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Reforms of Patriarch Nikon
In 1653, Russian Orthodox Patriarch Nikon, with Tsar Alexis I's support, imposed sweeping liturgical reforms aligning Russian practice with Greek ort…
Timeline
- 1653Moscow · RussiaIn February 1653 Patriarch Nikon issued a reform decree requiring the three-finger sign of the cross to replace the two-finger custom and reducing the number of bows in worship, marking the formal start of the liturgical reforms. Archpriest Avvakum and others openly resisted and were deposed and exiled by Nikon.
- 1654–1655Moscow · RussiaTwo councils held between 1654 and 1655 systematically revised Russian liturgical books against Greek liturgical texts, formally confirming the direction of reform, with many bishops signing the resolutions. The Old Believers then organized expanded resistance, intensifying the trend toward schism.
- 1658Moscow · RussiaIn 1658 Nikon broke with the tsar and departed in anger for the Voskresensky Monastery, leaving the patriarchal throne vacant. The Old Believers seized the opportunity to expand their activities, Raskol spread across all social strata, hundreds of thousands of believers rejected the new rites, and the Russian Church was permanently divided.
Sources
- Russia, Ritual, and Reform: The Liturgical Reforms of Nikon in the 17th Century — Meyendorff, Paul (1991)
- A History of Russia — Riasanovsky, Nicholas V.; Steinberg, Mark D. (2005)