Fair in Rogozhskaya Sloboda – beauty without glamor!

At the mention of the Old Believers, many imagine a sort of bearded, stern peasant who is alien to the whole world, who keeps his family in a “black body” and only knows that he is praying, just a sectarian! This opinion is deeply mistaken. The Old Believers are open, friendly, kind, modern, but sacredly devoted to the ancient faith of their ancestors.

You can verify this by coming to the old Rogozhskaya Sloboda – the Spiritual Center of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church. Every year in Rogozhskaya Sloboda, on the occasion of the celebration of the Week of the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women, the All-Russian Old Believer Fair is held. Festive events are held by Orthodox Christian Old Believers two weeks after Easter in honor of the granting of freedom of religious tolerance by decree of Emperor Nicholas II in 1905 – the official end of 250 years of persecution of the keepers of Orthodox traditions.

Every year, on the holiday, which in the Old Believer environment is considered to be a true Women’s Day, guests come for spiritual celebration and friendly communication, Old Believers come from different parts of the country, as well as from near and far abroad. On these days, a festive service is performed, a large procession is being held, an Old Believer fair of folk crafts and Old Believer products is operating, an evening of spiritual chants is held – a performance of Old Believer choirs, a number of events for children and youth are traditionally organized.

You feel the unique spirit of the Old Believers as soon as you enter the main square – guests and sellers are like characters in Leskov’s books: stately women in snow-white scarves and long sundresses with embroidery. Men with full beards, in embroidered shirts, with beautiful braided belts. Very friendly and open faces, people joyfully greet acquaintances. Of course, the main event of the holiday is the church service, but after that you can relax, have fun, feast on: there are a lot of tasty and beautiful, necessary and useful things around.

On the occasion of the celebration of the Week of the Holy Myrrh-bearing Women, craftsmen and craftsmen, tillers and beekeepers from all over Russia come to Moscow every year, bringing goods made by their own hands. Old Believer fairs, as usual, are held “without glamor”: ordinary Orthodox believers come and sell their goods. As the sellers said, only natural products were brought to the fair, and they are not only possible, but also necessary to buy. No one spends money on expensive scenery and pavilions, so the price is fair, and amateurs can bargain. Around the fair tents there are huge queues of those who want to buy mountain honey, herbal tea, butter, smoked fish, and delicious pastries. Citizens have long forgotten that vegetable oil can have a taste and smell – here you can taste and buy it. The head is spinning from the delicious smell … There are many varieties of cheese nearby, and how many homemade meat delicacies and smoked meats! All kinds of ham and parmesan will only envy the great taste of our delicacies. No less people crowd near the stalls where they sell dresses and blouses woven from linen by hand, according to ancient technologies, because linen has been famous for its healing qualities since ancient times. The Old Believers do not sell alcohol, but one could try the outlandish honey liqueur, aged in oak barrels for more than a year. Nearby is homemade mead on herbs – the drink is not intoxicating, but healing. Gourmets are in a hurry to taste unique pies according to old recipes – rye flour, stewed berries and yeast-free dough. The taste is amazing, a little strange, but unusually pleasant.

After the procession, all guests will be treated to a delicious treat. Earthly food for all guests of the Rogozhskaya Sloboda was presented very richly: delicious Cossack stew, pilaf, boiled water and other dishes beckon gourmets and hunters for old recipes with mouth-watering aromas. The Rogozhsky Cossacks were preparing treats for thousands of guests of the Rogozhsky fair all night long, and everything was free of charge, to the glory of God, but with prayer!

The fair attracts a certain part of the buyers not so much with food as with the opportunity to buy a rare book or icon. There are many masters representing folk crafts – knitting, weaving, birch bark products, embroidery, beaded crafts, toys. There are many toys – wooden and rag, painted, whistling. The kids have fun, and the parents note that they are very pleased with the interest of the children not in the silly barbie, but in the brave heroes and Russian hawys. It is interesting that many children from the Sunday school of the Rogozhskaya Sloboda make toys and souvenirs with their own hands for the spring fair, sell them, and donate the money to charity.

The annual Old Believer Fair is one of the most massive and spectacular parts of the holiday in Rogozhskaya Sloboda. Every year the number of participants and visitors grows, and after it the quality of the organization increases. Participation in the fair for sellers is free, all the arrangements are made by the Cossacks of the Rogozhskaya Old Believer village, who devote a lot of effort and personal funds to this: thanks to their labors, a bright and kind celebration turns out to be unlike any other similar event in the city.

And now a little history: the active life of the Rogozhskaya Sloboda begins at the end of the 16th century, when coachmen began to settle on the left bank of the Yauza River – peasants involved in the transportation of mail. From the first days of its existence, Rogozhskaya Sloboda was closed from the capital and its hectic life in every sense. This historical district was not only very remote (at that time) from Moscow, but people lived here who zealously preserved their customs and way of life, which did not imply openness to newcomers or everything new: the locals were Old Believers. This meant that their faith had preserved the ancient customs and rituals of Rus’ since its baptism. During the plague epidemic, the Old Believers actively contributed to the fight against the disease, which was noted by the authorities, and the state policy of Empress Catherine in relation to the Old Believers softened, they were allowed to settle in the town of Rogozha, which is next to the cemetery. Here the Old Believers built a chapel, later the settlement was built around, the population of which in the 19th century reached 70 thousand people. By the way, the term “Old Believers” was introduced under Catherine II, before that the name “Old Believers” was used. During the invasion of Napoleon, the French also visited the Rogozhsky cemetery. But the inhabitants managed to leave their homes in advance and hide the main shrines of the temples. After the expulsion of Napoleon from Moscow, many Don Cossacks lived in the capital – mostly Old Believers. The famous hero of the Patriotic War of 1812 Ataman Platov was also an Old Believer from the Don Cossacks.

From this moment, the history of Rogozhskaya Sloboda as an Old Believer center begins, at the beginning of the 20th century the population of Rogozhskaya Sloboda was about 30 thousand people, there were 5 convents and 10 almshouses, which were financed by wealthy Old Believer industrialists. Charity has always been the main function of the Rogozhskaya community. At the beginning of the 19th century, the construction of charitable homes for the disabled and the elderly began at the Rogozhsky cemetery. A shelter for mentally ill women and an orphanage were also built on the land of the community. In the 1830s, the total number of convicts exceeded 1,000. In addition to charitable institutions, residential buildings, chambers for the church clergy, for singers are being built. A church school was located in a separate house. On the territory of the Rogozhskaya Sloboda there were 5 women’s monasteries.

Officially in the Russian state, the opinion was propagated that the Old Believers were illiterate retrograde fanatics, enemies of progress and enlightenment. But let’s look at the facts: many successful and wealthy Russian industrialists and merchants were from Old Believer families and, thanks to hard work, a sober lifestyle and other qualities, successfully competed with foreign capital. The famous Old Believer dynasties — Morozovs, Kuznetsovs, Ryabushinskys, Sheloputins, Soldatenkovs, Tryndins, Rakhmanovs, Melnikovs and many others made a huge contribution to the development of industry and trade in Russia, as well as to the cultural development of the country, being active patrons and philanthropists. With the money of the Old Believers, theaters and museums, hospitals and educational institutions were built, cities and towns were improved. At the same time, the Old Believers manifest themselves in the cultural life of society: the Moscow Art Theater appears, built by Savva Morozov, the Zimin Opera House, S. P. Ryabushinsky publishes the most exquisite magazine of pre-revolutionary Russia, the Golden Fleece, numerous Old Believer church choirs perform with great success in conservatory and concert halls both capitals. A higher educational institution, the Old Believer Institute, is opened on Rogozhsky, where famous Russian scientists teach.

Rogozhskaya Sloboda and the Rogozhskoye cemetery suffered greatly during the years of Soviet power. When the subway was built, according to the decree of officials, luxurious marble family crypts were broken into the cemetery, using stone for lining the stations. In addition, buildings were destroyed, even the pond was filled up. The barbaric fashion of ruining churches did not bypass Rogozhskaya Sloboda either: bells were thrown from the unique bell tower, the Church of the Nativity of Christ was closed and beheaded, and the House of the clergy was almost destroyed. The most beautiful ponds were filled up, old houses were demolished. In the 90s of the last century, the territory was returned to the Old Believer Metropolis. Now it is the spiritual center of the Old Believer church with temples and a spiritual school. In the early 2000s, an active restoration of the ensemble of the Rogozhskaya Sloboda began, and now huge work has already been carried out there – the Nativity Church has come to life, the bells are ringing again in the bell tower, ponds have been re-dug out, the House of the clergy has been restored, where services of the Rogozhskaya community are located, a museum hall, Sunday church classes schools and exhibitions.

It is currently believed that more than a million Old Believers live in Russia, and about the same number abroad: in North and South America, Pakistan, even African Uganda.

We will not describe in detail the principles of the faith of the Old Believers and the amazing architecture of the temples of the Rogozhskaya Sloboda – there are books and excursions for this. Today, Rogozhskaya Sloboda is a fabulously beautiful and peaceful place that anyone can visit, just do not forget about the observance of the rules of conduct and the dress code adopted in ancient Orthodox churches.

Old Believers have lived for centuries according to the covenants and rules of their ancestors, despite all the persecution. These are Russian people from the past, who have not been changed by the past centuries, they have somehow miraculously found themselves among us now, having become contemporaries and retaining the best national features. To avoid confusion, it should be noted that various religious sects have nothing to do with the Old Believers (or Old Orthodox).

Mikhail Kovalyov.

Author’s photo