Construction of Orthodox churches and its features.

With the baptism of Rus', a new period in Russian history and construction begins. It is difficult to overestimate the significance of this event. Together with Christianity, Rus' adopted certain cultural foundations from Byzantium. In particular, stone architecture, examples of which were taken from Byzantium, began to meet new state and ideological tasks.

A type of cross-domed church was created there, the basis of which is a rectangular room with four or more pillars in the middle, dividing interior space into nine parts. The center of the temple is the space under the dome, where light penetrates through the windows in the drum. Adjacent to the under-dome space are cells covered with cylindrical vaults, forming a cruciform base of the plan. The corner parts are covered with domes or barrel vaults. The entire central space in the plan forms a cross.

Church of the Tithes (Church of the Assumption Holy Mother of God). Kyiv. The first stone church of the Old Russian state, erected by Vladimir Svyatoslavich. Laid down in 996. (destroyed by Batu Khan in 1240)

The dome appears in Byzantium in the Justinian period, even before the cross-dome (Sophia of Constantinople). The canopy system on the sails is also formed there. On the eastern side of the building there are three faceted or semicircular apses. The middle one houses the altar. In the western part there is a room on the second tier - the choir. The transverse space in the western part is called the porch, narthex.

However, relying on the traditions of Byzantine art, Russian masters created their own national art, their own forms of temples, wall paintings and iconography, which cannot be confused with Byzantine, despite the commonality of iconography.

Thus, the main type of construction of an Orthodox church in Rus' was a cross-domed one. It was this type of temple that dominated in architecture Ancient Rus'. It was this type that was built the first stone church - Tithes.

LAYOUT AND LAYOUT OF A BUILDING

The process of constructing a monumental structure began with the laying procedure and then dividing the building plan into construction site. Since the monuments of Russian architecture of the pre-Mongol era are mainly churches (of the 250 monuments of Russian architecture of this era known to date, less than 20 are of a secular, non-cultic nature, i.e. only about 8%), it is natural that the foundation of a monumental building is First of all, laying the foundation of the temple. It was a solemn ceremony attended by the highest church hierarchs and princes. True, the chronicle descriptions in the majority refer not to the laying of the foundation, but to the consecration of the temple, but even the very fact that in references to the laying of the foundation they usually noted under which metropolitan and which prince it was performed testifies to the solemnity of the ritual.

First of all, apparently, a flat site for construction was prepared. Traces of soil cutting to level the site were repeatedly noted during archaeological studies of monuments. This is also evidenced by Western sources dating back to the 12th century. Then the place of the altar was outlined and the longitudinal axis of the temple was drawn, oriented towards the first ray rising sun. The altar was supposed to be oriented to the east, and east was understood as the sunrise. They did this in Rus', and they did the same in the West.

It has been suggested that the day the temple was founded should have corresponded to the day of its patron. A check of the foundation days, carried out on the basis of the azimuths of existing monuments, did not confirm these assumptions. The day of the patron of the temple usually coincided not with the day of its laying, but with the day of its consecration, which was specially stipulated in the church charters. The day of its foundation only rarely coincided with the day of the temple’s patron. The solemn ceremony of laying the foundation of the church took place after the consecration.

In Russian chronicles this procedure is attested only for a later time. Thus, describing the foundation of a church in Moscow in 1472, the chronicler reported: “... His Eminence Metropolitan Philip with the entire consecrated cathedral... went to the foundation of the church... Then came... Grand Duke Ivan Vasilyevich... And so those who performed the prayer service, and first of all, with his own hands, the Metropolitan lays the foundation for where the altar should be, also in the countries and in the corners, and according to this the craftsmen begin the work of the building.”

It is remarkable that this description, made in the 15th century, almost completely coincides with the Armenian text “Foundation of the Holy Church”, dating back to the beginning of the 6th century: “Then they install one stone as the foundation of the church in the center of the altar, and the remaining unmarked stones - along four corners... The bishop reads this prayer... and commands the head of the masters to take measuring tool and lay out the area according to the will of the builder." 8) Apparently, the procedure for laying the foundation of a temple in the Eastern Christian Church was more or less uniform and traditional.

St. George's Cathedral of the Yuryev Monastery near Veliky Novgorod. Founded in 1119.

The outline of the future temple was marked using a cord. In the West and the Caucasus, this is recorded both in written sources and in miniatures. With the help of a cord they laid out the layout of the temple in Rus'. Evidence of this is the legend about the construction of the Assumption Church of the Kiev Pechersk Monastery, set out in the Pechersk Patericon. According to this legend, the size of the future temple was determined by a golden belt donated to the monastery by the Varangian Jarl Shimon, who converted to Christianity.

The question of how the building plan was broken down and then its vertical dimensions were determined has long been of interest to researchers. A wide variety of, often very complex theories were created, with the help of which they tried to explain the system of proportional construction ancient Russian churches. Unfortunately, all theories, even the most ingenious ones, can only help in the analysis of monuments, but do not serve as the working method that guided the ancient architect, although some of the authors of such theories claim to be so.

The closest to solving the problem was K.N. Afanasyev and E.F. Zhelohovtseva. Afanasyev’s most important conclusion is that the basis of the construction was the diameter of the dome of the temple or, later, the side of the square under the dome. The importance of the dome diameter for constructing all the main dimensions in buildings of the central dome type is beyond doubt. However, this size could only be intermediate, transitional, making it possible to move from the plan to vertical constructions, i.e. to the dimensions of the building section.

The architect, but not the customer of the temple, could operate with this size. Meanwhile, the main dimensions of the future temple were precisely the responsibility of the customer - the prince or bishop. Therefore, the main dimensions that determined the entire construction of the temple could only be its general dimensions - length and width.

By the way, this is exactly how, according to legend, the architects of the Assumption Cathedral of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery received the task: they had to build a temple that was 20 belts (elbows) wide, and 30 in length and height. This is also evidenced by the procedure for founding the temple, in which, first of all, its four corners were noted, i.e. general dimensions of the plan. Obviously, the dimensions here were determined by the outer walls of the building, and not by its interior.

Thus, there is no doubt that during the solemn ceremony of laying the foundation of the temple, the position of the altar, the direction of the longitudinal axis and the four corners of the building were outlined. All subsequent constructions, i.e. the breakdown of the divisions of the plan, the transition from the general dimensions of the building to the size of the dome square, and then the determination of the heights, already belonged to the working method of the architect. Obviously, the latter used some units of measurement accepted in Rus'.

There are different points of view regarding what these units were. So, K.N. Afanasyev came to the conclusion that the size of the “Shimon Belt”, which determined the size of the Assumption Cathedral of the Kiev Pechersk Monastery, was 1.18 m, i.e. 4 Roman feet (29.5 cm); at the same time, the dome squares of most ancient Russian churches, in his opinion, are divisible not by the Roman, but by the Greek foot (30.8 cm).

Church of the Annunciation in Arkazhi (another name is the Church of the Annunciation on Myachina). Veliky Novgorod. Founded in 1179

This conclusion is contradicted by the fact that in Russian written sources all measurements, as a rule, are indicated not in feet, but in fathoms and cubits. N.V. Kholostenko and B.A. Fishermen were determined by the same “Shimon belt” equal to 1.08 m, i.e. 0.5 oblique fathom. It is very likely that in different times and in different construction centers of Rus' they used different units of measures, although, of course, only one measure in each building.

However, it is not at all necessary that measure taken in different buildings coincided with great accuracy, since there were no standards. The information usually given about the presence of a standard of length, which is mentioned in the “Charter” of Prince Vsevolod, indicates exactly the opposite: if there was a special “Ivan elbow,” it means that other variants of the elbow could exist. 21) At the same time, inside each structure being erected, all dimensions had to be consistent with one exact measure.

Therefore, the architect himself determined the standard of length (regardless of whether it was a foot, cubit or any other measure), which he guided during the construction process. The length standard, apparently, was a wooden rod, i.e. a kind of scale ruler. This can be judged by the fact that a wooden rod is the main attribute of an architect in all Western European images of architects. The fact that the same was the case in Rus' is confirmed, for example, by ancient legend about Solomon and Kitovras, where the builder of the temple Kitovras, called to Solomon, “mortified the rod of four cubits and went down before the king, and bowed down, and lowered the rod before the king...”.

It should be noted that, without knowing static calculations, the ancient architects also had to empirically take into account the constructive side of the building: the ratio of the thickness of walls and pillars with the dimensions of the spans, etc. It is obvious that the traditional system for constructing the planned and height dimensions of the temple, which the ancient Russian architect used in as its working method, it also had to ensure the strength of the structure.

Spaso-Preobrazhensky Cathedral. Pereslavl-Zalessky. Founded in 1152

It is known that ancient Russian architects did not use drawings. This applies not only to the pre-Mongol period, but also to a much later time. 27) It was suggested that models could be used as drawings. But this assumption is absolutely not confirmed by anything. On the contrary, all information about the models found in later sources suggests that they were not made as design drawings, but only as a means of demonstrating to the customer the appearance of the future building.

There is no doubt that the ancient Russian architects must have had some kind of empirically developed, and then became traditional, clear system of construction, which allowed them to determine in advance the main dimensions of the parts of the building, both in plan and in height. This system had to be flexible, since the differences in the proportional structures of different monuments of pre-Mongol architecture are very great, which indicates wide possibilities masters of diversifying the decisions he makes.

At the same time, the system had to be quite accurate. Thus, the study of monuments of Vladimir-Suzdal architecture showed that sculptural reliefs in the upper parts of the building were carved on individual stones different sizes and then in finished form were used when laying walls. Consequently, the architect had the opportunity to pre-set to the carver the size of the stone intended for laying even in the upper part of the future building.

Using the dimensions obtained from the plan, the architect should have been able to determine the main structural heights of the structure, primarily arches and vaults. It has been suggested that the work system is based ancient Russian architect geometric constructions lay. However, in the absence of drawings, it is much more likely that the definitions of the dimensions of the building were arithmetical in nature - in the form of simple modular relations with measures of length as the original unit.

We do not yet know what the working method of the ancient Russian architect was, despite numerous attempts by researchers to unravel it. It is also unclear whether this method was developed by the Byzantines, or whether it had a wider range, including the architecture of the Caucasus, and perhaps even Romanesque. It will be very important in the future to find out how specifically this method was used in Rus', what the ancient Russian masters contributed to it.

CONSTRUCTION TIMELINES

The beginning of the construction of temples, judging by the chronicles, usually falls in the spring or summer months. Thus, the Cathedral of St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery in Kyiv was founded on July 11, 1108, the Church of St. George in Kanev - on June 9, 1144, the Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir - on April 8 or May 8, 1158 (according to different lists chronicle), and the gates of Detinets - June 4, 1194, the Cathedral of the Princess Monastery - July 15, 1200, the Assumption Cathedral in Smolensk - March 7 or, according to other sources, May 2, 1101, the Church of the Savior in Staraya Russa - May 21 1198 In Novgorod, the Church of Fyodor Tiron was founded on April 28, 1115, Peter and Paul on May 6, 1185, Annunciation on Myachina - May 21, 1179, Savior-Nereditsa - July 8, 1198, Kirill - in April 1196 ., gate church in Detinets - May 4, 1195. About the Novgorod church of Boris and Gleb, it was noted more generally that it was founded “for the spring.”

Thus, judging by the chronicles, the laying of temples was carried out from March or April to mid-July. However, there is information about a later bookmark. Thus, in the fall of 1192, the foundation was laid for the cathedral of the Nativity Monastery in Vladimir; True, here in the chronicle it is separately noted that Prince Vsevolod “founded the church,” and then “the building began quickly in the month of August on the 22nd day.” Obviously, sometimes the construction of temples began in August.

The time of foundation of temples can be judged not only from written sources, but also from the orientation of the longitudinal axis of the temples themselves, since during foundation the longitudinal axis was oriented to the point on the horizon where the sun rose on the day of foundation. This orientation is currently fixed using a magnetic compass, i.e. represents the magnetic azimuth. Knowing the magnetic declination of the points where the monuments are located, it is easy to determine the true azimuth of the longitudinal axis of the temples.

Spaso-Preobrazhensky Cathedral. Chernigov. Founded around 1030-1034 by the Chernigov prince Mstislav Vladimirovich.

Using the true azimuth, you can use tables to find the declination angle of the sun, and using the declination angle to determine the day on which the sun rose according to a given azimuth, that is, at the point on the horizon where the longitudinal axis of the temple is directed. Naturally, this will not be one, but two days, since at each such point on the horizon the sun rises twice a year. They will correspond to the modern one, i.e. Gregorian calendar, and not the ancient, Julian one. The difference between calendars in the X-XI centuries. was six days, and in the 12th century. - seven, and therefore it is quite easy to determine the days on which the sun rose at a given point on the horizon when the temple was founded.

With what degree of accuracy can you determine the date name? It is difficult to measure the orientation of the longitudinal axis of the church with an accuracy of more than 1-2°, because this is usually hampered by some uncertainty in the layout of the ancient Russian monuments themselves. An axis deviation of 2° results in a difference of approximately three days, and for the summer months - even up to 10 days. In addition, calculations are made for a geometric horizon, while uneven terrain often makes the real, visible horizon somewhat narrowed or expanded.

Therefore, determining the days of foundation of ancient Russian temples by the orientation of their longitudinal axis can be done with an accuracy of no more than approximately one week. However, even such accuracy gives us quite valuable information (see table).

This summer, in the Losinoostrovsky district of Moscow, a confrontation began in the spirit of the struggle for the Khimki Forest: in the Torfyanka park, local residents opposed the construction of a temple. The construction of a church in the area began after public hearings, the participants of which allegedly supported the construction. However, protesters say that the hearings were falsified: the discussion was behind the scenes and residents of the area were not invited to it. The struggle between Orthodox activists and park defenders who set up a tent camp lasted for several days and nights. Patriarch Kirill was forced to intervene in the situation, after which construction was stopped until a court decision. Similar stories there are several in Moscow. The Village found out how temples are built in the city and why many people don’t like it.

“We don’t have enough clinics, the maternity hospital in Torfyanka was closed, pregnant women are forced to go to Bibirevo. But the temple is within walking distance,” Muscovite Natalya shrugs. In the park of her native Rostokino district, a church for 500 parishioners is now being built. Opponents of construction say that the temple is being built on a specially protected natural area. Any construction in such a place is prohibited by law, but thanks to a decree of the Moscow government, the construction of the church became possible, and now residents of the area are challenging the decision of the authorities in the Moscow City Court.

As Natalya says, at one of the first hearings the judge asked: “Why did the temple bother you?” Parishioner Vladimir Chirkov asks the same question. According to him, an area of ​​0.36 hectares, or about 2%, was allocated for construction park area Rostokina. Parishioner Lyubov Kozlova notes that they are building a church on a vacant lot near the road. Lyubov says that there are already two churches in Rostokin, but they cannot accommodate everyone: “It happened that it was impossible to stand in the Tikhvin Church, and you couldn’t even enter the Leonovsky Church on the holiday.”

This story is typical for Moscow, where they have been implementing the “200 churches” program for several years. The project was approved by Yuri Luzhkov back in 2009. Shortly before his resignation, the mayor promised Patriarch Kirill to build churches in such a way “that there would be no places where the Temple of God would not be within walking distance.” The primate pointed out that the city lacked about 600 churches, but in the end the city government and the Russian Orthodox Church agreed on a figure of 200 churches. Opponents of the program have already nicknamed it “minus 200 parks and squares.” Over the five years of the program, 17 churches were built in the city, and three more in new Moscow. According to the head of the movement of residents of the Khodynka district “For the Park” Oleg Larin, in approximately half of the cases such construction causes protests from local residents.

The program is supervised by former deputy and associate of Yuri Luzhkov, and now State Duma deputy Vladimir Resin. He himself admits that “there are disagreements with the public.” According to the politician, during the entire period of the program there were 27 cases when plans to build a temple on the proposed sites had to be abandoned. “We are not at war with our people,” Resin assures. This spring, accompanied by priests, he inspected the construction site in Rostokin. Opponents of the construction greeted the politician with posters: “The park was stolen from us” and “Help, Vladimir Iosifovich, you are from Rostokin.”

Where are churches built?

As a rule, temples are built on the territory of parks. This is what causes indignation among local residents: people are unhappy with the reduction of green space in their area. This happened in Ostankino. In 2013, a park was landscaped there. “They set up benches, people began to rest, grandmothers left the entrances,” recalls Ostankino resident Valentina Bakulina. Soon the local newspaper wrote that they were planning to build a church in the park as part of the “200 churches” program. “One day we saw on the spot where the temple now stands, a handful of people praying and a priest. Representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church simply came for six months on Sundays at 15:00. So the population was taught that this territory now belongs to them,” Bakulina is sure. Priest Alexey Yakovlev is the rector of the church in Ostankino. According to him, there is nowhere else to build churches in Moscow. “There is very little space in the city. To build a new building, the previous one is usually demolished, but we cannot do that. Everyone reacts calmly to the construction of hypermarkets, but you see, it’s impossible to build a temple,” Yakovlev is indignant.

Chairman of the Board of the Foundation “Support for the Construction of Churches in Moscow” Archbishop Egorievsky Mark claims that in most cases, churches are not built in parks and squares, but on abandoned and undeveloped areas of city land. He explains the cases of construction in green areas of Moscow by the fact that “from ancient times the most beautiful and picturesque places were chosen for churches.” In a comment to The Village, the archbishop also added that parishioners always improve the new territory, and if trees were cut down during construction, green spaces are restored elsewhere in the park. “The area is always well lit. Mothers and children can relax peacefully without fear of meeting an alcoholic or homeless person here.”

"Why is it necessary two temples next to each other
with a friend? The bonds are getting stronger It’s impossible to accommodate everyone.”

Researcher High school of urbanism Pyotr Ivanov believes that parks are not best place for temples. He suggests building new churches in industrial zones, "without trying to build them on people's heads." In response to the question of whether this is too far for parishioners, the expert notes: “For believers, nowhere will be too far.” Ivanov is confident that the temple should stand far from residential buildings because of the ringing of bells.

Park advocates typically worry that once the temple is built, the church site will become a place that is not for everyone. “The park should be an inviolable territory where there will be atheists, Orthodox Christians, Muslims, grandparents, dogs and cats,” says Rostokin resident Natalya. Thus, the territory occupied by the temple in Dzhamgarovsky Park became closed. The confrontation between builders and activists began a year and a half ago, but the temple was still erected and “fenced with a solid fence,” says local resident Yulia Trofimova. “My friends tried to get there, but were unsuccessful. I didn’t see a single familiar face near the temple. It was built for a narrow circle of people,” Trofimova is sure.

Violations during construction

Lawyers say that parks cannot be developed. “According to the General Plan of Moscow, the park belongs to natural and green areas public use, as well as to the zone of protected natural landscape. You can’t build anything there at all,” explains Ivan Medvedev, a defender of the protesting residents of the Losinoostrovsky district. According to Medvedev, in order to obtain permission for construction, public hearings are usually held, at which the draft layout of the territory is approved. Often public discussions take place behind the scenes, without notifying local residents.

This, according to the lawyer, happened during the construction of the temple in Torfyanka. Participants in the hearings allegedly approved the construction of a church in the park, and the government adopted a resolution to redevelop the territory. The document changed the boundaries of the park: part of its area was allocated for construction temple complex. Local residents say they knew nothing about the ongoing discussions. Now they are challenging the results of the hearing in court. The Foundation “Support for the Construction of Churches in the City of Moscow” notes that permission for the construction of each facility is issued on the basis of a decision of the Moscow government. Areas of the green zone that are allocated for development are not removed from the composition natural complex, but only change the mode of land use.

Protesters call the issuance of construction permits in parks a dangerous precedent. Rostokin resident Natalya is sure that the massive construction of churches in parks is a “raider seizure of expensive Moscow land.” “Using the example of the 200 Temples program, the removal of sites from the natural complex was worked out. This technique can be used for the construction of other objects,” says Oleg Larin. In his home area, on Khodynka, a temple is also being built close to the park. Local residents assume that in the future the owners will take part of the green area and build additional buildings.

The construction of church facilities on Khodynka began in 2012, when a cross and a platform for prayer were erected in the park. Residents considered the actions illegal and wrote hundreds of appeals demanding the dismantling of the structure. And last year, a wooden church was erected on the site of the former runway. According to Oleg Larin, without a construction permit and registration of rights to land plot. The authorities assure that the construction is temporary and no permits are needed for it. However, in recent months, another, large temple has been erected near the wooden church. The city authorities have already declared this construction illegal.

However, the Foundation for Support of the Construction of Temples claims that the facts of illegal construction have not been officially confirmed. Construction of the temple St. Sergius They want to continue the Radonezh project there and complete it by 2017. Archbishop Mark explains the construction of two close church sites as follows: “In anticipation of the construction of the main stone church, a small church-chapel is being installed on the site so that local residents can quickly participate in liturgical life arrival." In response to this, Oleg Larin shrugs: “Why do we need two churches next to each other? The bonds are getting stronger, it is impossible to accommodate everyone.”

Do Muscovites have enough churches?

Representatives of the mayor's office and the Russian Orthodox Church claim that there are not enough churches in Moscow. “Take the subway on Sunday morning,” said Sergei Sobyanin. - You will definitely see people with Orthodox prayer books in the hands of those who are forced to get up early in the morning to get to the temple.” Patriarch Kirill is even more radical in his judgments. He believes that even a church building program will not improve the situation. “200 churches are a drop in the ocean,” the primate is sure.

“Moscow used to be ten times smaller, and it had twice as many churches. The average statistics for Russia is as follows: there are 35 thousand people per church. And in Moscow there are 80 thousand people per church,” priest Alexey Yakovlev calculates. Opponents of mass church development note that not all Moscow residents are believers. “Initially the program was called “600 churches in Moscow”. The entire population of Moscow was divided into existing churches. But no one thinks that people of different religions live in the city,” retorts Valentina Bakulina, a resident of the Ostankino district. Urbanist Pyotr Ivanov is against the very idea of ​​standard churches. According to him, they do not have any historical value: “When we build 200 temples, we only think about how to build it more easily.”

Construction site fight

As a rule, the confrontation over the construction of capital's churches takes place violently. Opponents of the construction of churches go to rallies, supporters - to prayer services. Both of these rarely happen without mutual reproaches. In June, protesters in Torfyanka Park set up tents, stood guard there at night and blocked the entry of construction equipment. The construction site was guarded by the “Forty Forty” movement. Its coordinator, Andrei Kormukhin, openly says that the association was created two years ago to protect the construction of churches under the “200 temples” program. He is confident that a well-planned attack is underway against the project. According to Kormukhin, to date activists of the movement have “helped 15 Orthodox communities in Moscow find their churches.”

Sergei Atamanenko, an opponent of the construction of the temple in Torfyanka, notes that activists of the “Forty Forties” movement are, as a rule, aggressive young people of athletic build. According to him, there were no major fights in Torfyanka, but local skirmishes occurred regularly. “In discussions, they often go for a provocative rapprochement and begin to put pressure on the body,” adds Atamanenko. Local residents say that ordinary parishioners were also brought to Torfyanka Park: believers went to the construction site in an organized manner and began holding services. “We believe that these are not local residents, but they refuse to show their registration,” says Sergei. A resident of the Losinoostrovsky district, Yulia Trofimova, recalls that during the confrontation in Dzhamgarovsky Park, she and other opponents of the development were “cursed and tried to be beaten by the driven strangers-parishioners.” “I experienced such aggression towards myself for the first time in my life,” she admits.

“The idea of ​​building a temple is not liked by representatives of various sects and the LGBT community. Through opposition, churches are trying to counteract the authorities. This is done with the same money which were spent on the Maidans»

Even Patriarch Kirill does not refrain from making harsh statements: several years ago he called the protests against the construction of churches “a wave of hypocritical anger.” However, speaking about the events in Torfyanka, the primate called on the parties to “refuse confrontation” and “peaceful resolution.”

The Foundation for Support of the Construction of Temples does not see a wave of protests. “Sometimes it’s worth figuring out whether it’s really local residents protesting, or whether it’s the same group of people traveling around different areas of Moscow and scaring residents with horror stories about homeless people, dead people and the demolition of the park,” says Archbishop Mark. Priest Alexey Yakovlev, like the coordinator of the “Forty Forties” movement, is sure that those who oppose the construction of churches were well paid: “The idea of ​​​​building a temple is not liked by representatives of various sects and the LGBT community. Through opposition, churches are trying to counteract the authorities. This is not just similar to the Maidan, but is being done with the same money that was spent on the Maidans.” Yakovlev believes that representatives of Yabloko and the Communist Party of the Russian Federation are interfering with the construction. “Some people’s parents shot priests with their own hands, destroyed churches and destroyed icons. Of course, now their children may also disagree with the construction of the temple,” adds the priest.

Ostankino resident Valentina Bakulina, like many other park defenders, emphasizes that protesters do not like construction in the green zone, and it doesn’t matter whether a temple or a hypermarket is being built there. “Green areas are useful for both believers and atheists. Why people trying to preserve these territories began to be called god-fighters, you need to ask the developers themselves, says Valentina. “It’s not our fault that religion got mixed in here.”

Help in preparing material: Anna Despotashvili, Tamara Mullakhodzhaeva, Irina Ashcheulova

Photos: cover - Andrey/Flickr.com, 1 - eFesenko/Shutterstock.com, 2 - Shutterstock.com

Where to start?

3D project of a temple-chapel. According to this project, a temple was built in the city of Zvenigorod and consecrated in honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. Contributed by Sofia and Dmitry B.

It is important to begin the construction of a temple or chapel with the blessing of the ruling bishop of the diocese.
To do this, you need to contact the priest who is assigned to your locality, then to the dean and then submit a petition addressed to the ruling bishop.
Since temple is not built on its own, but for a church community, then if there is no such community in a city or village, it must be created and registered. To begin with It will be time to write a petition addressed to the ruling bishop (in the Ryazan region - Metropolitan Mark) to create a parish and bring it to your dean. After agreement with the dean, the petition is submitted to the ruling bishop.
To register a community, it must include at least ten people - the so-called “ten”. It is important that the top ten includes local residents. Community is legal entity and it is registered with the federal registration service as a local non-profit religious organization of the Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate.

Temple or chapel?
Temple– “Heaven on Earth” is a special building, different from other buildings, dedicated to God and intended for performing divine services and sacraments.
Inside, the temple is divided into three parts: the altar, the central part (the temple itself) and the vestibule.
Chapel- This is a small building for religious purposes. The very name “chapel” apparently comes from the word “hours” - this is the name given to the short services performed in the Orthodox Church. The chapel, as it does not have an altar, is intended specifically for such prayers. Liturgy is not allowed to be served in the chapel, but prayers and memorial services can be served. The sacraments are not performed in the chapel due to the lack of an altar.
Construction site.
When the community is registered and receives the bishop’s blessing for construction temple, you need to contact local authorities with a request to provide a plot of land for this. If this is, for example, a district city, then go to the city or district administration, preferably directly to the head of the administration. Better yet, draw up an official letter from the bishop and contact the authorities with this letter. This issue needs to be resolved within the diocese.
Project.
The design of the temple is done by an architectural design studio. It is best, of course, for the church to be designed by an architect who has experience in building churches. The project is approved and agreed upon by various authorities: in the general plan, in the local committee for architecture, etc. - therefore, it makes life very easy if the architectural studio has access to organizations that will conduct various examinations for approval. You can buy finished project or, if possible, receive it as a gift.
Orders at the founding of the temple.
Order for the founding of a church .
The founding and construction of a temple can only be carried out by the ruling bishop of the church region or a priest sent from him. Guilty of the construction of the church without the blessing of the ruling bishop is subject to certain punishment, as one who despises the episcopal authority.
After laying the foundation for the temple, the “Ordinary for the foundation of the temple” is performed - all together called the laying of the church. At the site of the future Throne, according to the instructions of the Trebnik, a wooden cross prepared in advance is placed and a prayer service is served.
Construction of the temple.
The eyes are afraid, the hands are doing.
The most important thing is that prayer begins in this place as soon as possible.
What is associated with the construction of a temple is always a miracle.
The miracle is how the money is found, how all sorts of approvals are resolved. It's not us who are building the temple,
and the Lord Himself.
The great consecration of the temple by the bishop.
A newly built temple is an “ordinary” building until the rite of consecration is performed on it. After the perfect rite, the temple acquires new qualities and becomes the receptacle of the greatest shrine.

Neglecting these rules and the centuries-old traditions of Orthodox church architecture is a huge mistake, because the building of the temple is almost as sacred for believers as the icons with images of saints. According to leaders of the Russian and Ukrainian Orthodox Churches and experts in church architecture, the construction of new churches must be accompanied by compliance with the following principles.

Traditionality

The appearance of an Orthodox church must strictly comply with the canons of religion. For centuries, the construction of temples was carried out according to strict certain rules, and the classic appearance of church buildings remained virtually unchanged. Sometimes there are significant differences in architecture Orthodox churches. However, they have a significant background.

For example, they may depend on the functional purpose of the building: a cathedral, a monument temple, a parish church - they all have their own architectural nuances. The influence may also be exerted by the climatic features of the country or region in which the construction of temples takes place, some decorative elements may be determined by the trends of the era or national characteristics. But, one way or another, the architectural formation of the temple always occurs according to established canons

Functionality

The internal architecture should be as convenient as possible for conducting religious sacraments and worship, in addition, the church should include all the necessary auxiliary premises, and also meet the requirements relevant to any building, such as safety and Symbolism. It is advisable to build on a hill so that the temple can be seen from afar, and the ringing of bells can be heard as far as possible. The shapes chosen for the construction of the temple are symbolic.

The shape of the ship is a symbol of salvation: in the Church of Christ, parishioners are saved from spiritual death, from the kingdom of darkness. This shape symbolizes the ark of Noah, who slept from the flood, physical death, people who did not give up on God. The shape of the octagon symbolizes the Star of Bethlehem, which led the Magi to the cave with the manger where the Savior of the world, Jesus, was born. The Church is a guiding star leading believers to salvation, to life with Christ. Cross shape. At the foundation of the church they place the Cross of Christ, a shameful instrument for execution, which became a symbol of salvation through painful death, Jesus Christ crucified on it. The shape of the temple in the form of a circle is a symbol of the eternity of the Church, since it has no beginning or end.

Churches of Ukraine

Modern stone and wooden churches in Ukraine, as a rule, include three main zones. They are divided into an altar, a middle part and a vestibule. Moreover, the creation of these parts of the temple is thought about at the design stage, which underlies the construction of the entire structure. And, also, when developing a project, specialists must ensure that the altar of the temple faces the east - this requirement applies to absolutely all Orthodox churches.

Stages of construction of Orthodox churches

Building design;

Laying the foundation (and equipping basements, if provided for by the project);

Construction of walls (including work on thermal and waterproofing);

Roof installation.

The temples are crowned with domes depicting the sky, on the dome there is a head with a cross glorifying Jesus Christ, the Head of the Church. One chapter on the Church points to Jesus Christ. Two chapters point to the natures of Jesus Christ the God and Jesus Christ the man. The three chapters on the temple are a symbol of the Holy Trinity. The five chapters symbolize Christ and the four evangelists. And the seven crosses at the church speaks of the seven Sacraments and the seven Ecumenical Councils. Nine chapters talk about the nine ranks of angels. Thirteen chapters on the temple talk about Jesus Christ and his twelve apostles.

Next, move on to the outside and interior design buildings. Moreover, speech in in this case is not only about diverse finishing works(although this must also be done) and about laying communications, but also about equipping the temple with special church utensils, lamps and other specific interior items.

Sometimes, there are two-story temples. The lower floor symbolizes the earthly, militant Church. Top floor - Heavenly Church, triumphant

Construction of an Orthodox church is a very difficult task. Everything is important in the temple; there are no trifles in its structure. Every detail in it is subject to canons and traditions, and even modern projects Orthodox churches are developed taking into account their strict adherence. The first thing people pay attention to is the choice of location for construction. Previously in Rus', according to traditions, the location for the construction of an Orthodox church or monastery was chosen to be elevated, visible from afar. should have dominated among the surrounding buildings, reminding people of the sublimity of the spiritual world compared to the earthly one. They tried to choose the place where the temple would stand so that it would be “blown by four winds” - the sound of the bells could then be heard several dozen miles away.

Church traditions claim that very often the place for the construction of an Orthodox church or monastery was indicated by the Lord Himself, the Mother of God, or one of the holy saints of God - through visions, appearances in dreams, and other signs. The result of such a scrupulous choice is that to this day, when we come to the sites of even destroyed old churches, we clearly feel that they are special and blessed.

Orthodox church project and external landscaping

After choosing a location, workers compacted the site for its construction. The location of the Orthodox church was also important: its design was always calculated in such a way that the church altar necessarily faced the east. For lack of compasses and other measuring instruments, the eastern direction was determined as follows: we woke up before sunrise, and on the temple site an axis was drawn strictly parallel to the first ray of the rising sun.

This factor is still taken into account when building an Orthodox church, and exceptions are made only in very rare cases. Why is this so important? Some researchers argue that this contains the legacy of the ancient solar cult of the Slavs, others rely on the fact that in Christianity the East has always been associated with light forces, and the West with dark ones.

An equally important part of an Orthodox church is its upper part, topped with domes. The number of domes is always odd, and can reach up to thirty-three, and they are all crowned with a cross.

An excellent example of temple architecture is the 33-domed wooden Church of St. Nicholas the Pleasant on Trinity Hill in St. Petersburg.

The main parts of the Orthodox church

When creating a project for an Orthodox church, all its components are strictly taken into account. Since ancient times, the church has symbolized the three-dimensionality of the Universe: its divine part, the heavenly and the earthly. That is why the Orthodox church consists of three parts: the altar where the priests pray, the central part intended for the prayer of faithful (baptized) Christians, and the vestibule in which the catechumens used to pray - those who were just undergoing catechesis and were preparing to receive holy baptism.

The upper part of the Orthodox church - the nave (ceiling) - symbolizes the sky, and is covered with paintings depicting the Holy Trinity, God the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ and the Mother of God. The floor under your feet means earth, and therefore it is also decorated with mosaics and ornaments.