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The Martyrdom of Princes Boris and Gleb
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 August 2019
The chronicle entry for the year 1015 recounts the murder of two of Vladimir’s sons, Princes Boris and Gleb. Once more, a series of close readings reveals a deep liturgical subtext underlying the chronicle text, only this time that subtext is Eucharistic: Prince Boris prepares for death in the exact way that an eastern Christian priest prepares for the Eucharistic sacrifice during the celebration of the divine liturgy. And just as the sacrifice offered in the Eucharist is Christ Himself, so the sacrifice that Boris offers in the chronicle is his own life, and the life of his brother Gleb. A second level of liturgical subtext is also discussed in the chapter, and it is connected to the Byzantine rite for consecrating a new church. The chroniclers in Rus were clearly familiar with this rite and it may have guided their large-scale conception of the founding of Christianity in Rus. Indeed, when we consider what a bishop says and does during the consecration rites—what he prays about and what he asks for—it reveals a crucial theological link between Vladimir’s role as bishop and the martyrdom of his sons Boris and Gleb.
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