Alexander Agadjanian – författare

On the eve of World War I, the Russian Empire was among the most diverse in the world, and religious identity was the single most important factor for determining a subject's relation to the imperial state. The revolutions of 1917 overturned the Empire's religious world. The Provisional Government sought to disentangle the state from its long-standing ties to the Orthodox Church; minority religious groups looked forward to greater freedom of practice; and, with the Communist Revolution of October 1917, Bolshevik anti-religious activists looked to bring about the death of God and the birth of the New Soviet Person.Drawing on archives, periodicals, ego-documents, visual imagery, and other key sources, Religion and the Russian Revolution examines not only how diverse religious groups and individual actors were affected by revolutionary politics, but also the critical role religious discourses and practices played in shaping revolutionary imagery and action. The chapters dive into the rich and varied landscape of personal and collective religious experiences before, during, and after the 1917 Revolutions. In so doing, the contributions gathered in this volume document perceptions of violence, everyday religious practices, visual imaginaries, and new definitions of "religion" and "the sacred" across Russia.By rethinking the religious implications and consequences of this radical era, Religion and the Russian Revolution forcefully illustrates that the Revolutions of 1917 cannot be fully understood without exploring the ways in which the sacred and the revolutionary overlapped and informed each other.

On the eve of World War I, the Russian Empire was among the most diverse in the world, and religious identity was the single most important factor for determining a subject's relation to the imperial state. The revolutions of 1917 overturned the Empire's religious world. The Provisional Government sought to disentangle the state from its long-standing ties to the Orthodox Church; minority religious groups looked forward to greater freedom of practice; and, with the Communist Revolution of October 1917, Bolshevik anti-religious activists looked to bring about the death of God and the birth of the New Soviet Person.Drawing on archives, periodicals, ego-documents, visual imagery, and other key sources, Religion and the Russian Revolution examines not only how diverse religious groups and individual actors were affected by revolutionary politics, but also the critical role religious discourses and practices played in shaping revolutionary imagery and action. The chapters dive into the rich and varied landscape of personal and collective religious experiences before, during, and after the 1917 Revolutions. In so doing, the contributions gathered in this volume document perceptions of violence, everyday religious practices, visual imaginaries, and new definitions of "religion" and "the sacred" across Russia.By rethinking the religious implications and consequences of this radical era, Religion and the Russian Revolution forcefully illustrates that the Revolutions of 1917 cannot be fully understood without exploring the ways in which the sacred and the revolutionary overlapped and informed each other.

Despite over 200 million adherents, Eastern Orthodox Christianity attracts little scholarly attention. While more-covered religions emerge as powerful transnational forces, Eastern Orthodoxy appears doggedly local, linked to the ethnicity and land of the now marginalized Eastern Europe. But Eastern Orthodoxy in a Global Age brings together new and nuanced understandings of the Orthodox churches—inside and outside of Eastern Europe—as they negotiate an increasingly networked world. The picture that emerges is less of a people stubbornly refusing modernization, more of a people seeking to maintain a stable Orthodox identity in an unstable world. For anyone interested in the role of Eastern Orthodoxy in the 21st century, this volume provides the place to begin.

Despite over 200 million adherents, Eastern Orthodox Christianity attracts little scholarly attention. While more-covered religions emerge as powerful transnational forces, Eastern Orthodoxy appears doggedly local, linked to the ethnicity and land of the now marginalized Eastern Europe. But Eastern Orthodoxy in a Global Age brings together new and nuanced understandings of the Orthodox churches—inside and outside of Eastern Europe—as they negotiate an increasingly networked world. The picture that emerges is less of a people stubbornly refusing modernization, more of a people seeking to maintain a stable Orthodox identity in an unstable world. For anyone interested in the role of Eastern Orthodoxy in the 21st century, this volume provides the place to begin.

This book explores developments in the three major societies of the South Caucasus – Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia – focusing especially on religion, historical traditions, national consciousness, and political culture, and on how these factors interact. It outlines how, despite close geographical interlacement, common historical memories and inherited structures, the three countries have deep differences; and it discusses how development in all three nations has differed significantly from the countries’ declared commitments to democratic orientation and European norms and values. The book also considers how external factors and international relations continue to impact on the three countries.

Armenian Christianity Today examines contemporary religious life and the social, political, and cultural functions of religion in the post-Soviet Republic of Armenia and in the Armenian Diaspora worldwide. Scholars from a range of countries and disciplines explore current trends and everyday religiosity, particularly within the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC), and amongst Armenian Catholics, Protestants and vernacular religions. Themes examined include: Armenian grass-roots religiosity; the changing forms of regular worship and devotion; various types of congregational life; and the dynamics of social composition of both the clergy and lay believers. Exploring through the lens of Armenia, this book considers wider implications of ’postsecular’ trends in the role of global religion.

This book explores developments in the three major societies of the South Caucasus – Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia – focusing especially on religion, historical traditions, national consciousness, and political culture, and on how these factors interact. It outlines how, despite close geographical interlacement, common historical memories and inherited structures, the three countries have deep differences; and it discusses how development in all three nations has differed significantly from the countries’ declared commitments to democratic orientation and European norms and values. The book also considers how external factors and international relations continue to impact on the three countries.

Armenian Christianity Today examines contemporary religious life and the social, political, and cultural functions of religion in the post-Soviet Republic of Armenia and in the Armenian Diaspora worldwide. Scholars from a range of countries and disciplines explore current trends and everyday religiosity, particularly within the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC), and amongst Armenian Catholics, Protestants and vernacular religions. Themes examined include: Armenian grass-roots religiosity; the changing forms of regular worship and devotion; various types of congregational life; and the dynamics of social composition of both the clergy and lay believers. Exploring through the lens of Armenia, this book considers wider implications of ’postsecular’ trends in the role of global religion.