Religious deviations of the old believers-Spassovites in Kopeny village of the Saratov province: historical and social context (based on the materials of investigative processes in the first third of the 19th century)

The article analyses the investigative process of the old believers-Spassovites associated with the ritual suicide of 35 people in Kopeny village of Saratov province in 1827. The general description of the events and motivations of fanatical behaviour in the general context of deviant cultural practices in the old believers are given. A special emphasis in the work is made on identifying the social subtext of what is happening and the connection of suicide “sermon” with external circumstances. In particular, an attempt to analyse the specifics of the existence of the Spassovites community in Kopeny and its relationship with the patrimonial administration of the Naryshkin estate is made. The author comes to the conclusion on the existence of deep contradictions in the life of specific peasants, which forced the fanatical part of the Spassovites to take a radical step, as well as the significance of these events in the formation of a negative image of the old believers.