Civil Power and Ecclesiastical Power: Symphony or Competition? 11th–13th Centuries

The relationship between the Church and civil authorities in Old Rus’ has been a subject of debate in scholarship for a considerable time. There were opinions regarding the Byzantine Church’s dominance over the underdeveloped ancient Russian state, the leadership of the princely elite over Church institutions, and the parity between them, referred to as a “symphony.” To address this issue, it is essential to consider the Church statutes of Vladimir and Yaroslav the Wise, the Canonical responses of the Old Russian Metropolitans George and John, and the Novgorod Bishop Niphont, which has not been done before. The primary issue of the article is as follows: in the context of Church-state relations, the crux of the matter is the manifestation of power. If this is challenging to address, the key to resolving it lies in the ability to delegate power. To what extent do the Old Russian documents of Church law reflect this ability? An analysis of Church statutes shows that the right of judgment a priori belongs to the princes, which they share with the bishops. Byzantine law was divided into civil and ecclesiastical, and all attempts by the emperors to establish control over the latter were unsuccessful. The appeal to the Greek nomocanon in Church statutes only strengthened the authority of the princes, who delegated judicial power to the bishops. If there is no mention of princes in the Canonical Answers of George and Niphon, then an analysis of the three points of John’s Canonical answers demonstrates that although the metropolitan has the right to lead the prince in liturgical worship, it does not involve delegation of authority. The article demonstrates that the transfer of judicial powers by princes to bishops, an act of paternalism, can be interpreted as a symphony of circumstances that can easily devolve into competition, the sides of which are unequal.