For which they excommunicated Dmitry Donskoy, the Roerichs and other famous people

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Being excommunicated forever is one of the worst things for a believer. Anathematized can no longer receive a church blessing and get married, but what is more terrible for a religious person - he cannot also confess and receive absolution, as well as receive communion. In general, the way to paradise and to the salvation of the soul is closed for him, because all his sins remain with him and he no longer participates in God. Anathema was betrayed by many famous people, and sometimes at once in bulk.

Jeanne d'Arc and Dmitry Donskoy

These two national heroes and official saints, Catholic and Orthodox, are united by one fact: both of them, as historians say, were anathematized during their lifetime. Jeanne was even led to the fire in a paper miter with the inscription "Heretic, apostate, idolater." One of the formal reasons was the wearing of men's clothing. In fact, through the French Catholics, the British punished Jeanne - because because of her they lost the conquered France.

About Dmitry Donskoy, modern historians believe that he was not just not blessed to fight by Sergius of Radonezh - they were generally in opposition, since Father Sergius, as a priest, naturally supported Metropolitan Cyprian, and Cyprian, it seems, excommunicated the prince. That is why in all the early sources describing the Battle of Kulikovo, Sergius of Radonezh is not mentioned in any way. It was introduced into the history of the battle much later, for the sake of general splendor. In the official history, the version with Father Sergius was introduced by Karamzin, who was more interested in patriotism than objectivity and reality.

And Dmitry was excommunicated from the church because he literally ordered to beat the Metropolitan of Kiev and All Russia Cyprian, when he, without princely demand, tried to enter Moscow. The date of the anathema is called June 23, 1378. They removed it from the prince, most likely, already posthumously, for the totality of services to the homeland and battles with non-Christians. Later, both Cyprian and Dmitry were declared saints - such is the irony of fate.

Stepan Razin and Emelyan Pugachev

Two legendary leaders of "free people" were equally excommunicated, moreover, for the same thing: for a rebellion against the government and atrocities committed during the rebellion. Razin was the leader of the Peasant War, which, according to him, he raised against the evil boyars, and not against his good tsar. He called for the murder of nobles and commanding people, he, in fact, had no other political program.

Emelyan Pugachev himself declared himself the good tsar Peter III, who escaped being killed by an evil wife. It is difficult to say whether he really intended to rule all of Russia, but the rebellious Cossacks under his command were seizing region after region with frightening speed. In fact, it was a war against all the nobles, although the class theories were not known to Pugachev - only the usual class hatred of the masters. The victims of atrocities, however, were the servants of the nobility, and sometimes ordinary peasants, and, of course, captured soldiers - who could not be attributed to masters in any way.

Catholics and Orthodox have anathematized each other

The split of the Christian Church into Catholic and Orthodox was marked by the official tradition of anathema to each other. This happened in 1054. And in 1965 Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras of Constantinople decided to lift the mutual anathema. In practice, this does not give anything, just such a mutual gesture of respect: the basic contradictions between the two Christian churches have not been resolved.

Venice and atec

Although anathema is still usually betrayed one at a time, sometimes entire cities get it. Czech atec got it for the support of the heretic and former priest Jan Hus, who created his own religious teaching. And Venice was excommunicated six times. Oddly enough, this was not at all due to the fact that the city was flourishing officially supported by the authorities, prostitution, which took on a gigantic scale. The reasons were always political. For the sixth time, the authorities of Venice decided to ignore the anathema and under threats forced the priesthood of the city to continue to perform the ordinances in relation to the inhabitants. In theory, this could lead to the recognition of the Venetians as heretics, but in fact, in the end, the authorities of Venice, using money and a little diplomacy, as always, settled everything.

Henry VIII and Elizabeth I

King Bluebeard (although, of course, in fact, a redhead) and his daughter also received anathema from the Pope, but they did not turn their ears away: after all, they were excommunicated for adopting and promoting Protestantism, which means that they themselves had already left Catholicism. Henry VIII adopted Protestantism to strengthen his power in Britain, that is, so that even the Pope himself was not a decree to him. By the time of Elizabeth's accession, many aristocrats had become Protestants (it was still a long way before Protestantism became a popular religion).

Since Elizabeth's predecessor and her older sister, Queen Mary, were known for persecuting Protestants, it was a great way for Elizabeth to announce that she was supporting her great father's course was a great way to get the support of many affected noble families at once. And Elizabeth needed support - after all, her niece, the Scottish Queen Mary Stuart, also claimed the English throne. Catholics found her candidacy more legitimate due to the fact that Elizabeth was born in the marriage of Henry, not recognized by the Catholic Church. In general, Elizabeth did not have much choice: Protestantism made her legitimate and gave a wide circle of support from among those offended by her sister, while Catholicism did the opposite.

The emperor and the pervert

Not always excommunicated for political reasons. For example, the German emperor Henry IV was excommunicated for this only once - when he himself tried to depose Pope Gregory. Because of the anathema, the political and commercial affairs of the Great Roman Empire, which, in fact, was ruled by the German emperor, were threatened, and Henry personally appeared in the Vatican to beg forgiveness.

The second time he was excommunicated, however, for repeated rapes and the organization of rapes, including children. His wife, Adelgeida, the sister of Vladimir Monomakh, and his stepson Konrad, who saved her from this hell, testified against him. What they told was so terrible and large-scale in size that the new Pope Urban found it impossible to leave the pervert and sadist in the bosom of the Catholic Church. Moreover, Adelheida and Konrad argued that Henry was a member of the Nicolaitans sect. As a matter of fact, perhaps the latter fact turned out to be more significant than the rape.

Helena Blavatsky and the Roerich family

Few people know, but these famous idols of mysticism lovers were excommunicated by the ROC in the nineties. In fact, from the point of view of the church, there was a statement of the fact: Blavatsky and Roerichs and so led a non-Orthodox way of life, completely surrendering to the occult; from the Orthodox in them there was only the fact of baptism in infancy. By the way, Helena Blavatsky was familiar with Leo Tolstoy, also excommunicated from the church, and greatly influenced him: in some of his texts you can find almost direct quotes of her. Another excommunicated scientist, Andrei Markov, was also associated with Tolstoy for his defense of Tolstoy, which contained attacks on the priesthood.

Nowadays

Although anathema seems to be a sign of very ancient years, nowadays you can sometimes read about it in the news. Thus, Pope Francis officially anathematized all members of the mafia, since their criminal activities not only destroy human lives, but very often involve atrocities that can be written in a separate book. Especially when it comes to the modern slave trade: forced prostitution and forced labor of people brought far from home.

In Russia, journalist Oleg Dementyev was recently anathematized (by the way, an atheist - but being anathematized also means the inability to be baptized if he wants to). The Pskov diocese excommunicated him from the sacraments for a series of articles about the Spaso-Elizarovsky Monastery, which he accused of attempting to misappropriate land. In response, the journalist filed a lawsuit against the Pskov diocese, claiming that the announcement of the anathema caused him moral damage.

Sometimes anathema is considered a curse, but in this area there is something more interesting than excommunication: 9 medieval curses that scared book thieves.