The pearl of the beautiful Volga city of Samara is the Cathedral of the Intercession of the Mother of God (or in short: the Intercession Cathedral).
This ancient monastery, located in the very heart of Samara, has an interesting history, a special spiritual atmosphere, many strong shrines, which are regularly visited by regular parishioners and pilgrims from different cities and countries.
For more information about the temple - in this article.
About the city
Samara is the economic, historical and cultural center of the Middle Volga region, which is on the territory of the Russian Federation.
The population is 1.2 million people, which makes it one of the top ten million-plus cities in the country.
The territory of Samara is located on the banks of the Saratov reservoir, near the rivers Samara and Sok.
In addition to many industrial, historical and cultural sites, you can also see beautiful examples of religious architecture.
Just tothis includes the Intercession Cathedral (address: Samara, Leninskaya street, 75A).
Its history is extraordinary, the architecture of a modern stone building is striking in its grandeur and beauty. And the energy of the place itself is so bright and pure that many pilgrims from different cities of Russia and other countries come to the shrines of the temple to pray on religious holidays or for personal urgent need.
Description
Pokrovsky Cathedral (Samara) is territorially located in the central part of the city. When a small church still stood on this site two hundred years ago, this area was considered the outskirts.
As often happens, the city began to grow rapidly (both in terms of houses and residents), and the construction of new residential buildings began to take place in this place. Therefore, its center has moved to this area.
The modern building of the temple was built on the generous donations of some parishioners of the old small church. Inside, a rich finish was made, murals were made, an iconostasis was made, good temple utensils were purchased.
The cathedral has always (and now also) been famous for its good choir, in which eminent artists sang at one time.
Services are held regularly (the schedule of services at the Pokrovsky Cathedral of Samara will also be described later in this article), and therefore there is an opportunity to join the sacraments of communion, confession, baptism, wedding.
Description with photo
The first acquaintance is made at the gates of the monastery,through which you can enter the courtyard of the temple complex. How they look can be seen in the photo below.
Coming closer to the main building, you can admire the magnificent architecture of the historic building. All its splendor is shown in the photo below.
On another photo of the Pokrovsky Cathedral of Samara presented to your attention, you can see how attractive it looks in the winter season.
History
According to historical information, the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God was built in 1861. It was the merchants Shikhobalovs who were the parishioners who almost completely financed the construction - they donated about 34 thousand rubles (and therefore all the work was completed after 2 years). It was with these funds that the walls were built and the main interior decoration was completed.
The history of the Intercession Cathedral (Samara) says that St. John of Kronstadt himself was present at the laying of the monastery.
After all the main work was completed, Bishop Theophilus consecrated the main aisle of the temple - the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, and then the right one - in the name of Mitrofan of Voronezh.
At the beginning of the 20th century, an additional symmetrical extension was built to accommodate the chancery and sacristy, choirs were built (in the central part).
The period after the 1917 revolution
These were difficult years for the monastery, as there was a separation inOrthodox Church. The Soviet government strongly supported the idea of "renovationism", as a result of which some churches in Russia suffered.
In the 30s, the Pokrovsky Cathedral in Samara was made the temple of the Middle Volga Metropolis. But it was this monastery that remained undestroyed during the difficult period of 1938-1946. And soon it united again with the Moscow Patriarchate.
War and post-war period
Under the hierarch of the Kuibyshev diocese Andrey Komarov, the church became a cathedral church (40s of the last century), which remains to this day.
During the war period, a column was also built on the donations of parishioners - in honor of Dmitry Donskoy.
At this time, artists from Moscow theaters who were evacuated to Kuibyshev perform religious chants in the choir of the monastery. These are such celebrities as: Mikhailov M. D., Kozlovsky I. S. and others.
It is also known that in the war and post-war period such famous archpastors served and performed sacred services in the church: John Snychev, Mitrofan Gutovsky, Manuel Lemeshevsky.
Fire
At the end of the 70s of the last century, by an absurd accident (according to some reports, due to a Bengal fire that got into the window opening of the temple), a fire broke out in the Pokrovsky Cathedral (Samara).
As a result of this incident, a nun who was on duty at the monastery that day died, and wall paintings and some shrines burned down.
The temple was restored for about four years. New painting already doneWestern Ukrainian masters of the XX century.
And in the 90s, the tent coverings were decorated with gilded paint.
Architecture Features
Specialists in the field of construction and design claim that the Intercession Cathedral in Samara was built in the style of Moscow temple architecture, which was popular in the 17th century.
The cloister has 5 domes, a hipped bell tower above the entrance. Initially, its outer walls were decorated with paintings - against the background of white English tin.
The most famous fact about the interior design is that in the late 19th century the altars were covered with artificial marble, which cost more than natural marble.
Also, the walls were decorated with frescoes, including frescoes (Italian style). It was a new trend that came to Russia from Europe. The main feature of this painting is the academic design (as opposed to the traditional, more fantastic one).
At the beginning of the last century, the temple was one of the best in Samara both in terms of design, luxurious interior decoration, and in terms of services.
Temple Shrines
The Intercession Cathedral in Samara keeps great spiritual treasures under its vaults, which believers rush to venerate on holidays and ordinary (everyday) days.
Here are some of them:
- a particle of the Life-Giving Cross of the Lord;
- stone of the Life-Giving Sepulcher of the Lord;
- the image of St. Mitrofan - the Wonderworker of Voronezh (and a particle of the relicssaint);
- ark with a particle of the relics of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker of Myra;
- particles of the relics of various saints, including the Holy Blessed Grand Duke Alexander Nevsky, St. Basil of Antioch and others;
- miraculous icons of the Queen of Heaven - "Softener of Evil Hearts", "Search for the Lost", Tabynskaya.
Miracles and special events in the life of the monastery
The icons of the Blessed Virgin Mary worked (according to the data in the historical annals of the temple for 1862-1900) many miracles:
- healing from possession;
- sight of the blind;
- appearance of hearing in the hearing impaired;
- help with droughts and lack of productivity, invasion of harmful insects and so on.
The main condition under which help came is sincerely and with faith, gratitude to pray for help to the Queen of Heaven. What the parishioners of that time did.
Chants and prayers are regularly performed (on Tuesdays) in front of the icon "Search for the Lost" in the temple, and on solemn days religious processions are carried out with it.
The icon “Softener of Evil Hearts” is especially loved by the parishioners, before which they also make sincere prayers - for the softening of tense relationships (especially in families), hearts and souls, for the relief of mental and physical ailments, for the reduction of evil all over the world and so on.
The Tabynskaya icon also enjoys special honor among Samara residents. She is distinguished by a dark face, and her image is similar to that depicted on the Kazan icon of the Virgin. Before her, they usually pray for deliverance from sins, aboutgaining purity and enlightenment.
Another relic of the monastery is the first cross from the burial place of Metropolitan of Ladoga and St. Petersburg John Snychev. From the mid-60s of the last century, he was a well-known and beloved archpastor in the Church of the Intercession (a student of Metropolitan Manuel). By nature, he was a kind, open and simple person who always received parishioners, prayed with them, and gave the right advice. And he is also known as a spiritual writer, the founder of the ideology of the Russian national revival.
But the most revered by the locals are Metropolitans Manuel and John. It is their spiritual heritage that helps Orthodox believers in many ways in solving the vital issues of today. They were a teacher and a student who sincerely and long enough worked in the name of the Lord: they equipped the cathedral, held services, created spiritual and educational works.
Also, the Intercession Cathedral in Samara experienced some special events during its existence:
- carrying out Vladyka Manuel on his last journey (1968);
- stay of the image of St. Nicholas from the World of Lycia (May 1997), who performed many great miracles of healing (he was consecrated over the relics of the saint in Italy - the city of Bari);
- liturgy by Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow on the Great Feast of the Intercession (October 1999);
- liturgy service by Patriarch Vladimir of Kyiv and All Ukraine when he was in Samara (2001).
Services
In the Intercession Cathedral (Samara) regularlyliturgies are celebrated:
- Monday to Friday at 8.30;
- Saturday and Sunday at 7:00 and 9:30.
Also here you can hear the excellent singing of the Orthodox choir. The manner, quality and purity of performance were imprinted in their time (military) by the most famous metropolitan artists who were in the temple - composer and conductor Leonid Dugov, Ivan Kozlovsky and others. It was they who performed church hymns in the monastery during the evacuation.
All this did not happen by chance, because the Pokrovsky Church has excellent acoustics and a special spiritual atmosphere.
Therefore, anyone has the opportunity not only to attend the sacred liturgy (the service of the Intercession Cathedral in Samara, the schedule of which is higher), but also enjoy the wonderful singing of real masters - followers of brilliant artists.
In total, the cathedral can accommodate about 2000 parishioners.
Sacred ordinances and spiritual affairs
Each regular visitor or just a guest of the monastery can also join the sacrament of communion, confession, baptism, wedding, unction.
All these sacred rituals allow you to better understand and accept faith in Christ, open your heart, purify your soul and mind.
It is recommended to observe some rules before such spiritual events: fasting, staying in prayer, abstinence, avoiding watching TV and computer.
Christening ceremony looks especially beautiful.
In the Intercession Cathedral (Samara) there is also a Sunday school for children, there is a point for accepting humanitarian aid forespecially needy people, spiritual and educational activities are being carried out.
Like any other temple, the monastery always accepts and helps everyone who finds himself in difficult life situations, asks for advice, has a material need (clothes, food, shelter).
Reviews
As for the feedback about the monastery, the temple is still considered one of the best in the Middle Volga region. Truly a true spiritual gem of Samara.
Reviews about the Intercession Cathedral from parishioners and guests of the city are as follows:
- The beauty of the painting, which is both outside and in the interior of the monastery, is striking.
- There are strong sacred icons, some of them are old.
- The majestic decoration of the temple and the clergy.
- Polite and attentive church staff.
- Very prayed place.
- Feeling grace - both in the courtyard and inside the church.
- After praying in this monastery, one feels lightness and joy in the soul.
- The Cathedral is a small happiness and pure blessed light for many people.
- This is the main monastery of the Samara region.
- Services, sacraments, festive liturgies and religious processions are regularly held here.
- On ordinary days there are few people, but on holidays (Easter, Intercession, Spas, Trinity, Christmas) - real pilgrimages.
- There are regular parishioners.
- The cathedral is in demand by believers.
- The condition of the building and the yard is decent.
- Located on a quiet street incentral part of the city.
- From the train station to the temple you can walk, the landmark is the embankment.
Information
The current temple, the rector of which is the clergyman Alexei Bogdan.
Opening hours: from Monday to Sunday - from 7.00 to 19.00.
There are many positive reviews about the Intercession Cathedral in both virtual and live sources.
Address: Samara, Leninskaya street, 75A.
You can get there:
- trolleybuses No. 6 and 16;
- bus number 77;
- bus taxi No. 217, 48-D, 77-D.
This is about the stops "Brothers Korostelev Street" and "Leningradskaya Street".
Also to the stop "Dynamo Stadium":
- trolleybuses No. 6, 16;
- buses No. 5-D, 11, 37, 77;
- shuttle taxis No. 37, 48-D, 77-D, 127, 128, 205, 217, 295.
