Conflicts in the Families of Parish Priests in 18th Century Ukraine

The study demonstrates how the religious worldview of early modern man influenced the formation of family values and relationships in the families of church and clerics. The paper is based on the analysis of religious texts that were the basis of the contemporary Orthodox idea of the ideal family, comparing them with notes on the daily life of religious figures of the early modern period and with archival sources. The thesis analyses the conflicts in priests’ families in Ukraine in the early modern society that was lenient with the “dosed” violence of the father in the family. The priest chose the usual pattern of behavior, ignoring or interpreting in his own way the instructions of the bishop and the canonical precepts. More than 7% of the priests were unable to resolve family quarrels on their own, and they moved to the public sphere. The majority were the conflicts between the son-in-law of the priest and mother-in-law. The least are those made up the ones where the key figures were the priest and his wife. All family members were involved in the cases. The review of conflict situations shows that they took place on the basis of disputes over material values, personal animosity and in the context of “professional” activities, as family members often held all positions in the parish