Religious Issues
One of Peter's main moves he made during his reign was to abolish Patriarch, which were the head of the church. His goal was to bring the Eastern Orthodox church under his direct control, and he succeeded at this. He created Holy Synod which was a council of bishops responsible to the government. With breaking up the Eastern Orthodox church, he broke up the traditional culture that united nobles and peasants.
Holy Synod, the highest authority of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1917.
These two pictures are symbols for the Eastern Orthodox church. The first one is a portrayal of Eastern Christianity. The second one is the symbol for the Eastern Orthodox Church.