[mazabotman]

There was the final programme this evening on Russian television in a series aimed at finding the Greatest Russian. A panel of experts gave opinions and the public voted. The winner was St Alexander Nevsky. However, Stalin came third. The presenter did say that it was indicative that Russians had voted for a saint because Russia is unthinkable without saints and Orthodoxy. God, he said, loves Holy Russia, the only country that is called 'holy'; but Russia must in turn love God.

[farmarrl]

There was the final programme this evening on Russian television in a series aimed at finding the Greatest Russian. A panel of experts gave opinions and the public voted. The winner was St Alexander Nevsky. However, Stalin came third. The presenter did say that it was indicative that Russians had voted for a saint because Russia is unthinkable without saints and Orthodoxy. God, he said, loves Holy Russia, the only country that is called 'holy'; but Russia must in turn love God.

ok, I'll bite. Who came in second?

[Marat]

There was the final programme this evening on Russian television in a series aimed at finding the Greatest Russian. A panel of experts gave opinions and the public voted. The winner was St Alexander Nevsky. However, Stalin came third. The presenter did say that it was indicative that Russians had voted for a saint because Russia is unthinkable without saints and Orthodoxy. God, he said, loves Holy Russia, the only country that is called 'holy'; but Russia must in turn love God.

This journalist sounds a little nationalistic and not so objective ... God does love Russia but He also loves other Orthodox countries and also calls them 'holy' ... countries like Greece, the Balkan countries and not to forget even Jerusalem are 'holy' ...

We mustn't forget that Russia (not the people but political Russia) was NOT always thought of as primarily Orthodox nor would Saint pop-into ones mind when speaking about it ... this is a change in attitude achieved successfully through a very good marketing campaign by the Russian Church and the change in political circumstances since World War II ... and good for Russia I say but we must not forget that it wasnt always the perceived case!

There was a time and not so long ago that you could open any Russian Encyclopedia and under "Christ" you would find Him listed as mythology ...

It is interesting to see since the death of the Tsar and Communism how much Russia wants to embrace and change its image with regards to Christianity ... it wants to be the leading authority/image of Orthodoxy and so does America ...

I wonder how this shift is going to shape Orthodoxy in the next 10-20 years and if any of these social changes are eschatological in their nature (ie. Could we clearly find them prophecied in the Scripture) ...

We are living in interesting times .. and Russia certainly is going to play a big role in Orthodoxy! Amen to that.

[BenBoobmers]

Hi Andreas,
do not concern much that Stalin is the third because:
Firstly, it was possible to vote several times from one phone every day;
Secondly, people participated in voting were basically elders because the program went late and those who worked could not look it;
Thirdly,communists with peculiar to them fanatism simply voted many times;
Fourthly, the youth did not participate in it because they had too little interest in it;
Therefore it hardly could be considered as a public oppinion.
Alexander

[vipBrooriErok]

St. Alexander Nevsky is a great choice! "Such an archetype of the quintessential Russian leader without all that baggage," says the Russian Studies master.

[D6Ri5u13]

I just read about this; the reforming primeminister who served under Tsar and Holy Martyr Nikolai II came in second. I forgot the name, but hopefully people can guess from that. Putin has said that he hoped to emulate the peacemaking capabilities of this man. Lenin came in at sixth.

Apparently the Communists in Russia think that the poll was "massaged" so that Stalin didn't win; apparently he lead early on. As Alexander says, it's perhaps best not to invest too much in the result of these polls.

[vipBrooriErok]

I think the PM in question was Stolypin, who, if I recall correctly, was assassinated by radicals. Russia could have escaped revolution were it not for the trigger happy radicals.

Stolypin's reforms were, to me, pretty amazing. Western Siberia, the world's largest swamp, as my geography professor called it, was, after the Stolypin land reforms, producing a lot of dairy products--even exporting butter to butter producing countries like Denmark.

[mazabotman]

Yes, Pyotr Stolypin came second, and yes, how history might have been different had he lived. But Russia's enemies were determined to stop her progress.

[arerrurrY]

Not that I can nominate but I would:

Vladimir and Olga, who made Orthodoxy the religion of Russia.

St. Seraphim of Sarov,

Optina Fathers,

and maybe for a last place the person, who wrote the beautiful Russian folktales.

There are many I would nominate, but these are just some.

[mazabotman]

I was surprised that neither Dmitri Donskoy nor St Sergius of Radonezh made it into the final twelve.