Methods of Teaching the Academic Discipline “Church Law” in Higher Educational Institutions of the Russian Empire in the 1860s–1880s

Abstract

This article presents a historical review and systematization of the views of leading canonists and jurists regarding the problem of teaching methods for the subject “Church Law” in higher educational (secular and religious) institutions of the Russian Empire in the 1860s–1880s. In the period presented, the process of forming curricula was completed, and a clear methodology for teaching the subject of Church Law was built. Several factors contributed to this process. First, institutional changes in the statutes of secular and religious educational institutions gave a powerful impetus to the development of a unified methodology for teaching Church Law. Secondly, in the 1860s–1880s a galaxy of talented domestic specialists appeared whose efforts formed a complex of church legal issues, principles and methods for building a system of Church Law. And third, two different directions (theological and legal) in the study and teaching of “Church Law” mutually complemented this discipline, enriched it with methodological findings, and introduced an original character into it. The methodology of teaching “Church Law” in educational institutions of the Russian Empire in the 1860s–1880s acquired the specifics of a legal discipline. The problems of teaching and the specifics of the Church Law academic discipline in the higher educational institutions of the Russian Empire caused serious professional discussions at a systematic level since the 1860s. This article suggests a systematic analysis of the interpretations of the Church Law discipline in the framework of higher education in the last quarter of the 19th century. The problems of the concept, nature and ontology of Church Law, along with the questions about who and how can and should teach it, became the exclusive subject of complex discussions in the scientific and academic environment of the 19th century. Until now, historical and canonical science needs to solve problematic issues: the place of “Church Law” among the theological disciplines, and main directions of development of this academic discipline in the 19th century, as well as the actual systematization of “Church Law” in modern times.

Keywords

• canon law
• ecclesiastical jurisprudence
• science of ecclesiastical law
• jurisprudence
• law
• religious education
• theological discipline
• russian empire