Orthodox Priests — Researchers of the Native Religions of the Russian Empire in the Late 19th and Early 20th Centuries

This article presents the research of Orthodox priests who studied the religious ideas of the peoples of the Russian Empire. Their works, both published and in manuscript, can be classified into five main groups: studies dealing with Abrahamic religions; studies of other world and national religions; studies of religious dissidents (Christian sects and Judaizers); works on the traditional beliefs of the native peoples of the Volga Region, the Urals, Siberia, and the Caucasus; and works on popular religiosity. The focus of this article is mainly upon the latter two topics. In some regions, such as the Altai and the Volga region, religious dissent was linked to ethnic and cultural self-identification, which led to new syncretic religious movements (such as Kougou Sorta and Burkhanism). In spite of their Christianizing agenda, these priest-scholars made a significant contribution to Russian humanities.