YAKOV KROTOV

Lent and Sex

Boris Mironov in the magazine Rodina (Motherland), 2001, March, pp. 52-56, analyzes statistics on religiosity of XIXth c. Certainly, practically he measures only the level of ritualism. Direct statistics were misleading. For example, officially more than 90% of population went to annual confession, in 1780 and in 1915 as well. Mironov found more interesting, indirect index. According to popular view during Great Lent sexual intercourse was prohibited. But whether there have been any diminishment of birthrate 9 months after the end of Great Lent? Yes! About 24% of Russian Orthodox and 12% of Roman Catholics in Russia kept continence during Great Lent in 1867. Mironov think this is very high figure (I agree.) By 1910 this figure lessened and constituted only 14% for Russian Orthodox and 6% for Roman Catholics. This is mathematical dimension of secularization.