Address: Russia, Yaroslavl region, Pereslavl-Zalessky, st. Gagarina, 27
Start of construction: 1694 year
Completion of construction: 1705 year
Coordinates: 56 ° 43'51.7 "N 38 ° 50'24.4" E
Content:
Not far from the Nikolsky women's monastery, in the historical center of Pereslavl-Zalessky, there is a stone church built more than three centuries ago. Now it is being restored and restored. This is the only architectural building that has survived from the Borisoglebsk Pesotsky monastery that once existed here. This church is associated with the ascetic feat of Pereslavl Korniliy the Silent.
Venerable Cornelius the Silent
Cornelius, who in the world bore the name of Konon, was born in Pereslavl-Ryazan (present-day Ryazan) in 1643. His parents were wealthy local merchants Gordiy and Fedor. As a child, Konon left his parental home and settled as a novice in the Bogoroditskaya Lukyanovskaya Hermitage, which is located north of Alexandrov. Five years later, when the boy was only sixteen, he moved to the poor Borisoglebsk monastery "on the sands" in Pereslavl-Zalessky.
At first, the abbot of the monastery, Sergius, did not want to take the young man, since he was still very young. But he began to live near the monastery walls, and after some time he was accepted into the brethren. The young novice began to work together with other monks, and five years later received monastic tonsure under the name of Cornelius. Within the walls of this monastery, he lived in a vow of complete silence, and before his death he was clothed in a schema. Cornelius completed his earthly journey in 1693 at the age of 50.
History of the Smolensk-Korniliev Church
The brick temple was built between 1694 and 1705. It is believed that this construction was carried out at the expense of the sister of Peter I, princess Natalia Alekseevna. When the temple was already ready, it was consecrated in honor of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God and the Borisoglebsk side-chapel was built in it.
Even during construction work, in 1701, when they were digging a hole for the foundation, the imperishable relics of the Monk Cornelius the Silent were found. In 1705, they were transferred to the newly rebuilt church and were kept in it, under a bushel, until the 1990s. Now this sacred relic is kept in the Nikolsky monastery.
Until 1764, the Smolensko-Kornilievskaya church was part of the architectural ensemble of the monastery of Boris and Gleb "on the sands", which has not survived to this day. After its abolition, the temple began to be considered a parish. There was a cemetery near the Smolensko-Kornilievskaya church, where noble townspeople were buried. For example, here was the grave of the head of Pereslavl Andrei Alekseevich Temerin, who died in 1824.
The church had more than a hundred permanent parishioners, who especially revered the rosary that belonged to Cornelius, and the icon with the faces of seven sleeping youths. On the carved wooden iconostasis with the royal doors, one could see the scene when the Risen Jesus appears before the Apostle Thomas.
The church continued to function almost until the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. Then it was closed, and the premises were used as a warehouse. In the 1960s, as a result of a fire, the wooden iconostasis was damaged, which was later partially plundered.
Until the mid-70s of the last century, when the premises were still not completely dilapidated, people lived in the cell rooms and the refectory. But time took its toll, and the temple was empty. A little later, in 1988, the upper part of the old bell tower collapsed. And in the mid-1990s, the Nikolsky Women's Monastery took the Smolensko-Kornilievskaya Church under its tutelage, and its gradual restoration began.
Architecture and interior decoration of the Smolensk-Kornilievskaya church
For the most part, the church has been well preserved to this day. Its composition is traditional for temples built at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries - an octagon set on a low quadrangle. This church is one-domed. It is noteworthy that the windows of its first floor are framed by platbands characteristic of Pereslavl in the second half of the 17th century, and the second floor is decorated with the later so-called Baroque platbands.
The connection of all parts of the temple complex is also unusual. A refectory and a two-story cell building, crowned with a bell tower, are attached to the main volume. Earlier, in the side-chapel, located to the right of the altar part, there was a wooden tomb with the relics of the Monk Cornelius.
The current state of the temple and the mode of operation
The Smolensko-Kornilievskaya Church is an active Orthodox church, which is now being gradually restored. The roof has already been completely replaced and work continues on the construction of the upper tiers of the bell tower. The temple is protected as a cultural heritage site. Services in it are held on the days of temple and patronal holidays - May 15, as well as August 4, 6 and 10.
How to get to the Smolensko-Kornilievskaya church
The Smolensko-Kornilievskaya Church is located in Pereslavl-Zalessky at 27 Gagarina Street, next to the Nikolsky Monastery. When driving by car, from the city center you need to turn towards Lake Pleshcheyevo, onto Gagarin Street, and follow it to the temple. From Pereslavl bus station, where intercity buses from Moscow and Yaroslavl come, you can drive up to the church by taxi or walk about 2 km.
