The Russian Orthodox Church as an Actor of the Politics of Memory: the Study of Local Theological Discourses (on the Example of the Lipetsk Region)

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of local theological discourses of the Russian Orthodox Church in the context of the specifics of the "young regions" of Russia. The application of the methodological ideas of P. Bourdieu, B. Latour and S. Jäger allowed to analyze the specifics of the interaction of the main actors of symbolic politics in the Lipetsk region, as well as to identify the place and role of the Lipetsk Metropolis with each of them. It was revealed that the Lipetsk Metropolis is striving not so much for competition and dominance in the symbolic space of the region, as it is trying to strengthen the religious dimension and interpretation of the history of the region, developing interaction with each of the actors of the politics of memory. This makes it possible to further strengthen the potential of the Metropolis in the rapid mobilization of resources to promote its own memorial projects, which in the region are primarily associated with the restoration of churches and monasteries. The study revealed five main discursive strategies of the Metropolis as an actor in the politics of memory, associated with the desire to present the history of the region as the history of the formation of Orthodoxy, to present the Lipetsk land as the defender of Russia, with active participation in military commemorations, the desire to interpret the important role of the era of Peter I in the development of Russian Orthodoxy, as well as selective criticism of the Soviet historical experience.