Church of the Holy Chief Apostles Peter and Paul in the Yasenevo Metochion of the Optina Pustyn Metochion of the Stavropegial Monastery. Metochion of the Holy Vvedenskaya Optina Hermitage Metochion of the Optina Hermitage in the Yasenevo schedule
Metochion of the Holy Vvedenskaya Optina Hermitage
Story:
The first historical information and documents describing the church date back to the beginning of the 17th century, when Yasenevo still remained a palace village.
The new (currently existing) temple was built in the Elizabethan Baroque style and consecrated in the name of the holy supreme apostles Peter and Paul. The consecration of the Temple took place in 1751-53.
As a result of reconstruction in the 1860s, the Church of Peter and Paul acquired an appearance that remains to this day. The architecture of the temple was brought to the type of three-part axial symmetrical composition “temple-narthex-belltower”, the most common among temples erected in the patrimonial possessions of Russia during the Classical era.
After the death of S.I. Gagarin's estate passed to his daughter M.S. Buturlina (second cousin of A.S. Pushkin). The sons who succeeded her in 1902 owned Yasenev until the 1917 revolution.
In 1924 The main house of the estate burned down, only the Baroque staircase remained. In the 1930s, the temple, which was used as a state farm warehouse, was also closed. The painting of the temple, dating back to the first half of the 19th century, has not survived.
In 1973-1976. The church was externally restored, crosses were erected on the temple and bell tower. Has been restored water tower with a weather vane, the manor house was almost recreated. The entire territory of the temple, enclosed by a fence, belonged to an automobile repair base and its warehouses.
In 1989 Church of St. App. Peter and Paul in Yasenevo with the clergy house was returned to the Orthodox Church and transferred to the parish. The first rector of the temple was Archpriest Alexander Toropov. Since February 1997 The temple became the Moscow courtyard of the Holy Vvedensky stauropegial monastery of Optina Pustyn. The rector is Hegumen Melchizedek (Artyukhin).
Shrines:
In the temple there are particles of the relics of St. ap. Andrew the First-Called, St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, St. VMC. Barbara, St. VMC. Tatiana, St. VMC. Catherine, St. right Lazarus the Four Days, St. Euthymius the Great, St. Gregory the Theologian, Besser. Cosmas and Damian, the first martyr. Stefan, ap. Luke, St. Vmch. and the healer Panteleimon, St. Joasaph of Belgorod, martyr. Tryphon, prmts. led book Elizabeth and others Barbara, St. equal to Mary Magdalene, St. Alexander of Svirsky, St. Philaret of Moscow, St. Hilarion (Trinity), St. Ambrose of Optina, St. Optina Elders: Leo, Macarius, Moses, Anthony, Hilarion, Anatoly the Elder, Isaac I, Joseph, Barsanuphius, Anatoly the Younger, Nektarios.
Source: website of St. Andrew's deanery
The current temple was built in the Elizabethan Baroque style and consecrated in the name of the holy supreme apostles Peter and Paul. The consecration of the Temple took place in 1751-53. The old wooden Znamenskaya Church was dismantled due to its disrepair. Following the new church, a new manor house in the Baroque style began to be built, with a magnificently developed the main staircase, leading directly to the mezzanine, and a wide ramp from the garden. A regular park was laid out with alleys, ponds, pavilions and gazebos, so that the whole thing formed a regularly planned palace and park ensemble of the estate. Death of F.A. Lopukhina suspended construction in 1757. Work continued mainly in the formal garden with ponds. Lopukhin's widow Vera Borisovna did not part with Yasenev until the end. The village and estate were inherited after her by her son, Vasily Feodorovich, married to A.P. Gagarina.
After centuries of ownership by the Lopukhins, the estate passed to the princes Gagarins. Documents show that in 1812 the Yasenevsky landowner was Pavel Gavriilovich Gagarin, who equipped 23 peasant militias with his own funds from Yasenev, and he inherited the property from his father Gavriil Petrovich in 1808.
On July 9, 1822, in the church of the village of Yaseneva, the wedding of Maria Nikolaevna Volkonskaya and Lieutenant Colonel Nikolai Ilyich Tolstoy took place - the parents of the writer Leo Tolstoy and his sister Maria Nikolaevna, a nun of the Shamordinsky monastery (who ended the days of her earthly life there as schema-nun Maria and was buried in the monastery cemetery). To celebrate the wedding, the newlyweds went to the neighboring Znamenskoye-Sadki estate, to the bride’s mother Ekaterina Dimitrievna, sister of the estate owner Ivan Dimitrievich Trubetskoy. The owners of the estate, Uzkoye, the Tolstoys, who were relatives of the groom, came to the wedding from another estate neighboring Yasenev.
With the name of Prince S.I. Gagarin is associated with the Yasenevsky Church acquiring its present appearance. Initially, the stone temple consisted of one (current eastern) cube-shaped volume of a cold central aisle. It was a pillarless cubic church of a centric composition with an 8-sided drum, cut through by 8 windows, and topped with a dome. The next step in the history of the construction of the temple was its two-stage reconstruction, carried out during the period of ownership of Yasenev by Prince Sergei Ivanovich Gagarin.
In 1832, a warm side chapel was added to the temple (the temple itself was cold), with a separate entrance, in honor of St. VMC. Varvara - the heavenly patroness of the prince's wife, and the bell tower, directly adjacent to the temple itself.
In 1860-61. another reconstruction was carried out, correcting the identified shortcomings of the previous one. Since the side church turned out to be fragile, and one wall was askew, the bell tower inside was greatly narrowed and in construction was not proportional to the temple, and also to open the passage to the cold church and make it more convenient to accommodate parishioners, a petition was submitted to the Moscow Spiritual Consistory in the name of St. Philaret (Drozdov), Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna from the clergy of the Peter and Paul Church, its parishioners and the owner of the estate for permission to rebuild, or rather, re-build a two-altar warm chapel communicating with the cold church, and a new bell tower. The altars in the chapel (refectory) were supposed to be consecrated in honor of St. VMC. Barbarians and Rev. Sergius of Radonezh - the heavenly patron of the owner, Prince Sergei Ivanovich. The request was granted, and the project developed by the artist Kalugin was approved. But the construction dragged on over time, and was completed only in 1865, after the death of Sergei Ivanovich (followed in 1862).
As a result of reconstruction in the 1860s, the Church of Peter and Paul acquired an appearance that remains to this day. The architecture of the temple was brought to the type of three-part axial symmetrical composition “temple-narthex-belltower”, the most common among temples erected in the patrimonial possessions of Russia during the Classical era.
In its final form, the temple had 3 thrones: the central one in the name of the holy apostles Peter and Paul (the antimension was consecrated on February 26, 1826), the southern one in honor of St. Sergius of Radonezh (the antimension was consecrated by St. Philaret (Drozdov), Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna on October 20, 1861, a piece of the holy relics of which is now in the church), and the northern one in honor of the holy Great Martyr Barbara (the antimension was consecrated by Bishop Nicholas of Dmitrov in 1832).
After the death of S.I. Gagarin's estate passed to his daughter M.S. Buturlina (second cousin of A.S. Pushkin). The sons who succeeded her in 1902 owned Yasenev until the revolution of 1917.
In 1924, the main house of the estate burned down; only the Baroque staircase remained. In the 1930s, the temple, which was used as a state farm warehouse, was also closed. The painting of the temple, dating back to the first half of the 19th century, has not survived.
In 1973-1976. The church was externally restored, crosses were erected on the temple and bell tower. The water tower with a weather vane was restored, and the manor house was almost recreated. The entire territory of the temple, enclosed by a fence, belonged to an automobile repair base and its warehouses.
In 1989, the Church of St. App. Peter and Paul in Yasenevo with the clergy house was returned to the Orthodox Church and transferred to the parish. The first rector of the temple was Archpriest Alexander Toropov. Since February 1997, the temple has become the Moscow metochion of the Holy Vvedensky Stavropegic Monastery of Optina Pustyn. The rector is Hegumen Melchizedek (Artyukhin).
In the temple there are particles of the relics of St. Apostle Andrew the First-Called, St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, St. VMC. Barbara, St. VMC. Tatiana, St. VMC. Catherine, St. right Lazarus the Four Days, St. Euthymius the Great, St. Gregory the Theologian, Besser. Cosmas and Damian, the first martyr. Stefan, ap. Luke, St. Vmch. and the healer Panteleimon, St. Joasaph of Belgorod, martyr. Tryphon, prmts. led book Elizabeth and others Barbara, St. equal to Mary Magdalene, St. Alexander of Svirsky, Saint Philaret of Moscow, St. Hilarion (Troitsky), Rev. Ambrose of Optina (his memory is celebrated on October 10/23), the Venerable Optina Elders: Leo (October 11/24), Macarius (September 7/20), Moses (June 16/29), Anthony (August 7/20) ), Hilarion (September 18/October 1), Anatoly "the Elder" (January 25/February 7), Isaac I (August 22/September 4), Joseph (May 9/May 22), Barsanuphius (May 1/22), April 14), Anatoly “the Younger” (July 30/August 12), Nektarios (April 29/May 12).
Yasenevo estate XVII - XVIII centuries.
Lord's house
Yasenevo estate XVII - XVIII centuries
Western wing
Eastern wing
The ringing of the bells of the Church of Peter and Paul announces to all visitors that they are approaching one of the most ancient settlements in the Moscow region - Yasenevo. Here, on the border of the capital, the Yasenevo estate is located.
The Lopukhins, Beloselsky-Belozerskys, Gagarins and Buturlins - representatives of these famous princely families, once owned the estate.
The Church of Peter and Paul is famous for the fact that on July 9, 1822, Leo Tolstoy’s parents, Count Nikolai Ilyich Tolstoy and Princess Maria Nikolaevna Volkonskaya, were married here.
Bitsevsky Park is famous throughout Moscow, on the territory of which a cascade of estate ponds was located; at this time, only two have survived. The refreshing greenery of the forest is strongly felt in the suffocating metropolis, which is why Bitsevsky Park has become a favorite vacation spot for Muscovites.
Currently, since 1995, the estate is being reconstructed, which, unfortunately, only included cosmetic repairs. The territory of the estate is surrounded by a fence, there is no sign of any restoration work. Alas, the situation is unlikely to change any time soon.
History of the name of the Yasenevo estate
The name Yasenevo did not arise at all because there was supposedly an ash grove here. Like the names of many other estates near Moscow, it is of an owner's nature, so in this case Yasen (Yasin) is a masculine name, by analogy with such names as Willow, Aspen, Birch. That was the name of one of the first owners of this area, who, according to legend, was the housekeeper of Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky and one of his murderers (there is a version that Yasin was a native of the Caucasus and his name is an indication of his nationality). IN different time Yasen's former possessions were called Yasenye, Yasinovskoye, Yasenevskoye, Yasinovo. Yasnevo and, finally, transformed into the familiar Yasenevo, now also the name of the entire region. Like Cheryomushki, Yasenevo is associated with modern buildings, but of a later time - the 1970s.
Story
Yasenevo is one of the most ancient settlements in the Moscow region. N.M. Karamzin assumed that it was mentioned back in 1206 in one of the chronicles when describing the feuds of appanage princes: “Sretosh and brothers at Yasenev,” but the first documented owner of Yasenev is the Grand Duke of Moscow Ivan Danilovich Kalita (d. 1341 ). It is mentioned around 1339 in one of his spiritual documents, that is, his will. Until the end of the 16th century. Yasenevo belonged to the descendants of Kalita, including Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible (Ivan IV), who in a fit of anger killed his eldest son, Tsarevich Ivan Ivanovich, to whom this village was bequeathed, which later shared the fate of all the numerous royal possessions.
Judging by the fact that Yasenevo has long been listed as a village, wooden churches were periodically built in it, replacing one another, but their dedications are unknown. Under Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich, a wooden church of Sophia and her daughters Vera, Nadezhda and Lyubov was built in Yasenevo - in 1628-1629. in the salary books of the Patriarchal State Order it is listed as “newly arrived,” that is, just built. Later, the king gave this village to a certain Ananya, the youngest son of his confessor, archpriest Annunciation Cathedral Maxima. This Ananya was one of the close associates of his wife, Tsarina Evdokia Lukyanovna, and repeatedly received from her expensive gifts, perhaps Yasenevo was granted to him at the request of the queen in connection with his marriage in 1631. Ananya is mentioned as the owner of this village in a document of 1635-1636.
Yasenevo stayed with Ananya for a short time, returned to the treasury, but was soon presented to another successful courtier - the boyar and butler Prince Alexei Mikhailovich Lvov (d. 1655). Under him, in the census book of 1646, a “boyar courtyard” was documented in the village, i.e. estate, horse and cattle yards. The church, apparently the one that was built under Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich, is called a little differently than before: the Sign of the Mother of God with two chapels: St. Nicholas the Wonderworker and Sophia and her daughters. A.M. Lvov built with her “a bell tower on pillars, with five bells.”
A.M. Lvov had no heirs; after his death in 1655, Yasenevo, as an escheated estate, again became a palace, i.e. Tsarskoe village, which belonged to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. In 1674, a new wooden religious building was built in Yasenevo, replacing the previous one. It, in turn, consisted of two churches: the upper Church of the Sign of the Mother of God, completed with a tent, and the lower Church of Sophia with its daughters. In addition, another tent had a chapel of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. In the village there are peasant huts, a “sovereign volovnik” courtyard, two courtyards of gardeners and “26 peasant courtyards, people in them too, they have children and brothers and nephews and grandchildren and sons-in-law and suryas and stepchildren and 62 people,” which speaks of that Yasenevo was one of the largest villages in the Moscow region.
In 1690, Peter I granted the rich Yasenevo to his father-in-law, boyar Fyodor (Illarion) Abrahamovich (Abramovich) Lopukhin (d. 1713). Since his brother Ivan Alekseevich (Ivan V) was still alive at that time, he also signed the letter of grant to Yasenevo, received by F.A. Lopukhin: “... that patrimony to him, our boyar Fyodor Avraamovich, and his children and grandchildren , and to his great-grandchildren, and throughout their generations, he, our boyar Fyodor Abrahamovich, and his children, and grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, according to this royal charter of ours, are free to sell and mortgage and give those estates as dowries; don't give it away."
The tower, located on the church site north of the church, was built in the 1970s. restorers. There are no documentary grounds for its construction. Opposite the entrance to the church there is an insignificant two-story brick building, most likely dating back to the mid-19th century. In local history literature and on state protection it is listed as a clergy house. However, according to Yasenev’s inventory, compiled in 1901 when insuring the estate in the Moscow branch of the first Russian insurance company, this building contained “human rooms of the horse yard,” and it itself, as part of the horse yard, was connected by fences with its other buildings that stood along the perimeter, and forming a closed space.
The certificate of the Moscow Ecclesiastical Consistory in 1861 noted that “... there are no buildings that belonged to this church […].” In addition, it is documented that local clergy had their own houses in the village. The former deacon's house remained vacant after the abolition of the deacon's vacancy in the early 1870s. was purchased by a member of the Moscow Society of Art Lovers, collegiate assessor V.S. Raich, the owner of a “photographic establishment” in Denezhny Lane. It is known that since 1871 V.S. Raich worked as a photographer in the village of Mazilovo, not far from Kuntsevo, which was then a popular summer cottage area, which ensured a flow of clients. Despite this, Rajic's photographic works are not often found. Before the transfer to the Patriarchate, the “people’s rooms” were occupied by a music school. Nowadays they and the church are the courtyard of the Kaluga Optina Hermitage.
The fence surrounding the large area allocated to the courtyard was erected only in the 1990s. Its construction, in violation of the legislation on the protection of monuments, destroyed northern part the access road to the estate from Novoyasenevsky Prospekt, which ran between the church and the clergy house. Therefore, now the prospect of the estate from the avenue is blocked. The road leading to the main estate buildings makes a big turn, going around the boundaries of the farmstead, and only then does its historical part begin. At this turn, a one-story stable building has been preserved, which does not have an exact dating, but its material, white stone, testifies to the antiquity of the building. The stable appears on all plans of Yasenev, starting from the earliest -1766, and, therefore, is a building of the mid-18th century. Currently, the stable is used for its intended purpose, which is extremely rare. A small area next to it is fenced for horse riding.
The main buildings of the estate, which close the perspective of the access road, look more than unpresentable, due to the restoration that has been going on for many years and has not been completed. The Baroque manor house and perpendicular outbuildings connected by a fence, forming a single ensemble with the house, but decorated in a more restrained manner, were built in Yasenevo almost simultaneously with the church in the middle of the 18th century.
In the first third of the 19th century. under the Gagarins, the estate was rebuilt: the outbuildings were supplemented with mezzanines and classic porticoes with columns, a belvedere tower appeared on the manor house, etc. You can get a detailed idea of the main estate building using the same insurance inventory of 1901. According to it, “the house is a stone house covered with iron, two floors with a mezzanine on the outside, plastered inside, the lower floor with vaults, there are storage rooms and a kitchen with a Russian stove and hearth, on the second floor and mezzanine [belvedere - M.K.] there are Dutch tiled stoves, the walls glued with wallpaper, oak and pine parquet floors and painted pine window frames, pine and painted doors and stairs to the mezzanine, copper and iron fixtures [door and window - M.K.] The house is adjacent to a stone porch with a stone staircase to enter the second one. floor and on the second floor there are two balconies: one wooden, the other stone with six stone plastered columns and with it a stone ramp for access to the garden. [The house] is occupied by the owner [M.S. Buturlina - M.K.] in the summer. ".
In this form, without significant changes, Yasenevo existed until the fire of 1924. “This estate no longer exists, it left several years before the death of Vladimir Vasilyevich [Zgura]. Here I remember an old house with features of the Elizabethan Baroque in the bushes of blooming lilacs, a regular French park with trees “old-timers. We never had to go there again to rent this amazingly beautiful estate,” A.N. Grech recalled about his trip to Yasenevo together with the first chairman of the Society for the Study of Russian Estates V.V. Zgura, who died in Feodosia during the Crimean War. 1927 earthquake
The ruins of the main building began to be dismantled in the early 1930s. - because At that time, it was planned to build a holiday home on this site. Perhaps the presence of a famous sanatorium nearby, located in Uzkoye, played a certain role here. Soon this idea died, as did the construction of a zoo in the vicinity of Yasenev, but only the ground floor and basement, used as a vegetable storehouse, partially survived from the former manor house. The outbuildings were residential until the demolition of the village of Yasenevo. The fence between them was restored only in the 2nd half of the 1970s.
At the same time, according to the design of architects G.K. Ignatiev and L.A. Shitova, a new model was built on the site of the manor house, imitating it appearance at the time of construction, that is, in the middle of the 18th century. (only plastered in 1995). Since Baroque manors are quite rare, restorers found it tempting to obtain, i.e. actually build another one from scratch. In accordance with this plan, the original mezzanines and porticoes of the outbuildings were demolished.
Since there were not enough materials to reliably recreate the second floor of the house, analogues were used: manor houses in Glinki, Lopasna and other places. White stone decor replaced special concrete. Similar “extensions” were made when recreating other parts of the building: instead of vaults in the side wings, flat reinforced concrete floors were installed, the shapes of the dormer windows, the parapet above the central projection and chimneys were borrowed from St. Petersburg buildings, which often retained similar details already in the editorial office XIX century etc... Nevertheless, this example of a pseudo-restoration “cranberry”, characteristic of our time, has the status of an architectural monument and is under state protection.
There was a second project, more reliable: to restore the building as it was in the 19th - early 20th centuries, but it was rejected. As a result, the historical and cultural environment of Yasenev at that time was irretrievably lost. Unfortunately, when making the decision, the modern urban planning position of the estate was not taken into account. Its surroundings are built up from the north, south and west with new panel houses, and the enormously expanded park almost completely obscures the view of the new building, while the belvedere, rising above the trees, at least indicated its place - it was not for nothing that Yasenevo was visible from a sufficient distance before the fire.
The purpose of recreating the manor house of the Yasenev estate was simply to use it as a warehouse for building materials, now owned by the state restoration association "RESMA".
Unfortunately, restoration work in Yasenevo was never completed, so the estate is surrounded by construction fences and temporary structures, which made this rare example of a fairly early period of estate construction unattractive. From the west, south and east, the main estate buildings of Yasenevo are surrounded by old park, turning into the forest. Back in the 1920s. it was an excellent example of French regular plantings, but by now it was very overgrown and neglected. The park has partially preserved alleys, groups and individual specimens of old trees, incl. an oak about which there is a legend that Peter I loved to sit under it. Obviously, this oak is mentioned in the diary of M.P. Pogodin, who described a walk to Yasenevo from Znamensky-Sadkov, organized on August 7, 1822 by the Trubetskoys and their guests, where everything “Znamensky society” “... rested on the “sad lawn” between three alleys in front of Yasenevsky Pond under an old branchy oak tree.”
Several more large specimens of English oak grow along the fence surrounding the so-called wooden “Kollontai dacha,” located southeast of the main buildings of the estate. A long linden alley leads from them east towards the forest. It once ended with a gazebo. Alleys also run along the perimeter of the park. Of the chain of ponds bordering the territory of Yasenev from the west, from the side of the former village, only one is in more or less decent shape. To the south of the manor house, an open parterre has been partially preserved. An alley leads from it towards Znamensky-Sadkov, the modern continuation of which is Inessa Armand Street (until 1987, part of Solovyinoy Proezd). The remains of the alley are preserved on a “green island” in the middle of its roadway. On the plan of 1766, it is precisely this that is named as the road from the village of Yasenev to the mill, which was located approximately in the area of the Moscow ring road, the construction of which cut off its southern part from Yasenev.
Back in the 1st half of the twentieth century. the now overgrown Yasenev Park left a completely different impression. “Perhaps every Russian estate is associated in memory with certain flowers. In Ershov these are forget-me-nots, in Ostafyevo and Belkin - watersheds, in Yasenevo - lilacs,” recalled A.N. Grech. “Here thickets of lilacs surround the ponds with impassable thickets, cascading terraces, ponds bearing on their mirrored surface the fragrant petals of crumbling flowers. It is true that for an infinite number of years these lilac thickets grew from shoots, perhaps basically contemporary with the ancient lindens of the park. Old, hollow trees, as if ready to fall apart under. with the weight of their branches and crowns, they form regular alleys, diverging with a geometric pattern, which is typically French in its park layout. But it is precisely in the free growth of these regular plantings that the peculiar charm of ancient Russian parks lies, that appearance unforeseen by their decorators, which is so captivating after more than a century has passed. life."
As a characteristic feature that was once characteristic of Yasenev, we note the presence of a large greenhouse farm, which existed at the turn of the 19th-20th centuries and, most likely, was unprofitable. Next to the western wing there is the foundation of a greenhouse building, which is listed on state protection along with the house and outbuildings as an allegedly existing building.
With abbreviations
It rarely happens on the territory of Russia, with constant invasions (either Poles, then Tatars, then Litvins or Germans), that church construction was repeatedly resumed in the same place, starting from the “Horde” times. But this is precisely the fate of the village of Yasenevo, now part of the city limits of Moscow. And in the distant XIII century, Yasenevoye was part of the independent Zvenigorod principality.
History of the creation of the temple
Most likely, the first wooden church appeared in the estate of the famous Andrei Mstislavich around the 1320s, but no information about it has been preserved.
The church in Yasenevo could have disappeared into the legends of history if not for the expansion of Moscow. And the first Moscow princes, even in the era of turmoil, were very sensitive to church construction. Moreover, for two reasons at once: Moscow, which was not rich in Christian asceticism of the 13th-14th centuries, needed spiritual centers, and after the principality “was to the liking” of many metropolitans (St. Peter, Theognostus, St. Alexis) ─ to support the Orthodox Church became the content of domestic and foreign policy.
Temple of the Supreme Apostles Peter and Paul in Yasenevo
The first information refers to the chronicle mentions of the 13th century of Yasenev not as a village, but as a village. The chronicles strictly distinguished between simply rich and populous trading settlements and those in which there was a Church (the former could be larger, but remained villages).
But historically, the first information about the church in the now “Moscow palace village” of Yasenevo belongs to the era when the young Romanov dynasty established itself on the thrones (both secular - Tsar Michael, and spiritual - Patriarch Filaret). It was the tsar’s father, Fyodor Nikitich, who at the same time became the patriarch, who took care of the construction in Yasenevo of the temple of the saints of Faith, Love and Hope, as well as their mother, St. Sofia. The wooden structure with one side-altar was erected in two years (1626-1628).
Later, the Church of the Icon of Our Lady “The Sign” was built nearby, but 130 years later, by the time of Empress Elizabeth I, the buildings had fallen into disrepair and “Merry Elizabeth,” being a strongly religious woman, found funds to build a stone church in the name of the supreme apostles Peter and Paul.
And the building acquired its modern appearance when Prince Gagarin added a side chapel to the round main building (central aisle) of the Great Martyr Varvara, in memory of his wife (1832).
Modern view of the Yasenevsky Church of the Holy Apostles
Before the revolution, the church survived in excellent condition thanks to frequent reconstructions and the constant care of secular rulers. The proximity of the famous Optina Hermitage also had an effect, and the fact that in these places St. once performed the feat of hermit life. Sergius.
Historical photo Church of the Supreme Apostles Peter and Paul in Yasenevo
As a result, the temple acquired a symmetrical structure with three chapels (the apostles Peter and Paul, Sergius of Radonezh, the Great Martyr Barbara) according to the design of the Orthodox architect and artist Kalugin.
There were three thrones:
- in the “cold” aisle (the church itself) there is an iconographic image of St. Peter and Paul;
- in the “warm” aisle there is a throne with a particle of the relics of St. Sergius and the throne with the icon of the Great Martyr. Barbarians;
- in the “side throne” there is an icon of the Mother of God “The Sign”.
The appearance of the buildings became unique from a purely architectural point of view - the “Baroque” of the main temple in the style of the 18th century was skillfully combined with the symmetrical classicism of the 19th century: the Church itself was “balanced” by the central vestibule and bell tower.
After the Revolution, the heads of the church and belfries were demolished, and the interior paintings were destroyed. But the restoration of the Church of the Apostles Peter and Paul in Yasenevo began almost earlier than restoration work with other, sometimes more famous, churches.
For information! Restoration of the external walls, bell tower and bell towers of the Church of Peter and Paul began in 1973, when the building itself was still on the balance sheet of the warehouses of the auto repair base.
Apparently, the mentioned sanctity of the place had an impact. And already in 1989, all the buildings, including the houses of the clergy, novices and clergy, were returned to the Patriarchate. Although repair work was carried out periodically in the 21st century.
Interior of the Church of the Supreme Apostles Peter and Paul
The Yasenevsky Church of the Apostles Peter and Paul today is a place revered not only by Muscovites; it belongs to the capital's courtyard of Optina Hermitage.
Attention! It was in this church that the funeral service and farewell of Orthodox Christians took place for 35-year-old preacher Daniil Sysoev, who was killed by a fanatic for sermons allegedly directed against militant Islam.
Temple shrines
The temple is rich in authentic unique shrines, dear to the hearts of Orthodox believers. First of all, these are the miraculous relics of figures central to world Christianity:
Also in the temple there are particles of the relics of Russian Orthodox martyrs and great martyrs:
- Princess Elizabeth;
- nuns Varvara;
- Tatiana;
- Tryphon;
- Great Martyrs Barbara and Catherine.
It was in the Yasenevsky Church of the Apostles that the relics of the famous Optina elders found rest:
- Isaac the Elder;
- Varsophony;
- Leo;
- Macaria;
- Ambrose;
- Anatoly the Elder and others.
Patronal feasts in the Yasenevsky Church of the Apostles
Almost every day of remembrance of any of the Optina Elders reposed in the church, in honor of the memory of a particular saint, a festive solemn liturgy is held in the church.
But the most significant holiday dates for the Church of the Apostles Peter and Paul in Yasenevo are the following days (according to the new style):
You can check the schedule of ceremonial services in the Church of Peter and Paul in Yasenevo by calling +79636360091 or on the pages of the temple administration “VKonkate” (http://vk.com/optina_msk) or on “Facebook” (https://www.facebook.com /optinapodvormsk?r).
How to get there
Following the pages of the Yasenevsky Church of Peter and Paul on social networks is very informative and exciting. Not only because they can explain to any guest of the capital how it is easier to get to the temple, they will always answer a question with a request to clarify the schedule of services.
The point is that the rector of the temple is P. D. Artyukhin (Archimandrite Melchizedek) - a unique personality, a person who combines work in the churches of Peter and Paul and the Intercession Holy Mother of God with the position of press secretary of the Synodal Department. You just get engrossed in his sermons or religious thoughts.
Metochion of Optina Hermitage: Church of the Supreme Apostles Peter and Paul in Yasenevo
Peter and Paul in Yasenevo was consecrated in honor of the holy apostles in 1753. But this does not mean that there was no church here before. The village of Yasinovskoye (that’s how its name sounded then) was indicated in the will of Ivan Kalita in 1331 as part of the inheritance of his son Andrei.
As you know, in the old days a village was distinguished from a village by the presence of a church (there were no churches in villages). Consequently, in Yasenevo there existed back in the 14th century.
Photo 1951
Documents of the 17th century accurately describe the wooden Yasenevsky, built by order of Patriarch Philaret in 1626-1628. Then it was consecrated in the name of St. Faith, Hope, Love and their mother Sophia and even had a “bell tower on pillars” with five bells.
Yasenevo successfully survived the Troubled Times, which were merciful to the village and did not harm it at all. Tsars Alexei Mikhailovich and Peter I Alekseevich loved to come to these places.
Church fence gate
Alexei the Quiet even erected a second wooden church in 1674 next to the old church - in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “The Sign”.
He had 3 thrones: Znamensky (the upper one is in the second tier), the lower one is the MCC. Sophia with her daughters (as in the old church, which was dismantled a little later), and from the south there is also the chapel of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker.
After his marriage to Evdokia Lopukhina, young Peter I gave this village to his wife’s family. It was one of the Lopukhins who began the construction of a stone temple here in the Elizabethan Baroque style in 1751. 
The consecration took place in 1753 in honor of the supreme apostles Peter and Paul. The dilapidated Znamenskaya building, which by that time had fallen into a terrible state, was dismantled, a magnificent manor house, also in the Baroque style, was erected nearby, a park, gardens, and ponds were laid out. Yasenevo amazed with its splendor. The village has seen a lot famous people. From the beginning of the 19th century. the owners were the princes Gagarins, who were acquainted with writers, artists, philosophers - Denis Davydov, V. Zhukovsky, Pletnev, Odoevsky, Krylov, Vyazemsky, A.S. Pushkin, Tyutchev, Chadaev, Turgenev, V. Borovikovsky, and in July 1822, Leo Tolstoy’s parents, Nikolai Tolstoy and Maria Volkonskaya, were married in the Church of Peter and Paul in Yasenevo.
Installation of the Cross after restoration. 2011
In 1826, the temple was repaired. It owes its modern appearance to Prince Sergei Ivanovich Gagarin, who added a “warm” side temple in honor of the Great Church to the original cubic-shaped volume with a dome on an octagonal drum. Barbara, the patron saint of his wife, as well as a bell tower adjacent to the church. Over time, it became clear that the construction was carried out with violations, and the wall of the bell tower was warped. In 1860, the warm Varvara chapel had to be rebuilt again. Perestroika was completed in 1865 according to the design of the artist Kalugin in the style of classicism, building not one, but 2 chapels - in the name of St. Barbarians and in honor of Sergius of Radonezh (consecrated in 1861), the patron saint of Sergei Ivanovich himself.
Closed in the 1930s. The local state farm used it for storage.
Boarding house for labor veterans in Konkovo. Easter 2011
As a result of the terrible treatment of the building, the wall paintings were completely lost, although the exterior was restored in the 1970s (Yasenevo became part of the city in 1960).
In 1989, the Peter and Paul Church was transferred to the community of believers. Next - as always: restoration, improvement of the territory and creation of the interior decoration of the temple, organization of a Sunday school, children's choir, social service (patronage, assistance to prisoners). The house Resurrection Church in the boarding house for labor veterans No. 6 is assigned to the temple, where services are conducted by priests of the Peter and Paul Church.
In 1997, the Patriarch, by his decree, transferred the Yasenevsky Church of Peter and Paul to the Holy Vvedensky stauropegic monastery Optina Pustyn as a farmstead.
On November 23, 2009, it was in this church that the funeral service took place for the famous priest Daniil Sysoev, who was killed on November 19 in the Church of the Apostle Thomas, where he served.
In the South-West of Moscow, thousands of believers and simply curious people visit every day ancient temple Peter and Paul in Yasenevo, belonging to the courtyard of Optina Pustyn. Its address is Novoyasenevsky Prospekt, 42. It is just a three-minute walk at a leisurely stroll from the Novoyasenevskaya metro station. It was founded back in the eighteenth century and is still a place where many Orthodox parishioners come to pray.
Metochion of Optina Pustyn
For a long time, the charter of the Russian Orthodox Church spoke about the definition of a monastery courtyard. In a literal definition, it sounds like this: “A community of Orthodox Christians, within the jurisdiction of a monastery and located outside of it.”
At first, farmsteads were created with the purpose that monasteries located in the wilderness would have food, because at that time not everyone could get to the desert monastery. Therefore, it was decided to create farmsteads. They were usually created in large cities or the capital. There, every believer could bring donations for the monks and various notes, which were later transferred to the church.
The Optina Metochion in Moscow is located in the Yasenevo district and has its own temple - the temple of the holy supreme apostles Peter and Paul. In the Optina Pustyn courtyard in Moscow, the schedule of services is the same as in the Optina Monastery, that is, they are held daily.
History of the Moscow shrine
Already from the 14th century, Yasenevo was called a village and there were several churches in it. In 1626, a church was built from wood. It was erected in honor of the Great Martyrs of Faith, Hope, Love and their mother Sofia.
A little later, by 1674, a new church was built nearby, which had two floors. This church was called the Sign of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The building that exists to this day was erected in 1751-1753. It was very beautiful, in the late Baroque style that was used to decorate buildings during the reign of Queen Elizabeth. The temple was consecrated in honor of the holy persons - the apostles Peter and Paul.
At that time, the grandson of boyar Lopukhin, Feodor Lopukhin, became the owner. Under him, the Yasenevo estate was built next to the temple. A park was laid out in it, which had beautiful alleys and ponds. The parents of the writer Leo Tolstoy got married in this church.
The building was built of stone and in the original version it consisted of only one cube-shaped volume of a cold central aisle. There was an octagonal drum that was topped with a dome. Eight windows were cut into the drum.
When Yasenevo came into the possession of Prince Sergei Gagarin, reconstruction took place in the temple. An additional extension was built - a warm side chapel, named in honor of the Great Martyr Barbara. The bell tower was built at the same time.
By 1865, another reconstruction was carried out. Thanks to her, the shortcomings of previous buildings were corrected, which were revealed during the use of the building. As a result of this, the temple acquired the appearance in which it still exists today. The architecture of the building led to the most common style of classicism at that time, based on the type of three-part axial symmetrical composition “temple-narthex-belltower” " The temple included three thrones:
- the central one - in honor of the holy apostles Peter and Paul;
- southern - in honor of St. Sergius of Radonezh;
- the northern one is in honor of the Great Martyr Barbara.
In the 1930s, the holy building was closed and used as a state farm warehouse. The painting, unfortunately, was lost. By 1976, external restoration was carried out and crosses were made on the temple and bell tower. However, at the same time, its territory, which was surrounded by a fence, was owned by the auto repair base of its warehouses.
Only in 1989 the church building was transferred to the Orthodox community and then a parish was established, the first rector of which was Archpriest Alexander Toropov.
Now the rector is Archimandrite Melchizedek.
The temple, as already written above, is operational, services in the temple are held every day. Those who want to visit them , can be guided by this schedule:
In addition, all changes in the schedule of services can be found on the temple website. In addition, the Monastery and Church shops are open daily in the temple. Their opening hours are from 9 am to 7 pm. There is also a library. On Tuesday its opening hours are from 18:00 to 20:00, on Saturday from 14:30 to 16:30.
Church activities
The parish is active in different directions. It has a Sunday school. When services dedicated to holidays are held, a children's choir takes part in them. A library of Orthodox literature is opened at the church. There is a brotherhood that helps prisoners.
In the parish of the Optina courtyard assistance is provided to all those in need who belong to completely different categories:
On the territory of the courtyard there is a pilgrimage service called “Nazareth”. She carries out pilgrimage trips to holy places, trips to Optina Pustyn and other monasteries and temples. To find out more about this, you need to contact the temple. As a rule, trips are organized every weekend.
In South-West administrative district In Moscow, in the Yasenevo district, there is an ancient temple erected in honor of the apostles Peter and Paul. It is the courtyard of the widely known, rightfully considered not only a religious center, but also historical monument, it attracts a large number of parishioners and simply lovers and connoisseurs of antiquity.
Construction of the first wooden church
The Church of Peter and Paul in Yasenevo has centuries-old history dating back at least seven centuries. In historical documents that have reached us, Yasenevo has been mentioned since the 14th century. Since in the papers certifying the rights of its owners it is designated precisely as a village, this suggests the presence of a church in it, since this was part of the tradition of past times.
The earliest documentary evidence of this, with a description of the building itself, dates back to the time of the Tsar. Near the place where Paul is now located (in Yasenevo), in 1626, by order of Patriarch Filaret, the father of the first Tsar from the Romanov dynasty, construction of a wooden church began.
It should be noted that during that historical period, when the years of severe trials in Rus', which went down in history as the Time of Troubles, were coming to an end, a tendency toward spiritual growth emerged in the minds of Russians. This was expressed primarily in the construction of many churches, cathedrals and monastery complexes. The temple discussed in this article was part of this universal process.
Commission sent by the highest decree
The Historical Archives preserved letters from the owner of the village, F.A. Lapukhin, who, starting in 1733, repeatedly asked the leadership of the diocese for permission to build a new stone church on the land that belonged to him to replace the wooden church that had become fairly dilapidated by that time.
As often happens here, the matter dragged on, and only during the reign of Empress Elizaveta Petrovna, by her personal decree, a commission was sent to Yasenevo. She was instructed to determine the degree of dilapidation of the former wooden church, and if it was found unsuitable for further use, to petition for the construction of a new one - this time a stone one.
Appearance of a stone church in Yasenevo
The statesmen examined the church, rickety from time to time and darkened by bad weather, cautiously listened to the creaking of its roof and gave a conclusion about the impossibility of holding divine services in it. This document became the legal basis for the start of construction, as a result of which the Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul (Yasenevo) appeared.
The original appearance of the temple was different from that of the building that has survived to this day. In those years, it represented only the eastern part of a cubic shape. It contained a central - unheated - aisle. Above it rose an octagonal drum, cut through with windows and topped with a dome. This building was made in the then fashionable style, called Catherine's Baroque. In 1822, the parents of the future writer Leo Tolstoy, Princess M.N. Volkonskaya and Lieutenant Colonel N.I. Tolstoy, were married in this temple.
Further reconstructions
The temple in Yasenevo (Peter and Paul) acquired its modern appearance during the period when the village belonged to Prince S.I. Gagarin. In 1832, by his order, a warm side chapel was erected, consecrated in honor of St. Barbara, who was the heavenly patron of his wife. In the same year, the bell tower that has survived to this day was built.
However, over the years, significant errors made during the work were revealed. In particular, the built warm aisle turned out to be not strong enough, and one of its walls was askew. Many complaints were also expressed about the bell tower - extremely narrow and disproportionate to the entire building. In addition, there was a need to redesign the interior for greater convenience for the numerous parishioners of the temple.
The final formation of the appearance of the temple
In this regard, in 1860, the owners of the estate turned to the leadership of the diocese and personally to the ruling metropolitan for permission to rebuild the temple, taking into account all the listed shortcomings. The blessing for the work was received, and reconstruction began the same year.
The author of the project for the new temple was the architect Kalugin. In 1665, the temple in Yasenevo (Peter and Paul) was solemnly consecrated, but this event took place after the death of the owner of the estate, Sergei Ivanovich Gagarin, who died in 1862.
As a result of the work carried out, the appearance of the temple, so familiar to all Muscovites today, was finally formed. Its architecture corresponds to a three-part composition, symmetrically located along the longitudinal axis of the building. Its components are the temple, the vestibule and the bell tower. This type of temple buildings was very common in the 19th century in the patrimonial estates of Central Russia.
The fate of the temple during the years of universal atheism
During the Soviet period, the temple in Yasenevo (Peter and Paul) suffered the fate of many religious centers in the country. In the thirties it was closed, but, fortunately, it was not destroyed, but was used as a state farm warehouse.
The building as a whole has been preserved, but the interior wall paintings, made in the first half of the 19th century and of high artistic and historical value, have been irretrievably lost.
From 1973 to 1976, restoration work was carried out in the temple, as a result of which the external façade of the building was restored to its original form, and crosses were erected on the dome and bell tower. However, this was the extent of the matter. The territory where it was located belonged to a local motor depot and was closed to outsiders. The question of resuming services in the temple was not even raised.
Returning the temple to parishioners
Only with the advent of democratic changes and a change in state policy towards Peter and Paul was it returned to the believers. This happened in 1989, and ten years later it received the status of the Moscow courtyard of Optina Pustyn. Today it is one of the most famous Orthodox churches capital Cities. Every day, the services held there are attended by both members of the large parish community and those who came from other regions and cities of the country to venerate the shrines stored here. The Church of Peter and Paul in Yasenevo opens its doors wide to everyone.
The schedule of services posted at the entrance and posted on the official website indicates that services are held to the full extent provided for by the Church Charter. Anyone planning to visit Moscow is recommended to visit this center of Orthodoxy. The address where the Church of Peter and Paul is located: Novoyasenevsky Prospekt, building 42. You can get there by metro to
