to places such as Uglich and Venev to organise secret assemblies for his followers. He encouraged his followers to worship in the manner of the Old Believers, such as by making the sign of the cross with two fingers instead of three, but he also instructed them to attend the State Church and take communion. Many Khlysty, including Lupkin's wife and son, even took monastic vows. Lupkin also made large donations to the Church, which helped to protect the sect from persecution. Beliefs and practices The Khlysty renounced priesthood, holy books and veneration of the saints (excluding the Theotokos). They believed in a possibility of direct communication with the Holy Spirit and of its embodiment in living people. Each of their leaders was a "living god", and each congregation (or "ark") had its own "Christ" and "Mother of God", appointed by the overall leader of the sect. Furthermore, they believed that the Holy Spirit could descend upon any one of them during the state of ecstasy which they attained during the ritual of radenie ("rejoicing"). This ritual, which formed the focus of their worship, took place on holy feast days. The congregation would gather during the evening at a prearranged location, such as a member's house. They would remove their outer clothing, and enter the sacred space dressed only in an undershirt. After a period of singing or chanting the Jesus Prayer ("Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner"), some of the worshippers would feel the Holy Spirit come upon them, and would begin dancing wildly, prophesying in unintelligible language. This would continue for half an hour or more, until the dancers collapsed with exhaustion. Finally, they would share a sacramental meal of nuts, bread, pastry and kvass. The Khlysty practiced an extreme asceticism, in order to prepare themselves for the reception of the Holy Spirit into their bodies. They abstained from alcohol, and often fasted for days or weeks at a time. Although marriage was permitted for practical purposes, "because the help of a wife was indispensable for a peasant", it was a sin to engage in sexual intercourse, even with one's own wife. Connected with this mortification of the flesh was the practice of self-flagellation which often accompanied the radenie rite. Russian author Edvard Radzinsky has described a radenie ritual which he witnessed on the island of Chechen in 1964: Radzinsky says that