In 1799, the new owner of the village of Kondrovo, P.G. Shchepochkin, began constructing a paper factory on the left bank of the Shanya River. In 1820, he financed the reconstruction of the church in honor of the Savior Not Made by Hands in stone. Later, chapels were added and consecrated to the church: in 1841 in honor of the martyr Paraskeva Friday and in 1860 in honor of the great martyr Theodore Stratilates. A church school operated at the church, where 30 children were educated.
From 1864 until the closure of the church in the 20th century, its rectors were: priest Peter Solovyov (1864-1872), priest Ivan Petrovich Solovyov (1872-1881), priest Andrey Chuprov (1881-1893), and protopriest Pavel Chuprov (1893-1935). In 1935, the church was closed, and from 1961, it housed a grocery store and an ORS base.
In 1993, at the request of Archbishop Clement and the believers, the store vacated the church building. On May 11, according to the decision of the Dzerzhinsky District Council of the Kaluga Region from March 1, 1993, the church was transferred to the Kaluga Diocese. At that time, the building was in an emergency state, and its restoration was entrusted to priest Igor Knyazev. The church was designated as an Archdiocesan Courtyard.
For worship, a chapel in honor of the great martyr Paraskeva Friday was initially equipped, and on June 5, 1993, on Trinity Parent Saturday, the first service was held there. In 1995, crosses and bells were installed, and on August 29 of the same year, on the feast day, Archbishop Clement of Kaluga and Borovsk conducted the first Divine Liturgy in the main altar. By 1998, repairs in the two chapels were completed. Currently, the interior of the church is being painted, and in the future, the chapel in honor of the great martyr Theodore Stratilates is to be restored.
On September 15, 1997, a Sunday school for children and adults opened at the church. There is also a library at the church, and parishioners make pilgrimages to holy places. The rector of the church provides spiritual support to the district hospital. Through the district newspapers "Novoe Vremya" and "Kondrovo za nedelyu," spiritual and educational work is conducted with local residents.
The church houses revered icons: "The Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos," the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, the prophet Elijah, the great martyr Paraskeva Friday, and the great martyr Theodore Stratilates.
Feast days are celebrated on August 16/29, the day of the transfer of the Not Made by Hands Image of the Lord Jesus Christ, and on October 28/November 10, in memory of the martyr Paraskeva.
Comments
No comments yet. Be the first.
To leave a comment, sign in with Google.