Self-baptismin Old Belief: centers, practice, written tradition

The article considers poorly studied phenomenon at the Old Belief, known as 'samokreschenstvo' (self-baptism). Self-baptism has a long history and complex structure. Self-baptized were known among different consents of Old Believers - pomortsy, spasovtsy. Euthymius - the founder of a consent of strangers, himself baptized. Then there was extensive debate and a number of manuscripts, some of which are recently introduced in the scientific use. The roots of this phenomenon go to the early history of Christianity. The lives of the saints described a number of facts, when martyrs crossed themselves before death. In the second half of the eighteenth century an idea of the possibility of self-baptism, not only in extreme cases, occurred among Old Believers. This is indicated by Ivan Zhuravlev - one of the first historians of the Old Believers. Since the nineteenth century, there are more details about self-baptism. In 1837, Saratov tradesman Bondarev wrote an essay in which he argued that it is possible to remain an Orthodox Christian and do without the visible Church and the hierarchy. Self-baptized Matthew A. was well-known in the neighborhood of Samara. He apparently left the Fedoseevtsy because they did not pray for the tsar and did not recognize the marriage. At the Pomortsy councils (in 1881, 1887, 1889, 1896) discussed the rules of admission of self-baptized Old belivers from Matthew A. In 1909 the discussion continued on the first All-Russian Council of Christian Pomortsy in Moscow. Zapyantseva activity (1849 - Oct. 1916, originally from the village Tolba of Nizhny Novgorod province) was widespread. He is actively engaged in polemics with the Old Believers of different concerts, defending a broad correspondence on proper baptism. His name was known in the Urals and Siberia. Obviously a number of other Bespopovtsy consents related to self-baptism. But the almost complete absence of written records, does not allow valid conclusions about their origins and relationships in the structure of the Old Believers consent of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Finally, an important milestone in the study was to identify the fragment work 'The possibility of self-baptism and the rite of self-baptism' from the manuscript of the nineteenth century (Nizhny Novgorod collection Russian State Library). In this essay explained the self-baptism of elder Euthymius. Lists of this work expected to identify and study. The study of such works of strangers will explore the Old Believers histo-riographical tradition and allow understanding the mindset of supporters of individual comprehension of faith.

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