THE ORTHODOX BROTHERHOODS AND THEIR MOVEMENT IN RUSSIA

Given their dual nature as a social organization, functioning within the institutions of the State, and as a spiritual community, the orthodox brotherhoods, which are movements of lay activists in the service of the Church, find themselves in a dual relationship with the Church and with society. As new community cells, they work in a variety of ways for the renewal of the Church, and constitute a challenge to the process of secularization. They rise up against the model church of the soviet 20th century, publicize the memory of the 1917-1918 Council. and are the prime movers in a rediscovery of ecclesiastical traditions. By their diverses activities, they are restoring the fabric of society on a religious base. And finally, as the summation of a religious universe, they often represent the link between the religious and the political.