“Prophecy must resurrect in the Church”: the figure of prophet in russian thought of the late 19th — early 20th century

Abstract

The article focuses on the development of ideas about the prophet in Russia in the late 19th – the early 20th century. In the European discourse the understanding of the prophet as the bearer of the personal principle in religion most fully described by M. Weber. Since in Russian religious philosophy the conceptualization of the prophetic function appears in the works of V. Solovyov, the first part of the article is devoted to the analysis of the idea of a prophet in the theocratic concept of this thinker. Specific features of the system proposed by the Russian philosopher are characterized, where the prophet was considered as a link of the “triad” along with the priesthood and the kingdom. The constant characteristics of the prophet as the third principle of power in the Solovyov system are formulated. The second part of the article is devoted to the reception of Solovyov’s ideas in Russian theology and religious philosophy of the beginning of the 20th century. The discussions about the hierarchy and the intellectuals as carriers of the prophetic principle that arose at the Religious-Philosophical Meetings, and the positions on this issue of V. Ternavtsev and D. Merezhkovsky are characterized. The development of the idea of a prophet in the context of the discussion of the problem of power in the Church in the academic theology of M. Tareev, V. Troitsky, P. Florensky is traced. The interpretation of the Soloviev triad by S. Bulgakov and A. Kartashev, as well as criticism of the views of the latter by Merezhkovsky’s circle, is analyzed. It is noted that the participants in the discussions considered the prophetic principle as integrated into the church community or opposed to the church hierarchy. In conclusion, the development of the discourse about the prophet in the Russian tradition of the designated period is summed up, parallels with the search for Western explorers are noted. The article concludes that the common problem for Russian and European thinkers of the early 20th century is the distinction between priestly and prophetic principles in the religious community.