The Baptism of Rus is an important and ambiguous date

This event occupies the most important place in the national history. After all, baptism not only determined the spiritual development of the Russian people, but also transformed the very image of the Slavic state, giving it a certain vector of external geopolitical development.

Prerequisites for the acceptance of monotheism

Religious reforms in the medieval Russian state are connected primarily with the name of Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavovich. And speaking about the reasons for the adoption of Christianity, often his first spiritual quest comes to the forefront, recalling the prince's wonderful insight, ambassadors sent to different parts of the world to see and tell about miracles there and so on. Spiritual quest, no doubt, took place. However, in this context it is more important to recall the geopolitical situation and the development of the East Slavic state of that period. By the efforts of the militant princes, especially Rurik, Igor and Svyatoslav, Russia already in the middle of the Xth century occupied quite extensive territories, having united under its control previously disparate tribes of the Eastern Slavs. It's time to strengthen the power, create a single state and a single people. Yes, the baptism of Rus, the date of celebration of which falls today on July 28, laid in no small part The basis for the emergence of a single Russian community in the midst of barbarian tribes. Returning to the Middle Ages, it should be noted that Vladimir conducted a number of other reforms (military, administrative), the essence of which was to create a centralized state with a single apparatus, army, law, tax system and so on. Actually, the very time required from Vladimir such reforms, since without them it would hardly have been possible for Rus to function effectively as a state and survive in the struggle against its neighbors. However, it was religious reform that became the business of the whole life of the prince. The baptism of Rus, the date and description of which is well known to us from a number of sources, was necessary. The first attempt of the prince in this area was the creation of a single pantheon of pagan gods. This action pursued the goal of centralizing the state and rallying different tribes on a single cultural basis. However, the reform failed, so Vladimir turned to monotheistic religions, very popular at that time. And this step was very justified. The fact is that the adoption of Christianity not only gave a powerful impetus to the internal development of the state, but also enabled Rus to enter a single cultural and value orbit of the advanced countries of the time, primarily Byzantium, becoming one with them. In material terms, this gave Vladimir a lot of new opportunities. For example, he became related to the Byzantine basileus, taking the princess Anna as his wife. Precisely because of these considerations, the baptism of Rus took place. The date of the event itself was the result of a number of incidents. In addition, it is important to note that Christians have already settled in the East Slavic lands for a long time. More than a century in Kiev there was Ilinsky church, to the Orthodox group even belonged to the grandmother of Vladimir, Princess Olga. Thus, the baptism of Rus, the date of which is associated with the spread and strengthening of Christianity in the lands of the Eastern Slavs, was most likely timely.

The Baptism of Rus: date and description of the event

Christianization of the population has become a violent act. The immediate symbolic baptism of Rus occurred in one of the tributaries of the Dnieper, the river Pochaina. Peasants, still loyal to pagan traditions, were massively and forcefully driven into the waters of the river under the preaching of priests. Here, the baptism of Rus took place. The date is 988 on the Christian calendar, as chronicles tell us. At the same time, the victorious procession of Christianity continued for several decades, not even for a hundred years. As a spiritual path, it was certainly more progressive than paganism, but the population remained faithful to the old gods for a long time. And they did not leave the spiritual life of the Russians definitively. And today many holidays in the Orthodox canon have, strictly speaking, pagan roots.