IMAGES OF CULT FOLLOWERS IN DOSTOYEVSKY'S A WRITER'S DIARY

The article analyzes a theme of religious sects in A Writer's diary of Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Dostoyevksy, who readily responded to all the vital questions of contemporary life, obviously could not ignore the theme of pseudospirityality and involvement of people in different organizations masked by prayerful meetings; organizations that often set political rather than religious goals. In the article the image of a stundist parson as a religious sect leader is compared with the image of Elder Zosima from Dostoyevsky's novel The Brothers Karamazov seen as a real saint, leading people to Christ. F. М. Dostoyevsky actually demarcates the concepts of sectarian teaching and its practical implementation. According to the writer, the destructive activities of sects are much more dangerous than their theoretical views. Immersed into all sorts of trance states (“whirling and prophecy”), a person broadcasts a distorted view of Christ, rejects the true faith, and without knowing it, revitalizes the ancient pagan cults of idolatry.