Old Believers Pomeranians Bespopovtsy at the Transfiguration. Preobrazhenskoye, St. Nicholas Edinoverie Monastery, Pomeranian Old Believer community. Prayer room of the Prophet Elijah

I don’t know what exactly influenced the “turnout”: maybe the unexpected start of autumn, maybe awakened civic consciousness or the struggle with the harvest in summer cottages, but the event itself was very intimate, without excitement and stuffiness. Solemn and calm. Those who were supposed to come came.

There is a lot of air in the hall, the smell of flowers, the most punctual guests who arrived in advance are walking around, we are waiting for the last late participants. Among the guests I see those who attended lecture classes last year. I am glad to see them, as if they were good friends. It's especially nice to see new faces. It feels like we are gathering not in a lecture hall, but at a large table for a family celebration.

But the celebration also took place, since the opening of the museum program “Z acquaintance with Old Believer Moscow" and presentation of the film lecture " Witnesses of history: portrait gallery Old Believers"fell on the day of the celebration of the Church New Year.

In my introductory report, I tried to show that the life of the Spaso-Andronikov Monastery, of course, in one way or another, came into contact with the Old Believer centers located in the immediate vicinity of its walls. We are not even talking about the Rogozhskoye cemetery, located several kilometers from Andronikov.

The Filippovsky Brotherly Court was much closer - a 20-minute walk from the walls of the monastery, in Durny (now Tovarishchesky) Lane. And, undoubtedly, the Brotherly Court disturbed the abbots of our Spaso-Andronikov Monastery. So, in 1880-1882, the rector here was Archbishop Sergius (Spassky), a prominent figure in the official Church, writer, author of the history of our Spassky monastery.

The Central Historical Archive of Moscow contains the file “On the establishment in the house, the so-called Brotherly Court, of a prayer house for schismatic consent” (F. 203, Op. 364, D. 68). In this case there is a document from 1881, where, on the basis of existing legislation, it is stated that materials about the prayer house must be transferred “to Mr. Prosecutor of the Moscow District Court for disposal.” The first to sign the order was “Spaso-Andronevsky Archimandrite Sergius.” The full text of the report will be posted on the website in the near future.

However, there is another place in Moscow where the name of Archpriest Avvakum is not just revered, but literally included in the name. This is a Cultural and Pilgrimage Center named after him and located within the walls of the Moscow Preobrazhensky Old Believer Monastery.

Guests of the grand opening were Maxim Borisovich Pashinin- Chairman of the Cultural and Pilgrimage Center named after Archpriest Avvakum, head of the publishing house "Third Rome", and employee of the Cultural and Pilgrimage Center Alexander Vsevolodovich Podstrigich.

The activities of the Cultural Pilgrimage Center have several directions: this includes preserving the historical heritage of the Moscow Preobrazhensky Old Believer Monastery, and organizing pilgrimage trips to hard-to-reach historical places of the Pomeranian North. But the real man-made miracle performed by the center’s employees is the construction of two chapels at the site of the execution of Archpriest Avvakum and his fellow prisoners.

M.B. Pashinin described in detail the process of constructing log chapels and transporting them to Pustozersk. The story was accompanied by a slide show. Most of the wonderfully expressive photographs were taken by Maxim Borisovich himself.

The construction of chapels in Pustozersk turned out to be a great undertaking not only in spiritual terms. The organizers and participants had to do truly titanic work. Polar Pustozersk, located in the tundra, has never had scaffolding. Therefore, the construction of two chapels was carried out on upper Pechora, in the vicinity of the famous Old Believer village of Ust-Tsilma.

There, two frames were built from larch, they were allowed to sit for six months, after which they were dismantled, and transportation to the north began. In order to transport the chapel and refectory, nine huge timber trucks were required.

Due to strict environmental requirements, the route could only be covered in winter, along an ice track specially frozen in the off-road tundra. The snow and ice that bound the ground protected the fragile northern vegetation from dying under the wheels of giant machinery.

The numbers speak for themselves: each larch log weighed about 500 kilograms. The load on each vehicle reached 20 tons. The total distance is almost 1300 kilometers of the most difficult path. There were days when a caravan of timber trucks covered at most 30 kilometers in a day. Temperature at night -35, during the day -17. During the assembly of the log houses, it could not withstand the load and the crane broke. Half-ton logs continued to be moved by hand. Finally, on April 27, 2012, on the day of remembrance of the Pustozero martyrs, the log houses were assembled, and the consecration of the chapels took place.

After the slide show, guests of the event saw a video film “ Construction of a chapel in Pustozersk. Chronicle of events" Maxim Borisovich also presented to the guests of the event a disc with a documentary film “Dear Avvakum - the road of true faith.” The film tells about the religious procession to the Pustozerskaya burning site.

The most beautiful and solemn part The event undoubtedly included a performance by a choral group led by a Znamenny singing teacher Natalia Leontievna Pimenova. The hymns were commented by the Dean of the Moscow Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church - Archpriest Leonty Pimenov. Fr. Leonty figuratively and instructively told the guests of the event about the differences between znamenny singing and partes singing, revealing the special spiritual meaning and features of the performance of some chants.

The choir performed more than ten chants, among which were spiritual verses, magnification Rev. Andrew Rublev and the Hieromartyr Avvakum. In addition, a rare chant from the Kerzhensky singing manuscript, painted for two voices - “Adam’s Lament” - was performed.

Below we present you photos of the choir's performance.

The entrance group of the men's courtyard of the Preobrazhensky "Kremlin", also known as the Old Believer monastery, view from the outside. Photo by Yu. Zvezdkin
The entrance group of the men's courtyard of the Preobrazhensky "Kremlin", also known as the Old Believer monastery, view from the inside. Photo by Yu. Zvezdkin

Old Believer Monastery on Preobrazhensky Val, bell tower. Photo by Yu. Zvezkin

Based on materials from our live excursion “The Kremlin, which you didn’t know about, or the Old Believers on Preobrazhenka with a visit to the ancient cemetery,” which you can sign up for.

Tour guide Irina Strelnikova says:

The history of the Preobrazhensky “Kremlin” is connected with the conversion of one remarkable person to the old faith - Ilya Alekseevich Kovylin (the same one who bought the Kremlin Lion Gate). Owner brick factory in the village of Preobrazhenskoye, where the Old Believers had settled for some time. Convinced by their teaching, Kovylin, at a quite conscious age, converted to the old faith - he was re-baptized in 1768, at the age of 37. And just three years later, having shown miracles of ingenuity and talent for negotiation, he had already founded an Old Believer cemetery in Preobrazhenskoye and with it the first long years persecution of schismatics at the Old Believer chapel. We remember that since the time of Nikon’s reform, since 1656, the official Orthodox Church considered those who cross themselves with two fingers to be heretics and not only did not allow them to build anything, but simply cruelly persecuted them. So Kovylin, one might say, managed to accomplish the impossible.

Here, in fact, a short excursion into the Old Belief is needed. The fact is that there are a great many types and subtypes of the old faith, and the Old Believers of different communities are so different that, in addition to two fingers, walking in a procession with the cross, the short spelling of the name of God - Jesus prostrations, perhaps there are no common features. Well, just like there is little in common between Anglicans, Lutherans and Puritans (although they are all Protestants). Today we are talking about priestless Old Believers. Which, in turn, were also completely heterogeneous, and already in late XVII centuries were divided into three communities: the large Fedoseevskaya (how the Fedoseevites appeared and who Feodosius is) and the Pomeranian and the still small Filippovskaya. The first two are associated with the Preobrazhensky “Kremlin” and the Preobrazhensky cemetery. Also, by the way, they are by no means in agreement with each other in everything, but still rather similar than different, and closely related to each other. Those who are interested in what the difference is can find out here, we won’t bore the rest with details. Unlike the less radical Old Believer communities, the Bespopovites do not recognize baptism in the “Nikonian” official Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate at all. So the converts are rebaptized. That is why they are priestless - they simply have nowhere to get priests from. If any priest went over to them, at a new baptism his ordination to the priesthood was canceled. At the same time, they themselves could not ordain anyone - for this they need a bishop. But somehow there were no schismatic bishops (this was a dangerous matter, it could have led to a fire)... Foreign bishops (including Greek, and even from Athos!), who had long ago switched to triplicity, Fedoseevites and Pomeranians are for the Orthodox in principle doesn’t count Russian “Nikonians” even more so... Less radical Old Believers, who did not require rebaptism, could afford to accept fugitive priests from the Nikonians - this is how the priesthood was formed, which, in turn, also split into two directions over time. And the Fedoseevites and the Pomeranians - alas... And there are no priests, which means there are no sacraments (with the exception of two that are allowed to the laity according to need: baptism and confession). Including there is no marriage, since there is no one to marry. For some time, the Fedoseevites and the Pomeranians amicably adhered to the so-called celibate agreement.

The Bespopovites lived like this until the 80s of the 18th century. That is, they haven’t given birth to children for 100 years. For some time they were not too concerned about this - Nikon’s reform was perceived by them as a clear sign of the Apocalypse. The feeling of the approaching end of the world was so real for the Old Believers that sometimes it even led to oddities. We, however, have already talked about this in the article. In general, if the end of the world is about to happen, what kind of children are there... Well, the communities of Fedoseevites and Pomeranians were reproduced solely through active preaching among the Orthodox, a considerable number of whom the Old Believers managed to convert to their own faith. The official Kabalerov wrote in a report to St. Petersburg in 1851: “<Староверы>they cunningly know how to not only notice people who are in a difficult situation of economic affairs, but also to draw people into such a situation, especially those prone to a split, and then give them a way to get out of this situation, and even provide for them for the future, donating significant money for this subject.” … Simply put, when converting to the old faith, a person could count on financial assistance from the community, or for an interest-free loan to open or develop your own business. Which many people with an entrepreneurial spirit willingly took advantage of (and in many ways this explains such a high concentration of Old Believers among Russian entrepreneurs of the 19th century). You may ask: where did the community get that kind of money? From donations and bequests (who else should I make a bequest if there are no children?). The community initially included several wealthy merchants, and then capital was attracted to the community

The number of new and talented entrepreneurs has only increased. By the middle of the 19th century, the total capital of the Fedoseyevsk community exceeded 6 million rubles. In general, social economists are closely studying the phenomenon of increased business success of Protestants in Europe and Old Believers in Russia. There is a certain similarity in the economic sense between Calvinists (also a kind of priestless people) and our Old Believers. Both are successful in business largely due to their special ethics. They have a special attitude towards work: idleness is considered a sin, and any work (be it a goldsmith, a gravedigger, or a doctor) is equally honorable. Wastefulness is also a sin. The industrialist lives little richer than his workers, because he cannot afford the sinful luxury of the day before Last Judgment. This means that he doesn’t waste what he earns, he puts everything into action. The Old Believers do not have this eternal thing as acquisitiveness, something not quite worthy. For them, earning money and acquiring capital is not a shame. This is not money-grubbing, but a godly deed, because the entire community lives on what you earn and is saved from the sinful world that has given itself over to the Antichrist.

This is how Ilya Alekseevich Kovylin earned money not for personal enrichment, but for his Preobrazhensk community of Fedoseevites. And as a result - the creation of a real center of priestlessness - the Preobrazhensky cemetery. It all started with the plague of 1771. Kovylin used it as a reason to get relief from the authorities from the eternal persecution of the community. Together with his community members, he undertook to treat those sick with the plague, for which a quarantine was arranged. There the patient was isolated and treated to the best of his ability (of course, the plague cannot be cured. But you can strengthen the patient’s immunity, maintain his strength with proper care, and perhaps the body will cope on its own). But the first thing, of course, was to introduce them to their faith, that is, to baptize. It is interesting that the Old Believers do not recognize “pouring” baptism - only three times immersion in water with the top of the head. For this purpose, the Khapilovsky pond was used in Preobrazhenskoye. And this, by the way, happened in late autumn and early winter. The water in the pond - you can imagine what it's like. So there were many cases where patients recovered after this ice bath. Which, however, does not contradict medical science- after all, shock kills some, and stimulates the immune system for others... Well, if the patient did die, the Old Believers held a funeral service and buried him (no one else bothered with such things - there were too many deaths for this, the epidemic claimed about 100 thousand lives, that is half of the then population of Moscow). For this purpose, they were allowed to build the Preobrazhenskoye cemetery and a chapel with it. The Fedoseevites were not afraid of getting infected - what could possibly frighten people in anticipation of the imminent end of the world?

Here, of course, we must pay tribute to the philanthropy of the then authorities. Between the options “let them die and lie in the ground uninveterate, as long as they do not convert to the forbidden old faith” and “let them cross themselves, maybe they will survive, or at least receive a Christian burial,” Count Grigory Orlov chose the second (about how Grigory Grigorievich was sent from St. Petersburg to fight the Moscow plague and how cleverly he managed it, we tell you on our excursion). Be that as it may, Kovylin’s calculation was a success. A good deed for the city - the plague quarantine - became its pass to to the right people. Ilya Alekseevich did not skimp on either lavish dinner parties or gifts to influential people. And in the end he managed to get an appointment with Mother Catherine herself. After all, he planned to build a whole complex at the Preobrazhenskoye cemetery - an almshouse for the Old Believers-Fedoseevites: a men's and women's monastery for the poor or simply wishing to live a righteous life, strictly speaking not a monastery, but an institution with a strict monastic charter... With two large churches - on the women's and men's yard. Well, that is, the same Preobrazhensky “Kremlin”. You still had to manage to get permission for this. And... the Empress didn’t exactly allow it... She, let’s say, didn’t forbid it. That is, she simply remained silent in response to the question: is it possible? And that was enough. Kovylin built it all at his own expense. Well, I also bought the Lion Gate...

The Transfiguration Monastery began to be called the “Kremlin” because of the inaccessibility of its walls. It was built by the architect Fyodor Sokolov (who, by the way, designed the arsenal building in the Moscow Kremlin). Which was clearly influenced by Vasily Bazhenov with his fabulous “pseudo-Gothic” pavilions of Tsaritsyn...

The almshouse of the Old Believers in Preobrazhenskoye can also be spoken of as a monastery. Although the inhabitants did not take tonsure. But they didn’t need tonsure; the Fedoseevites lived celibately anyway. This is how the royal official sent to investigate describes the order in their monastery: “Eating supplies bought at the market were fumigated with incense, they sewed all the necessary things themselves, they cut poppies on their heads, they wore ladders on their hands. (leather devices for counting prayers, originally used in Rus', but later replaced by the Orthodox with rosaries, and by the Old Believers, naturally, left in their original form - Note by SDG). Men found drunk were bowed down, and women were put on a hair shirt and tied with an iron chain.”

Kovylin's activities greatly stimulated the growth of the community. By the end of his life, there were already about 10 thousand parishioners of the Preobrazhenskoye cemetery... Which, however, was greatly facilitated by permission for marriage and childbearing, which was eventually received by the Bespopovsky community of Pomeranians who lived in Preobrazhenskoye, next door to the Fedoseevites, from their spiritual mentors in the 90s of the 18th century . True, Ilya Alekseevich Kovylin himself was an irreconcilable fighter against this innovation and did not allow the Fedoseev community to follow the disastrous path of childbearing. But as soon as the two almost related communities diverged on the issue of marriage, those Fedoseevites who could not bear celibacy began to actively convert to Pomeranians. This is exactly what the glorious representative of the Morozov dynasty, Elisha Savvich, did. At the same time, he did not lose ties with the Fedoseevsky community of the Preobrazhenskoye cemetery, and eventually rested there. No matter how fanatical his faith was (we talk about his amazing focus on the Antichrist), he still did not agree to monastic life. At the same time, there were also Pomeranians (often elderly) who were dissatisfied with the innovations and left to become Fedoseevites. Between the transitions back and forth, children were born, communities grew...

By the way, it was also not easy for the Moscow Pomeranians to extract permission to marry from their spiritual shepherds, who lived in the harsh, northern Vygovsky monastery. But here those same newly converted merchants played a role. Not only is the cross of celibacy heavy in itself, but also not everyone wanted to leave the earned and accumulated property to the community; private property presupposes heirs. Again, the end of the world was clearly dragging on, and it became impossible to continue turning a blind eye to the problem! We agreed as follows: even though marriage, as an obvious sacrament, is impossible, there is no one to marry the spouses. But there can be invisible, spiritual sacraments! Nothing is impossible for God. A ritual was developed for marriages: parents blessed the newlyweds with icons in the church, community mentors read appropriate prayers... In the end, these same mentors (not priests, but “simpletons” respected by the community) perform baptism, take confessions, and perform funeral services for the dead... Well and marriage became their responsibility. At the same time, the Vygov elders never tired of reminding that, whatever one may say, true truth and grace still lie in a celibate life. And only out of condescension for human weakness did they agree to all this... Ilya Alekseevich Kovylin did not want to show leniency. From then on, the communities were completely divided, and the Pomeranians had to look for another place...

The authorities, of course, still looked with disapproval at everything that happened around the Preobrazhenskoye cemetery. But the degree of this disapproval varied and depended on the character of the crown bearer. The Old Believers had the worst time under Nicholas I, who did not tolerate voldomum, including in matters of faith. His first decrees aimed at combating schismatics (for example, the decree of 1826 on the destruction of all prayer houses founded ten or more years before the decree was issued) were paralyzed by the Fedoseevites with bribes. But in the 40s, the Preobrazhensky men's courtyard was nevertheless taken away from them in favor of the Edinoverie Church. By the way, it was then that the altar part was added to the St. Nicholas Assumption Church - initially there was no apse and there could not have been, because there are no priests - there is no need for an altar. So, strictly speaking, the Bespopovites never built churches - only chapels, just sometimes quite large ones.

Well, what about the Fedoseev community members evicted from the men's yard - they simply moved to the women's yard with the community members, occupying a separate building. Years passed, and the Moscow Fedoseevites were increasingly inclined to believe that the Pomeranians were right in some way. For those who got married in one way or another, concessions were made: they were no longer expelled from the community and from the temple, now they were allowed to pray with everyone else, but only silently, to themselves and without sign of the cross... Which, however, caused harsh condemnation from other Fedoseyev communities - for example, Kazan. (In general, probably no other human community can find as many fundamental reasons for disagreement as the Russian Old Believers do...) But then the revolution happened, and the Old Believers had no time for discord and disputes. The persecution of faith that unfolded in the first years of Soviet power affected everyone: Orthodox, priests, non-priests... Militant atheists did not understand these subtleties. And they took away from the Old Believers all the residential and utility premises of the Transfiguration Monastery, except for the Church of the Exaltation of the Cross in the women's courtyard. Everything else was given to refugees from starving provinces.

But the men’s courtyard suffered especially: for some reason, the bell tower there was demolished (later it was restored) and most of the wall, and the vacated territory was not even really built up with anything. It’s good that the temples weren’t demolished; somehow they apparently didn’t get around to it. Well, in 1932, the collective farm market was transferred from Sukharevskaya Square to the area formed between the walls of the women’s courtyard and the remains of the men’s courtyard. (By the way, the Preobrazhensky market is still operating, and there is a very good selection there seasonal vegetables and fruits).

At the same time, what was left of the Men's Court was divided in half: half, having been taken away from fellow believers, was given this time to the Renovationists. And when Stalin, during the war, changed his attitude towards the Orthodox Church and abolished the Renovationists - the Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate. And in the 30s they offered to take half of the Pomeranians, who had just been robbed of their own shrine and spiritual center- a wonderfully beautiful church in Tokmakov Lane (). So the Fedoseevites and the Pomeranians again found themselves in the same neighborhood: some in the women’s courtyard of the Preobrazhensky “Kremlin”, others in the men’s courtyard. Time was not conducive to discord - it was necessary to survive. Well, from the late 80s, the state began to gradually return the buildings of the complex to them, and life in the Preobrazhensky “Kremlin” improved. As a result, the communities live very amicably. Those who need to get married move to the Pomor Consent and form the parish of the St. Nicholas Assumption Church. Elderly and lonely people often prefer to join the Fedoseyevites: to remain living in the world, at home (and go to services in the Church of the Exaltation of the Cross), or to settle in one of the cells of the monastery, which again operates in the women's courtyard (and again there is a building for men, and there is one for women) - it’s just like anyone else. It happens that mentors switch from Pomeranians to Fedoseevites, and this does not cause discord or condemnation. These two communities are now like communicating vessels. In the end, not all Old Believers just divide and quarrel among themselves...

Now it is difficult for an outsider to enter the women's courtyard, behind the wall. After all, there is a monastery there with strict monastic rules. But you can go to the men's yard. And they will even be allowed into the St. Nicholas Church of the Assumption. The main thing is to be dressed correctly, not to make the sign of the cross with three fingers, not to take photographs inside the temple without special permission, and not to touch anything under any circumstances. And, you know, I wouldn’t neglect such an opportunity! Firstly, there is an incredible collection of ancient icons (any museum would envy). And secondly, Fyodor Sokolov is an excellent architect. And through the round windows, such a clear, so clearly defined, such a powerful stream of light penetrates inside that it’s a pleasure to look at.

At the same time, in the western half of the men’s courtyard and in the vestibule of the St. Nicholas Assumption Church, Orthodox Christians of the official Russian Orthodox Church remained. The inside of the temple is partitioned off, and the confessions have different entrances. And it cannot be said that they get along peacefully and without problems (well, there can’t be a simple ending to this extremely confusing story!). In any case, the author of these lines, who dropped in to talk to the Old Believers and buy some research literature (on the basis of which all this was ultimately written), was resolutely attacked by an Orthodox parishioner who stood in the way and tried to physically prevent them from seeing the priestless heretics. That is, passions are still boiling, as if three and a half centuries have not passed since Nikon’s time... Well, or something, help us all, God...

And finally, a few more photos. Just take a look.

P.S. About the dynasty of the Old Believers merchants Nosovs of the same community of the Preobrazhenskoe cemetery - on ours.

Until most of the wall was demolished and everything around was built up, the “Kremlin” looked even more impressive. Photo from www.pastvu.com

Paradoxes of ancient Preobrazhenka: Suvorovskaya street without a commander, a church without an altar and two communities under the roof of one temple

This amazing area near the Preobrazhenskaya outpost of the ancient Kamer-Kollezhsky Val was almost untouched by Soviet transformations and renaming. Streets named after merchants, homeowners, boyars, and even the personal bodyguard of the Emperor have survived to this day... The Bolsheviks only reached Progonnaya Street, renamed in honor of the terrorist Khalturin, who carried out the explosion in the Winter Palace.

The streets Poteshnaya, Igalnaya, and Ninth Rota keep in their names the memory of Peter’s youth with his amusing regiments and “toy” fleet. It was here that the regular army of Russia was founded at the end of the 17th century. In 1987, the authorities even planned to erect a monument to the 300th anniversary of the first Russian army on the corner of Preobrazhensky Val and Kovylinsky Lane and create an alley of military glory. But to this day, only a foundation stone with a memorial inscription testifies to those good intentions.

Kovylinsky Lane is named after the merchant Ilya Kovylin (XVIII century) - the founder of the Preobrazhenskoye cemetery, as well as the first leader of the powerful community of Old Believers-bespopovtsy of the Fedoseevsky persuasion that still exists. By deception, cunning, rich bribes (the Old Believers lived quite comfortably) and amazing ability to adapt to any power, the Fedoseevites (followers of Kovylin) escaped persecution both under Paul I, who harshly fought against non-priest sects, and under Alexander I (from whom the Fedoseevites were protected by Prince Kurakin), and even in Soviet times. And in the 1990s, the community regained the entire territory of the Preobrazhensky outpost (except for that belonging to the Preobrazhensky market) and again fenced itself off from the world.

Nikolsky Edinoverie Monastery- a former Orthodox monastery, organized according to the rules of Edinoverie. Opened at the request of St. Philaret with the highest permission on the territory men's department Bespopovsky Preobrazhensky almshouse in 1865–1866. Currently, in the Assumption chapel (in the photo on the left) there is a chapel of the Old Believer community of the Pomeranian consent, and in the main volume (in the photo on the right) there is a temple of the Russian Orthodox Church

Exaltation of the Cross Old Believers Cathedral Chapel of the Preobrazhenskaya community of Old Believers-bespopovtsy of the Fedoseyev persuasion

The Old Believer Church of the Exaltation of the Cross at the Transfiguration Outpost has never been closed since its construction in 1811. In the late 1960s - early 1970s, when the ruins of the Preobrazhenskaya outpost with ancient walls and high corner towers were our Moscow boys’ favorite places to play, we were afraid to approach this church, frightened by stories about the harsh Old Believers. Hidden in the ruins and bushes, we watched with interest as people gathered for services like people straight out of the pages of a history textbook: in old coats and raincoats, with beards, canes, and some even wearing top hats instead of the usual hats (this was in the 1970s years!). The Church of the Exaltation of the Cross, which the Fedoseevites themselves call the “cathedral chapel,” has an unusual Orthodox church architecture. Its eastern side seems to have been cut off with a knife: there is no altar ledge there. The fact is that the Bespopovites, due to the lack of priesthood, do not have an altar: behind the iconostasis in their chapels there is a blank wall.

Next to the church, a classic Russian hut with four windows with a porch and a dovecote has been preserved to this day. As children, not knowing that this group of Old Believers had no clergy, we called it “the house of the Old Believer priest.” On modern maps it is designated as the “house of the Preobrazhensk almshouse,” but in my memory it was not lonely old people who lived there, but a certain stern-looking man (probably the head of the community). Today the hut looks abandoned and uninhabited, although all the surrounding buildings, now fenced off from prying eyes by a blank fence and a security booth, have been carefully restored and turned into community cells and outbuildings.

Across Kovylinsky Lane is the Nikolsky Edinoverie Monastery. Once upon a time there was the male half of the Transfiguration community, which was later moved to the Holy Cross Chapel, on the same territory as the female one. Built in 1784, the St. Nicholas Church with a huge free-standing bell tower was transferred to the St. Nicholas Edinoverie Monastery. Then, after the coup of 1917, main part The church passed to the schismatic-renovationists, leaving the co-religionists only the Assumption chapel, separated from Nikolsky by an internal blank wall. In the 1930s, when the Renovationists abandoned the Nikolskaya part, it was returned to the Russian Orthodox Church, and the former Edinoverie Dormition chapel was transferred to the Old Believers-bespopovskoe Pomeranian consent. So today two communities coexist on the same territory, under the roof of a single church: on the right are the Orthodox, on the left are the non-priests...

Having crossed Preobrazhensky Val, we find ourselves in another amazing quarter of historical Moscow. Suvorovskaya Street has nothing to do with the great commander, but is named after the 18th century landlady, Prime Major Anna Suvorova. The parallel Ninth Company has retained its name since the times of Peter the Great, when the barracks of the 9th company of the Preobrazhensky Life Guards Regiment were located on this site. The last street in front of the Yauza embankment, Buzheninovskaya Street, has been named after the 17th century architect Mikhail Buzheninov, builder of the Preobrazhensky Travel Palace of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, for three hundred years.

Reference
Preobrazhenskaya Old Believer community - a group of Old Believers-bespopovtsy of the Fedoseevsky Consent in Moscow. Founded on the territory of the Preobrazhenskaya outpost by the merchant I.A. Kovylin in 1771, together with the Preobrazhensky cemetery. Now it occupies the territory of the former convent, the Transfiguration Almshouse and the Church of the Exaltation of the Cross (“cathedral chapel”) built in 1811.

Quote
“Edinoverie is the totality of parishes of the Russian Church, one with it in faith, but differing from it in ritual. Edinoverie is a department of the Old Believers, admitted on the basis of unity in faith in communication with Russian Church… Unity of Faith is the Old Believers reconciled with the Russian and Ecumenical Church.”
Hieromartyr Bishop Simon (Shleev)

March 12 marked 280 years since the birth of Vasily Ivanovich Bazhenov, a brilliant architect, author of the Pashkov House and the Tsaritsyno architectural ensemble, who almost changed the appearance of the Moscow Kremlin as radically as it was not possible to change it even under Soviet rule. Read more about Bazhenov’s Moscow in the next issue.

In the third part we will talk about Old Believer churches of other consents. In the first and second parts, I talked about the churches of the Belokrinitsky consent, the largest among the Old Believers. Their spiritual center on Rogozhskaya was founded in 1771 in connection with the plague epidemic. In the same year and for the same reason, the Preobrazhenskaya community of Fedoseevites arose. A special role was played by one of the courtyard people of the Golitsyn princes, the merchant Ilya Alekseevich Kovylin, who organized an almshouse and sponsored large-scale construction. And since Kovylin was a Fedoseevite (one of the largest confessions of non-priesthood), the Preobrazhenskaya community became the center of this confession, and indeed of non-priesthood in Russia in general. In 1784-1811, according to the design of the architect F.K. Sokolov (with funds and under the leadership of the merchant Kovylin), a large complex of buildings (which included male and female monasteries) was built in imitation of the Vygoretsk Hermitage.


Fedoseevsky Monastery, later Nikolsky Edinoverie

In and around the cemetery, Ilya Alekseevich Kovylin gradually built houses, shops, factories and chapels. IN early XIX century there were about 10,000 parishioners here. And in the surrounding shelters there were up to 1,500 people. Thus, the community became the largest charitable institution in Moscow.
“To limit the activities of schismatics,” on the orders of Emperor Nicholas I, on April 3, 1854, the Assumption Church was transferred to co-religionists (that is, Old Believers who recognize the power of the Moscow Patriarchate). In 1866, the men's courtyard was moved to the women's courtyard, where the Old Believer community was preserved, and the St. Nicholas Monastery of Edinoverie was opened on the territory of the former men's courtyard. At the Preobrazhenskoe cemetery there was a rich library of works on the schism, collected by the merchant A.I. Khludov; ancient icons were kept (including 1300 icons collected by E. E. Egorov), works ancient Russian art. In 1920, all Fedoseevsky chapels, except for the Exaltation of the Cross, were closed, and those in need were evicted. In the early 1920s. Nikolsky Edinoverie Monastery is closed. Khludov’s library and part of Egorov’s collection were transferred to the State Historical Museum, ancient icons were also transferred to the Historical Museum, from where some of them later ended up in Tretyakov Gallery and a small amount to the Kolomenskoye Museum. In the 1920s A labor school was opened in the building of the former monastery school and in the cells of the monastery, and later various institutions were located, for example, a dormitory for the Radio factory.
The entrance to the monastery is through the Gate Church of the Exaltation of the Cross, rebuilt in 1854 (the domes were added) from an Old Believer prayer house (i.e. prayer house) built in 1801.

Old Believer (Fedoseevskaya) Church of the Exaltation Holy Cross God's

Opposite the Holy Cross Gate - oldest temple Transfiguration community: St. Nicholas-Assumption Church. The temple was built in 1784, and was originally dedicated to the Assumption Holy Mother of God. The St. Nicholas Church was reconsecrated in 1854, at the same time it was rebuilt, including receiving an apse unnecessary for the Bespopovites. The architect of the cathedral was previously supposedly considered to be V.I. Bazhenov, but according to the latest, most reliable research, the project was F.K. Sokolov. Nowadays in the church building there are two churches of different denominations, separated by a blank wall: St. Nicholas Church of New Believers in the western part, and the Assumption Pomeranian Church in the eastern part. Actually, an unprecedented case!

Old Believer (Pomeranian) Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Nicholas Church

Eastern, Old Believer part of the temple

The bell tower, built already under the co-religionists, in the 1870s, although designed in the same style as the original buildings, is slightly different from them:
Initially, not a single temple of the Transfiguration community was called a “church” - there were either prayer rooms or chapels. The Assumption Chapel became a church, apparently only with fellow believers, receiving an apse, and then this name spread throughout the entire community.
After the Great Patriotic War, “Preobrazhenskoye” became the de facto center of all Russian non-priesthood; the spiritual centers of three concords were located there - the Old Pomeranian (Fedoseevsky), the Marriage Pomeranian (DPTs) and the Filippovsky.
Preobrazhenskoe cemetery next to the monastery for a long time was exclusively Old Believer. There are many merchant burials in the cemetery. During the Great Patriotic War active civil burials began. At the military site there are graves of more than 10 thousand soldiers and commanders of the Red Army.

Old Believer (Fedoseevskaya) Chapel of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker "On Nine Crosses" at the Preobrazhenskoye Cemetery

Old Believer (Fedoseevskaya) Chapel of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross at the Preobrazhenskoye Cemetery

Another one Fedoseevskaya gravestone chapel at the Preobrazhenskoye cemetery

Fifty meters north of the Nikolsky Monastery, there is Preobrazhensky Old Believer (Fedoseevsky) almshouse. In the usual sense, this is a monastery. Now it is called the pilgrimage center of the Pomeranian Old Believers named after Archpriest Avvakum. The architectural ensemble of this part has been preserved almost unchanged since its construction, and the women's part itself was more extensive and orderly. Nowadays it all belongs to the Fedoseevites - the second in time of origin (1706) and the largest current of priestlessism, which broke away from the Pomeranians due to the fact that they collaborated with the “power of the Antichrist” - for example, they prayed for the Tsar. Fedoseevtsy (or Staropomortsy) - a more radical wing, they retained only 2 Orthodox rite(Baptism and Repentance), rejected marriage, and their principled position was rejection of any existing authority.

Vozdvizhensky Cathedral

Prayer room of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Prayer room of the Transfiguration of the Lord

Prayer service of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Prayer of the All-Merciful Savior

Prayer room of the Prophet Elijah

In addition to the Preobrazhenskoye Cemetery, there are several other Old Believer sites in Moscow that I did not talk about in the first two parts. ABOUT Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Zamoskvorechye already discussed in the second part. It was consecrated on September 26, 1910 as Belokrinitsky. Closed in the 20s. And in 1990, the temple was transferred to another denomination of the Old Believers - the Ancient Orthodox Church (DOC).

The first Old Believer church of the Pomeranian community, built immediately after the release of the Tsar’s manifesto on religious tolerance in 1905. The idea of ​​​​building the temple belonged to long-time and close employees of V. E. Morozov and his sons: I. K. Polyakov, director of the board of the V. Morozov Manufactory Partnership with sons,” as well as I. I. Anufriev, a member of the board of the partnership. Built in 1907-1908. in the ancient Pskov style with the introduction of features of Pomeranian architecture, which was expressed not only in the absence of an altar, but also in the severity and modesty of architectural forms and interior. On the pediment of the belfry were placed the figures of two angels supporting the icon of the Savior (not preserved). In 1930 the temple was closed. It housed a children's theater, a library, a factory... Since the 1960s. The church was occupied by the workshop of the Cosmos garment factory. Active restoration is currently underway.

Photo from 1991 (by aj1972)

Housed in a former transformer room Fedoseevskaya prayer house on Semenovskaya

And now a little about the buildings in which there were Old Believer churches or prayer houses.
Anyone driving along Baumanskaya Street could not help but notice what remained of the former bell tower Old Believer Church of Catherine the Great Martyr. It was located in the house of the merchant of the 2nd guild I.I. Karasev since 1872, on the second floor. In 1915, according to the design of N.N. Blagoveshchensky, the same free-standing bell tower was built. The church belonged to the Nikolsko-Rogozhskaya Old Believer community (the so-called “Beglopopovskaya”). It is believed that the upper part of the bell tower is a miniature copy of the bell tower at the Rogozhskoye cemetery. In 1979, Karasev's house, where the Church of St. Catherine was located, was demolished, but the bell tower was preserved.

Not far from the Kursky railway station, in Podsosensky lane, building 21, building 3, there was Old Believer (Pomeranian) prayer house in Morozov's house

In Zamoskvorechye, on Bakhrushin, in a building that is now equipped and has a cinema in it, in former house Lubkova was House Old Believers (DOC) Kazan Church

Above I mentioned fellow believers. Edinoverie cannot be called Old Belief in the literal sense. Although they recognize the ancient liturgical rites (two-fingered, service from old printed books, etc.) and the way of life, BUT they also recognize the hierarchical jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate.
Still, I will tell you about their Moscow churches.
I talked about the Nikolsky Edinoverie Monastery above. I’ll tell you about three more temples.
On Taganskaya street, lom 20a is located Edinoverie Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, on Studenets. It was built as a “New Believer” in the center of Semyonovskaya Sloboda in 1672-1673. (according to other sources 1699-1702) on the site of a 16th century temple. Rebuilt in 1712 (architect O. Startsev). The temple was closed in the 1920s. It was destroyed and remodeled. The factory dormitory was located here. In 1965, they were going to destroy the church, but this was avoided thanks to numerous public protests. In 1966-1969. restoration was carried out. The church was returned to believers in 1992. It was reconsecrated in 1996 as the center of the Moscow Edinoverie community.

In Lefortovo, on Samokatnaya there are two large churches nearby. Trinity and Vvedenskaya churches. They were built, and until the 1930s of the last century they were of the same faith. In the 1990s, they were transferred to the “New Believer” community for restoration. Edinoverie Church of the Life-Giving Trinity at Saltykov Bridge was built in 1817-1819. like a summer temple. A little later, in 1829, a winter (warm) Church of the Entry of the Blessed Virgin Mary into the Temple was erected next to it. The church belonged to the Trinity-Vvedenskaya (Newly Blessed) Old Believer, Edinoverie community. In 1931, the temple was closed. The temple building was successively occupied for housing, a warehouse, premises of a scientific institute, manufacturing facility. Worship services were resumed in 1992.
, was located near the Rogozhskaya outpost, on the Vladimir highway (now the Entuziastov highway, the territory of the Hammer and Sickle plant). It was founded at the Newly Blessed Edinoverie Cemetery in 1862 in memory of the liberation of peasants from serfdom. It was finally established in 1866. In 1922 the monastery was closed. The territory was included in the Hammer and Sickle plant (former Goujon plant), the churches were destroyed in 1934. The only surviving building is the one founded in 1873 St. Nicholas Church(Shosse Entuziastov, no. 7).

Currently disfigured and devoid of signs of the temple. Located at the intersection of the Third Ring Road and the Enthusiasts Highway. St. Nicholas Church was privatized in the early 1990s and is used as an office building.

This strange place with a confusing history is located five minutes from the not-so-remote Moscow metro station. At the same time, it is little known, in any case, my husband, who lived in these parts for a long time, knew about it at the level of “yes, there seems to be something there.”
To a full-fledged historical information I have no enthusiasm, and my level of knowledge in religious matters is low. Therefore, please forgive me if I confuse something slightly.
This place is one of the centers of the Moscow Old Believers. First there was a cemetery, which appeared here in 1771 during the plague epidemic. Under the pretext of plague quarantine, almshouses were created. All this was organized and financed by the Old Believer merchant Kovylin. At the turn of the century, male and female Old Believer monasteries appeared (with a cemetery between them), houses, shops, factories were located around: the community numbered about 10 thousand people.
In the mid-19th century, a new round of persecution of Old Believers began. They were left with only the former convent. It was closed under Soviet rule, but then was restored (though part of the territory of the former monastery is occupied by the Preobrazhensky Market); Entrance there is closed to outsiders (you can get there with a guided tour).
And on the territory of the former monastery The Nikolsky Edinoverie Monastery was created (the Edinoverie monastery retained the old rituals, but recognized the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church). It existed until 1923. In recent years, its temples belong to Orthodox parish, but it shares the main temple with the Moscow Pomeranian Old Believer community.
This is such a confusing story. Having understood it in a first approximation, you can finally take a look (shooting in mid-April).
The most beautiful and harmonious thing we saw was the chapel of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker at the Preobrazhenskoye cemetery. Built in 1805, the architect was supposed to be Bazhenov (and it’s not surprising - the style is similar, and the hand of an extraordinary master is felt), but the authorship belongs to Fyodor Sokolov. This is the style of “Russian Gothic”; it was believed that the design of the Tsaritsyn Palace served as a model. The chapel was restored in 2002 and is now located in good condition and belongs to the Old Believers.

As I already said, there is almost no access to the current Old Believer monastery; you can only admire the fence with turrets (early 19th century).

And the second half of the territory is available for visiting.
The Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker was built in 1784-1790. The architect is also Fyodor Sokolov, although Bazhenov’s hand was also assumed here.

The second church - the gate church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross - was built in 1801, also by F. Sokolov. Under Soviet rule, all five chapters of it were broken. In post-Soviet times, they were restored; now there are icon-painting and restoration workshops here.

And finally, a very beautiful bell tower. Built in 1876-79. received the unofficial name "Preobrazhenskaya candle". It was restored during the Soviet era, but there are no bells on it.

This is such a strange place. It seemed gloomy, but beautiful and unexpected. So much luxurious “Russian Gothic” in one place, I don’t know if there is anywhere else in Moscow

And this is what it all looked like in 1882 (photo from Wikipedia)