On November 26-29, 2001, the second conference "Ancient Egypt and Christianity" was held in Moscow, organized by the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Russian State University for the Humanities, the Faculty of History of Moscow State University, and the Orthodox St. Tikhon Theological Institute with the financial support of the Federal Target Program "Integration".

The conference was an important event in the scientific life of Moscow and attracted the interest of scientists-historians, art historians, philologists and religious scholars-not only in Russia, but also in foreign countries (Germany, France). For the second time, the conference brings together representatives of academic, university and theological sciences, academicians, professors, postgraduates and students, as well as employees of the largest museums in Moscow and St. Petersburg, working on the problems of studying the origins of Christianity and the cultural heritage of Egypt as one of the main centers of the formation of Christian dogma and morality. The last decade has been marked by an increasing interest in the topic of early Christianity, but many aspects of theological teachings and motifs rooted in the thousand-year history of the Middle East, North-East Africa and, first of all, Egypt, which were preserved in a foreign cultural environment and were perceived and reworked by early Christian authors, have not yet received worthy coverage in Russian science. The conference "Ancient Egypt and Christianity" was a serious step towards filling this gap. The reports presented at the conference covered a very wide range of issues, and the analyzed materials related to a wide geographical region - the Middle East and North-East Africa-were considered over a long chronological period.

The conference was attended by V. M. Alpatov, Deputy Director of the Institute of Religious Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and Corresponding Member of the Scientific Council of the Russian Academy of Sciences for the Study of Religion. RAS Ya. N. Shchapov, Dean of the Faculty of History of Moscow State University S. P. Karpov, Rector of the Orthodox St. Tikhon's Theological Institute Archpriest V. Vorobyov, Rector of the Biblical Theological Institute n. a. A. E. Bodrov, Archimandrite Augustin (Nikitin), Cultural Adviser at the Embassy of Egypt in Russia Sherif Mohammed Helmi, Head of the Information Bureau at the Embassy of Egypt Magdi Fouad Deif, Head of the Eastern Seminar at the University of Bonn P. Nagel, Miriam Wissa from the Catholic University of Paris, N. Gilou from the University of Montpellier, scientists, theologians, museum workers, and journalists.

The conference participants were welcomed by S. P. Karpov and S. M. Helmi.

Opening the conference, V. Alpatov noted the intensification of textual research related to the problems of the cultural heritage of Egypt and the Christian East. Egyptology has always been one of the priority areas of Russian Oriental studies, and in recent years, thanks to the expansion of source studies and archaeological work, it has risen to a new level.

The conference was attended by 45 reports prepared by researchers and postgraduates of the Institute of Philosophy of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Philosophy of the Russian Academy of Sciences, professors, teachers and students of the Russian State University, Moscow State University, St. Tikhon's Orthodox Theological Institute, and the Institute of Bible and Theology. Saint Andrew the Apostle, V. I. Surikov Moscow State Academic Art Institute, Samara Pedagogical University, ves-

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leading researchers of the State Hermitage Museum, as well as scientists and postgraduates from France, Germany and Ukraine.

The topics of reports can be grouped into four main areas. The first group includes presentations on biblical parallels and connotations of Egyptian and Middle Eastern texts; the second group includes an analysis of Christian beliefs in the Middle East and North - East Africa, materials on the history of communities and monasteries; the third group includes issues of cultural continuity; and the fourth group includes research in the field of Egyptology and the history of Russian - Egyptian contacts.

Archimandrite Augustin (Nikitin) presented an in-depth study of Russian-Sinai literary relations. Since ancient times, the Monastery of St. Catherine has kept Greek, Coptic, Arabic, Hebrew, Slavic, Latin, Ethiopian, Georgian, Armenian and Syriac manuscripts from various countries of the Orthodox East. A great contribution to their study was made by Russian researchers: Archimandrite Porfiry (Uspensky), A. S. Norov, D. D. Smyshlyaev, Archimandrite Antonin (Kapustin), N. P. Kondakov, A. A. Dmitrievsky, A. A. Vasiliev, N. Ya. Marr, I. A. Javakhov, A. Tsagareli, V. N. Beneshevich etc. The works and "walks" of Russian pilgrims also contributed to the growth of public interest in the Sinai manuscript collection. After the Second World War, scientific research in the Sinai book depository was expanded, and the working conditions of specialists in the monastery became more favorable. Currently, the Sinai Monastery, as a religious institution of international significance, enjoys the support of all Christian Churches and international departments of the United Nations, including UNESCO.

The report of Ya. N. Shchapov devoted to the expedition of the Moscow irrigation campaign to Egypt in 1911 aroused great interest. The report used archival materials and rare photographs that had never been published before. The assistance of Russian specialists in improving the Egyptian irrigation system was not only highly appreciated by the Egyptian government, but also aroused the warm gratitude of ordinary Egyptians.

The report of O. V. Tomashevich (MSU) is based on materials from the biography of the historian of the Christian East B. A. Turaev. This great scientist and brilliant teacher is deservedly considered the creator of the school of Russian Oriental studies of antiquity. Contemporaries appreciated in him humanism, true religiosity and deep love for the motherland. The whole nature of this man was alien to the separation of science and religion. The revolution left a fatal mark on the fate of the scientist, he did not accept much. Turaev's works still remain relevant, illuminating the past of the great people and transferring us not to the gloomy Imenti, but to the bright environment of its life and culture.

The origins of early Christian teaching are deep, connecting it with Egypt, one of the main centers of its origin. And the deeper we try to understand the worldview of ancient Egypt, the more we find a seemingly elusive similarity in the perception of the world around us and the foundations of the universe, the more we get the opportunity to touch the mental soil that fed the minds of early Christian theologians who lived and worked in Egypt.

The general theoretical problem of ancient Egyptian monotheism was discussed in the report of L. B. Zubov (IB RAS). Since the second half of the twentieth century, three points of view on Egyptian religion have prevailed in historiography: some researchers saw in Egypt a gradual strengthening of the monotheistic tendency, which was finally established after the religious reform of Akhenaten, others applied to Egypt the theory of Henotheism proposed by indologist Max Muller, and others were inclined in favor of the original worship of the One God by the Egyptians. The theological views of the Egyptians did not reflect the complex, conflicting relations of the supreme gods with each other, when none of them can be considered with certainty as the creator of the world and being, which would allow us to classify the ancient Egyptian religion as polytheistic. Many deities have acted as demiurges (Atum, Ra, Amon, Ptah), but long rows of divine names are grammatically singular. Numerous gods were perceived as images or names of the only god, acting as his manifestations or his various energies.

Similar views on Egyptian monotheism were expressed by O. I. Pavlova (Institute of Philosophy of the Russian Academy of Sciences), whose report was devoted to the" teaching of life " of Akhenaten. Many researchers consider Akhenaten's reformist views to be the highest manifestation of monotheism and compare them with Biblical monotheism. The author noted the stages of development of Akhenaten's teaching, each of which

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there were inherent qualitative differences. At the final stage of the Pharaoh's reign, the idea of divinity was replaced by the idea of power, and the main provisions of the doctrine approached the antithesis of the concept of divinity, turning into militant godlessness.

Continuing the theme of Egyptian monotheism, E. E. Kormysheva (IV RAS) pointed out the similarity of certain passages of the hymn to Aten from the tomb of Aye with the 103rd psalm of David and with the hymn to the Heko deity of the Kaffa people (Southern Ethiopia). The migration routes of the Aten cult adherents are clearly traced in the toponymy of Kush and are confirmed by the data of ancient authors and archaeological evidence. This allows us to reconstruct the transmission of the information field, which was expressed, in particular, in almost identical phraseological constructions of religious texts. The ethno-cultural factor underlying the textual similarity of various works of religious literature at different times is an indicator of the deep penetration into the mentality of the Egyptians of the idea of a single luminous creator god.

A. V. Korotaev (RSUH) devoted his report to the problem of autochthonous pre-Islamic Arabian monotheism. In pre-Islamic Arabia, there were two relatively independent autochthonous monotheistic traditions: millat / din in Northwestern and Western Arabia, and "Rachmanism" in Yemen and al-Yamam. The use of RHMN as the primary and only name of God (in Jewish, Christian, and vaguely monotheistic texts) is typical only for Southern Arabia in the late fifth and sixth centuries. The Yemenis influenced the religious evolution of Central Arabia through their Kindite vassals. Therefore, it is not surprising that al-Yamamah had an autonomous Rakhmanist tradition in the time of Muhammad.

Various aspects of the multi-faceted problem, primarily related to ancient Egyptian history, episodes of which are reflected in the Old Testament, make researchers turn to this problem again and again.

Nemirovsky A. A. (IVI RAS) noted the connection of the" shasu countries " of the New Egyptian toponymic lists with the name of the god Yahweh and Old Testament plots. Shasu is interpreted as a special ethnopolitical community in Sinai and the surrounding areas, whose local deity was Yahweh. An analysis of a wide range of sources suggests that Shasa should be identified with the biblical Amalekites. Mount Sinai, where the ancient Jews, according to the Old Testament, adopted the cult of Yahweh, was located in the Amalekite territory, so the Hebrew tribes borrowed the cult of Yahweh from one of the tribes of the Sinai Amalekites-Shasu during the occupation of their territory.

M. V. Kurochkin (Saratov Pedagogical Institute) and A. A. Nemirovsky, considering the precedent of the Battle of Megiddo in 609 BC, focused on its natural Jewish perception. The forced introduction of" prophetic monotheism " by Josiah in 622 BC allowed him to unite almost all of Palestine under his rule and reunite the former lands of Israel. This was to be taken by the Jews as a proof of the validity of Josiah's policy and a gift of God's protection to the country. At the same time, Egypt with its animal cults was perceived by the Jews as the most "pagan" of all pagan countries. In such circumstances, the complete and rapid victory of Necho over Josiah in the perception of the Jews should have been an absolute, existential catastrophe, a local "end of the world".

I. A. Ladynin (Moscow State University) and A. A. Nemirovsky, studying the role of Nebuchadnezzar II in Egyptian history, based on a number of sources, including the Old Testament, noted that Nebuchadnezzar's campaign led to the fall of Aprius and the accession of Amasis. Cambyses, who overthrew the house of Amasis, may have been assimilated to Nebuchadnezzar in the literary tradition.

A number of reports at the conference were devoted to the study of the formation and development of Egyptian literary subjects and iconographic images perceived by Christian teaching.

S. V. Arkhipova (IB RAS) has identified a number of parallels between the "Travels of Sinuhet" and the story of Moses in the land of Midian. Both heroes were associated with the royal gynaecus, the reason for fleeing Egypt for both was the fear of being accused of involvement in the murder. The route of both fugitives is similar, their fate in a foreign land is close. The return of both to Egypt, which was accomplished in fulfillment of God's will, preceded the culmination of their lives: for Sinuchet, it is a complete justification, a return to the royal service and royal favors, and finally death and burial in their homeland, for Moses - the withdrawal of the Jews from Egypt to the promised land.

Using the example of" The Tale of Two Brothers " and the Story of Joseph, N. V. Lavrentiev (RSUH) addressed the problem of the influence of Egyptian fairy-tale motifs on the formation of biblical traditions. Bata, unjustly suffering and given a new lease of life by a series of reincarnations-

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Both Genius and Joseph, with his ability to solve dreams, are closely related to the Egyptian tradition. Joseph is given Egyptian characteristics, and the image of Bata is clear to the ancient Jews. Thus, the biblical subjects adopted the most closely related motifs of the fairy tales and myths of Egypt - the country with which they were historically connected.

As has been noted many times, many of the main themes and motifs of Christian art are rooted in Egyptian culture. The most obvious parallels are the Mother of God with the divine son and the resurrecting God. Touching upon the topic of parallels, O. S. Petrova (RSUH) focused on the common iconographic beginning of ancient Egyptian and Christian monuments dedicated to the Behdet Choir and St. George (the Holy Horseman). The Behdet Choir was depicted with a spear in one hand and a leash chain wrapped around the enemy's neck in the other. A chained dragon is also found in Christian legend. The most striking example of general iconography is the image of the Choir with a human figure and the head of a falcon, sitting astride a horse and striking a crocodile with a spear. Sometimes a lion appears instead of a crocodile. However, when borrowing the meaning of the images was lost: the single image of the Behdet Choir in Christian art was divided into the image of a Holy Horseman, on the one hand, and the image of an enemy being struck by a predator, on the other.

The conference presented reports on textual and source studies-a comparative analysis of Egyptian, Greek, Arabic and early Byzantine sources. They focused on the writings of early Christian theologians.

The report of E. B. Smagina (IB RAS) was devoted to Talmudic motifs in Coptic sources, primarily in the texts of the Nag Hammadi Gnostic Library and the Medinet Madi Manichaean collection. Parallels are revealed that cannot be explained by a random coincidence. These parallels could go back to early Aramaic-speaking Christianity, which used a number of legendary motifs, apparently from the Jewish Haggadah. But since the Gnostic teachings were formed in Alexandrian Egypt, and the texts given may have been not only translated into Coptic, but also composed in Egypt, there may have been a connection between early Talmudic Judaism and the mythology of some Egyptian early Christian teachings.

A. V. Sazanov (Muslim College) presented an analysis of written sources on the history of the Kellia Monastery, supplementing them with data from archaeological research. The monastery was not a closed community of anchorites who provided themselves with everything they needed,as was still believed. In particular, the monks were not engaged in the production of ceramics, but bought both Egyptian and imported dishes for their needs. Archaeological materials used in the interpretation of the monument allow us to conclude that the monastery was included in the economic life of early Byzantine Egypt.

Olga Vasilyeva (MSU) devoted her report to the images of Osiris and Typhon in the" Egyptian Stories " of Synesius, who lived and worked at the junction of two epochs - antiquity and the Middle Ages. Synesius depicted contemporary political events in an allegorical form, having processed for this purpose the "sacred legend" of the Egyptians. At the same time, the neo-Platonist Synesius deduced good and evil under mythological names, but, being a Christian, he included in his narrative a divine Providence, at the behest of which all the events in his story take place. The images of Typhon and Osiris are depicted in accordance with the traditional Egyptian antithesis of Maat Isefet, but the storyline of the myth diverges from the Egyptian tradition. In a number of episodes, the influence of Plutarch is seen, the work is characterized by characteristic features of the transition time.

The connection of ancient Egyptian culture with early Christianity goes back centuries, to the era of the brilliant Ramessids, when Joseph, sold into Egyptian slavery, left a mark on history, who lived and was buried according to Egyptian customs.

A number of reports at the conference are related to the study of cultural continuity - art, features of early Christian iconography of Egyptian monuments and religious texts, decorative elements, liturgics, etc. V. N. Zalesskaya (State Hermitage Museum) considered the Egyptian life-affirming symbolism in the cult of Sabazia. The focus was on three images associated with the idea of Resurrection and renewal of life, which had ancient Egyptian roots and are usually present on the Sabaziya symbol: Isis the mammalian, a falcon and a frog. Since the influence of the Sabazian cult on the formation of Christian iconography is recognized, some images of Egyptian origin may have been perceived by Byzantine art through this cult.

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O. V. Osharina (State Hermitage Museum) has collected extremely interesting material on images of the eagle on Coptic stelae, the types of which are very diverse. Since ancient times in the Middle East, the eagle was associated with the cult of the sun and its image was present among the attributes of gods and kings. According to Roman religious beliefs, the eagle carried the emperor's soul to heaven. Gradually, this idea begins to be applied to the ascension of human souls in general. Copts considered the eagle to be a carrier of human souls and a protector from hostile forces. In ancient times, the eagle symbolized immortality and received a wide range of interpretations in Christian art: the image of the eagle merged with the idea of eternal life of the soul, the image of the church, the apostles and Christ himself.

N. V. Pomerantseva (Moscow State Academy of Sciences) the artist. V. I. Surikov Institute) analyzed the iconography of the wall paintings of the Cathedral in Faras (Pahoras village), in the Nobatea land. The history of the Christianization of the Nobates is connected with Byzantium and with the name of Bishop Longinus, who founded the priestly department in Faras. The report notes the continuity of elements of the Faras murals with monuments of pre-Christian and early Christian art in Egypt, as well as the proximity to Coptic motifs. In the arrangement of wall cycles, the pattern that developed later is not yet observed, we can only talk about the stability of a number of features. Scientists have done a lot of work to compare the faces depicted in the murals with the remains found in the graves of the cathedral: a great similarity has been revealed.

The report of N. V. Ermakova (RSUH) was devoted to Christian symbolism in Coptic fabrics from the collection of the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts. The use of Christian symbols in images on fabrics, most of which were found in burials, determined the deceased's belonging to Christianity. In the above samples of fabrics, the author has identified the main conceptual elements of early Christian decor.

A. Y. Budnevich (RSUH) focused on the purifying functions of water according to the religious ideas of ancient and early Christian Egypt. Water served as a symbol of rebirth. With the help of water purification, a person gained independence from the fetters of earthly (worldly) existence, died "for a sinful life" and was born "for a spiritual life".

The presented reports open up wide opportunities for continuing the scientific discussion, for further research on the problems of the cultural heritage of Egypt and the Christian East, which, we hope, will help to develop new approaches to studying the problem and outline further research paths.

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