unification around the union denomination of the Rus nation. The Union Church in the Kyiv metropolis became the most widespread confession and an effective representative of the interests of the Rus people.