May 11, 2017 in the Hall of Church Councils of the Cathedral Cathedral Church Christ the Savior in Moscow His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' presided over the seventh ceremony of election and awarding of laureates of the Patriarchal Saints Literary Prize Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius.

The ceremony was attended by representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church: Managing Director of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga Varsonofy; Metropolitan Kliment of Kaluga and Borovsk, Chairman of the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church; the first vicar of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' for the city of Moscow, Metropolitan Arseniy of Istra; Metropolitan of Saratov and Volsky Longin; Bishop Theophylact of Dmitrov, abbot of the St. Andrew's Monastery; chairman publishing council Bishop of Molodechno and Stolbtsy Pavel of the Belarusian Exarchate; Bishop of Edinet and Brichansk Nikodim; Archpriest Nikolai Balashov, Deputy Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate; Chief Editor Publishing house of the Moscow Patriarchate Archpriest Vladimir Siloviev; Archimandrite Savva (Tutunov), Deputy Administrator of the Moscow Patriarchate; employees of the Publishing Council, the Publishing House of the Moscow Patriarchate and other synodal institutions, clergy and monastics.

The event was also attended by members of the Chamber of Trustees of the Patriarchal Literary Prize, Russian literary scholars, journalists, representatives of state and public organizations, cultural figures.

On the Soyuz TV channel there was a live broadcast from the Hall of Church Cathedrals.

The ceremony began with a demonstration of a film dedicated to the history of the Patriarchal Literary Prize.

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill addressed the audience with the First Hierarch's word.

Acceptance of applications for the Patriarchal Literary Prize began on September 14, 2016. During the seventh premium season, 50 applications were received from various regions of Russia, as well as from Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan and Latvia. March 28 this year at a meeting of the Chamber of Trustees of the Patriarchal Literary Prize was approved short list 2017 nominees, which included:

• Irina Anatolyevna Bogdanova;
• Dmitry Mikhailovich Volodikhin;
• Vasily Vladimirovich Dvortsov;
• Victor Ivanovich Likhonosov;
• Boris Fedorovich Sporov;
• Alexander Borisovich Tkachenko;
• Archpriest Yaroslav Shipov.

• Bishop Pavel of Molodechno and Stolbtsovsky, Chairman of the Publishing Council of the Belarusian Exarchate;
• Yu.M. Loshchits, writer, publicist and literary critic, laureate of the Patriarchal Literary Prize;
• K.P. Kovalev-Sluchevsky, professor at the Institute of Journalism and literary creativity, writer.

Then the elections of the laureates of the Patriarchal Literary Prize took place: the members of the House of Trustees filled out the voting ballots. The ballots were handed over to the Counting Commission. The members of the Counting Commission counted the votes, filled out the protocol and handed it over to His Holiness the Patriarch.
During the voting and counting of votes, a film about the nominees of the 2017 Patriarchal Literary Prize was shown.

His Holiness the Patriarch presented the laureates with a diploma and badges of the Patriarchal Literary Prize.

All the nominees of the 2017 award were also invited to the stage - I.A. Bogdanova, D.M. Volodikhin, V.V. Palaces, A.B. Tkachenko, to whom the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church presented honorary diplomas.

IN musical accompaniment choir participated in the ceremony orphanage"Joy" at the Nikolsky Chernoostrovsky Monastery in the city of Maloyaroslavets, Kaluga Region.

The evening ended with a concert.

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Patriarchal literary prize established by the Holy Synod at a meeting on December 25, 2009 (magazine No. 115) with the aim of encouraging writers who have made a significant contribution to the establishment of spiritual and moral values in life modern man, families and societies that created highly artistic works that enriched Russian literature. This award has no analogues in the history of the Russian Orthodox Church and other Local Orthodox Churches.
The first laureate of the Patriarchal Literary Prize in 2011 was the writer Vladimir Krupin. In the second premium season (2012), Olesya Nikolaeva and Viktor Nikolaev became the winners. In 2013, Alexei Varlamov, Yuri Loshchits and Stanislav Kunyaev were awarded. In the fourth premium season (2014), the winners were Archpriest Nikolai Agafonov, Valentin Kurbatov and Valery Ganichev. In 2015, the prize was awarded to Yuri Bondarev, Yuri Kublanovskiy and Alexander Segen, in 2016 to Boris Ekimov, Boris Tarasov and priest Nikolai Blokhin.

Word of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill at the 2017 Patriarchal Literary Prize Ceremony

Your Eminences and Eminences! Dear fathers, brothers and sisters! Ladies and Gentlemen!

Christ is Risen!

I cordially greet you all. We have gathered in this hall to elect for the seventh time the laureates of the Patriarchal Literary Prize named after Saints Cyril and Methodius Equal to the Apostles. And I am sure that today, as in past years, truly worthy authors will become the new laureates.

According to the established tradition, I would like to preface the ceremony with some reflections on the fate of Russian literature.

Once I happened to read an article in a well-known foreign publication devoted to current state Russian literature. The article came out under a very bright and provocative title: “Is Russian Literature Dead?” I will not retell the content of this article - I think the essence is clear from the title. The main message of the author was that Russian writers allegedly "chunked", the last great works were written several decades ago, and the authority and influence of Russian literature on the minds of contemporaries is not at all the same as before.

Let's leave out the fact that the article was published in a foreign weekly. Unfortunately, such pessimistic views are encountered among representatives of the domestic intelligentsia. At such moments, I always want to ask the interlocutor: “Where do such thoughts come from? Is it really writers of the 19th Or were the conditions for creativity better in the 20th century, or was there more food for thought than today?

Talented people are born and live in any era. The question is not at all that we do not have new Pushkins, Dostoevskys, Chekhovs, Pasternaks. We have them. The question is how to reveal these writers to the world, how to make their work the property of the whole society.

To clarify my thoughts, I would like to make a short digression into history, in the 30s of the XIX century. The well-known censor Alexander Krasovsky at that time, talking about contemporary literature, once called it disgusting. Probably, his judgment would not have been so interesting if it were not for the fact that Krasovsky lived in an era that would later be called the golden age of Russian culture.

So what, you ask, was the critic ignorant? No! Krasovsky was an educated and well-read man, he knew several foreign languages. What prevented him from seeing Pushkin or Gogol? What was the reason for such blindness, which did not allow in contemporaries to see brilliant writers? Maybe insensitivity, inattention to the artistic word?

It's no secret that later, more mature works Pushkin, whom we admire today, were met by many of his contemporaries very coolly and even with incomprehension. There were also those who wrote about the general crisis of literature and the decline of Pushkin's talent. And even "Boris Godunov", written earlier, was accepted and understood by readers far from immediately.

So what, after all, to the greatest extent determines the ability to see? Perhaps a view from some historical distance? This question is not rhetorical - it requires serious reflection. It is important to understand that literary process- it's not one, not two or even three names. This is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon. The literary process is formed in the conditions of a certain cultural environment and by the efforts of more than two or three prominent people but of the entire writing community. Just as a fertile layer of soil contributes to the rapid growth and successful development of plants, so a healthy and properly organized literary process contributes to the emergence of new geniuses and beautiful works of art.

Not a single time does the Lord leave without talented people without real writers and poets. Let me emphasize once again: there are talented authors in any era, and our time is no exception. It is important not to overlook these talents. Contemporaries, especially the writing community, editors, publishers should try to notice talents, support them, especially at the beginning of their journey, give them the opportunity to publish, tell readers about them.

Today, novice authors have to face considerable difficulties in publishing their works. Many publishing houses simply refuse to publish works by authors, referring to the current market laws, which require, first of all, what will be successfully sold, what will make a profit. The unfortunate tendency to make money from literature unfortunately often results in most publishers not being interested in the actual artistic quality of a work, but in how similar it is to one of the top-grossing novels, in order to continue this line of bestsellers.

Such market filters become a big obstacle for original and truly talented authors. And those who are able to influence the cultural environment and who have some leverage, including the publishing process, are called upon to overcome these obstacles. I am deeply convinced that editors, publishers, that is, people on whom the publication of certain authors depends, should play a special role.

I hope that the Patriarchal Literary Prize will also make a significant contribution to the discovery of new names, in support of gifted masters of the word. This support is extremely important for writers and poets. Do we realize how many authors we do not know just because next to them there was no one who would be sincerely interested in their work, who would help to reach the reader? Do we realize how many talented people cease to publish, precisely because there were those who did not have an impeccable sense of language, were not too well versed in literature, but at the same time considered it possible to publish negative feedback. Other examples can be cited: more than once talented writers and poets were unable to appreciate the works of their contemporaries. And how many texts were lost because they were not printed on time?

In general, this is a very serious topic - the ability to see, understand, feel, and much here also depends on how the public consciousness. If in the 19th and 20th centuries (at least in the first half of the 20th century) literature was an important source of food for thought, today, in the ever-growing information flow, literature occupies only a part, and far from being dominant. It is becoming increasingly difficult to discern a talented author in a huge information array. In addition, the attention of the vast majority of people today is riveted to electronic means mass media. The general acceleration of the pace of life is another factor that adversely affects reading in general and the ability to identify outstanding authors. There is no time to read a book from beginning to end, but in order to understand the author's intention, to feel the beauty of the style, one must not only read, but also reflect on the book!

So it's not just about publishers and editors, of course, but how common cultural context contributes to the orientation of mass consciousness to the sphere of fiction. And we all need to think carefully about what should be done in order for fiction to regain its position, so that people read not only light action-packed books, but also texts created by masters of the word containing deep thoughts.

The remarkable Russian poet Vasily Andreevich Zhukovsky was able to accurately assess the scale of Pushkin's gift when he was still quite young. I quote: “For everything that happened to you and that you brought on yourself, I have one answer: poetry. You do not have a talent, but a genius ... By the authority given to me, I offer you the first place in the Russian Parnassus. And what place, if lofty genius connect and target altitude!" Probably, only a person who possessed not only literary talent, high professional qualification, but also with very strong eyesight, capable of discerning spirits (see 1 Cor. 12:10). So the question arises: can a person living in our fast-flowing, busy time have such a vision, or is a modern person completely deprived of the opportunity to see the essence of things, be able to find talents and support them? I don't think there is a simple answer to this question. But we live in an era that God has determined for us, and our task is to create tools that enhance our spiritual vision and enable us to find talents, feed on their thought and beauty of style.

As you know, in the future, Vasily Andreevich Zhukovsky tried to defend Pushkin, and who knows how the human and literary life poet, if not for the help of Zhukovsky. And today it is important for us to learn to be attentive, to learn to see talented contemporaries and to help, in whatever way we can, people whom God has given. Then our literature will be enriched with new names and remarkable works of art. God grant that the Patriarchal Prize named after Saints Cyril and Methodius Equal to the Apostles would serve as a modest, but quite effective tool that would help not only specialists to identify talented authors, but also the general reader to get acquainted with the work of their remarkable contemporaries.

Thank you for your attention.

Press Service of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'

In Moscow, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' led the eighth ceremony of election and awarding of laureates of the Patriarchal Literary Prize named after Saints Cyril and Methodius Equal to the Apostles.

The ceremony was attended by: head; chairman of the Russian Orthodox Church, first vicar of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' for the city of Moscow, editor-in-chief, chairman of the Publishing Council, employees of the Publishing Council, the Publishing House of the Moscow Patriarchate and other synodal institutions, clergy and monastics.

The event was also attended by members of the Chamber of Trustees of the Patriarchal Literary Prize, Russian literary critics, journalists, representatives of state and public organizations, and cultural figures.

The host of the ceremony was literary critic, employee of the State literary museum, magazines " New world"and" Thomas "P.M. Kryuchkov.

The event began with a demonstration of a film dedicated to the history of the Patriarchal Literary Prize.

Then His Holiness Patriarch Kirill addressed the audience with.

Acceptance of applications for the Patriarchal Literary Prize on September 14, 2017. In the eighth premium season, more than 50 applications were received from various regions of Russia and foreign countries― Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Argentina. On March 5, 2018, the Chamber of Trustees of the Patriarchal Literary Prize was formed long list nominees. March 29 Council of Experts preliminary short list of nominees, which was approved on May 3 at the final meeting of the House of Trustees. The short list of nominees for the eighth season of the Patriarchal Literary Prize includes:

• Maria Nikolaevna Avvakumova,
• Leonid Evgenievich Bezhin,
• Alexander Vitalievich Gromov,
• Svetlana Vasilievna Kekova,
• Konstantin Petrovich Kovalev-Sluchevsky,
• Vladimir Andreevich Kostrov,
• Albert Anatolievich Likhanov,
• Victor Fedorovich Potanin,
• Konstantin Vasilievich Skvortsov,
• Mikhail Alexandrovich Tarkovsky.

The names of the laureates are determined by secret ballot. To count votes from among the members of the House of Trustees, a Counting Commission was formed in the following composition: laureate of the Patriarchal Literary Prize V.N. Nikolaev, rector of the Moscow State Conservatory named after P.I. Tchaikovsky A.S. Sokolov, First Deputy Chairman.

Then the elections of the laureates of the Patriarchal Literary Prize took place: the members of the Chamber of Trustees filled out ballot papers with the names of the nominees. Each voter could mark the names of three nominees worthy of an honorary award.

The ballots were handed over to the Counting Commission. The members of the Counting Commission counted the votes, filled out the protocol and handed it over to His Holiness the Patriarch.

His Holiness the Patriarch presented the laureates with diplomas and badges of the Patriarchal Literary Prize.

All the nominees for the 2018 award were also invited to the stage, to whom the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church presented honorary diplomas.

At the end of the festive evening, a concert was held, in which the Honored Artist of Russia Lidia Muzaleva and the Ensemble "Russia" named after A. Ludmila Zykina.

The Patriarchal Literary Prize was established by the Holy Synod on December 25, 2009 () with the aim of encouraging writers who have made a significant contribution to the affirmation of spiritual and moral values ​​​​in the life of a modern person, family and society, who have created highly artistic works that have enriched Russian literature. This award has no analogues in the history of the Russian Orthodox Church and other Local Orthodox Churches.

The list of nominees for the 2015 Patriarchal Literary Prize includes:

Archpriest Leonid Safronov; Bondarev Yury Vasilievich; Burlyaev Nikolai Petrovich; Volodikhin Dmitry Mikhailovich; Voropaev Vladimir Alekseevich; Kublanovskiy Yuri Mikhailovich; Matveeva Novella Nikolaevna; Segen Alexander Yurievich.

May 26 at 13:00 at the International Multimedia Press Center of MIA "Russia Today" ( Zubovsky boulevard, house 4) a press conference dedicated to the 5th anniversary of the Patriarchal Literary Prize and the award ceremony of this year's laureates will be held. A video recording of the event will be available at the link on the press center website http://pressmia.ru/pressclub/20150526/950142685.html

On May 28, 2015, in the Hall of Church Councils of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' will lead the solemn ceremony of electing and awarding the laureates of the Patriarchal Literary Prize.

On the occasion of the 5th anniversary of the Patriarchal Literary Prize, a jubilee collection of works by writers - laureates and nominees of the Prize 2011–2015 is published. Written in beautiful language, serious and funny, lyrical and filled with warm humor, they will not leave readers indifferent. The book will be of interest to a wide range readers.

The Patriarchal Literary Prize named after Saints Cyril and Methodius Equal-to-the-Apostles was established by the Holy Synod on the initiative of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill in order to encourage writers who have made a significant contribution to the affirmation of spiritual and moral values ​​in the life of a modern person, family and society, who have created highly artistic works that have enriched Russian literature.

The winners of the Prize are elected by a vote of the members of the House of Trustees from among the nominees who were included in the short list of the Prize. Voting takes place at the ceremony of election and awarding of the Prize, in the presence of representatives of the media.

The Chairman of the Chamber of Trustees is His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus'; Secretary of the House of Trustees - Chairman of the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan of Kaluga and Borovsk Kliment. The House of Trustees includes representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church and the literary community, public figures, figures of science and culture. Among them: Archbishop Anthony of Borispol, Bishop Veniamin of Borisov, Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, Archimandrite Tikhon (Shevkunov), Alexander Arkhangelsky, Alexei Varlamov, Andrei Vasilevsky, Yuri Vyazemsky, Valery Ganichev, Konstantin Kovalev-Sluchevsky, Boris Oleinik, Yuri Polyakov, Alexander Sokolov, Boris Tarasov, Viktor Fedorov, Sergei Chuprinin and others.

The Patriarchal Literary Prize named after Saints Cyril and Methodius Equal to the Apostles has no analogues in the history of the Russian Orthodox Church and other local churches. The award is intended to promote the development of interaction between the Russian Orthodox Church and the literary community. The prize is awarded in the nomination "For a significant contribution to the development of Russian literature."

The award is intended to promote the development of interaction between the Russian Orthodox Church and the literary community - primarily those writers who, with their work, establish the foundations Christian faith. The Primates of Local Orthodox Churches, heads of self-governing Churches within the Moscow Patriarchate, diocesan bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church, bodies state power CIS and Baltic countries, Synodal institutions of the Russian Orthodox Church, as well as editorial offices of literary magazines and literary and public organizations.

The organization of all events related to the selection of the Prize nominees, as well as the preparation of meetings of the Chamber of Trustees, the Council of Experts and the organization of the Solemn Ceremony for the election and awarding of the laureate of the Patriarchal Literary Prize is entrusted to the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church.

The first laureate of the Patriarchal Literary Prize in 2011 was the writer Vladimir Nikolaevich Krupin. In the second premium season (2012), Olesya Alexandrovna Nikolaeva and Viktor Nikolaevich Nikolaev became the winners. In the third premium season (2013), Alexei Varlamov, Yuri Loshchits and Stanislav Kunyaev received awards. In the fourth premium season (2014), the winners were: Father Nikolai Agafonov, Valentin Kurbatov and Valery Ganichev.

More detailed information about the Patriarchal Literary Prize and this year's nominees is available

In September, the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church opens the seventh season of the Patriarchal Literary Prize. Applications for this award will be accepted until February 2017. How is it reflected in contemporary literature? spiritual state human, about communication different eras reflects the Metropolitan of Kaluga and Borovsk Kliment, Chairman of the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church. His article is devoted to the work of the laureates of this year's Patriarchal Literary Prize - Priest Nikolai Blokhin, prose writer Boris Ekimov, literary critic Boris Tarasov.

In history they distinguish different periods. One is called gold, the other, for example, silver or bronze. The secular culture of Russia knows two special eras of its heyday, called golden and silver age. Obviously, both periods are associated with the desire of society to comprehend the surrounding reality and its tragic experience (whether it be the war with Napoleon or the Russian revolutions of the early twentieth century), referring to the spiritual potential of the Russian people, to those most important values ​​that were once the basis and still pores define originality civilizational development Russia. This is reflected in the development philosophical thought, and in various types art, especially in domestic literature.

In the current post-Soviet period, the need for self-identification is also acutely felt, which, in particular, is reflected in the search for national idea, a unifying beginning for modern Russian society. The Russian Orthodox Church, which has preserved the most important values ​​of Russian civilization for centuries, supports that modern Russian literature that helps to find answers to these burning questions. In this regard, let's try to reflect on what distinguishes the modern period in the history of Russian literature, considering the work of the latest nominees for the Patriarchal Literary Prize named after Saints Cyril and Methodius Equal to the Apostles.

Prose writers became its new laureates this year Boris Nikolaevich Tarasov, Boris Petrovich Ekimov And Priest Nikolai Blokhin. These are the people different fate, but in their work there is a tangible common component. With a variety of topics and genres of works, all three authors broadcast modern reader the eternal norms of Christian ethics, as an active, practical part of the worldview that our people have adopted since the time of the Baptism of Rus' by the saints prince equal to the apostles Vladimir. And another unifying principle is the fact that they all survived Soviet era when a direct and frank statement religious views and even good word against the Church was persecuted by the atheistic state.

Priest Nikolai Blokhin V Soviet years, then still not a priest, was arrested and spent several years in prisons and camps for illegally publishing and distributing Orthodox literature. It was then, in prison, that he wrote his first story, Grandma's Glasses. He even jokes - the prison made him a writer. Today he is the author of many books that are well known to Orthodox readers: "Deep-bog", "Give me a brother", "The Chosen One", "Paul", "Frontier", "Christmas Tale", "Vladimirskaya".

The perception of any sorrows as a source of a person's rebirth, as an inciting beginning to his inner change, runs through all the author's work. This leitmotif is internally gained through suffering, understood by the priest Nikolai Blokhin on personal life experience. It is no coincidence that he said exactly this in his response at the ceremony of awarding the laureates of the Patriarchal Literary Prize.

The theme of the Christian faith, finding it, Baptism as the greatest sacrament and the main event in a person's life, the choice between faith and its denial, between concession to sin and the fight against it, occupies a central place in the work of priest Nikolai Blokhin. It is she who is the main core around which other themes, ideas, characters are located. It is to her that everything in the story is subordinated. For example, in the stories “Grandmother’s Glass”, “The Chosen One”, the author depicts how deeply people have changed, including the youngest, just children, when they believed and accepted Baptism, how differently they began to look at the world, at themselves, at those around them. The reader gets the impression that adult characters are divided primarily on the basis of faith or unbelief, that this is precisely their defining feature. That is why coming to faith radically changes adult heroes as well.

I have heard that Blokhin's heroes lack psychologism, which is why they are somewhat schematic and even unreliable. But, in my opinion, most of them are not without the main thing - internal change as a result of spiritual choice. The absence of the subtleties of emotional experiences in the narrative can be explained by the fact that the writer, creating his characters, sought to focus the reader's attention on the main thing - to show the responsibility of the person himself for his own choice.

This choice is always alternative: either acceptance of the Savior, the desire to follow Christ, read the Gospel, the lives of the saints, try to follow their example, or unbelief, or even a willingness to communicate with dark forces ... According to the author's intention, this choice, as the focus of spiritual life every person at every age stands at the center of the story. He is the main thing that the author wants to tell the reader about, and everything else is secondary, less important. That is why here both some "schematism" and the absence of "psychologism" in individual images are possible.

In the books of the priest Nikolai Blokhin there is an element of fantasy. It is intertwined with reality, and in the living fabric of his works it is impossible to separate them.

Often only children with their immediacy better than anyone else capture the essence of what is happening and can express it. In my opinion, the most striking example of this is Alyosha from the story "Give me back my brother." The child, not understanding what adults intend to do, not knowing at all that what adults have planned (termination of pregnancy) is possible, intuitively feels trouble. Fearing that something threatens his future brother, he turns to adults (parents and hospital doctors) with the most important request for him: “Give me back my brother!” And these words of the child “wake up” the elderly doctor, who thought that during the years of work in such a hospital he got used to everything. Then he confesses that “he didn’t run away from the war like that” when he found and caught up with Alyosha to report that his brother was alive, that he had not been killed ...

The theme of suffering for the faith and readiness for these sufferings, the determination to endure them with God's help, but not to retreat, occupies a significant place in the work of Priest Nikolai Blokhin. Here we can recall the teacher Julia, Zoya and Seva-Sevastyan from the story "The Chosen One".

Of the works of the priest Nikolai Blokhin, the most artistically strong, in my opinion, is the story "The Depth-Swamp", which tells about the events of the times civil war. The reality in it is intertwined with elements of fantasy, each character has his own story, and it is not immediately and not always clear to the reader why this particular hero suddenly sees a mysterious monastery, a place of salvation for many, when other people do not see him. One of the most important thoughts in this story is the hope for the possibility of repentance, which remains with a person even when it is obvious that he has committed terrible atrocities, and by earthly standards this cannot be forgiven. In this regard, first of all, I remember the commander of the Red Army Vzvoev, who also suddenly saw that monastery and even ended up in it.

The writer conveys to the reader the idea of ​​the importance of preserving Orthodoxy by every living generation, despite the obstacles inherent in his time. This is very important not only for us living today, but also for our descendants. Spiritual succession is the essence of the history of our people as a whole and its individual families, which, like a baton, pass Orthodox faith and a virtuous life from one generation to the next.

This year's winner Patriarchal Prize writer Boris Petrovich Ekimov- one of the best prose writers not only of our time, but, as it seems to me, of all Russian literature. His works are written at the highest artistic level. This is exemplary (if I may say so) prose, created in the best traditions domestic literature. I remember how many years ago I first read the stories of Boris Petrovich, and they made a very special, unforgettable impression on me.

Each period of the country's history is reflected in its secular culture in its own way. Various works of art: painting, music and literary writings and the like, are the most valuable and detailed evidence of the era in which they are created. To a large extent, it is from them that descendants can judge the period as a whole, the development of culture and society, and what worried the people who lived then. Someday our time will be judged by our descendants cultural heritage of our era, including the literary works of contemporary authors. I think that among the best, worthy prose works the books of Boris Petrovich Yekimov will remain in history.

Most of his works on the subject can be attributed to village prose . But all of them tell not only about the inhabitants of the village, they are about all people. Love to small homeland, beauty native nature, habit and craving for rural work, for their land, joys, sorrows, worries, relationships between relatives and fellow villagers - all this is in the works of B.P. Ekimov. One of his collections ("Return") has a subtitle "Stories of Living Life". Exactly this precise definition essence of the whole prose of the writer.

There are many themes in his works, they are intertwined with each other into a complex artistic whole, they cannot be divided into components, separated from each other. To the question of what, for example, one of the best stories in all Russian literature, The Shepherd's Star, cannot be given a monosyllabic answer. Better to read it.

The novels and stories of Boris Ekimov are imbued with a Christian spirit, including those in which there is no direct mention of Christian realities. Let me again recall The Shepherd's Star and its protagonist Timothy, for whom the moral principle "do not steal" is so natural that it does not even occur to him that you can appropriate other people's sheep. At first, he cannot even think that this is exactly what the owner, who hired him as a shepherd, intended. Timothy himself does not take someone else's.

“I don’t need someone else’s spirit, - he removed the money. - How many a pass, thank God, was not flattered. But what about ... People are crying somewhere, and we will crow with happiness, - he said weakly, but still hoping to convince . “You won’t flourish on other people’s tears.”

The whole image of the village simpleton, in which the greatness of the Russian spirit is focused, appears before the reader in the same lively, unimagined, whole way. Timothy is truly responsible for his work, he remembers the advice of the old shepherd, from whom he himself once studied. He lives in full force only in his small homeland, near his native farm, where he is surrounded by nature close to his heart, so familiar and at the same time the most beautiful nature.

But for all his simplicity, Timothy has wisdom. He does not take offense at the master's son of a teenager, who at first behaves somewhat arrogantly. Over time, Timofey becomes a truly close person for this boy. Unobtrusively, he convinces the teenager that it is impossible to spoil the growing bread. You can’t let a herd into the field, because even if the authorities are ready to turn a blind eye to this, a person should not act against conscience:

“You don’t drive into bread. To poison bread is a great sin.”

The story "The Mistress" vividly illustrates how a concession to one sin pulls a whole chain of subsequent ones. main character Olga is a widow and wants to find her happiness with Mikhail, a childhood friend who has a wife and children for a long time. Dreaming about the destruction of someone else's family and about life together with someone else's husband, Olga goes further and further along the path of untruth, hardening her heart. She puts the mother of her dead husband out of the house in which she lived all her life, despite the fact that her mother-in-law always helped her raise her daughters, took on the hardest work. Olga forces her to move to another village with her daughter, where she is not too welcome, and then refuses to accept her back. When old woman asks with tears to let her spend the last earthly years in this house, Olga emphasizes that now they are strangers. All the injustice, the soullessness of Olga's stubborn desire to remain the only mistress in the house is exposed by her relationship with her own daughter Rosa, who insists that grandmother Akulina ("Baba Kulya") live with them. After all, for her, the “babanechka” is the dearest and most beloved person.

The story "Speak, mother, speak ..." about complete mutual understanding and true love between long ago adult daughter and mother. Both at a distance are able to feel what is especially important close person, and give him just that. Both know, remember and take care of what a loved one loves and appreciates.

Although these works do not directly speak about Christianity, such was the era, but moral values ​​are written everywhere in them.

The 2016 Patriarchal Prize winners included Boris Nikolaevich Tarasov- writer, philosopher, literary critic, doctor philological sciences, Professor Literary Institute named after M. Gorky, who for many years headed it as rector, Honored Worker of Sciences of the Russian Federation.

In the series "Life wonderful people Boris Nikolaevich Tarasov published two books. This artistic biographies Christian thinkers Pascal and Chaadaev. I believe that most readers appreciate this, probably the oldest book series, which appeared back in 1890. It was from that time that the publishing house F.F. Pavlenkov began to publish biographical and artistic-biographical books under the general title. Later, in the 30s of the XX century, the series was resumed by Maxim Gorky.

Both books by Boris Tarasov are in demand by readers and have been repeatedly reprinted. The general readership, in my opinion, knows both thinkers somewhat “one-sidedly”: one as a scientist, the other as a contemporary of Pushkin, the addressee of his lines, a man whom the government declared crazy for his writings. Other aspects of their activities seem to remain in the shadows. Meanwhile, Chaadaev himself considered himself a Christian thinker. In the books of B.N. Tarasova B. Pascal and P.Ya. Chaadaev are revealed as versatile, deep personalities. Boris Nikolaevich has done a great job. He studied and analyzed many sources, as a result of which his books turned out to be very informative and fascinating.

In addition to the biographical works mentioned above, Boris Tarasov published a number of educational books(“In the world of man”, “Where is history heading”, “Historiosophy of F.I. Tyutchev in the modern context”, “Man and history in Russian religious philosophy and classical literature"," The Secret of Man "and the Secret of History (Unread Chaadaev, Unheard Dostoevsky, Unidentified Tyutchev)", "Dostoevsky and modern world” and others. He also prepared a two-volume book “Nicholas the First and His Time” and a one-volume book “Knight of Autocracy”), the titles of which testify to the author’s constant interest in the history of Russian literature, its connections with religious philosophy.

I would like to dwell in particular on the book by B.N. Tarasova "Where history is moving (Metamorphoses of people and ideas in the light of Christian tradition)". In it, the author consistently pursues a relevant thought: when they try to put some other values ​​in place of Christian values, even the most seemingly good, humane, humane ones, nothing really good and bright comes out as a result. All attempts to replace Christian values, Christian norms, Christian views with some other, supposedly aimed at the good individual people and of all mankind, which have been undertaken more than once in history and are being undertaken in our time, do not lead to anything good. If the Christian hierarchy of values ​​is not laid at the foundation, if these values ​​are distorted, then everything done on such a foundation most often turns into evil for a person and the surrounding world, although, as it seemed, those who tried to build on such a support pursued good goals.

In the book of B.N. Tarasova "Where history is moving" we are talking about famous domestic writers, philosophers and politicians XIX century (emperors Alexander I and Nicholas I, Westernizers, Slavophiles, soil workers, F.I. Tyutchev, A.S. Pushkin, P.Ya. Chaadaev, K.N. Leontiev, L.N. Tolstoy) and about their contemporaries . Exploring their heritage in various aspects: cultural, literary, philosophical, social, the author analyzes the problems they faced and ways to solve them in the complex context of Russian and world history.

At first glance, it might seem that 19th century quite well studied and largely known to most people. Patriotic and world history of this century, as well as the classics of Russian literature in our country are studied at the school desk. This period of history is widely represented in research, popular science and fiction. But it should be noted that the ideas about it in our society, as a rule, are superficial, insufficient and, importantly, contain a significant number of clichés.

The special value of the works of B.N. Tarasov lies in the fact that he consistently, strictly scientific basis breaks many patterns. One of the most clear examples- attitude towards Emperor Nicholas I, assessment of his personality and the period of his reign. From school course history, most students learn that it was an era of reaction, stagnation in all areas of life, and the emperor himself is perceived by them as a strangler of all freedom, an "offender" of the best poets, writers and in general thinking people- as "Nikolai Palkin". Opposing this cliche, Boris Nikolaevich Tarasov convincingly shows that the figure of the emperor was not so unequivocally gloomy, and the years of his reign cannot be characterized only as a time of complete darkness in all spheres of life. The researcher gives many examples from the life and work of the emperor, which convince the reader that Nicholas I had a lot of positive qualities, important and necessary for the government, and his deeds for the good of the country are numerous and undeservedly forgotten.

I consider it very valuable that B.N. Tarasov does not go to the other extreme, while maintaining a critical assessment historical figures. It happens that authors who write about someone undeservedly forgotten or who received an undeserved “dark halo” in history get too carried away with apologetics and create in their writings an unrealistically positive, to some extent “inanimate” image. In the studies of B.N. Tarasova saved historical truth, the heroes remain real people having both advantages and disadvantages. The author does not idealize the actions of the heroes of his books, does not present them in a "favorable" light, does not pick up justifications for any of their actions. He recognizes as true far from all the thoughts and actions of those about whom he writes.

Thanks to the works of B.N. Tarasov, the reader is presented with a much more real, versatile XIX century with all its contradictions, with many interesting and important people who lived at that time. The author does not just list the facts and writes about emperors, writers, philosophers, he gives the reader the opportunity to comprehend the historical and cultural patterns and the significance of Christian values, norms, traditions in history.

In conclusion, it should be noted that the laureates of this year's Patriarchal Literary Prize in their own way reflect the diversity modern literature rooted in the Orthodox worldview. Years of atheistic censorship in national culture did not weaken creative potential writers who broadcast Orthodox moral principles and beliefs. And today we need more such writers. I do not know what the contemporary period of Russian literature will be called. But its distinguishing feature, in my opinion, is the interest of many talented authors in the spiritual laws of being and their manifestation in the realities of our time.

The number of applications from contenders for the Patriarchal Literary Prize named after Saints Cyril and Methodius has become the largest in the history of the award, the head of the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Kliment of Kaluga and Borovsk, said at a press conference, RIA Novosti reports. This year the Patriarchal Literary Prize will be awarded for the sixth time. Among the nominees are people famous in the literary community.

Of the 56 applications submitted, eight nominees were included. These are Priest Nikolai Blokhin, Gromov Alexander Vitalievich, Yekimov Boris Petrovich, Karpov Alexey Yuryevich, nun Evfemia (Pashchenko), Sergeev Valery Nikolaevich, Tarasov Boris Nikolaevich, Archpriest Andrey Tkachev. As Aleksey Varlamov, laureate of the 2013 Patriarchal Literary Prize, noted, “the prize is not given for individual work, but for the cumulative contribution of the writer to Russian literature, ”according to the website of the Moscow Patriarchate.

Another nominee for the award - the writer Ksenia Krivosheina - withdrew her application without explanation.

Members of the Chamber of Trustees will determine this year's laureates at a solemn ceremony in the Hall of Church Councils of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior on May 18. Writer Alexander Segen, laureate of the 2015 Patriarchal Literary Prize, spoke about this year's nominees: “Priest Nikolai Blokhin is a spiritual ascetic who suffered for his faith in the Soviet years. Alexander Gromov came to the faith when he served in Afghanistan, and talks about it in his books. Boris Ekimov - represents a constellation of village writers. Alexey Karpov is known as the author of books about Prince Vladimir, Yaroslav the Wise, Alexander Nevsky and many other heroes of the ZhZL series. Nun Euphemia writes very bright works, including for children. Valery Sergeev wrote a book about Andrei Rublev in the Soviet years, published in the ZHZL series. Boris Tarasov is familiar to readers as the author of the biographies of Pascal and Chaadaev. And Archpriest Andrey Tkachev is a well-known preacher and writer.”

The annual Russian Patriarchal Literary Prize, established by the decision of the Holy Synod of the Russian Church on the initiative of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill on December 25, 2009, has been awarded since 2011. It was established to encourage writers who have made a significant contribution to the affirmation of spiritual and moral values ​​in the life of modern man, family and society, who have created highly artistic works that have enriched Russian literature. The award has no analogues not only in the history of the Russian Church, but also in the practice of other Local Orthodox Churches.

The number of laureates, according to the regulations on the award, cannot exceed three people. At the same time, one of the innovations of this year was that each of the members of the House of Trustees can cast not one, as before, but three votes.

The first laureate of the Patriarchal Literary Prize in 2011 was the writer Vladimir Krupin. In the second premium season (2012), Olesya Nikolaeva and Viktor Nikolaev became the winners. In the third premium season (2013), Alexei Varlamov, Yuri Loshchits and Stanislav Kunyaev received awards. In the fourth premium season (2014), the winners were: Fr. Nikolai Agafonov, Valentin Kurbatov and Valery Ganichev. In the fifth premium season (2015), the winners were: Yuri Bondarev, Alexander Segen and Yuri Kublanovskiy.