Society and Orthodox Church in the rear province during World War I (based on materials of the city of Tsaritsyn, Saratov Governorate)

This article analyses the problem of consolidation of society and the Orthodox Church in a large uyezd centre of Saratov Governorate during World War I. The socio-cultural and spiritual life of the pre-Soviet period in the history of Volgograd (formerly Tsaritsyn) against the background of current scientifi c interest in the events of the Battle of Stalingrad remains unexplored. In particular, the spiritual component of the provincial society of the Lower Volga region is not studied enough. This component in conditions of World War I is directly related to the topical problem of the “culture of the rear”. The aim of the article is to reveal the content of spiritual and social work of the church as an important component in social regulation of provincial society during the years of the World War. Special attention is paid to the issues of interaction between clergy and lay people in supporting soldiers’ families, assisting the wounded and the displaced. The authors of the article have studied and introduced new factual material on the topic in question. The article specifi es functions of parish councils, aspects of interaction between parish councils and churchgoers in setting up hospitals, orphanages, in supporting local divisions of charitable organisations, namely the Red Cross, Elizavetinskiy and Tat’yaninskiy committees, the “Humanistic Society” (Russ. Человеколюбивое обществo). The authors have carried out documentary analysis of archival sources and printed materials by means of the method of collecting factual data contained in documents; the documents themselves served as the main source of information. The study made use of a civilisational approach to the analysis of socio-cultural and spiritual factors that infl uenced the life of provincial society in the period of great trials. The main conclusion of the study is that the unity of society and the Orthodox Church came to be one of important social foundations of the rear during the dismal period of World War I