St. Nicholas Church in Minsk

St. Nicholas Church in Minsk. The patron of travellers

St. Nicholas is the patron of children and family happiness in Orthodoxy, he protects travellers. This is one of the most revered saints among believers. Not for nothing, many temples have been opened in Belarus, named after St. Nicholas. 

The temple in honour of the Wonderworker 

The village of Trostenets, which is a part of Minsk city line, is a quiet and cosy place. Archival documents show that Trostenets lands once belonged to the Orthodox Church. The first mention of the village dates back to 1503. Trostenets, by desire of the prince's wife, Elena Ioannovna, came into possession of the Savior-Ascension monastery. A temple, built and consecrated in honour of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, was located in Trostenets cemetery since that time for more than four centuries.

According to beliefs, Nicholas the Wonderworker meets the souls of dead people in the first minutes after death. The holidays in St. Nicholas’ honour come on December 19 and May 22 in the Orthodox calendar. St. Nicholas relieves from sorrows and misfortunes, he protects people from troubles. 

The restored church

Unfortunately, the church in the cemetery has not preserved. The parishioners thought about the revival of the church in the 90s of the XX century. The church was reconstructed by architect T.A. Sudilovskaya at the expense of a patron, who wished to remain anonymous. In truth the erection of the temple occurred with historical credibility. Archival documents, ancient manuscripts were studied during the designing. The architect managed to create exactly the same temple that was earlier in Trostenets village.

Today St. Nicholas church in Minsk can accommodate more than 500 people. All of them can be present in the temple during services. The church decoration today is icons in their cases, a carved iconostasis and a cast-iron church chandelier. The parishioners go to the temple not only during the holidays.

Sunday school

St. Nicholas cathedral is visited by schoolchildren, since a church school functions under the church. Children study the history of the Old and New Testaments at school. Reading books and studying the lives of saints, children learn the good, the prayer themselves; they realize what it means to be a believer at such an early age. The school organizes classes in such a way, that children of several age groups can visit it at the same time. The children aged from 7 to 14 study on Sundays at the St. Nicholas church. In honour of various religious holidays, morning performances are held for kids. Such a school not only teaches the good, but it is also a link between children and their parents, which is very important in modern times.

Of course, tourists visit the wooden St. Nicholas Church in Minsk too. In many ways, such an excursion helps tourists to rest a little, immerse themselves in their thoughts in the temple, think about how great God is. Travellers can ask Nicholas the Wonderworker for a blessing for a further trip, pray for their loved ones and relatives, put a candle at the icon of St. Nicholas. It is important that people come to the temple, introduce their children to Orthodoxy and discover new history pages of another church on the territory of Belarus - St. Nicholas church.