Historically and culturally, the premises for forming myths about ritual killings have their roots in interpretations of religious texts and traditions that emerged in early Christian culture, where certain bloody rituals were portrayed as an evil aimed at the divine order.

Myths of Ritual Killings: Historical and Cultural Foundations

Historically and culturally, the premises for forming myths about ritual killings have their roots in interpretations of religious texts and traditions that emerged in early Christian culture, where certain bloody rituals were portrayed as an evil aimed at the divine order. For example, one source emphasizes that, in order to develop a clear and understandable form, there were attempts to separate "false notions" about ritual murder – in particular, the idea that the victim is sacrificed to the devil, even if the crime is externally presented exactly that way ( link txt, page: 24-25). This interpretation arose against the backdrop of a desire to distinctly separate good and evil, where any hint of the occult or demonic was attributed to a specific “ritual crime.”

The cultural premises also include ideas of martyrdom and the sacred significance of the suffering of the innocent, as reflected in the interpretation of ritual murder victims as martyrs whose deaths hold spiritual value and symbolic significance in the struggle against demonic forces ( link txt, page: 26). Such an interpretation not only eased the sense of tragedy from these acts but also served as a tool for forming the concept of the purity of the religious community that recognized in these events a sign of divine intervention.

At the same time, contemporary examples, where episodes of ritual murders reemerge in public consciousness – such as the murder of three Optina monks in 1993 – indicate that these myths are not only inherited from ancient traditions but are also actively exploited in situations of interreligious and interethnic conflicts. Such cases become symbols of opposition, in which ritual crimes are interpreted not only from the standpoint of sanctioned religious dogma but also as representative moments in the struggle for identity and moral benchmarks, uniting supporters of traditional values. Thus, the myths about ritual killings have served and continue to serve as a tool for demonizing opponents and justifying interreligious confrontation ( link txt, page: 19-20).

Additionally, approaches to the concept of “ritual” demonstrate that the idea of established customs and ceremonies is multifaceted – ranging from simple cultural traditions to rituals aimed at curbing violence in primitive societies ( link txt, page: 21517-21519; link txt, page: 184-185). This underlines that the myths about ritual killings emerged in the context of attempts to make sense of a chaotic and often violent reality, which later transformed into a symbolic struggle between different religious and cultural groups.

In summary, it can be said that the historical and cultural premises—from interpretations of sacred texts and traditions, where false ideas about victims “for the sake of the devil” were filtered out through the teachings of the holy fathers, to the socio-political context of modern times, in which individual cases of ritual killings become symbols of interreligious conflicts—have formed a complex web of myths. These myths reflect deep interreligious contradictions, where each case of ritual killing is not only recorded as a crime but also becomes an element of the symbolic struggle for spiritual and cultural leadership.

Supporting citation(s):
"However, it is often useful to express certain ideas in a reasonable form, so to speak, ideas that are in the air; useful at least to cut off the incorrect, false notions about these quite proper ideas. So, let us try, based on Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition, especially the moral teaching of the holy fathers, to express in a reasonable, understandable form: what is the essence of ritual crimes (murders). Let us first examine the false notions about this subject. First of all, it is entirely false to assume that in a ritual murder, the deceased is sacrificed to the devil, even if the crime was outwardly presented exactly that way." (source: link txt, page: 24-25)

"On the other hand, even today we again face the latest evil, i.e., ritual murders. For example, there was the murder of three Optina monks on Easter of 1993; some other murders of clerics and laypeople, which have been committed not long ago, are also suspected of having a ritual nature." (source: link txt, page: 19-20)

"Moreover, the suffering and death endured by the innocent victim at the hands of ritual executioners have the value of martyrdom in the eyes of God, a fact always recognized by God’s people and immortalized by the Orthodox Church, glorifying these victims among the multitude of martyrs." (source: link txt, page: 26)