169 THE EAST ASIAN EXARCHATE OF THE MOSCOW PATRIARCHATE OF THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE 1950S

Abstract

The article analyzes the East Asian Exarchate of the Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church established on the territory of China in 1946. The basis of the research was archival sources, documents of the State Archives of the Russian Federation. Reports, correspondence of the leadership of the Exarchate with the Moscow Patriarchate, with the Council for the affairs of the Russian Orthodox Church under the Council of Ministers of the USSR were used for the article. The authors highlight the existence of the Exarchate within the framework of the dioceses of the Orthodox Church on the territory of China during the change of the state policy in the relations of religions. It is noted that the period of the Exarchate‟s formation was during the difficult years of the departure of Orthodox believers from China, due to which the number of parishioners was reduced. In addition, the authors emphasize that it is necessary to further study the history of the existence and activities of the East Asian Exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church with the introduction of new, previously unknown documents into the scientific circulation.

Keywords

• religion
• orthodoxy
• parish
• East Asian Exarchate
• Exarch
• spiritual mission
• China