An Appeal to Mary: An Analysis of Pussy Riot's Punk Performance in Moscow

Abstract

The punk performance by Pussy Riot in Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral created a religious and political controversy deeply impacting the Russian Orthodox Church. Analysis of the significance of this event varies. This article analyzes the Pussy Riot performance in light of its liturgical context, attending to the following details: the sacred space of Christ the Savior cathedral; the recent event of the public veneration of Mary's Belt in Moscow; Pussy Riot's employment of traditional liturgical motifs; and the meaning of their appeal to Mary. The article discusses Pussy Riot's subversion of the Russian Church's appeals to the public and offers the originality of their appeal to Mary as a retrieval of an ancient Byzantine and Russian tradition. The conclusion suggests how the scholar of religion might appraise Pussy Riot's action, with particular attention to the theological category of the “holy fool.”

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