“It is very difficult to be a saint in our age”: V. G. Korolenko and John of Kronstadt
EDN: YVTKVD
Abstract
V. G. Korolenko in his journalism could not ignore such a significant figure in Russia at the end of the 19th — beginning of the 20th century as John of Kronstadt (Ivan Ilyich Sergiev). This topic occupied the writer for quite a long time, which was reflected in the writer’s diaries. However, a number of materials revealing Korolenko’s perception of the personality of the rector of St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Kronstadt remained in the writer’s draft manuscripts only in the form of sketches or preparatory materials in the form of newspaper notes pasted into notebooks. These messages covered not only the activities of the priest, but also curious incidents associated with his person. The article considers Korolenko’s and Mikhailovsky’s assessments of John of Kronstadt’s literary activity, as well as the literary activity of such odious figures as Mikhail Sopotsko-Syrokomlia. In his sketches, Korolenko also addressed the political activities of John of Kronstadt, the position taken by the latter during the Jewish pogrom in Chisinau in 1903, which marked a right turn in his activities. Some of Korolenko’s archival materials are being introduced into scientific circulation for the first time.
About the Authors
A. V. Gevorgyan
A. M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Armen Varuzhanovich Gevorgyan, Cand. Sci. (Philology) Senior Research Fellow, Department “Literary Heritage”
121069, Moscow, Povarskaya Str., 25a
M. V. Stroganov
A. M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Mikhail Viktorovich Stroganov, Dr. Sci. (Philology) Leading Researcher, Department “Literary Heritage”
121069, Moscow, Povarskaya Str., 25a
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Review
For citations:
Gevorgyan A.V., Stroganov M.V. “It is very difficult to be a saint in our age”: V. G. Korolenko and John of Kronstadt. Shagi / Steps. 2025;11(2):309-341. (In Russ.) EDN: YVTKVD
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