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Skoptsy - Self Castration Cult
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skoptsy
The Skoptsy (Russian: скопцы, also transliterated as Skoptzy, Skoptzi, Skoptsi, Skopzi, Scoptsy, Skapetz, and other spellings) were a secret sect in Tsarist Russia. The Skoptsy are best known for practicing castration of men and the mastectomy of women in accordance with their teachings against sexual lust. The movement originated as an offshoot of the sect known as the "People of God" and was first noted in the late 18th century. The Skoptsy were persecuted by the imperial government and later by the Soviet Union, but enjoyed substantial growth before fading into obscurity by the mid-20th century.
Skoptsy is a plural of "skopets", an archaic word meaning "castrated one" in the Russian language. As their title indicates, the main feature of the sect was castration. They believed that after the expulsion from the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve had the halves of the forbidden fruit grafted onto their bodies forming testicles and breasts. Thus, the removal of these sexual organs restored the Skoptsy to the pristine state before the Original Sin. In this the Skoptsy maintained that they were fulfilling Christ's counsel of perfection in Matthew 19:12[1] and 18:8–9.[2]
There were two kinds of castration: the "lesser" and "greater seal" (i.e. partial and complete castration). For men, "lesser" castration was the removal of the testicles only, while "greater" castration was the removal of the penis as well. Men who did the "greater seal" used a cow-horn when urinating. The castrations were made with primitive tools such as a shaving knife without using any anesthetic.
The earliest records of female castrations date from 1815. Usually only the breasts were amputated.[3]
The Skoptsy also believed that a chief evil of the world is rooted in the lepost (bodily beauty, human sexuality, sex appeal, etc.) which prevents people from communicating with God. The way to perfection begins with the elimination of the cause followed by the liberation of soul. Castration ensured that all sins caused by lepost could not be committed.
Repressive measures were tried along with ridicule: male Skoptsy were dressed in women's clothes and paraded with fools' caps on through the villages. In 1876, 130 Skoptsy were deported. To escape prosecution some of the sect emigrated, mostly to Romania, where some of them mixed with old believer exiles known as Lipovans. The well-known Romanian writer I.L. Caragiale acknowledges that toward the end of the 19th century all the horse-powered cabs in Bucharest were driven by Russian Skoptsy (Scopiţi in Romanian).[4] Though the law was strict in Russia — every eunuch was compelled to register — Skoptsism did not abate in its popularity.
The Skoptsy became known as moneylenders,[5] and a bench known as the "Skoptsy's Bench" stood in St. Petersburg for many years.
The Skoptsy may have had as many as 100,000 followers in the early 20th century, although repression continued and members of the sect were put on trial (New York Times 1910). Increased repression and collectivization under the Soviet Union reduced the numbers to a reported few thousand in 1929, and the sect is believed to have nearly died out today (Lane 1978).
Does anyone here have relatives who were Skoptsy?
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Originally Posted by Danielion
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