THE IMAGE OF THE CROSS IN THE HOMILIES OF TRYPHON PETROV, THE OLD BELIEVERS WRITER OF THE 18TH CENTURY

The article focuses on the peculiar properties of the style of writing of Tryphon Petrov, the Old Believer writer of the Vyg literary school. The analysis is based on two homilies which are dedicated to the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The article examines the structure of the homilies, their genre features, meanings and interpretations of the image of the cross as well as the form and sources of the texts. The work contains comments on the influence of Baroque esthetics and rhetoric on the author’s style of writing. The analysis of the first text is focused on its structure which is inscribed in the symbol of the cross. Listening to the preacher hearers go through the space-time coordinates determined by the cross. The most important in the second homily are the canticles which are a part of the text. They create rhythm and convert the homily into reminiscence of a hymn. The narration of both texts is based on amplification. The article resumes the thought that Tryphon Petrov assimilated new trends of his time but he also was continuer of the tradition of patristic eloquence.