New time the era of the appearance on the historical stage of the modern personality (modern Self) . For a long time, this process was associated with the "disenchantment of the world" and the desire of a person to overcome the "minority through his own fault", identified with religion. However, the faith itself, subject to renewal and change in modern times, is the focus of the formation of a modern personality in Europe. This is evidenced by the materials of the spiritual autobiography .. If we are talking about Russia, then the formation of personal self-consciousness, which began in the XVII century, is usually described as the result of the “worldliness” of the state and society. Much less is known about the role and place of faith in this process.. The presented collection is an attempt to fill the gap and thereby challenge the mandatory conflict of modernity and religiosity . The book not only offers a different angle to look at the known ego-texts, but also introduces into scientific circulation new sources, including daily notes, memoirs, diaries, autobiographies, church annals and written confessions.