In 1747, a wooden church was built in the village of Starye Paraty in honor of the great martyr St. Demetrius of Thessalonica. A century later, it burned down, and a decision was made to build a new church in a different location. The stone church in honor of St. Demetrius of Thessalonica was constructed in three years and completed by 1861. The funds for the construction were provided by parishioners and Kazan merchants M. Platonov and Atlashkin. The church was situated on a hill, offering a view of the Volga River, Makaryev Monastery, and the city of Sviyazhsk. By the end of the 19th century, the parish population was about 3,000 people, with each having 7 desyatins of land. The church possessed extensive utensils, and its library contained 200 books, manuscripts, and documents, which were used by the clergy of the churches of St. Demetrius of Thessalonica and the Holy Trinity.

The temple was designed by architect-artist Ivanov. The bell tower housed 7 bells, the largest festive bell weighing 130 poods and 3 pounds, cast at the factory of the Saratov merchants the Gudkov brothers. The bell was adorned with reliefs, and its clapper weighed 5 poods and 22 pounds. The cost of the bell was 2076 rubles and 5 kopecks. The second-largest bell weighed 53 poods and 5 pounds and was made with funds from M. P. Platonov. Unfortunately, the large bells were removed and taken away, while the smaller ones remained until the 60s-70s of the 20th century. The bells have now been restored, but their sound does not match the previous ones, especially the large festive bell. When this bell was removed, the edges of the main window of the bell tower were damaged, as it was dropped from a height towards Starye Paraty, causing part of the bell to chip off.

In the 1930s, the desecration of the church of St. Demetrius of Thessalonica began: the church library was destroyed, the utensils were looted, and the priest was subjected to repression. On July 26, 1941, by the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Mari ASSR, the church was closed, and the building was handed over to the Volga District Council for conversion into a cultural institution. For a long time, it stood empty, and in the 1970s, it housed a feed mill. In the early 21st century, the church was restored: the building was painted, internal elements were renovated, and missing parts were repainted by artists and restored by craftsmen. Since 1990, the church has been active again, the outbuildings have been completed, and the number of parishioners is constantly growing.