Voronezh is an amazing city in which modern monuments are harmoniously combined with historical ones. Walking along the streets of this center of the Russian Black Earth region, tourists are surprised at how harmoniously the newly erected buildings look against the backdrop of old estates.
Sights of Voronezh
For those who come to the city, local residents are advised to take a walk along Admiralteyskaya Square and visit the island of Peter the Great. This place is famous for the fact that it is from here that the Russian fleet originates. Once its area was larger, but after the construction of a hydroelectric power station and the formation of a reservoir, the water level rose, which led to the flooding of the island. A little further is the Admiralty Church. It was built in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Peter the Great himself attended the services in it.
There are many new sights in Voronezh, but there are also symbols that are considered the hallmark of the city. You can list them long enough. But the most important of them is the Annunciation Cathedral (Voronezh), the address of which, Prospect Revolution, 18A, is known to every local, from small to large. It is famous for being considered one of the highest Orthodox saints in the world.
Annunciation Cathedral
A photo of this third-largest Orthodox church takes every tourist who has visited the city home. The holy monastery was built right in the center of the city, in a beautiful place - in Pervomaisky Park. Thousands of believers come annually to admire her and pray to the holy relics not only from all over the country, but also from all over the world. Once, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy, who consecrated it, said that the Annunciation Cathedral, the decoration of the city of Voronezh, will be the place where everyone who comes will draw their spiritual strength and leave it with peace of mind and love.
This temple is considered not only a historical attraction, but also the memory of three Orthodox cathedrals that once adorned Voronezh and were destroyed at the beginning of the last century. The Annunciation Cathedral (Voronezh) is spoken of as a symbol of contrition of contemporaries in the sins of the fathers or grandfathers who destroyed the Russian shrines.
History
Researchers name a variety of dates when the Annunciation Cathedral (Voronezh) was founded. Some believe that it was built in 1620. Others call the date of its creation 1586th - the time of foundation of Voronezh itself. Initially, the temple was built of wood. It was rebuilt more than once due to frequent fires, several times even moved to other places.
In 1682, when the Voronezh diocese was opened, at the initiative of Bishop Mitrofan, the construction of a completely new church was undertaken. It was decided to build the Annunciation Cathedral (Voronezh) from stone instead of old wooden. At the request of the Prelate, they also allocated another place for construction.
On June 19, 1682, according to the tsar’s charter, the construction of a new monastery and a bishop’s court was approved, and almost a third of the city was given for development. Today it is the territory of University Square.
However, construction was delayed due to lack of funds. Hierarch Mitrofan had to confine himself only to repairing the old building. At the request of the bishop, the sovereign identified two carpenters, who were supposed to build plows.
However, by that time the cathedral church was very dilapidated. According to the chroniclers, his roof even collapsed and the platform was destroyed. Therefore, it was almost impossible to worship. Saint Mitrofan, addressing the petition to Patriarch Joachim, asked to consider the question of erecting a stone church. The letter said that there was a brick and a stone nearby, and the forest could be brought “from thirty versts”. In April 1684, the Patriarch sent a blessed letter stating that he approves the construction of a new cathedral, which will be named in honor of the Most Holy Theotokos.
Temple construction
By order of the sovereign, three hundred pounds of iron was allocated for this purpose. To create a new cathedral, Peter donated a mill, which stood on the river Yelets. At the opening, he presented a bell that weighed one hundred and sixty pounds.
By 1692 the temple was consecrated. It was superior in scale to all existing buildings at that time. However, its architecture was quite simple. The cathedral had straight high walls with two rows of windows, a low roof made of wood with five chapters. On each of them crosses towered. To the main building on the right adjoined the chapel, which was named after the Archangel Michael: in his honor the saint in the world was baptized.
Destruction
Very soon, the Annunciation Cathedral turned into a favorite temple of residents and guests of Voronezh. However, fourteen years after the death of St. Mitrofan, he collapsed. This happened because of the proximity of water ditches and because of the insecurity of the foundation. It was decided to disassemble it in order to build a new one from the old material. The construction was started in 1718 and ended in 1735. The body of St. Mitrofan, who died almost two decades ago, was transferred to the cathedral right wing. Surprisingly, during the burial it was discovered that it was almost untouched by decay.
After the revolution
In the twentieth century, the Annunciation Cathedral (Voronezh), a photo of which testifies to the monumentality and grandeur of this structure, survived quite complex, even sometimes tragic times. In 1919 it was closed, and its archbishop Tikhon, the future holy martyr, was hanged by the Bolsheviks right at the gate at the entrance. One of the main relics, which is famous for the Annunciation Cathedral (Voronezh), the relics of St. Mitrofan was transferred to the local museum of local lore.
During the Great Patriotic War, the temple building was disfigured by bombing, and in the early fifties everything that was left of it was completely demolished.
Modern building
From the late nineties of the twentieth century until the end of the first decade of the twenty-first century, a new cathedral building was erected. Patriarch Alexy II himself consecrated the construction, and Cyril already accepted the work.
Today the Annunciation Cathedral (Voronezh) impresses not only with its splendor, but also with its scope. It was designed by architect V. Shevelev and is considered one of the brightest examples of a combination of Russian and Byzantine church styles.
The height of the temple is eighty-five, and its highest point is ninety-seven meters. The new structure has no external resemblance to the destroyed one. It consists of two parts - the upper and lower temples. By its architectural solution, it resembles the Vladimir Cathedral in Voronezh, located on Koltsovskaya Street. Today, the new cathedral holy seat accommodates up to six thousand people. Its official opening took place on December 6, 2009. On this occasion solemn large-scale events took place in Voronezh.
The day before the opening, a procession took place when the relics of Saints Mitrofan of Voronezh, Tikhon Zadonsky, Archbishop of Voronezh and, of course, Holy Martyr Peter were transferred from Pokrovsky to the Annunciation Cathedral.
The architecture of the new temple
According to experts, the combination of Russian and Byzantine church styles is clearly visible in the two main Orthodox forms present in the decisions of the architect. In the cross, oriented on four cardinal points, and in a circle, the symbol of which are five gilded domes crowning the temple.
Monolithic belts on decorative columns surround the holy walls of the building, the base of the colonnade in a stepped form - all this symbolizes the path of believers to achieve spiritual heights. The spire of the four-tier bell tower, built in the Annunciation Cathedral (Voronezh) on the western side, announces church holidays. The temple consists of two aisles. At the top are the imperishable relics of the holy righteous. And in the lower are church services.
Relics
In this treasury of Orthodox shrines of the whole Black Earth region are the relics of St. Mitrofan - Voronezh bishop, Holy Martyr Peter (Zverev). These people have done a lot to preserve the temple. Here are particles of the relics of St. Tikhon, the miracle worker of all Russia and Bishop of Zadonsk, as well as the holy twelve apostles and the martyr Natalia. She gave her life for the Orthodox faith, and therefore the ark with its remains, located in the church, is considered a relic, which thousands of believers go to pray. It also houses a cross with a particle of the Life-giving Tree of the Lord and with a stone brought from Calvary.
The cathedral is no less rich in icons. This is the image of Blasius, bishop of Sevastia, Silvanos of Athos. There is also a shoe with the honest relics of Spiridon of Trimyphus. All these shrines can be seen by everyone who comes to the Annunciation Cathedral (Voronezh).
Schedule of Divine Services
They are committed daily. At eight in the morning, the Divine Liturgy begins.
Believers come to evening worship at seventeen, and in winter at sixteen hours. On Sundays and public holidays, two Divine Liturgies are performed in the Annunciation Cathedral: at half past seven and at nine in the morning.
On Sunday evening, an akathist to St. Metrophanes is conciliarly performed. The Annunciation Cathedral (Voronezh), the schedule of services of which can be found not only by visiting the temple, but also on its official website or from the newspaper Annunciation, belongs to the Voronezh-Borisoglebsk diocese.
Icons
The temple has a six-tier iconostasis, which was made by craftsmen from the Holy Trinity Brotherhood. The royal gates decorated with chased decorative salaries look amazingly beautiful, as well as the vestments of the Holy See, which are masterfully embroidered with gold and silver threads. In the local row there are icons depicting saints, the most revered in the Voronezh diocese. The lower row of the iconostasis is crowned with the image of the Lord ("Savior on the throne") and the Most Holy Theotokos. The hallmarks on the
royal gates depict scenes of the celebration of the Annunciation, and in the lower part the evangelists are located in pairs. But there is one image, the icon of the Mother of God, called the "Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary", which is especially famous for the Annunciation Cathedral (Voronezh). Sunday school, which operates at the temple for free, today has several dozen students.
Preparing the younger generation
Sunday school has several age groups. For example, preschool children are taught subjects that form their ideas about the main biblical events. Training is conducted in a playful way. Children participate in concerts and theatrical productions.
The task of teaching in the younger group is to familiarize the kids with the Holy Scripture and all the fundamental canons of church life, its basic concepts. Here classes are held according to the type of conversations, as well as in games, concerts and other forms. In the middle and senior groups, children are helped to deepen the knowledge that they acquired earlier. In addition, they comprehend various areas of spiritual education. From the same age, the preparation of students for admission to theological educational institutions begins.
Disciplines such as New Testament scripture and theology, church history, Church and Slavic languages, etc. are taught in middle and older teenage groups.
In addition to doctrine disciplines, children are offered classes in continuing education programs, which are implemented by Sunday school. These are choral singing and choreography, embroidery and beadwork, art, etc. The duration of training in each group is from one to four years.