Dialogue on the occasion of Pushkin’s anniversary: Bishop Anthony (Khrapovitsky) and T. I. Philippov (1899)

The article is devoted to a brief epistolary dialogue, the occasion for which was the Pushkin anniversary (1899). Among the many responses to this cultural event contemporaries appreciated the speech of Bishop (later Metropolitan) Anthony (Khrapovitsky), which he delivered at Kazan University. The ceremonial speech became one of his first detailed statements about Russian literature and subsequently served as a pretext for a special article about the poet. In June 1899, Bishop Anthony presented a separate edition of his speech to the prominent statesman and public figure Tertius Philippov (1825/1826–1899). The author of the article clarifies the circumstances that accompanied this gesture of donation and publishes the bishop’s covering letter and Philippov’s response. In addition to the high assessment of the work read, the response letter of the state controller expressed in a concise form a judgment about the spiritual significance of Russian literature. This brief description hiddenly contains the ideas of another writer, equally close to both participants in the dialogue – Dostoevsky. The researcher also notes other points that bring the heroes of the article together. In particular, this is a negative attitude towards the synodal structure of church government.