It is not uncommon to hear stories of miracles taking place in temples. Often this is due to the revered shrines stored in them. And sometimes the church building itself has amazing properties. Many such legends tell about the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary near Perm.
The construction of the two-story Assumption Church in the city of Cherdyn, Perm Territory was completed in 1784. It, in fact, is the youngest temple of the architectural ensemble of Cherdyn (not counting the All Saints Church) and stands on the site of the Assumption Convent, abolished in 1764. This is an example of the classic construction of a religious building from the 18th century. The simplicity of the design and the minimum of decorative elements allowed it not to stand out against the background of the ensemble of the Preobrazhenskaya and Epiphany churches and organically fit into the urban environment.
"Alin" church
The people immediately began to call this church "Alinskaya" - after the name of the merchants Alins, famous for their charitable activities. They equipped and maintained a chapel attributed to the temple for 85 murdered, as well as a clergy along with a two-story stone building donated by them. They also paid for the painting of the temple to the best metropolitan artist Safonov. It was made on the model of Vasnetsovskaya in the Kiev Vladimir Cathedral. All walls were painted with amazing biblical frescoes.
When the city power plant started working in 1913, the "Alin" temple was the first in Cherdyn to be illuminated with electric bulbs: 600 pieces were screwed on only one floor! They even intended to build a railway from Cherdyn to Troitsko-Pechersk with a branch to Ukhta. An estimate for 25 million rubles was already ready, the merchants paid for the project. And there would be a road, but the revolution broke out.
From the first days of its appearance, the Assumption Church, decorated with wonderful icons, was considered the most beautiful and richest of the surrounding temples. The locals loved her very much. They went to Sunday and holiday services dressed up. By the way, in those ancient times there was a chapel near the church, in which the Good Shepherd icon was installed. As soon as someone got lost, did not return home, residents went to the church and prayed to the shepherd. The next morning the person was definitely there.
Like many Cherdyn churches, the Assumption Church has undergone several reconstructions. The first bell tower was built in the bridge with the church in 1784, and the second exactly 100 years later - in 1884. In the 1930s, the bell tower of the temple was dismantled, the building remained ownerless for a long time.
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Then the building of the Assumption Church began to be used as a branch of the Cherdyn Museum of Local Lore - icons and old books were kept here. There were even specimens of wooden sculpture. At the same time, frescoes on biblical themes, including the one depicting the Last Judgment, were painted over with a thick layer of green paint.
The God-fighting museum was initially housed in another church - St. John the Theologian, closed in 1940. And he has practically begun to act. But with the beginning of the war, Lunegov went to the front, and when he returned, they began to ask him to return the temple. And in 1946 the museum had to move out. It appeared again in 2000 already in the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Museum workers tell here about the spiritual life of Cherdyn during the 15th-20th centuries.
The Dormition Cathedral also houses an exposition dedicated to Grand Duke Mikhail Nikitich Romanov. Visitors can see his shackles, a copy of the icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, revealed in Nyrob in 1613, the old icon "The Sign" of Seraphim-Ponetaevskaya and many other interesting exhibits.
In 2001, on the occasion of the 400th anniversary of Mikhail Romanov's imprisonment in Nyrob, restoration began in the building of the Assumption Church. Students specially came from Zlatoust to reveal the old painting, to clean the walls from a thick layer of paint. Alas, the painting of the Last Judgment could not be opened - the paint that had survived from the 1970s came off the walls along with the image. Then it was decided to paint the walls white and no longer try to reveal the painting.
Signs of Trouble
Imagine the surprise of the museum staff and restorers. when one morning the picture of the Last Judgment opened itself! It happened on September 11, 2001, the day the Twin Towers collapsed in America. The paint suddenly began to warp by itself, layer by layer descending from the face of Jesus Christ. And then the workers, without much difficulty and even without the help of restorers, removed all the paint themselves, practically without damaging the painting.
Of course, what happened could be attributed to the incompatibility of colors - the old green and modern white. But, according to experts, then it would have happened almost immediately. And the fresco opened in the morning, a few hours after painting. This story is now being told to all American tourists who visit the temple.
Several years ago, another event happened in the Cherdyn church: a museum employee was walking to work and saw something strange. On the floor lay a piece of plaster that had fallen from the ceiling. The image turned over in flight and lay painted - the face of an angel - up. And next to the pieces of plaster, a cross appeared by itself.
There was something else in this temple that was inexplicable. On the first floor, icons are exhibited, including the image of the Sorrowful Mother of God, hidden behind glass. Once the museum workers noticed that something was happening to the glass. Looked closely and realized that the reflection of the face of the Virgin was imprinted on it. After holding on for a while, it seemed to dissolve. No one could explain what this sign means. As well as the cause of the phenomenon. After some time, the sign was repeated - the face of the Mother of God appeared on the glass again.
What's going on here? Is it a mere coincidence, the desire to conjecture an ordinary natural phenomenon, or does a miracle still appear to us? Maybe the former church is trying to tell the modern Cherdynians (and not only them) something, to warn them about something?
Today, in the Dormition Church, where the museum is still located, on the feast of the Dormition of the Mother of God, the Cherdyn clergy perform a prayer service. From time to time, with the permission of the museum management, the sacrament of unction is performed. But we are not talking about the Museum of the History of Faith once again becoming a functioning temple …
The Museum of the History of Faith is now 17 years old. Employees reflect on the prospects for its development. At one time, preschool children were taught here according to a special program, telling them about the Orthodox culture and traditions. It didn't go further - the museum did not plan such programs with schools.
Irina SMIRNOVA