Spiritual Christianity

Semi-Autonomous: Spiritual Christianity (Russian: духовное христианство, romanized: dukhovnoye khristianstvo) is the group of belief systems held by so-called folk Protestants (narodnye protestanty), including non-Eastern Orthodox indigenous faith tribes and new religious movements that emerged in the Russian Empire.

Their origins are varied: some come from Protestant movements imported from Europe to Russia by missionaries, travelers and workers; others from disgust at the behavior (absenteeism, alcoholism, profiteering) of Orthodox priests, still others from the Bezpopovtsy Raskolniks.

[1] The heterodox (non-orthodox) groups "rejected ritual and outward observances and believe instead in the direct revelation of God to the inner man".

[2] Adherents are called Spiritual Christians (Russian: духовные христиане) or, less accurately, malakan in the Former Soviet Union, and "Molokans" in the United States, often confused with "Doukhobors" in Canada.

[3] Extant Spiritual Christian sects include: Dukhobors, Molokans, New Israel, Sukhie Baptisty, Sons of Freedom and the Dukh-i-zhizniki.

[5] Many Spiritual Christians embraced egalitarian and pacifist beliefs, which were considered politically radical views by the Russian government.

[6] Among the many sectarians (sektanty : сектанты) in Imperial Russia considered to practice Spiritual Christianity are the Doukhobors, Maksimisty, Molokans, Subbotniks, Pryguny (Jumpers), Khlysts,[2] Skoptsy,[2] Ikonobortsy (Icon-fighters, "Iconoclasts") and Zhidovstvuyushchiye (Жидовствующие: Judaizers).

Their common denominator is that they sought God in "Spirit and Truth" (Gospel of John 4:24) rather than in the Orthodox Church or ancient rites of Popovtsy.

[14] In Russia, they advocated for pacifism, held home meetings, did not drink or smoke, opposed contraception and some modern technology.

[4] The Pryguny (translation: Jumpers) were formed from several heterodox (sectarian) movements in Central Russia and Taurida Governorate, most of whom were isolated in the newly acquired South Caucasus to not infect the Orthodox.

Dukhobortsy were an 18th-century Spiritual Christian movement that evolved from ikonobortsy, opposed all external authorities and the literal Bible, instead being in favour of direct individual revelation.

[21] In the 1950s about 200 of their children were "Snatched" and painfully punished and forced to be English schooled in a Japanese internment camp in New Denver, British Columbia.

The Shalaputs became an evangelical movement made up of peasants who wanted to create their own version of Christianity that opposed Russian Orthodoxy.