Grigori Rasputin: Self-Proclaimed Saint

His teachings were entirely different from the teachings of traditional saints, he argued that sins are part of human life and it is necessary for getting salvation. Rasputin once said, "sin is an inescapable part of the human condition, and the responsibility of a believer is to be keenly aware of his sins, and willing to confess them, thereby attaining humility (Rasputin). Rasputin established strong relationships with people in the upper class society and engaged in all malicious activities, he stayed with prostitutes and had no hesitation in getting addicted to alcohol, and shortly afterwards he hit upon the satisfying discovery that sexual contact with his own body imbued a healing effect upon women (Duffy).
             Even though historians have different opinions about the role played by Rasputin in the downfall of the Romonov Russian Imperial family which led to the formation of Soviet Union, nobody has any doubt about his deep relationship with the Tsar Nicholas II, his wife, the Tsarina Alexandra and their only son, the Tsarevich Alexei. Rasputin was able to establish strong relationship with the ruling family because of Alexei's hemophilia. The tsar and tsarina had only one son and they were worried about their son's hemophilia. They tried to treat their son using all the available medical facilities of that time; however, their son's pain and agony increased day by day. Rasputin used this opportunity and convinced the tsar and tsarina that he had holy power and he can easily get their son's pain relieved (Frost).
             Rasputin was regarded as the last resort of the desperate the tsar and tsarina, they had tried to find a cure for their son and in 1905 asked the charismatic peasant healer for help. He was said to possess the ability to heal through prayer, and he was indeed able to give the boy some relief. Skeptics have claimed that he did so by hypnosis, though during a particularly grave crisis, Rasputin, from his home in Siberia, apparently eased the suffering of the tsarevitch (in Saint Petersburg) through prayer (Rasputin).