As the first one-volume study of the Russian Orthodox Church to appear in many years, Thomas Bremer's new book marks a welcome addition to the growing literature on religious life and church history in the East Slavic lands that has emerged over the past two decades. Originally published in German in 2007, Bremer's book is now available to English readers in an edition updated by the author and ably translated by the late Eric W. Gritsch. As the subtitle promises, this is indeed a “brief history” of the Russian Church—more than a millennium is covered in just under two hundred pages—but Bremer's study is brief in the best sense of the word: succinct, learned, and accessible.
Bremer eschews a traditional chronological narrative, opting instead to organize the book thematically; a crisp survey of Russian church history from Grand Prince Vladimir's conversion in 988 to the present precedes individual chapters devoted to discrete but interrelated topics: Christianization and expansion; ecclesiastical structures; church and state; theology and religious thought; monasticism; spirituality and religiosity; Russian Orthodoxy and the West; and dissidence. Each chapter treats its theme in historical context and relates its relevance to present-day questions and concerns. Throughout, Bremer rejects the “sentimental approach” with which many Westerners still regard Russia (x). Rather than see the elusive Russian soul as exotic, hyper-religious, and predisposed to suffering, the author argues that the Russian Orthodox Church (and, indeed, Russia itself), its “peculiarity” and “singularity” notwithstanding, needs to be understood in a broader comparative context with western trends and developments (xi). Whether contrasting the Jesus Prayer and Catholic rosary devotionals, or comparing the curious habits of the “fools for Christ's sake” (yurodivyye) with similar traditions of antisocial asceticism in the ancient church, Bremer is able simultaneously to illustrate and demystify the unique contours of Russian Orthodox spirituality as it appears under western eyes.
Bremer's book bridges the gap between institutional church history and the study of religious praxis by considering Orthodox belief and practice both within and beyond church walls. A common theme that informs Bremer's analysis throughout is that the history of Orthodoxy in Russia is inseparable from (but not identical to) the history of the Russian nation and state. Not surprisingly, Bremer devotes a good deal of attention to considering how Orthodoxy has come to shape Russian identity, both within Russia proper and among Russian communities in emigration. Bremer does not assign Orthodoxy an overly determinative role, nor does he presume its imprint on Russian identity as a foregone conclusion; he charts, rather, a continuous process of negotiation and contestation that has taken place over many centuries, one that sees Orthodox actors engaged with big questions about the relationship between the individual and society, the power of the state and the duties of a Christian toward political authority, the position of Russia in the greater European community, and the “true” nature of Russianness. Bremer draws apt examples from contemporary Russian life and thought to show that these processes are still taking place today, a quarter century after the collapse of the Soviet regime.
Bremer's book is pitched toward non-specialists and could work well in college classrooms as an introductory text. He has a knack for presenting knotty theological issues and unfamiliar practices in an comprehensible manner. Of particular note, for instance, is the author's excellent treatment of icon veneration, a mode of worship confounding to many North American college students raised in protestant or non-denominational traditions. At the same time, however, passing references to epiclesis and pseudomorphosis, to give but two glaring examples from a single page, will likely fly right over the heads of Bremer's target audience. There are, too, a few instances where readers familiar with the conventional English translations of well-known places and actors in Russian history may be sent back rushing back to their textbooks (or to Wikipedia): Field of Snipes for Kulikovo Field, the “unselfish” for the non-possessors, the Dekabrists for the Decembrists, Renewers for Renovationists, and so on. These minor points aside, Bremer has succeeded in producing a learned and even-handed study that fills a definite and timely need. With international attention focused increasingly on all things Russian, this is one of those all-too-rare scholarly works that will appeal to readers outside the academy, as well. It should be read with benefit by all those interested in Russia and the Russian Orthodox Church past and present.
