Page 38 - AECA.org.uk ¦ Koinonia 64

From the archives: The Church of England and the
Russian Orthodox Church in World War One

STEPHEN STAVROU

IN THIS centenary year of the outbreak of World War One, I have looked back
into the AECA archives. One of the earliest collections is a volume of The
Christian East (a precursor to Koinonia) from 1920. This includes an article
containing correspondence between the Archbishop of Canterbury (Randall
Davidson) and various leaders of the Russian Orthodox Church during and just
after the ?rst world war. What these letters describe is that for the Church in
Russia the trauma of the war was equalled by the subsequent revolutions of
1917 and especially of 1918 when violent persecution was unleashed upon all
Christians. They also reveal that, at a time of international and internal con-
?ict, Christian leaders were able to comfort and encourage one another, over-
coming what in peace-time would have been irreconcilable di?erences.

The ?rst letter is important less for its content than for its timing. Sent
on Easter Day according to the Russian calendar, the ‘strife and confusion’ it
refers to was that of the February Revolution of 1917, the abdication of Tsar
Nicholas II and signi?cant Russian military defeats. At the same time, this let-
ter re?ects a certain sense of hopefulness that the 1917 revolution was poten-
tially positive for the people of Russia:

‘On behalf of the Church of England I exchange with you, at this
sacred season, the fraternal greetings of thanksgiving and hope.
Christos voskress. May the blessings of the Risen Lord ?ll you
with joy and peace in believing, even amidst the anxiety and
strain of this eventful year. May the strife and confusion issue in a
righteous victory over the high-handed wrong of our enemy, and
in abiding peace and freedom for the peoples of Europe. May the
Russian people, in its newborn strength, be guided by the Holy
Spirit of God to bear therein a worthy part. The Easter benedic-
tion rests to-day upon our great peoples, united under new condi-
tions by bonds of ever-deepening sympathy and friendship. Chris-
tos voskress.’

Randall Cantuar
April 15 1917

36