Paul

 Bushkovitch.  “The  Epiphany  Ceremony  of  the  Russian  Court  in  the  Sixteenth  
and  Seventeenth  Centuries”.  Russian  Review  (49:1)  p.  1-­‐17  
 
After  overthrowing  the  yoke  of  Mongol  Rule  and  expanding  into  the  surrounding  
areas,  Muscovite  Grand  Princes  sought  means  to  bolster  their  legitimacy  among  
newly  acquired  subjects.    While  many  avenues  lay  open  to  the  Grand  Princes,  one  
institution  possessed  the  resources  to  communicate  a  message  of  power  and  
legitimacy  to  the  varied  and  far-­‐flung  corners  of  the  realm:  the  Russian  Orthodox  
Church.    Using  elaborate  staged  ceremonies,  the  Tsar  found  a  way  to  secure  his  
influence  by  publicly  demonstrating  his  commitment  to  the  Orthodox  faith  as  well  as  
the  Russian  state.    The  Blessing  of  the  Waters  on  the  Epiphany  in  early  January  
fulfilled  such  a  role,  involving  the  Tsar  and  Metropolitan/Patriarch  in  a  ceremony  
that  both  showed  the  humility  of  the  Tsar  to  the  figure  of  religious  rule  as  well  as  the  
continued  efforts  by  the  Tsar  to  secure  blessings  upon  the  land  and  people.    The  
ceremony  involved  a  procession  of  the  Metropolitan/Patriarch  leading  the  Tsar  and  
his  boyars  to  the  Moskva  river,  where  a  hole,  cut  previously,  allowed  the  church  
leader  to  gather  the  cold  water  and  bless  it  before  sprinkling  on  the  royal  entourage.    
Afterwards,  the  various  citizens  (and  even  horses)  would  come  down  to  the  hole  
and  partake  of  the  blessed  water.    The  ceremony  became  so  popular  that  regional  
variants  took  hold,  involving  local  church  officials  and  administrators  in  place  of  
Moscow  counterparts.    Although  abandoned  by  Peter  the  Great  in  the  late  17th  
century,  the  Blessing  of  the  Water  proved  to  be  one  of  the  most  publicly  celebrated  
events  on  the  church  calendar.      
  While  previous  scholars  noted  the  ceremony’s  significance,  its  analysis  often  
took  some  aspects  for  granted.    Traditional  interpretations  of  the  ceremonial  event  
parsed  the  procession  to  the  river  as  an  act  of  the  Tsar’s  submission  of  temporal  
power  to  the  spiritual  power  of  the  Church,  represented  by  the  
Metropolitan/Patriarch.    Bushkovitch  argues  that  this  relationship  should  be  viewed  
the  other  way  around,  that  the  Tsar  submits  willingly  to  secure  the  blessings  of  the  
faith  for  not  just  the  elites,  but  the  common  people  as  well.    While  more  dominant  
Tsar’s  attempted  to  reform  the  ceremony  in  a  way  that  showcased  secular  
superiority,  the  ritual  generally  performed  the  role  of  a  public  spectacle  affirming  
the  States  dedication  to  the  Church  and  vice  versa.    While  the  article  focused  on  the  
ritual  performed  in  Moscow,  it  would  be  interesting  to  see  how,  through  regional  
diffusion  and  re-­‐interpretation,  the  Blessing  of  the  Waters  ceremony  connected  the  
populace  to  the  Church/State  apparatus  throughout  the  Russian  lands.    Given  the  
impact  of  popular  beliefs  in  the  practice  of  Russian  Orthodoxy,  this  deeper  analysis  
could  yield  interesting  insight  into  the  way  peasants  and  administrators  constructed  
their  worldview.    Bushkovitch’s  article  nonetheless  brings  new  perspective  to  an  
event  much  studied  by  previous  scholars  and  should  be  required  reading  for  anyone  
interested  in  the  analysis  of  Church-­‐State  relations  through  public  spectacle.      
 
 
Jeremy  Antley