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Methodological approaches to the study of religion. Methodology of history

Methodology - the doctrine of research methods, coverage of historical facts, scientific knowledge. The methodology of history is based on scientific principles and approaches to the study of historical facts.

The fundamental principles of studying historical facts include:

1. the principle of historicism, which involves the study of historical phenomena in development, in accordance with the specific historical situation;
2. the principle of objectivity, which provides for the researcher’s reliance on objective facts, consideration of the phenomenon in all its versatility and inconsistency;
3. principle of social approach involves consideration of phenomena and processes taking into account the social interests of various segments of the population, taking into account the subjective aspect in the practical activities of parties, governments, and individuals;
4. the principle of alternativeness determines the degree of probability of a particular event, phenomenon, process based on an objective analysis of the real situation.

Compliance with these principles ensures scientificity and reliability in the study of the past.

In modern history methodology there is no unitary (single) platform; it is characterized by a variety of methodological approaches that have emerged as a result of the progressive development and formation theoretical foundations historical knowledge. The most significant and widespread are the following methodological approaches to the study of history: theological, subjectivism, geographical determinism, evolutionism, Marxism and civilizational approach.

Theological approach represents a religious understanding of history, based on the recognition of the Supreme Mind (God the Creator) and the divine world order created by it. According to this approach, God the Creator is the basis of the world, the fundamental principle of all things and the root cause of all things and phenomena. God created the universe and man, gave his innermost meaning to its historical existence and development.

The theological or God-centered approach has two main directions:

1. religious and confessional concepts(Christian, Islamic, Buddhist, etc.);
2. religious-supra-confessional syncretic concepts history (the teachings of E.P. Blavatsky, the teachings of N. and E. Roerichs, the teachings of D. Andreev, etc.).

Recently, the theological approach, idealistic in its essence, has become increasingly widespread, which allowed the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Academician Yu. Osipov to declare the gradual rapprochement of science and religion in modern world.

Subjectivism- a methodological direction that ignores the objective approach to reality, denies the objective laws of nature and society. Subjectivism considers the historical process as the result of the manifestation of the world spirit and absolutizes the active role of the subject in various fields of activity.

Representatives of subjectivism were the philosophers D. Berkeley (1685 - 1753), I.G. Fichte (1762-1814), D. Hume (1711 - 1776).

Geographical determinism makes the role absolute geographical factors in the development of the historical process. Thus, the French educator Sh.L. Montesquieu (1689 -1755) - the founder of the geographical school in sociology, believed that climate, soil and condition earth's surface determine the spirit of the people and the nature of social development. Russian geographer, sociologist and public figure L.I. Mechnikov (1838 - 1888) special meaning gave the hydrosphere and tried to explain the unevenness of social development by changing the meaning of the same geographical conditions, especially water resources and communications. In accordance with this, he distinguished three periods in the history of civilization: 1) river - from the time of the emergence of the first states in the valleys of the Nile, Tigris and Euphrates, Indus and Ganges, Yellow River and Yangtze; 2) Mediterranean - from the founding of Carthage; 3) oceanic - after the discovery of America.

Evolutionism how the methodological approach took shape in the second half of the 19th century. in the works of E. Tylor, A. Bastian, L. Morgan. According to their views, there is a cultural unity of humanity and general laws for the development of cultures of all peoples from simple shapes to complex, from lower to higher; The difference in the culture of different peoples is a consequence of different stages of their evolution. The driving force behind the evolution of human society is the improvement of the psyche.

Marxism as a philosophical direction took shape in the mid-II half of the 19th century. Its founders were the German thinkers K. Marx (1818 - 1883) and F. Engels (1820 - 1895). They substantiated the doctrine of historical materialism, according to which the historical process is based on relations of production. All world history is a struggle of classes for economic and political power. Class struggle is the engine of the historical process, economic relations are a priority in the development of society.

The central place in the socio-economic scheme of Marxism is occupied by the so-called socio-economic formations - stages in the historical development of society, determined by the method of production and production relations, which are determined by the level of development productive forces. Marxists identified five socio-economic formations (primitive communal, slaveholding, feudal, capitalist, communist), which successively replace each other. Formational approach based on the idea of historical progress, the idea of linear, progressive development of human society, ascending to ever newer and higher levels of development. He declares the unity of the historical process and the determination of its ultimate goal - the creation of a single society of general prosperity.

This approach absolutized socio-economic factors and ignored the spiritual, mental specificity in the history of peoples, the human factor.

Civilization approach. The beginnings of a civilizational approach appeared in the 2nd century. XVIII century (Voltaire), further development was given by the German enlightener of the late 18th century. I.G. Herder. He believed that development is a natural result of the development of human abilities, the development of which depends on natural conditions, therefore there is no single civilization, but there are many unique civilizations.

In the first half of the 20th century. The civilizational approach to history took theoretical shape. The founder is considered to be Oswald Spengler (1880 - 1936), German. cultural philosopher. In the fundamental work "The Decline of Europe" (1922) he presented human history as a panorama of closed “cultures” that did not interact with each other. Cultures exist in a certain territory and go through three stages of development: youth, flourishing, and decline. O. Spengler identified 8 cultures: Egyptian, Mayan, Greco-Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Indian, Babylonian, Chinese, Western European.

Another major theorist of the civilizational approach was the English historian and public figure Arnold Toynbee (1889 - 1975). Main work "Comprehension of History" (in 12 volumes) he began publishing in /922 G. At the center of his teaching are local civilizations that did not embrace all of humanity and were limited in time and space. According to Toynbee's classification, in historical time there were 21 local civilizations, of which by the middle of the 20th century. there were 5 “living” ones, including Christian and Islamic.

Unlike Spengler, who categorically denied the unity and integrity of the historical process, Toynbee allowed a certain degree of mutual influence of different civilizations and believed that local civilizations are mosaic components of the universal panorama of world history.

The emergence of civilizations according to Toynbee is associated with the mechanism of “call” and “response”. “Challenges” are caused by both natural and social factors. The “answer” is possible if there is a group of people or outstanding figures in human society who are capable of perceiving the “challenge”, for example, I. Christ or Muhammad. If “responses” to “challenges” become unsuccessful and inadequate, then civilization enters a stage of breakdown, and then collapse occurs. But it is not inevitable. The scientist saw the salvation of modern Christian civilization on the path of interfaith integration.

In Russia, the origins of the civilizational approach were Nikolai Yakovlevich Danilevsky (1822 - 1885), philosopher, naturalist and sociologist. Main work "Russia and Europe" was published in 1869

The central category in Danilevsky’s sociological theory is "cultural-historical types" as closed super-state human communities or civilizations. They are called upon to realize themselves in one of four areas of life-non-creativity: religion, culture, politics, socio-economic activity. In the process of development, civilization can be realized in all areas. He predicted such a future for the Slavic civilization.

THEOLOGICAL CRIMINOLOGY

UDC 343.43 BBK 67.51

F. N. Seleznev*

A THEOLOGICAL APPROACH TO UNDERSTANDING CRIME

Abstract: The Orthodox approach to the problem of understanding crime is a revival and continuation of the traditional religious and philosophical understanding of the nature of good and evil for Russian jurisprudence in general and criminology in particular. This approach fits into the general positive trends towards rethinking Russian society spiritual and religious wealth of Russian culture, law and statehood.

Key words: Orthodoxy; crime; sacred criminology; spiritual and moral crisis.

THEOLOGICAL APPROACH TO THE INTERPRETATION OF CRIMINALITY

Abstract: The Orthodox approach to the problem of interpretation of criminality is revival of religious and philosophical interpretation of good and evil traditional for the Russian law on the whole and criminology in particular. This approach fits well into general positive tendencies by the Russian society to reconsideration of religious and spiritual wealth of the Russian culture, law and statehood.

Key words: orthodoxy; criminality; sacred criminology; spiritual and ethical crisis.

1. RATIONALE FOR THE THEOLOGICAL APPROACH TO CRIME

Criminology is essentially the study of evil in its extreme forms.

YES. Shestakov

Due to the fact that modern Russian society and the state are in a deep spiritual and moral crisis, which has resulted in their criminalization and an extraordinary increase in crime, the author has set herself the task, within the framework of this work, to conduct research in order to find a way out of this crisis as

7 Shestakov D.A. Criminology. 2nd ed., revised. and additional - St. Petersburg, 2006. - P. 351.

* Philip Nikolaevich Seleznev - member of the St. Petersburg International Criminological Club (Russia, St. Petersburg). Email: [email protected]

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way to combat crime. This article takes the first step towards the intended research.

It seems that it is not possible to stabilize the situation through material stimulation, as well as purely secular methods based on a materialistic approach. We propose to use a theological approach to understanding and combating crime. In this work, the terminological concepts of theological, theological and religious (sometimes with a philosophical aspect) are essentially homogeneous.

We can talk about the relative novelty of the chosen approach. Due to the prevailing secularity and lack of religious systematized approaches to combating crime in criminology, as well as the obvious relevance and lack of similar approaches, there is a need for their study and development.

The upcoming work outlines an attempt at a religious explanation for the reproduction of crime in Russia, the dominant factor of which is the problem of lack of spirituality mentioned by many criminologists. In connection with the obvious spiritual and moral root of crime, we are thinking through appropriate counteraction. It is necessary to use the spiritual and moral potential of traditional faiths of the Russian Federation, especially the Russian Orthodox Church, as the largest religious organization on the territory of our state.

To begin to justify the validity of the theological approach to crime, it is necessary to understand what theology is. So, theology (Greek 0eo-^oua), or theology is a set of religious doctrines about the essence and existence of God. Theology arises exclusively within the framework of such a worldview as theism.1 According to the definition adopted in modern Russian system education “Theology is a complex of sciences that study the history of beliefs and institutional forms of religious life, religious cultural heritage(religious art, monuments of religious writing, religious education and research activities), traditional religious law, archaeological monuments of the history of religions, history and current state relationships between various religious teachings and religious organizations. The study of theology in the system of higher professional education is of a secular nature.”2

The theological approach in criminology presupposes a religious and philosophical understanding of crime, the awareness that man is imperfect and sinful,

1 URL: http:/Дu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theology (access date: 08/01/2010).

2 Definition from the State educational standard in specialty 020500 Theology, approved by order of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation dated March 2, 2000 No. 686.

that without spiritual and moral education, without a clear ideological position, he can easily, sometimes, unconsciously, cross the line of good and evil. The outstanding Russian thinker I.A. Ilyin wrote: “A person who is mentally split and incomplete is an unhappy person. If he perceives the truth, he cannot decide whether it is true or not, because he is not capable of complete evidence.”3

At the moment, crime is rarely studied in criminology as a phenomenon of human spiritual illness. However, a new branch of criminology is emerging, which has not yet received a specific name. It is called: theological criminology, criminotheology, sacred criminology. According to D.A. Shestakov, “criminology is essentially the doctrine of evil in extreme forms of its manifestation and counteraction to it.”4 It seems that this philosophical definition of criminology gives it great prospects for development, since many Russian lawyers, especially late XIX- the beginning of the 20th century, with the help of a religious-philosophical approach, they were able to particularly deeply rethink the scientific-legal aspects of existence.

In connection with the transition of criminology to the post-liberal stage, which, in our opinion, is more advanced compared to the liberal stage and adequate to modern times, the opportunity has arisen to pose a clearer and clearer problem regarding the scale and nature of crime, as well as a more deeply thought-out counteraction to it. In this case, we are talking about the problem of lack of spirituality, both in Russia and throughout the world. Despite the fact that many scientists, in general, and in criminology in particular, do not accept religious and philosophical approaches, especially theological and theological ones, more and more scientists are inclined to believe that

3 Ilyin I.A. The path to obviousness: Essays.

M., 1998. - P. 5.

4 Shestakov D.A. Criminology. New approaches to crime and delinquency. Criminogenic laws and criminological legislation. Combating crime in the modern world. Textbook. 2nd edition, revised. and additional - St. Petersburg, Publishing House of R. Aslanov “Legal Center “Press”, 2006. - P. 19.

that religious, spiritual and moral guidelines best contribute to the harmonious and positive development of a person’s personality.

E.V. Avseenko, in the paragraph “Theological approach to the study of crime” of his textbook, writes: “Crime has always remained largely a mysterious phenomenon. Its essence often eludes the researcher. Belgian criminologist A. Prince remarked on this matter: “Among the mysteries that surround us, the existence of evil on Earth is one of the most inexplicable; all philosophical systems have tried to penetrate into it and all the doctrines of divine justice have tried to reconcile improvement with the existence of evil.” Exploring the theological model of the criminal, A.M. Yakovlev noted the following features of this approach: “The concept of criminal is associated with extreme manifestations of evil, an encroachment on the highest good is considered criminal... The criminal is the direct embodiment (personification) of evil.” Analyzing the mystical roots of violent crime, M.P. Kleimenov concludes: “The connection between mysticism and violence can be traced historically in two directions: as the worship of demonic cults and as fight against God.” We find an interesting prediction of the theological concept of crime in F.M. Dostoevsky: “All these exiles to work, and first with beatings, do not correct anyone, and, most importantly, they do not deter almost any criminal, and the number of crimes not only does not decrease, but the further, the more it increases... And it turns out, that society is thus not at all protected, for although a harmful member is cut off mechanically and exiled far away, out of sight, another criminal immediately appears in his place, and maybe two others. If there is anything that protects society in our time and even corrects the criminal himself and regenerates him into another person, then this, again, is the only law of Christ, which is reflected in the consciousness of one’s own conscience. Only by realizing his guilt as a son of Christ’s society, that is, the church, does he recognize his guilt before society itself...” Here you can also find recommendations on social

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al reorganization: “...it is necessary that the church does not degenerate into a state, but, on the contrary, the state must end up being worthy of becoming the only church.” The ideas developed within the theological approach to the analysis of crime are quite complex. Many of them are of a transcendental (unprovable at the level of scientific arguments) nature. At the same time, they open up a new facet of existence, a new plane for the study of criminal phenomena. They can be used as the basis for appropriate scientific hypotheses, have enormous ideological significance. Such ideas include:

Crime is evil. Denying it

The purpose of influencing crime

The movement of society towards higher justice by resolving contradictions between good and evil;

The fight against crime is divinely inspired. Commitment to the ideals of good is the key to success (while many people are under the illusion: the more cruelty in the fight against crime, the better). The idealization of the principle of “evil in response to evil” turns fighters against evil from champions of good into adherents of evil;

Good is ontologically (in essence of being) stronger than evil - this is the source of optimism for those who fight crime;

Religious measures to influence crime have significant anti-criminogenic potential. The main ones are preaching, an example of integrity in actions and thoughts. Closely related to them are such non-traditional measures of influence on crime as prayer...

In the destructive impact on crime, everyone should place the emphasis, first of all, on himself (self-improvement).”5

Thus, let us repeat once again the words of E.V. Avseenko, the ideas developed within the framework of the theological approach to crime are quite complex. Many of them are transcendental in nature. IN

5 Avseenko E.V. Criminology: Textbook. - M.,

Arkhangelsk: International Institute of Management. - 2001. - P. 45-47.

at the same time, they open up a new facet of existence (or rather a well-forgotten old one), a new plane for the study of criminal phenomena. They can be used as the basis for corresponding scientific hypotheses and have enormous ideological significance.

YES. Shestakov writes that “the spiritual and moral sphere of a country can resist crime if it has a national idea that unites the population, including awareness of past achievements and a common future goal associated with finding a worthy place in the world. A national idea, which finds expression in a certain set of life rules, customs, and traditions, is the opposite of social disorganization. The formation of an “anti-anomie” idea that unites the population requires awareness of ancient roots, a sense of connection with the past, which usually arises in people who know many generations of their ancestors.6

In Russia in Soviet time there was a loss of national traditions and moral ideas, which were replaced by Bolshevik ideology, aimed at idle proletarians (today they would say “homeless people”). Communist education instilled in Soviet citizens the idea of the primacy of matter in relation to consciousness. In the 20-30s of the 20th century, the cultural layer of society was essentially exterminated in the country, which not only served as a source of advanced science and refined art, but was also the bearer and disseminator of developed moral ideas. Among the generations that passed through Lenin-Stalin times, class hatred and ruthlessness were instilled through repressive policies. After Soviet power, the cruel, unspiritual ideology of the communists was replaced by aggressive pornographic mass culture. The contradiction between the spiritual and material principles gives rise to

6 Shestakov D.A. Decree. op. - P. 209.

criminal behavior, primarily of a mercenary nature.”7

In our deep conviction, Orthodoxy is the national idea of Russia. Over the course of more than a thousand years of history, the Russian Orthodox Church has proven its worth as an active and monumental spiritual institution of our state. Despite almost a century of oppression by the Soviet-Bolshevik community, the Russian Orthodox Church survived and was spiritually renewed in this difficult test. And now, more than ever, it is necessary to realize that it is the church that should and can help us get out of a difficult spiritual and moral crisis. Now that crime has reached horrifying proportions and the fight against it through purely materialistic, repressive measures has proven ineffective, the time has come for criminology to develop a deeper spiritual, moral, religious, theological approach to crime.

Thus, returning to the post-liberal stage of development in criminology, it is necessary to understand that a theological approach to crime, at the moment, would be useful for the development of this promising and universal, in relation to other disciplines, science. Moreover, some criminologists indicate such a need.

YES. Shestakov in his article “Post-liberal status of criminology” writes that “post-liberalism does not mean a rejection of liberal values associated with human rights, it presupposes their further development. Thus, liberalism requires tolerance of opinions and free criticism of government. But since we are talking about tolerance, we should not limit access to science to philosophical approaches related to religion...”8 “Sacral (religious) criminology sheds light on the criminological significance of the relationship between material and ideal aspirations.

8 Shestakov D.A. Post-liberal status of criminology // Criminology: yesterday, today, tomorrow.

2009. - No. 2(17). - P. 16.

laziness of a person in modern conditions. The worship of the “golden calf” is increasing on the planet, the ideology of consumption and the so-called mass culture are spreading throughout the world, the surrounding nature is being destroyed - all these criminogenic and criminal processes are associated with the alienation of the prevailing part of the population from spiritual values. A person has a chance through religion to join the search for the highest meaning of life and his purpose. Today, criminology is, to a certain extent, able to explain why people commit crimes, but this science also poses another question, namely: why do people not commit crimes? The answer to this question can be found in the sphere of man's relationship to God.

According to the same author, the sacred formulation of the question is dominant. For a person staring at the ground, drowning in the endless problems of his material existence, ultimately destroys himself, his country, and planet Earth as a whole. Turning to the starry infinity of the Sky turns one away from big and small evil and instills hope for salvation. Nothing stands still in this world. And the forces of evil are raging in new ways today. Criminology, which comprehends their extreme, criminal manifestation, should not lag behind what is happening around.9

The immediate theoretical task facing the author of these lines is to give a religious understanding of crime.

2. RELIGIOUS UNDERSTANDING OF CRIME

To proceed directly to the religious understanding of crime, it is necessary to understand the basic elements of the definition of crime. On this occasion A.M. Yakovlev in his textbook “Sociology of Crime” writes that “historically determined changes in the socio-political and socio-cultural organization of society entail changes in the definition of the concept of pre-

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feet. This concept is not independent. It is derived from the dominant idea of the world order, the social structure, the place of man in the world and society, and the nature of man, on the one hand. From these ideas follows the definition of what is correct, what normally corresponds to the objective order of things and human nature (what is good) and, hence, what violates the normal order, does not correspond to it and is therefore considered evil (crime). From these two cardinal ideas follow the corresponding definitions of crime. The first one

The idea of the world, society and man has changed and is changing from era to era (such ideas are socio-historically relative and derivative), change during the transition from one type of culture to another (they are socio-culturally relative and derivative). In the history of mankind, various ideas of this kind are replaced. There is no single absolute idea of the world, society and man for all times; there is only the history of the emergence and change of such ideas. Second cardinal representation (derived from the first)

The idea of what is correct and normal in people’s behavior (corresponds to the nature of society and man). It serves as the basis for determining what should be, i.e. behavior of people in society that corresponds to these ideas. There is no single definition of the sphere of what is proper for all times and all peoples; there are different versions of this sphere, they are also socially and historically relative and derivative.”10

With all the diversity in the definition of crime, writes A.M. Yakovlev, - the most general, although the least meaningful, is the indication that it consists of a set of acts prohibited in criminal law under penalty of punishment. In turn, with all the diversity of criminal law

10 Yakovlev A.M. Sociology of crime (criminology): Fundamentals of general theory. - M.: Assistance new Age, 2001. URL: // http://crimestudy.ru (access date: 08/01/2010).

prohibitions, a crime is always a violation of what is defined as proper, as corresponding to the norm. The definition of crime, therefore, is based on the content of those social norms, compliance with which is recognized as essential within the framework of a given socio-political and socio-cultural public system. The sphere of obligation is a fundamental initial element of the definition of crime that arises in society. If a norm is defined, if the idea of what should be and what is correct is established, then a corresponding idea of deviation from the norm arises, the essence of the deviation from the norm can be formulated, and its characteristics can be given in the criminal law. The concept of the nature of the world and society, the nature of man and his place in society determines the norm in his behavior, the concept of the norm allows us to define deviation from the norm (crime), and all together allows us to determine the causes of crime, defining them as a certain force contrary to the normal order, hostile and opposite to it. Then it is possible to determine the measures that oppose such force and the goals pursued. This is the set of elements that make up the definition of crime. There are six of them: 1) the initial idea of the world, society and man; 2) the idea of the correct, normal, corresponding to the “natural order of things”, the proper behavior of people in society, the norm in such behavior; 3) definition of extreme deviations from this norm (crimes); 4) determining the causes of crimes; 5) determining the measures of the necessary response of society and the state to crime; 6) determining the ultimate goal of such a response. Type of culture and definition of crime. The first of this set of elements that form the definition of crime is of an essential, decisive nature due to the fact that with the change of these initial ideas about the universe, society and man, the central, defining characteristic of this type of dominant culture and the corresponding concept of crime changes.

The typification of crop varieties itself is based on a single system-forming criterion. A.M. Yakovlev appeals to Pitirim Sorokin, who identified the dominant idea of the highest reality as such a logical-substantive principle that allows one to distinguish between types of cultures. Based on this principle, he identified a type of culture in which it is assumed that reality is comprehended in a supersensible way, and sensually perceived reality is nothing more than an illusion. Within another type of culture, only what is perceived by the senses is real. There are also mixed cultures. Cultures of the first type (idealistic, “ideational” in the terminology of P. Sorokin) are idealistically oriented cultures associated with a theocratic socio-political structure. Cultures of another type are materialistically oriented (sensual, “sensate” in his own terminology), where there is secular power. In cultures of the first type, the ethics of absolute principles dominates; they are given the importance of the highest values. In materialistically oriented cultures, there is an ethics of hedonism, within which the highest value is attached to the happiness of a person’s life and his pleasure. Definitions of crime, believes A.M. Yakovlev, - reflect, accordingly, these principles. Historically, the following types of definition of the concept of crime can be distinguished: 1) theological-religious; 2) rational-hedonistic; 3) anthropological; 4) psychiatric; 5) totalitarian-ideological; 6) cultural”11.

So, moving on to the religious understanding of crime, it is necessary to point out that in all the world’s largest religions, such as Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, there are certain systems of spiritual and moral values that determine crime or, religiously speaking, the sinfulness of specific actions.

11 See: Yakovlev A.M. Sociology of crime

(criminology): Fundamentals of general theory. URL: // http://crimestudy.ru (date of access: 08/01/2010).

One of the aspects of the problem of religious understanding of crime, in our opinion, lies in the relationship between the criminal and the sinful. In a secular state with secular law and legislation, the concepts of crime and sin do not always coincide. A crime is not always a sin, and sin is not always a crime. And the main thing is that in a secular state, at the moment (and not only at the present), crimes that have the status of grave sins in world religions, for example, abortion, sodomy, etc., are decriminalized or, conversely, not criminalized. The situation is different in religious , a theological state, the legal norms of which are an expression of the religious norms of the main confession of this state. In the modern world, striking examples theological states are a number of Muslim countries, such as Iran, Afghanistan, Sudan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and some others. In these Islamic states, Sharia is directly in effect, that is, the set of legal, moral, ethical and religious norms of Islam, covering a significant part of the life of a Muslim and proclaimed in Islam as “eternal and unchanging.” Thus, in these countries the concepts of sin and crime, or more precisely, the most serious sins and criminal offenses, almost completely coincide. Also in world history there is the most ancient and striking example of a directly theocratic state - Israel during the time of the Judges (pre-royal period). Thus, the ancient Jews, who believed in one God, had a monotheistic theocracy, that is, God directly exercised his power through the prophets whom he chose himself. The ancient Jews lived according to the Law that God gave them through Moses,

- “Moses gave us the Law, an inheritance to the society of Jacob.”12 Thus, in ancient Israel, the religious understanding of crime and criminality came from the Law

12 Old Testament. Pentateuch of Moses. Deuteronomy. 33.4.

given to people by God through the prophets. The violation of the Law was crime and sin or lawlessness. These concepts are both independent and intertwined in the text of the Bible - “And Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the living goat, and shall confess upon it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, and all their sins, and shall lay them on its head a goat, and he will send it with a special man into the desert.”13 The Pentateuch of Moses contains many references to what is sin and lawlessness, for example, “Do not reveal the nakedness of your wife and daughter; Do not take her son's daughters and her daughter's daughters to reveal their nakedness, they are her half-bloods; this is lawlessness.”14

IN Christian doctrine the problem of crime, and what is very important, much attention is given to the human personality of the criminal. Historically, due to the emergence of various heresies and schisms, Christianity was divided into three largest, main branches: Catholicism, Orthodoxy, Protestantism. All these processes of the split of Christianity took place against the background of the process of collapse of the Roman Empire, which by that time had already been Christianized. The division of the empire into Western and Eastern, later, religiously and geopolitically shaped the global picture of the world

Roman Catholic West and Orthodox East. From a universal human point of view, Christianity brought to the World an unprecedented love, the love of God for people, made man in Christ. Many values that in the modern world are called humanistic and democratic are essentially Christian. One of these values, which has an important place in the criminological problem of crime

Repentance, or, speaking churchly, repentance. “Roman law, right up to the era of Justinian, practically did not recognize the concept of repentance and pity. Rome knew no excuse for weakness and did not know how to protect

13 Old Testament. Pentateuch of Moses. Leviticus. 16.21.

14 Ibid. 18.17.

weak from strong. This required a different idea. But what would law be if it did not mean equal attention not only to the strong, but also to the weak? It was the Christian idea of God-manhood that was a serious justification for mercy, pity, and hope. The concept of responsibility remains and even strengthens. Behind responsibility lies not so much the fact of an offense, but a deep awareness of one’s imperfection and gratitude to God, whose mercies are above all human merits.”15

In general, speaking about the problem of religious understanding of crime, one must assume that much depends on the context of the teachings of the chosen religious denomination. A general objective analysis of the religious understanding of crime in most world faiths, in our opinion, is practically impossible. Moreover, the result of such an analysis will most likely not be of high quality, since the dogmatic theology of different faiths has many features and sometimes disagrees with each other. Also especially important is the researcher’s approach to this problem, his personal religious beliefs or lack thereof.

But, nevertheless, all the largest world religions in their teachings call for spiritual and moral improvement, the fight against sinful thoughts and deeds, counteracting evil in the world, strengthening traditional society

These are the main unifying factors of different faiths in the field of religious understanding and combating crime.

Thus, the religious understanding of crime, crime, and the personality of the criminal must be developed within the framework of criminology. We see that it is not worth taking this problem outside the science of criminology because of religiosity and, as it were, not scientific. On the contrary, criminology will acquire a new religious and philosophical approach to crime, capable of explaining the deep spiritual and moral aspects of this phenomenon. By

15 Panchokha M. Language of Themis // URL: http: //www

minjust.org/web.nsf (date of access: 08/01/2010).

opinion of D.A. Shestakov, who believes that “due to the habitual addiction of Russian thinkers to abstract worldview thinking, criminology here could acquire a philosophical connotation and, ideally, even develop into a philosophy of crime. Domestic philosophical thought (F.M. Dostoevsky, V.S. Solovyov, L.N. Tolstoy, etc.) created significant prerequisites for this.”16 Moreover, domestic philosophical thought often had a religious and spiritual orientation.

3. CHRISTIAN-ORTHODOX APPROACH TO THE PROBLEM OF CRIME

To begin to consider the Christian approach to the problem of crime, it is necessary to define the concept of crime in modern criminology. In criminology, there are several definitions of crime, for example D.A. Shestakov proposes “by crime we understand the property of a person, a social institution, the society of a particular country, a global society, to reproduce many acts that are dangerous for people around them, manifested in the relationship of crimes and their causes, amenable to quantitative interpretation and predetermining the introduction of criminal law prohibitions.”17

Thus, crime is a property of society. “Theoretically, it is impossible to exclude the existence of people who are not at all predisposed to committing crimes, which cannot be said about society. If the crime of an individual, in principle, can be equal to zero, then the crime of society always has an absolute value.”18 This formulation of the problem of crime is very close to the Christian understanding of crime. “Sin in the Orthodox understanding is not a crime or an insult in the legal sense, it is not just some kind of immoral act;

16 Shestakov D.A. Decree. op. - P. 22.

17 Shestakov D.A. Decree. op. - P. 136.

sin is, first of all, a disease of human nature,” thus, the 6th Ecumenical Council 102 rule defines sin as a disease of the soul. The human essence itself is sinful, it is the result of the Fall. As F.M. wrote Dostoevsky, “here the devil fights with God, and the battlefield is the hearts of people.” Thus, human society is, to one degree or another, criminal or sinful. But it is possible to single out spiritually and morally healthy individuals from a spiritually and morally sick criminal society and, using their example, from the point of view of criminology, consider the Christian Orthodox approach to the problem of crime. Moreover, “today criminology is, to a certain extent, able to explain why people commit crimes, but this science also poses another question, namely: why do people not commit crimes? The answer to this question can be found in the sphere of man’s relationship with God.”19 Orthodox Christianity can provide the richest positive experience of such relationships. First of all, these are the lives of Orthodox saints. Regarding this, T.V. Konstantinova writes: “Today there is a war, violence is predominantly not physical, the object of destruction is consciousness, this is a struggle between good and evil. Society moves from real to fictional reality, in which William Thomas' formula applies: if a situation is defined as real, it turns out to be real in its consequences. Belief in the depravity of humanity means recognizing the victory of evil (while identifying oneself with it). A steady striving for similarity is necessary, in Orthodoxy the Venerable

Saint. The crime is violation of similarity. Society like big family creates reality, but this reality, built on deception, is criminal.”20

Thus, we can begin to consider the Orthodox approach to the problem of crime not with crime itself.

19 Shestakov D.A. Post-liberal status of criminology - pp. 19-20.

20 Konstantinova T.V. Longest-term forecast for intra-family crime? // Criminology: yesterday, today, tomorrow. - 2010. - No. 1(18).

or the nature of sin, evil, and from the concept of their opposite - holiness. “Holiness (gr. [Greek] ayutn^, lat. sanctitas), one of the fundamental concepts of Christian teaching. Its main meaning is man’s participation in God, his deification, his transformation under the influence of God’s grace. In the transformed man, his nature, not damaged by sin, is restored, his union with God as a “child of God.” The basis of this restoration is the Incarnation, Christ’s perception of human nature. Since human nature was deified in Christ, this opened the way to God for all humanity: Christians, following Christ, participate in his Divinity by grace and become saints.”21 Also, “Metropolitan Juvenaly of Krutitsky and Kolomna, member of the Holy Synod, chairman of the Synodal Commission for the Canonization of Saints of the Russian Orthodox Church indicates that the main criteria for the canonization of church-wide and locally revered ascetics of the faith in the Russian Orthodox Church are righteous living, impeccable Orthodox faith, popular veneration, miracles, and if there are any, incorruptible relics.”22 Thus, the concepts of holiness and the saint are very multifaceted, immense, but the main thing is that the personality of the saint and his holiness are an example of spiritual and moral purity, kindness, and righteousness. It is important to understand that the saints revered by the Orthodox Church were real people; the phenomenon of holiness is not a myth, but an earthly reality, but bordering on the so-called other world. It is not easy to sanctify Christian holiness in the context of the whole world, since this is a huge religious, philosophical, theological material relating to various Christian churches. But it is impossible to underestimate the colossal role of this phenomenon in Russia. On this occasion V.M. Zhivov

21 Zhivov V.M. Brief dictionary hagiographic terms. URL: http://azbyka.ru. (date of access: 08/01/2010).

22 Saint. URL: http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/.

(date of access: 08/01/2010).

writes: “The study of Russian holiness in its history and its religious phenomenology is now one of the urgent tasks of our Christian and national revival. In Russian saints we honor not only heavenly patrons holy and sinful Russia: in them we seek revelation of our own spiritual path. We believe that every people has its own religious calling, and, of course, it is most fully realized by its religious geniuses.”23

Modern Russian criminology, a science that studies the personality of the criminal and the immediate nature of crime, the causes and conditions of its occurrence, simply needs to use the religious, philosophical, spiritual experience of the Christian Orthodox worldview. Moreover, there are prerequisites for this both in criminology (post-liberal status) and in Russian society itself (historically Christian Orthodox).

IN modern Russia The criminalization of society has reached enormous proportions. The reason for this misfortune, in our opinion, is clear - this is the lack of desire for spiritual and moral ideals, or more precisely, the inability or impossibility of people to perceive them. Either a member of society, due to his spiritual callousness, is not ready to accept the highest ideals, or due to “aggressive pornographic popular culture", which has filled all spheres of everyday life, it seems almost impossible to consider these ideals. Fr. writes about the deep corruption of modern humanity. Pavel Florensky (“Universal human roots of idealism”). “The principles of inner life have disintegrated: sacredness, beauty, goodness, benefit not only do not form a single whole, but even in thoughts are no longer subject to merging. The modern shrine is timid and huddles in a hidden corner of the soul that is no longer needed for anything. Beauty is inactive and dreamy, goodness is rigoristic; benefit is the notorious idol of our days,

23 Zhivov V.M. A brief dictionary of hagiographic terms.

Insolent and cruel. Life has become scattered.”24 A prominent representative of German criminal sociology of the 1990s, F. Filser, substantiates the idea that social policy can take the path of real crime reduction provided that it is oriented towards preserving traditional spiritual and humanistic values, supporting their development among the population as opposed to dubious values, including wealth and power.25 For Russia, historically, the main traditional spiritual value was Orthodoxy. Having adopted this true faith from the Roman Empire, the Russian people became the largest and main confessor and defender of Orthodoxy in the world. I.A. Ilyin spoke about this as follows: “ Russian Orthodoxy Christianity is not so much from Paul as from John, James, Peter. It perceives God not with the imagination, which needs fears and miracles in order to be afraid and bow before the “power” (primitive religions);

Not with a greedy and imperious earthly will, which at best dogmatically accepts a moral rule, obeys the law and itself demands obedience from others (Judaism and Catholicism), - not with a thought that seeks understanding and interpretation and then tends to reject what it seems incomprehensible ( Protestantism). Russian Orthodoxy perceives God with love, sends him a prayer of love and turns with love to the world and to people. And all this is not an idealization or a myth, but the living force of the Russian soul and Russian history. The first historical Russian princes are heroes of the heart and conscience (Vladimir, Yaroslav, Monomakh). The first Russian saint (Theodosius) is a manifestation of real goodness.”26 Thus, one of the main properties of Orthodox Russian society was love and kindness, but during the 20th century, the most tragic in Russian history, these qualities and properties of the Russian people, its souls were trampled and reduced to statues

24 Pestov N.E. Fundamentals of the Orthodox faith. - 1999. - P. 22.

25 Quoted. by: Shestakov D.A. Criminology. -

2006. - P. 244.

sa the most stupid and harmful properties of humanity. It is impossible to overestimate, including from the point of view of criminology, the events of those bloody revolutionary days and years. It was then that betrayal and lies, in the most criminal and evil way, triumphed over the truth of love and kindness; then, in 1918, the last Russian autocrat was shot along with his entire family. In our opinion, it is this crime of regicide that has deep religious and sacred significance not only for Russian state, but also for the whole world as a whole. The murder of the last Russian Tsar was carried out by fierce haters of the Orthodox faith and powerful Russian statehood, with the indifference and connivance of the overwhelming majority Russian people and its national aristocracy. It was this criminal indifference and betrayal that plunged many peoples of the Russian Empire into the bloodiest turmoil. It is difficult to objectively evaluate the events of those times, but the main reasons for the fall of the Russian autocracy and empire are the pernicious and godless spirit of the world revolution, seducing and deceiving the peoples of the world, as well as the indifference and betrayal of the Russian people, who succumbed to the temptation of godlessness and anarchy.

Let us turn once again to I.A. Ilyin. “So, love is the main spiritual and creative force of the Russian soul. Without love, a Russian person is a failed creature. Civilizing surrogates of love (duty, discipline, formal loyalty, hypnosis of external law-abidingness) - in themselves, are of little use to him. Without love, he either vegetates lazily or is inclined towards permissiveness. Believing in nothing, Russian people become an empty being, without an ideal and without a goal. The mind and will of the Russian person are brought into spiritual and creative movement precisely by love and faith.”27

The modern Russian Orthodox Church sees and understands the problem of crime in Russian society. On this occasion, in the official document of the Russian Orthodox Church “Fundamentals of the Social Concept of the Russian

26 Ilyin I.A. Favorites. - M., 1995. - P. 66-67.

Criminology

Orthodox Church" contains a chapter devoted to crime, punishment, correction, which reflects the opinion of the Russian Orthodox Church on the problem of crime. “Christians are called to be law-abiding citizens of the earthly fatherland, accepting that every soul must be “submissive to the higher authorities” (Rom. 13.1), and at the same time remembering Christ’s commandment to render “Caesar’s things to Caesar, and God’s things to God” (Luke 20.25). But human sinfulness gives rise to crimes - violations of the boundaries established by the law. At the same time, the concept of sin established by Orthodox moral norms is much broader than the concept of secular law about crimes. The main source of crime is the darkened state of the human soul: “From the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, blasphemy” (Matthew 15.19). It is also necessary to recognize that sometimes economic and social circumstances, weakness of state power, and lack of legal order contribute to crime. Criminal communities can penetrate into government agencies in order to use them for your own purposes. Finally, the government itself, by committing illegal actions, can become an offender. Especially dangerous is crime disguised as political and pseudo-religious motives - terrorism and the like. To curb manifestations of lawlessness, the state creates law enforcement agencies, the purpose of which is to prevent, prevent and investigate crimes, as well as punish and re-educate those who committed them. However, the important tasks of eradicating crime and correcting those who have stumbled stand not only before special institutions and even not only before the state, but before the entire people, and therefore before the Church.”28

27 Ilyin I.A. Favorites. - P. 67.

28 Fundamentals of the social concept of Russian

Orthodox Church. 2000. URL: http://www.

patriarchia.ru (date of access: 08/01/2010).

From an Orthodox point of view, in the problem of crime, that is, the problem of sin and lawlessness of man and human society, it is also necessary to highlight the very personality of the criminal as the most important component of this problem. The personality of the criminal, and most importantly the state of his soul, inner spiritual world, are very important for the Orthodox Church.

The correlation, comparison of the religious concept of lawlessness (sin) and the legal concept of crime is difficult to implement; this is a matter for a separate study, but the main thing, in the context of this chapter, should be noted. Namely, crime is always physically, materially or virtually expressed, in contrast to sin (for example, pride). Also, for committing a crime, legal liability for sin is assumed, if it does not fall within the legal corpus delicti of the crime, no (for example, an abortion committed in a legal way). Thus, “the concept of sin established by Orthodox moral norms is much broader than the secular law’s concept of crimes.”29

The most striking example of the attitude of Christianity, and most importantly Jesus Christ himself, towards an already convicted criminal, a robber, is an episode from the Gospel - the execution of Christ and two robbers, crucified on the right and left hand Christ. “One of the hanged villains slandered Him and said: if You are the Christ, save Yourself and us. The other one, on the contrary, calmed him down and said: Or are you not afraid of God, when you yourself are condemned to the same thing? And we were condemned justly, because we received what was worthy of our deeds; but He did nothing bad. And he said to Jesus: remember me, Lord, when you come into your kingdom! And Jesus said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you will be with Me in paradise.”30 Thus, even a thief who repents of his crimes and believes in God can be forgiven and go to paradise. If inherited

29 Fundamentals of the social concept of the Russian Orthodox Church. 2000. и^: http://www patriarchia.ru (date of access: 08/01/2010).

30 Gospel of Luke. - 23.39-43.

The criminal’s acquisition of the Kingdom of Heaven is, unfortunately, not so important for modern criminology; active repentance, followed by renunciation of committing a sin and (or) crime, from the point of view of positive criminological and penitentiary experience, cannot be overestimated. Here, it is also necessary to point out that the penitentiary (criminal-executive) system got its name from the Latin word “repentance” - repentance, and it was Christianity that gave the world the sacrament of repentance, which was later accepted by jurisprudence and expressed in the form of a procedure of active repentance.

“In Orthodoxy, confession in the sacrament of repentance is the confession of sins by the believer before the priest, who, in this case, being only a witness, in the name of Jesus Christ, with special words of permission, absolves the sins of all who sincerely repented. According to the faith of the Church, a person who has repented receives forgiveness of sins from the Lord himself. The power to forgive sins, according to church doctrine, was given by Jesus Christ to his disciples (and through them to the Church): “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive, they will be forgiven; on whomever you leave it, it will remain on him” (John 20:22-23).”31

It is also important to point out the positive role played by the Russian Orthodox Church in working with criminals in prison. Implementing the Christian commandment to love your neighbor, the Russian Orthodox Church actively nourishes and carries out spiritual, moral, educational and educational work among prisoners. The so-called “prison ministry”32 of the Russian Orthodox Church and the positive results of this ministry require a separate study, as well as a special criminological assessment of this phenomenon in the Russian penitentiary system.

In our opinion, positive phenomenon in modern Russian culture

31 Confession. and^: http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/ (date of access: 08/01/2010).

32 Skomorokh O., Ponomareva N.V. Prison service

life of the Russian Orthodox Church. A collection of materials to help organize ministry in prisons. - M., 2009.

minology would be that if this legal science would accept the Christian Orthodox approach to crime as the most perfect religious and philosophical way to understand the nature of crime, the personality of the criminal, the causes and conditions of crime, ways and means of its prevention. In this religious vector for modern criminology there would be a certain revival of the traditional philosophical and religious Russian approach to legal and legal aspects. Moreover, " legal education in Russia has always been inextricably linked with philosophy, and philosophy on Russian soil has always put moral and religious quests in first place. A Russian lawyer was obliged to master philosophical culture, to absorb the moral principles of the life of his people, the state, since legal relations in Russia, as noted by A.S. Khomyakov, became authentic only when they entered into a custom, created it, and often legal norms grew out of custom, from a way of life.”33

In order to look into the future with more confidence, modern Russian criminology must turn to the traditions and approaches of criminology of the times Tsarist Russia. YES. Shestakov writes: “Theoretical ideas about crime

Russian pre-revolutionary criminologists were rooted in traditional Russian philosophical and spiritual life. Russian spirituality found vivid expression, in particular, in fiction, where artistic fiction was closely intertwined with philosophical and moral issues. It is noteworthy that the problem of “crime and punishment” was touched upon by many Russian writers. At the same time, ideas were born whose significance for the development of criminological theory can hardly be overestimated. The contribution of Russian writers to the humanization of ideas about the punishment of criminals is significant. Tolstoy and Dostoevsky did a lot to foster aversion to the death penalty. Fiction and philosophy in pre-revolutionary Russia shifted the center of gravity from external punishment to internal redemption.”34

I believe that the Christian Orthodox approach to the problem of understanding crime is an organic revival and continuation of the traditional religious and philosophical understanding of the nature of good and evil for Russian jurisprudence in general and criminology in particular. This approach fits into the general positive trends towards rethinking by Russian society of the spiritual and religious wealth of Russian culture, law and statehood.

33 Albov A.P., Maslennikov D.V., Salnikov V.P., Salnikov M.V. Russian philosophy of law. Anthology. - St. Petersburg, 1999.

34 Shestakov D.A. Criminology. - 2006. 85-86.

Methodological approaches to defining religion are based on the fact that religious studies is a complex branch of human knowledge. It was formed as a result of the efforts of representatives of theological, philosophical and scientific thought. But the methodology of approach to religion is not the same for each of these branches of knowledge.

Theological-theological approach

Historically, the first form of religious knowledge is theology(Greek theos - God and logos - teaching) - the doctrine of God in the Catholic and Protestant traditions - and theology as the science of glorifying God in the Orthodox tradition, since Orthodoxy rejects any possibility of knowing God and considers only his glorification possible. The theological-theological approach to religion is characterized by an approach as if from within, from the point of view of religion itself. For this approach the main thing is religious faith. Religious leaders, theologians and theologians believe that only a believer, a religious person can understand religion. It is inaccessible to a non-religious person.

Religion, from a theological position, is a special supernatural phenomenon, the result of a supernatural connection between man and God. Therefore, religion from this point of view is a supra-natural, supra-human phenomenon. The concept of “religion” is not accidental; it comes from the Latin word religare (to bind). Religion is the connection between the created world and the Divine Spirit. Such a connection, according to religious theorists, stems from the organic desire of the human soul for a kindred soul, but in its essence superior to Divine substances. It is carried out through religious experience as special type spiritual knowledge. This experience manifests itself as an experience, as a special feeling of real presence in life religious person, as well as in the life of all people and the entire world of the Supreme Principle, which determines and gives meaning to our existence and the existence of the entire Universe.

The theological-theological concept states that religion can be viewed from two sides: from the outside - as it appears to an outside observer, and from the inside, which is revealed to the believer who lives in accordance with the spiritual and moral principles of a given religion.

From the outside, religion is a worldview defined by a system of specific provisions, without which it loses itself, degenerating into witchcraft, occultism, Satanism, etc. All these pseudo-religious phenomena are condemned by traditional religions. Although they contain individual elements of religion, in reality they are only products of its decay, degradation, and perversion.

The theological and theological position, for example the Christian one, on the issue of the internal, essential elements of religion comes down to the following. The first and foremost of these is recognition spiritual supramundane Beginning - God, which is the cause of the existence of everything that exists, including humans. Another important internal element inherent in religion is the belief that man is capable of communication, unity with God, to eternal life with him. This axiom of religious teaching constitutes its most important essence. It was from her that the religion itself received the name “religare” (Latin: to bind, to unite). This connection of God with man is carried out through I believe. Faith, according to religious teaching, is not only the conviction in the existence of God, but also the special character of the believer’s entire life. Such a life must correspond to the tenets and commandments of a given religion. Hence, religion is what gives a person the opportunity to unite with the source of life, truth and good - God.

The next essential element of religion from the position of theological teaching is recognition of a person not only biological, but also, first of all, spiritual being. Man has an immortal soul, the bearer of personality, his mind, feelings and will. Therefore, all religions always contain the doctrine of the afterlife, posthumous existence of man.

Thus, the theological concept gives the following definition of religion: religion is the recognition of God and the experience of connection with God. The ultimate goal of religious theory is to protect and justify religious doctrine, to prove the enduring significance of religion for each individual person and humanity as a whole.

§ 6. Theological approach to the study of crime

Crime has always remained largely a mysterious phenomenon. Its essence often eludes the researcher. The Belgian criminologist A. Prince remarked on this matter: “Among the mysteries that surround us, the existence of evil on earth is one of the most inexplicable; all philosophical systems tried to penetrate it and all the doctrines of divine justice tried to reconcile improvement with the existence of evil." The theological approach to the analysis of crime was most actively developed in the Middle Ages by theologians such as A. Augustine, F. Aquinas and others. As a rule, theological interpretations of crime associated a socially dangerous act with the machinations of the devil and were the basis for the punitive practice of religious courts.2 In some modern Islamic states, the practice of Sharia (religious) courts is very stable. Today, interest in Christian theological teachings is being quite actively revived in Russia3, and in some regions (Chechnya) at the end of the 20th century, Sharia courts actively functioned and religious approaches to influencing crime were practiced.

Exploring the theological model of the criminal, A.M. Yakovlev noted the following features of this approach: “The concept of criminal is associated with extreme manifestations of evil, an encroachment on the highest good is considered criminal... The criminal is the direct embodiment (personification) of evil”4. Analyzing the mystical roots of violent crime, M.P. Kleimenov concludes: “The connection between mysticism and violence can be traced historically in two directions: as the worship of demonic cults and as fight against God”5.

Crime as an object of study

An interesting interpretation of the theological concept of crime is given by F.M. Dostoevsky: “All these exiles to work, and first with beatings, do not correct anyone, and, most importantly, they do not deter almost any criminal, and the number of crimes not only does not decrease, but the further, the more it increases... And it turns out, that society is thus not at all protected, for although a harmful member is cut off mechanically and exiled far away, out of sight, another criminal immediately appears in his place, and maybe two others. If there is anything that protects society in our time and even corrects the criminal himself and regenerates him into another person, then this, again, is the only law of Christ, which is reflected in the consciousness of one’s own conscience. Only having realized his guilt as a son of Christ’s society, that is, the church, does he realize his guilt before society itself...” Here you can also find recommendations for social reorganization: “... it is necessary that not the church degenerate into a state, but “On the contrary, the state must end up being worthy of becoming the only church.”2

The main criminological idea of theologians: crime is a manifestation of evil. Crime is the result of the fact that a person either turned away from God (unbelief) or found himself in the power of the devil (Satanism).

The ideas developed within the theological approach to the analysis of crime are quite complex. Many of them are of a transcendental (unprovable at the level of scientific arguments) nature. At the same time, they open up a new facet of existence, a new plane for the study of criminal phenomena. They can be used as the basis for corresponding scientific hypotheses and have enormous ideological significance. Such ideas include:

Crime is evil. Denying it is good;

The goal of influencing crime is to move society towards higher justice by resolving the contradictions between good and evil;

"Dostoevsky F.M. The Karamazov Brothers // Pol. collected works. M., 1976. T. 14. P. 59-60.

Good is ontologically (in essence of being) stronger than evil - this is the source of optimism for those who fight crime;

In the destructive impact on crime, everyone should place the emphasis primarily on themselves (self-improvement).”

The state of modern Russian criminology is characterized by a variety of ideological positions and methodological approaches. This is clearly seen in the discussion atmosphere that has become a distinctive feature of the activities of the St. Petersburg Criminological Club (president - Prof. D. A. Shestakov). With all the diversity of approaches and understanding of the essence of crime and interpretation of the tasks of criminological science, the disputants are united by a categorical rejection of those “disastrous ideas containing the Marxist-Leninist infection” that for a long time had a paralyzing effect on the theoretical quests of domestic criminologists. And this, in turn, means that criminological thought, freed from the heavy Soviet legacy, has entered the operational intellectual space.

Aware of the value of the opened space of spiritual freedom, Russian criminological consciousness is mainly secular. This is understandable: the works of recognized classics of world criminology, Western criminological thought as a whole, the achievements of which it is impossible not to focus on, are practically not connected with theology. Meanwhile, we must pay tribute to Russian criminologists: not all of them consider the practice of ignoring the religious and theological aspects of criminological knowledge to be optimal. In this regard, the innovative work of domestic scientists O. V. Starkov and L. D. Bashkatov “Criminotheology. Religious crime" (St. Petersburg, "Legal Center Press", 2004).

And yet, in the context of dominant secular stereotypes, biblical ideas about the essence of crime continue to be regarded by most criminologists as archaic. At best, they are given a place in the historical sections of lecture courses given to law students.

Meanwhile, it is the biblical foundations of modern conceptual models that have to be remembered every time when it comes to the need for criminological science to go beyond the boundaries of positivist and psychoanalytic schemes, which have already lost a significant share of their heuristics. Interest in them is also awakened in cases where analysts try to appeal to the universal semantic, axiological and normative structures that underlie various conceptual approaches to the problem of the essence of crime and criminality.

In the Old and New Testaments, the essence of crime is defined through an appeal to the more general concept of sin. If the essence and meaning of a crime can be defined and described using purely anthropological or social categories, then the meaning of sin invariably presupposes a theological context and, accordingly, a theological interpretation.

From the standpoint of secular consciousness, sin is “lack of composure, frivolity, relaxation, immersion in life as it is, the inability to coordinate it, to dominate and control oneself... By vulgarizing and dispersing a person’s capabilities, sin makes his life impersonal and meaningless, prevents his formation personality, separates it from being and from existence” (N. Abbagnano). But in the biblical meaning, sin, and therefore any crime, is always a violation of the Divine will, entailing guilt before God and people.

Crime, be it theft or murder, is a complex, multidimensional reality, whose semantics, axiology and existentialology are based on basic theological constants associated with original sin. The fall of our ancestors, which consisted of violating God's prohibition and demonstrating self-will, culminated in their falling away from God as the main and only source of all life, including spiritual and moral life. It destroyed the foundations of the original godlikeness of people, gave them a tendency to crime, that is, to use their mind and free will for evil of their own kind.

A person who did not pass the divine “test” of obedience in a situation with the “forbidden fruit” may complain and even be indignant at his involvement in this ancient event of biblical history, but he is not able to cancel its impact on himself and his life. This reveals two important truths. The first is that ontologically man is the image and likeness of God. Another says that he ethically fell away from this state, that his spiritual nature was damaged and as a result he discovered a tendency to various offenses, vices and crimes. Whether a person wishes it or not, he is obliged to accept both of these statements, for he carries within himself a readiness for both good and evil, both for exploits and for crimes.

Most people have no idea of their similarity to God and therefore remain in spiritual blindness, walking, as the Gospel of Matthew says, along the broad path of sin, leading them to eternal destruction (Matthew 7:13). As long as they remain in their present anthropological status and regularly violate religious norms (the prohibitions established by God in the Decalogue), as long as everything that constitutes sinful human nature is transmitted from parents to children, the world will “lie in evil.” In this conclusion, biblical criminology is consonant with the views of most modern criminologists, who see crime as a “normal function of society.” For their secular consciousness, as well as for the Christian consciousness of professional theologians, crime (sin) is a necessary component of the world order and the global socio-historical process.

In the light of biblical definitions, the seal of original sin, which predisposes people to commit crimes, does not relieve any of them of responsibility for their actions. And this is because a person also has free will, that is, the ability to choose between good and evil. It is precisely this that acts as an essential prerequisite for personal sins, for which everyone who commits them bears personal responsibility. Neither personal sins nor the burden of responsibility for them are transferred from one person to another.

There are several forms in which personal sins manifest themselves. Firstly, these are practical actions that run counter to the commandments of God, violating the cornerstone commandments given to people to fulfill. Secondly, these are statements that either contain blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, or cause direct harm to other people, or indicate that the speaker himself insults the image and likeness of God that he carries within himself. Thirdly, these are thoughts, intentions that have not yet been realized, desires nurtured by a person to do something improper, forbidden.

A person’s ability to sin, and therefore to commit a crime, testifies to a deep internal discord in the structure of the human soul, a violation of the proper hierarchy of elements in the value-normative structures of the individual spirit. This disorder prevents a person from building correct relationships with the people around him, with the social and natural spheres, and with the world of culture. But the main thing that sin testifies to is man’s false attitude towards God, the misuse of the love that God lavishes on all living things.

By committing a crime, a person demonstrates disregard for his true calling and purpose. A criminal is, in biblical terms, a man of sin and lawlessness, a wicked and wicked man. He "walks with lying lips." He “blinks with his eyes, speaks with his feet, makes signs with his fingers. Deceit is in his heart; he plots evil at all times, sows discord... Haughty eyes, a lying tongue and hands that shed innocent blood. A heart that forges evil thoughts, legs that quickly run towards villainy. A false witness who speaks lies and sows discord among brothers” (Prov. 6:12-19.).

The Bible instructs us to view sin as a heavy, thankless burden from which a person must strive to free himself. To do this, he should turn his own anger not at himself, but at sin. But it often happens that a person is not able to get rid of the burden of sin only through his own efforts. In this regard, the fate of alcoholics and drug addicts, who find themselves in grave slavery to their pathological inclinations and unable to break free from their power, is typical. And the Bible directly says: where a person’s hopes for his weak strength are in vain, trust in the Holy Spirit, hope in the grace of God can help him. And then it will be revealed: what cannot be accomplished by human forces becomes real when the energy of the Holy Spirit, the energy of faith, is connected. The Christian world, including the world of modern Christians, knows countless testimonies when sinners, starting with the Gospel Mary Magdalene and right up to the fallen people living in today's world, prostitutes, drunkards, drug addicts, criminals, were changed beyond recognition, completely freed from their sinful addictions.

The fight against sin has its own ethics, which in many ways resembles military ethics, and its recommendations in some places are similar to the direct instructions of the military regulations. This spirit of noble militancy is well conveyed by the words of John Chrysostom: “Let us not be content with seeking our own salvation; this would mean ruining him. In war and in the ranks, if a soldier thinks only about how to escape, he destroys himself and his comrades. A valiant soldier who fights for others, together with others, saves himself. Since our life is a war, the most brutal of wars, a battle, a battle in the ranks, we will remain in the ranks, as the Tsar ordered us, ready to strike, shed blood and kill, thinking about the common salvation, encouraging those standing, raising those lying on the ground.”

One of the most difficult religious, moral and social problems is the problem of attitude towards a criminal. If we talk about biblical-Christian recommendations, they instruct a person to forgive his neighbors for their sins. Since God is able to forgive people’s sins and thereby turn what happened into something that didn’t happen, then people should follow the same path. But how can one treat revealed sin as something non-existent? It would seem that no one is able to make something that once happened not happen. But the peculiarity of the life world of people is such that in it the impossible in the ontological sense becomes possible in the ethical sense. Christian axiology in this case refutes ontology and one of the remarkable ethical paradoxes arises, according to which manifested sin, be it an offense or even a crime, disappears from the spiritual space of interacting subjects. At the same time, forgiveness of sins does not humiliate the forgiver, but morally elevates him. “Then Peter came to Him and said: Lord! How many times should I forgive my brother who sins against me? up to seven times? Jesus says to him: I do not say to you, “until seven,” but until seventy times seven” (Matthew 18:21-22). The fulfillment of this imperative, commanded by Christ, can cleanse and disinfect the space of interpersonal communication.

Christians, unlike people with secular thinking, understand that in the fight against sin, which pushes one to crime, not just moral self-discipline is important, but trust in God’s help is necessary. John Cassian compared this situation, when there is only one step left before committing a crime, to walking on a tightrope stretched at a height. Only constant remembrance of God helps to keep from falling in this walk. If memory fails, it will be tantamount to a tightrope walker losing his balance and falling down, doomed to a painful death. To prevent this from happening, a person should not lose God from his field of attention and not for a moment turn away from the light emanating from Him.

It is hardly an exaggeration to say that there are very many points of contact between biblical and secular criminology, and between the systems of evaluative coordinates they use. In essence, all the differences between these two approaches boil down to the fact that to all the anthropological, social and other prerequisites for crime recognized and studied by secular criminology, biblical criminology also adds theological foundations. Acceptance or non-acceptance of them is not so much a theoretical issue as an ideological one, that is, in short, a matter of faith. At first glance, it may seem that this question is not directly related to the problem of scientific and theoretical understanding of the essence of crime. But a closer look inevitably reveals a very close connection between the ideological and methodological positions of the researcher. After all, methodology is actually a scientific and applied continuation of the worldview inherent in a scientist. And behind any methodological design one can, with some effort, discern the worldview credo of the researcher. The worldview, which is based on biblical-Christian premises, is noteworthy in that it introduces another causal complex into the list of determinants of crimes, consisting of causes of a sacred nature. It is sacred reality that turns out to be the determining basis, which, if taken into account, gives the causal analysis of crime the qualities of necessity and sufficiency, and imparts to theoretical constructions the signs of exhaustive completeness. And this alone allows us to hope that for serious scholars this circumstance may be a reason to pay close attention to the heuristic potential contained in the biblical concept of crime.

Modern criminology is characterized by a variety of ideological positions and methodological approaches. And although Russian criminological consciousness is mainly secular, we can talk about the awakening interest of domestic scientists in the religious and theological aspects of criminological knowledge, including the problem of the biblical foundations of modern concepts of the essence of crime.

The author of the article shows that in the Bible the essence of crime is defined through an appeal to the more general concept of sin. If the essence and meaning of a crime can be defined and described using purely anthropological or social categories, then the meaning of sin invariably presupposes a theological context and, accordingly, a theological interpretation. That is, through the concept of sin, the concept of crime includes a theological component.

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Literature…………………………………………………………….31 Introduction Studying the process of the origin of the state... their prestige was severely condemned crime, contributed to the establishment in society... coursework completed. Theological an approach- the state is understood as...

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All time public life accepted theological form, i.e. was based on a religious worldview... their behavior.” Understanding criminal activities. Having outlined the basic principles of economic approach To study crime, G. Becker more...

According to this approach, political phenomena and processes are interpreted as divine providence. Therefore, what is being studied is mainly not the real political life of society, but the divine revelation set forth in the relevant religious sources.

In Christianity, the main source of religious interpretation of political phenomena is the Bible. IN medieval Europe these interpretations were presented most fully in the works of Augustine Aurelius and Thomas Aquinas. The provisions they formulated to this day play a fundamental methodological role in Christian studies of political phenomena.

Augustine, nicknamed the Blessed, developed views on the divine predestination of the development of human society, including its political life. He contrasted the state - the “Earthly City” with the “City of God”: “One of the cities wants to live according to the flesh, and the other according to the Spirit.” This determines the profound difference in the principles of life in both cities.

In the Earthly City, the “lust of domination,” the lust for power, “controlled by both rulers and subordinates,” is constantly manifested, i.e. inherent in both. In the city of God, “out of love, both the leaders, leading, and the subordinates, obeying, serve each other mutually.”

The problem of freedom is solved accordingly. Based on Christian views, Augustine noted that a person is born free, but the manifestation of his freedom is hampered by many restrictions that exist in society. To overcome them, it is necessary strong will, including political, since we are talking about restrictions established by the state. Well-intentioned political will is necessary to do good and fight evil in any state.

Justifying the division of power into church and secular (state), Augustine pointed to the unconditional priority of church power coming from God.

State power, he explained, regulates the behavior of people in their temporary earthly existence and is itself temporary. For this reason alone, she must submit to the divine authority that directs eternal life. The earthly personification of divine power, according to Augustine, is the Christian church.

The political views of F. Aquinas are presented mainly in his work “On the Government of Rulers.” He argued that the state originates from God and directs the development of society, like a helmsman directs a ship. Being strongly influenced by the teachings of Aristotle, F. Aquinas paid great attention to the problem of the form of existence of various political phenomena, including the forms of state power, government and government.

He tried to comprehend the role and significance in the lives of people of such forms of state as monarchy, aristocracy, oligarchy, democracy, tyranny, under each of which a corresponding form of power is realized. According to F. Aquinas, none of the above forms of state is perfect, because it cannot create all the necessary conditions for the good and happiness of people. At the same time, he argued that “the best form of power is a state that combines monarchical, aristocratic and democratic elements.”

Justifying the superiority of church power over secular power, F. Aquinas argued that the intervention of the church in the political affairs of the state, even its participation in the overthrow of the monarch, can be completely justified: if a ruler came to power by deceiving the people, suppresses the people and generally rules unjustly, then the people can deprive him of power.

F. Aquinas was an opponent of the idea of social equality, interpreting the political and legal inequality of the existing classes as completely natural. According to him, the political and other activities of people are ultimately regulated by the “divine principles of governing the world,” forming the so-called eternal right from which all other forms of law come, including those regulating the activities of the state and all its bodies.

The political views of A. Aurelius and F. Aquinas had a significant influence on the further development of Christian political thought. On their basis, the main methodological approaches studies by Christian political scientists of modern political phenomena and processes.

Representatives naturalistic approach to the study of political phenomena and processes indicate the determining role of various natural conditions in the formation of the political consciousness and will of people, their other qualities, manifested in their political activity, from which political processes are formed. It's about mainly about the geographical and biological factors of their life and activities. The theoretical principles and conclusions formulated in this case also play a role methodological role, since they are used to explain the political and other processes taking place in society, their essence, content and social orientation.

Even the ancient thinkers Herodotus, Plato, Aristotle and others pointed to the important role of natural, geographical and climatic conditions in shaping the character, temperament and will of people, which, in turn, have a decisive influence on their behavior and activities, including political ones.

In modern times, the significant role of climate and geographical environment in the behavior and activities of people were pointed out by J. Bodin and S. L. Montesquieu, as well as G. T. Buckle.

Thus, Montesquieu directly linked the forms of government (democracy, monarchy, etc.) with the size of the territories covered by government. He wrote that “to preserve the principles of government, the state must maintain its size unchanged” and that “the spirit of this state will change depending on the expansion or contraction of the limits of its territory.” In his opinion, “small states by their nature should be republics, medium-sized states should be subject to a monarch, and vast empires should be under the rule of a despot.”

Further ideas geographical determinism, justifying the decisive role of natural conditions in the development of society, were used in the so-called theories of geopolitics. Today it is an already established science, formed in the process of researching the influence of geographical factors in people’s lives on their political thinking and activities, as well as on the activities and relationships of various states.

A naturalistic approach to the study of political processes was also used by scientists who were convinced that the political behavior and activities of people are determined by their inherent biological, physiological and associated mental properties. At one time, this was pointed out by the so-called social Darwinists, who argued that the behavior of animals and people has a common biological basis and is subject to general laws. Something similar is asserted by representatives of modern sociobiology and biopolitics, who almost completely ignore social factors when explaining social processes, including political ones. They ignore the role of social connections and relationships in the behavior and activities of people, each person is considered as if on his own; the driving forces of his behavior are seen in his biological needs and instincts.

Bringing together political and other social phenomena to their biological basis as their original cause, representatives of modern sociobiology and biopolitics repeatedly simplify the essence, content and role of these phenomena in society.

In particular, biological concepts such as “struggle for existence”, “natural selection”, etc. are used to explain political phenomena and processes. The American scientist G. D. Lasswell specially studied the problem of using “biological technology” to control the political behavior of people, and also “the dependence of political behavior on a person’s genetic predisposition.” Attempts are being made to find the biological foundations of such phenomena as patriotism and nationalism (A. Adrian, D. Daune, etc.), as well as to create a universal theory political power, applicable to humans and animals (P. Meyer).

Modern representatives biopoliticians often draw their arguments from “psychoanalysis” - the teaching of the Austrian psychiatrist Z. Freud and his followers about the role of a person’s psychosexual energy in various manifestations of his behavior and activities, including political ones.

We are talking, in particular, about the “transformation of the energy of drives” into the political and other activities of people and about the influence of this energy on their political relations. It is argued, for example, that the dominance of one person over another, including political dominance, is due to a mental tendency towards masochism and sadism. Masochism manifests itself “in the pleasurable submission various kinds authorities,” and sadism is in the desire to turn a person into “a helpless object of his own will, to become his tyrant, his god, to treat him as he pleases.”

The tradition of explaining political processes by the mental properties of subjects of political activity was characteristic of L. Ward, G. Le Bon, G. Tarde, E. Durkheim, L. Gumplowicz, V. Dilthey, V. Pareto.

Thus, according to L. Ward, the main mental factors of civilization and its political component are the desires and will of people. G. Tarde substantiated the fundamental role of mental imitation in human activity, including political activity. V. Pareto, like his predecessors G. Le Bon, L. Ward and G. Tarde, gave a characterization of irrational, i.e. unconscious driving forces of people's behavior, including their political behavior.

There is no doubt that the mental properties of people play an important role in any of their activities, including political ones, but it is incorrect to reduce these properties only to natural foundations. They are rather the result of a complex interaction of biological, physiological and, of course, social factors.

According to sociocentric approach the center of the study of political phenomena and processes are social factors. We have repeatedly pointed out the various social properties of political phenomena and processes, so we will pay attention only to the interpretation social reasons political phenomena by thinkers of the past and present.

For example, O. Comte considered political phenomena as a product of the “intellectual evolution of humanity,” the embodiment of its political consciousness. This is exactly how he interpreted the nature of political relations between subjects and political institutions. He saw the role of political science in the reasonable management of political relations, establishing their harmony based on a combination of political and other interests of subjects.

K. Marx and his followers pointed to the objective social foundations of politics. They view politics as relations between classes and other social groups, mainly determined by the struggle for political power, primarily state power. They noted the dependence of political phenomena on economic ones, especially on existing relations of ownership of the means of production, and emphasized that the economically dominant classes also play leading roles in politics and subordinate the activities of the state to their interests. Claiming that political consciousness represents a reflection of the social existence of people and the existing political reality; Marxists at the same time emphasize its active impact on ongoing political processes.

M. Weber comprehensively substantiated the role and significance of political power in society, deeply revealed its social nature and forms of manifestation. In his opinion, all political problems are in one way or another connected with the functioning of political power. Politics itself was interpreted by him as “the desire to participate in power or to influence the distribution of power” between groups of people or states.

The sociocentric approach to the study of political processes is used and developed by many modern scientists. Most of them do not deny the importance of natural factors in the development of society and in politics, but they assign a decisive role to social factors. We can say that currently the sociocentric approach to the analysis of political phenomena and processes is the most widespread and plays a primary methodological role in their scientific research.

Supporters cultural approach the main attention is focused on the analysis of the political activities of individual individuals, each of whom is considered as a bearer of a certain culture, expressed in the system of his knowledge, skills, abilities, interests, value orientations, etc.

Any political phenomenon is understood as the embodiment in it of those elements of culture that the subjects of political activity possess. Ultimately, a person with his cultural properties is characterized as the main factor in political processes, determining their content and social orientation.

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