This year, the Russian Orthodox Church will re-establish control over the Moscow based Novodevichy Convent and its rich collection of icons and jewelry.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has met with Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia and told him that the state is ready to transfer all historical monuments previously owned by the Russian Orthodox Church to its jurisdiction. At the same time, museum workers are concerned about the state of ancient Russian icons that have already been handed over to monasteries and convents.
On January 5, Vladimir Putin and Minister of Culture Alexander Avdeyev visited Patriarch Kirill at his residence at St Daniel's Monastery. Putin promised during the meeting that the state will transfer religious property to the Russian Orthodox Church in the next few years. In order to accomplish this objective, the Government has drafted two bills on the transfer of property and on restoring monuments already owned by the Church at the expense of the state. About 2 billion roubles will be allocated for restoring churches and monasteries.
Work to draft these bills was launched in 2007 (For more details, please turn to # 242 of Nezavisimaya Gazeta – Religion). During the discussion, the Russian Orthodox Church expressed fears that it will not be able to afford to restore and maintain newly acquired property. It appears that the Church has managed to coordinate specific ownership terms with the state on the eve of current Christmas celebrations.
Putin said during the meeting that the state will completely "vacate" the Moscow-based Novodevichy Convent, and that it will transfer this historical monument to the Russian Orthodox Church. The prime minister and Patriarch Kirill also discussed the future of the Cathedral of Intercession of Theotokos on the Moat, popularly known as St Basil's Cathedral, on Moscow's Red Square and the Vysokopetrovsky Monastery (High Monastery of St Peter) currently housing the Moscow Literature Museum.
At present, the Novodevichy Convent is jointly owned by a subsidiary of the State Historical Museum and the Moscow Patriarchate. It appears that the Museum will have to transfer part of its art collection, which had been owned by the Convent until 1922, back to the Church. The Museum's collection has 12,000 items, including ancient icons and church utensils decorated with precious stones and gold.
While the prime minister and the minister of culture discussed the transfer of historical and cultural monuments to the Russian Orthodox Church nationwide, art critics focused on the future of the 12th century Bogolyubskaya Icon of the Mother of God. Nezavisimaya Gazeta – Religion discussed this issue in its December 23, 2009 issue. The publication noted the damage sustained by the ancient icon during its transfer from the museum depository to the Knyaginin Convent in Vladimir. Commenting on the article, Father Vladimir Vigilyansky, chief of the Patriarch's Press Service, told RIA Novosti: "I don't believe it. Everything should be checked. There are very many dubious aspects and numerous questions. What did museum workers do?"
Alisa Aksyonova, director of the Vladimir Suzdal Museum Reserve, responded to the accusations directed against restorers by writing an article, providing documentary evidence and proving the authenticity of the Nezavisimaya Gazeta – Religion publication. The article is available on the www.museum.ru, the professional website of museum workers.
By Andrei Melnikov