The Church of Mary Magdalene in Minsk is an Orthodox parish built in the middle of the 19th century. It is made in the style of classicism, which was a popular architectural trend of that time. About the Church of Mary Magdalene in Minsk, its history, features and architecture will be described in this essay.
History
The Church of Mary Magdalene in Minsk was erected on the site of the old wooden St. George's Church, which burned down in 1835. The ashes were empty for a long time, as the money was collected, as they say, by the whole world for the construction of a new temple. And yet, the townspeople were able to collect more than five thousand rubles to start construction. The work was supervised by the first priest of the church, Father Peter (Elenovsky).
At the end of October 1847, the construction of the temple building was completed, and it was consecrated in the name of St. Mary Magdalene. Priest Mikhail (Golubovich) became the rector of the new church, an entry about this has been preserved in the Memorable Book of Minsk Province, published in1910.
Description
The Church of Mary Magdalene in Minsk has a cruciform truncated building perimeter plan. The main structure is crowned by two domes of different shapes. One of them has a low cylindrical drum and an onion top. The second is a slightly elongated faceted drum and a conical pommel.
The main entrance to the church is crowned with an arched opening, over which a mosaic of extraordinary beauty is laid out. It depicts St. Mary Magdalene on a golden background, the sun's rays falling on it create amazingly beautiful play of colors.
Windows in the form of an elongated arch are evenly distributed along the sides of the building. This form of openings is typical for most churches of that time and earlier.
Interior decoration
Inside the Church of Mary Magdalene in Minsk has an arched architecture. The vaults of the church are supported by rectangular columns. In the central part there is a gilded chandelier, the lanterns of which are stylized as candles.
The walls and vaults of the temple have frescoes depicting various saints and their deeds. Here you can see the Virgin and Child, Jesus Christ, St. Nicholas and St. Mary Magdalene. The number of murals is amazing, at first it may seem that there are too many of them, however, looking closely, you can see the whole harmony of the image. In addition to the images of saints, the walls and vault are painted with floral ornaments, which visually separate the various frescoes.
In the church there is a smallrelative to its size, a carved iconostasis, fragmentarily covered with gilding. Thanks to the correct location in relation to the parts of the world and the correct shape of the windows, excellent illumination is created inside the temple, which also emphasizes the magnificent painting.
Temple in the XX-XXI centuries
After the revolution of 1917, fewer parishioners gradually began to come to the temple. Then material values, church utensils and decorations were confiscated from the church. The temple was periodically closed, but it is reliably known that since 1937, Catholics prayed in the church of Mary Magdalene with the permission of the bishop, since Catholic churches were all closed by that time.
During the war, the church was active, but in 1949 the parish was again closed. Until 1990, the temple was reconstructed inside and out, and used as an archive for documents and newsreels.
In 1990, after a long break, the church was returned to parishioners, after which its restoration began. Over time, the temple began to acquire the forms characteristic of it today, painstaking work was carried out to recreate it. At the beginning of the 21st century, the painting of the walls and vaults was completed, and in 2002 a cross with miraculous relics of God's saints was transferred here. Today, the temple has been completely restored, its beauty has been returned to it, which delights numerous guests of the city and connoisseurs of architecture and art.
Schedule of services in the Church of Mary Magdalene in Minsk: daily from 9-00 to 20-00. Sunday from 7:00 to 20:00. By greatfeasts of Orthodox Christians, services may be held at other times. The schedule in the Church of Mary Magdalene in Minsk can always be obtained from the church employees or parishioners.
Arriving in this beautiful city with a rich history, visiting various sights of Minsk, it is worth taking a little time to visit this church. This temple will amaze you with its splendor and at the same time the simplicity of lines and shapes that create this extraordinary architectural and pictorial harmony.
