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The Throughout their lives, the Roerichs maintained a loose relationship with the Orthodox Church, similar to the situation of many other White Russian exiles. For example, both their sons received Orthodox baptism. Helena and Nicholas were finally excommunicated from the Russian Orthodox Church in the year 2000, a half-century after their deaths. While the move raises thorny jurisdictional issues (--the Roerichs ended their days not in Russia but in India, whose territory falls under the authority of the [[Ecumenical Patriarch]]), --the factual correctness of the Orthodox complaint (i.e., that the Roerichs promoted what amounts to a different religion than Orthodoxy) seems well-established. The Church's proximate motivation appears to have been its irritation with Roerich groups.
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As a painter, Roerich is usually grouped with the Russian Symbolists. His best-known paintings (generally tempera on canvas or cardboard) feature old Russian churches, Himalayan landscapes, or religious scenes representing various Eastern religions. He also painted the interiors of several churches, as well as the backdrops for a number of operas, including the premier of Stravinsky's ''Sacre du printemps.'' Museums of his artwork exist in New York City, Moscow, and Naggar (Himanchal Pradesh, India), among other places.
The Roerichs joined the Theosophical Society in 1920, Nikolai having been exposed to Buddhism through working on a Tibeto-Mongolian temple in [[Saint Petersburg]]. As a worldwide schism developed among Theosophists over the claims of Annie Besant and the young Krishnamurti, the Roerichs began receiving their own revelations from the Master "M" (for "Morya") of Theosophical lore. "M" is said to represent a certain Brotherhood of Adepts headquartered in the Himalayas, whose members assist with the process of spiritual evolution.
"M's" revelations (in Russian) became the series of seventeen Agni Yoga books, also known as the Teaching of Living Ethics (Zhivaya etika, Живая этика). These stress the perception and development of unseen spiritual potencies. Later volumes claimed a cosmic significance for Helena (called the "Mother of Agni Yoga") as world savioress.
The post-Soviet rise of the Russian Church to political power has caused a rupture with various sects and dissident religious groups, with which it formerly enjoyed better relations. Specifically, the Church has pushed for laws restricting the activities of various religious groups which it views as competitors, most notably the Roman Catholic Church but also including Russian esoteric groups. Much the same viewpoint also informs the opinion of many ordinary Russians, who have been known to harass Roerich followers out of religious zeal. According to Orthodox theology, "the Church" can do no wrong--therefore such actions (assuming them to be misguided) are not the work of the Church, even if led or urged on by local Orthodox clergy (as often seems to be the case).
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