Building an Orthodox empire: Archpriest Ioann Vostorgov and Russian missionary aspirations in Asia.

Using the example of Archpriest Ioann Vostorgov, this article analyzes how during the final decade of the Russian empire, the colonization of Siberia, Central Asia, and the Far East, as well as the state's engagement in East Asia, created new opportunities for Orthodox clergymen to participate in Russian imperial aspirations in the region. Asia had captured the imagination of Vostorgov, providing him with a backdrop for articulating the pivotal role that the Orthodox Church would perform in forging the future empire and a new world order. Facing an environment of porous borders, hostile neighbours, along with dizzying religious and ethnic diversity, Vostorgov supported the resettlement of Orthodox peasants and the intensification of missionary work, both inside and outside of Russia's borders, which he believed would secure the future of the empire. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]