‘A NEW CHURCH FOR THE RED STATE’
BBC Radio World Service

Broadcasts: Sun 22 October 2017, 14:06 GMT Wed 25 October 2017, 09:06 GMT

To mark the centenary of the Russian Revolution, this two-part radio documentary explores a lesser known phenomenon – the movement for Church renewal that flourished after 1917. The reformers, led by charismatic Alexander Vvedensky and his comrades, had their own celestial vision of reform for the Orthodox Church. They envisaged a better future for Russia’s souls — a new more democratic Church, closer to the people. But were they simply being used by the Bolsheviks, or was there a chance that the Revolution’s answer to Martin Luther could prompt a real Russian Reformation?

Programme researcher Andrey Levitskiy (DPhil candidate, Balliol), featuring contributions from Prof Stephen Smith (All Souls), Prof Geoffrey Hosking (UCL), Dr Edward Roslof (Washington) and the last surviving members of Alexander Vvedensky’s family. Presented by former BBC religious affairs correspondent Caroline Wyatt.

Available online on BBC iPlayer Radio after the first broadcast:
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3csvrfz