(In Russian) This article on organized crime mentions “the organized criminal group known in Orenburg as the Mormons”. Continuing, the author explains that “the leader of the group and chieftan of the Cossack village of Sofievka, Ivan Ivanovich Zhabin by name… could perhaps win elections and legally organize the Mormon bandits as a legitimate Cossack…
This newspaper article by Orenburg police investigator Igor Moiseev describes how the native Russian Mormon sect has become a powerful business syndicate, that Orenburg Mormons descend from the “old original Mormons” and still hold to some religious principles. I have also provided an English translation of the relevant paragraphs below: “The Mormons are one of…
(In Russian) An overview of the history and development of various faiths in the Samara region. Kirill Serebrenitskiy is a leading ethnographer of Samara Province. ?????? ??????????????: ??????????????? ???????? ????????? ????????? ???????
This excellent resource documents the Molokans, a native Russian religious movement that contributed to groups that were later called Russian Mormons. Maintained by A. J. Conovaloff. Click here to visit his site.
Donald Mackenzie Wallace traveled among the sectarians of the Samara Region during the 1870’s. He documented the rise of Ivan Grigoriev’s sect, a group later known to Orthodox priests as Mormons. Chapter 27 of his book Russia provides information and opinions about other related groups as well. Online book.
An interview with Ivan Zhabin, a man often described as a leader among the “Mormons” of the Orenburg area. Also includes a few paragraphs on “Orthodox Mormons”, which I’ve translated below. The article identifies the “Mormons” as Old Believers who were compared with “Mormons”. “Kulugury–a nickname for Old Believers (Fedoseevites) living in Kazan and environs…
[in Russian] This article on organized crime mentions “the organized criminal group known in Orenburg as the Mormons”. Continuing, the author explains that “the leader of the group and chieftan of the Cossack village of Sofievka, Ivan Ivanovich Zhabin by name… could perhaps win elections and legally organize the Mormon bandits as a legitimate Cossack…
This newspaper article by Orenburg police investigator Igor Moiseev describes how the native Russian Mormon sect has become a powerful business syndicate, that Orenburg Mormons descend from the “old original Mormons” and still hold to some religious principles. The article is published online. I have also provided an English translation of the relevant paragraphs below:…
[in Russian] Another insightful article by K. Serebrenitskiy regarding a Khlyst group in Samara Province.
[in Russian] A detailed account of the Khlyst movement in Duboviy-Umyot, a village near Samara identified as containing Mormons in the 1800’s. Mr. Serebrenitskiy’s articles (published online in the “Ethnicity and Culture” journal) are a major source for ethnographic knowledge in Samara Province.
