Kliment Smolyatich: Russian Experience of Autocephaly and the Legacy of the Solun Brothers
The article considers the establishment of the autocephalous metropolis by Izyaslav Mstislavich in 1147 and describes the ritual innovation related to the heirotonia of Clement Smolyatich.. An attempt is made to understand the ideological grounds for the use of the headof Clement of Rome, part of his relics that were discovered by Cyril and Methodius, and later removed from Korsun by Vladimir the Baptizer. The content of texts reflecting the cult of the holy great martyr is analyzed. The author concludes that the Christian shrine has become a symbol of the independent Russian Church, a type of “church nationalism”. The influence of the heritage of the brothers from Thessaloniki on the ancient Russian cult of Clement is demonstrated. Traits of ideological and religious originality related to the Cyrillo-Methodian tradition are found in the “Epistle to Thomas” by Clement Smolyatich.