RUSSIAN RELIGIOUS VAGARIES. Horrible Things Done in the Name of the Saviour. FLIGHT FROM THE ANTI-CHRIST. Tales of the Fearful Massacro of Women and Children—Propagating the Religion of Suicide.

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 268, 30 May 1888, Page 3

RUSSIAN RELIGIOUS VAGARIES. Horrible Things Done in the Name of the Saviour. FLIGHT FROM THE ANTI-CHRIST. Tales of the Fearful Massacro of Women and Children— Propagating the Religion of Suicide.

Not all the fanaticism of Russia goes Jnto political and Nihilistic agitation, if the statements made in a recent article in an English review by M. N. Tsakni have a reasonable foundation in truth. J l e declares that for liity years past there lias been a sort ,of fermentation going on in religious thought in the country, which has produced or brought to the surtaco all kindof hideou-. and uncouth monstiositios, menial and physical, Lo haiass communities and destioy individuals. One frantic namod'Khodliine, ufterspendingmost of his time over religious books, which he expounded in his own fashion, convinced liimself that the end of the v>oild was at hand, and he peisuaded a band of followers that the only way to save their souls was to leave tho world, to hide in the ioresl, and to make an end of the lite of ignominy and f-iu in which they weic involved. His Hist disciples wcie his mother, hi other, sister-in-law anil uncle. ' Anti Christ is already come,' ho declaiod, ' and goes lo and fro m the earch, The end of the world is at hand ; let/ us lly to the foicsts, buryouiselve- alive and die of hunger,' and thehalfinsane convents tollowed his example, a Luge congregation going with him into the woods, where the men set out to dig actual catacombs and the women made grave clothe-. Three days were thus consumed, and then all the disciples, dieted in these clothes, tluee several times renounced Satan and hi- woiks. This ceremony ovei, Khodkine said • 'Now that you h.ivc i enounced Satan, \ou must die ot hunger If %you % you take no noui ishment and drink no watei for twelve days, you will enter the kingdom of Heaven.' Blindly they set them-elvcs to follow his command. Days of intoleiablo agony tollowed, and at list the toituied women and children began to eiy aloud for water. Touched by the pitiful wailing of tho childien. some of ihe fanatics knelt to their chief ,m(l besought him for meicy for the little ones ; but he was immovable and icfused the petition, while the ehildien writhed m agony, mucking grass, cheumg fern fionds, and swallowing sand. Two of tho band, able to endure no longer, slipped away in the night, and Khodkine, Icaiful that <tid might be summoned, detct mined to hasten matters. ' The hour is cane. Are you icady ?' he said. ' We are ready. 1 they exclaimed. Then, at his command, they began a mas sacie. Theehildieu weie lir-t killed and the bodies of ihe victims burieil. Then tho survivors decided to lcsume the fast, but the two fugitives having warned the poluv, about this time a body ot ollieers was seen appioaching. The madne.-s ot the fanatics 1 cached its height, and -wealing to shed their blood foi Clnibt, they began an indiscriminate sclt -laughtet. The women and then the weakest ot men wore killed with hatchets, until Imallv. Khodkine and tbiec othciswcre the sole survhoi-. They attempted to escape into the forest, but wcic caj)tuied and tinned ovei to justice. A few years -igo, M. Tsakni sa\s, fhe monk Falaie enjoyed gieat popularity on the bank-, of the Volga, and taught thai the sole mode of salvation ioi man wasvoluntary death. 'It is impo— iblc," he -aid, Mo continue to lno in (his world j immei-ed in .-in and falsehood \\ c mibl . -eek safety in death ; we must die lot | Chii-t.' Laige nuinbeis of disciples at- j t'iched themselves to thi^ prophet ot death, and one night eight ,\ toui per-ons met in a cavein piepaicd betoiehand noai a livei. Straw and faggots were at hand, that ihey might ha-tcn death it the police should inteifeie. Thcv began io f.ist and pi ay, but one woman became sceptical as to the eliicacy of death as a means to salvation, and in the darkne-s slipped away to a ncighbouiiny village, where she gave the a'aim to the authorities. The inhabitants | tinned out ot ?»riw and went towaul the ! nver. Their coming was seen by a sentinel of the fanatics, who shouted : 'AnliC'hrist i- coming Fly 1 Let us i not; yive oui -elves up living into the iian U ot our enemies. The mad band .set- the to the straw, and i the peasant villagu- endea\oured to e\i tnignish the flame-- A teinble -nuggle j followed. The police and the villager tiicd to snatch the v letiins fiom the hie; but they defended themselves, wiesUiug vvnh fieir would be saviouis, tin owing them a-ule and killing themselves with hatchet^, shouting all the time. ' We die tor Christ !' Many of them were saved in spile ot themselves, howevei. After the-e had been hied and convicted one of the condemned, Toushkoil, escaped fiom piison, and him -elf began to piopa-g-ite the leligion of suicide. .Moie than sixty person 0 in that same locality decided to give tlu-mselves up to voluutaiy death. Whole families — father-, mothers, and children — wei c included in the numbei On a day fixed befoteband the t v. met foi mutual ma-sacre in the house of one ot (heir number. Peasant I', enteied the house of his neighbour, and after killing him, with his wife and ehildien, went, to the ham, wheie the other fanatics were waiting tor him with then wive-*, alu l these ealmlv, put then heads on a block, while P. played ihe pait of cxecutionci. Then he went to the bam of anothei peasant woman, killed her and her kinswomen, while an accomplice killed the ehildien. Then the accomplice put his head on the block and begged P. to cut it oil, P. himself being subsequently killed by another ot the band, so that in all thirty-five persons met their death in this way before a peasant woman, chancing to pas,- in tho neighbourhood, was tcnitied by the spectacle and ran to give the alarm. A less harmful sect is that described by M. Tsakni as existing in the Caucasus and neighbouring countries lo which it has been the custom of the Russian Covernmenl lo send haidened and recalcitrant Jisscnleis from the State Church. Thcic lcpiesontatives of all the strange Russian sects find room for propagating their dock ines. among their fellow e\i e»s and tho natives without interference or hindrance, and fiom the conglomeration of various fanaticism*) has sprung up a sect callod I'rigoony, or the ' J umpors. ' They have cai riod religious ecstasy to the highest point. Their piincipal apostlo calls himself Cod, and teaches chiefly that, since the cud of the woild is at hand, all must prepare for it by repentance and purification from past sin by confession to tho elect of Cod. Tho enthusiasm of the disciples is such that they leave their work and devote all their timo to prayer and to listening to sermons. The principal dogma of the sect is the belief in the descent of the Holy Spiiit upon bclieveis. This takes place only upon the elect during religious meetings, and con tinually only upon two or three por-ons in j each meeting. Habitually it occurs only j fit the end ot the meeting, when all havo

boon suitably prepared by prayer. The signs of blio presence are usually a pallor ot fcho face, quickened breath, then a swaying of the whole body, a rhythmic tapping with the feet, violent contortions and jumping, and in the end a heavy fall upon the ground. Homo of the believers sway, and then springingonthebonchesbegin to jump. Others fall from the benches to the floor and there remain .stretched for an hour or more. Others inarch around the table with theatiicnl stride, shaken by hysterical &obs, and, while twirling in their places throwing themselves about, falling on the ground, or, raising themselves again, they retain a lixed look of fcho greatest solemnity. At the end of the meeting the teachers and apostles embrace each other and then retire to opposite sides of the room. Then the brothers and sisters come to them successively, throw themselves on the ground three times beforo them, and embrace them three times. This fraternal greeting sometimes takes an hour fco complete, and eacli brother and sister may icccivc as many as a hundred or more kisses in the course of it.