The article deals with ecclesiastical polemics 1920–1930-ies, namely the prosecution of the Deputy Locum Tenens Metropolitan Sergius (Stragorodsky) in the pursuit of innovative ways as they pushed against him by the representatives of the «right» Church opposition. Discuss the content of these charges and their validity. With this purpose, analyses Church and political activities of Metropolitan Sergius, his attitude towards the reforms in the Church and to the Renovationist schism, nature allowed them to compromise with atheistic power. It turns out that part of reformism Metropolitan Sergius was originally close to the Renovationists, until ready to recognize «the white bishops», but after 1923 he transferred to this plan on a conservative position. At the same time, the Declaration of political solidarity with the Soviet government by the Deputy after 1927 was clearly resemble statements of the Renovationists. Like them, he began to practice the application of favor with the Kremlin Church leaders «canonical prohibitions», though softer. Made by Metropolitan Sergius and the secret cooperation of the hierarchy with the OGPU-NKVD, but tried to act in the Church the interests of the Church, as he understood them, unlike the Renovationists who would deliberately to help the godless authorities to destroy the Church from within. In General, Metropolitan Sergius was characterized by concern for the preservation of primarily external organizational forms of existence of the Church, which was achieved not without damage to its inner freedom and loyalty to the ideal of Church truth. This was the resemblance of sergianstvo Renovationism, but this similarity was not full.
Russian Orthodox Church, Moscow Patriarchate, Church-state relations, Renovationism, the Church’s opposition, the new martyrs and Confessors of Russia
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Mazyrin Aleksandr, priest