On the territory of the Russian Federation you can find a great variety of cathedrals, temples, and monasteries. A significant part of these structures were founded long before the present time, and are of not only spiritual, but also architectural value. Many such buildings are being built today.
A striking example of this is the Sredneuralsky Convent. The monastery is located near the city of Yekaterinburg, just 20 kilometers. The Sredneuralsky Convent of the Bread Spreader was built in honor of the icon of the Mother of God of the same name.
History of the monastery
An extraordinary Central Urals monastery was erected on the site where there had previously been a subsidiary farm of the State District Power Plant. Even earlier, during the war years, a camp for German prisoners was organized on this land. Popular rumor called this area the German Farm.
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In 2002, Hieromonk Sergius Romanov founded a women's compound on the basis of the men's monastery of the Holy Royal Passion-Bearers.
Sredneuralsky Convent
Father Sergius received a blessing from Archbishop Vincent of Yekaterinburg and Verkhoturye. Official permission to found a convent was given by the Holy Synod in 2005. So the construction of the women's courtyard of the Ganina Yama monastery near Sredneuralsk began.
Stone and wood were used as the main materials for construction. Initially, there were only 4 ascetics in the gatehouse, but in a short time the monastery of the Mother of God quickly grew. Currently, almost 300 people (workers and nuns) live in the temple. 120 sisters have been tonsured and have the rank of nuns.
Construction began in 2002 and was completed in 2011. Although some work is currently underway on the territory to construct the necessary facilities. The ceremonial consecration took place in September 2004.
Icon of the Mother of God
The monastery is dedicated to the icon of the Mother of God “Spreader of the Loaves”.
It was painted in 1890 and is notable for its unconventional iconography - there have never been such images of the Mother of God. The Mother of God is depicted without a baby, seated on clouds with her hands outstretched in a blessing gesture. Below is a compressed field with sheaves. The Monk Ambrose of Optina gave the icon the name “Spreader of the Loaves,” thereby emphasizing that the Mother of God helps Christians not only in spiritual, but also in earthly labors.
A monastery was created in honor of this icon. The earthly labors of the nuns are numerous. The monastery has its own farm, including cattle breeding and an apiary. Those who had lunch in the monastery’s dining room claim that locally produced cottage cheese and honey are simply excellent.
And, of course, there is no shortage of deeds pleasing to God. The nuns support and raise orphans and abandoned children, care for cancer patients, and take them to a special medical center. One of the nuns currently serving in the monastery initially came there in precisely this capacity, without any hope of recovery, but was healed in the monastery.
History of the icon
The icon of the Mother of God is extraordinary. The Virgin Mary is depicted on it, unlike other faces, without the baby Jesus. Prayers are offered before the “Different of Loaves” in the hope of a rich harvest, protection from hunger, drought and other misfortunes.
The Mother of God hovers above the clouds and stretches out her hands to the one who prays, bestowing a blessing.
In 1884, the founder of the women's monastery near Optina Pustyn, Father Ambrose, gave his blessing to the copy of the Mother of God from the icon of “All Saints”, located in the monastery of the Oryol province of the Bolkhov Monastery. There, the Mother of God seems to be hovering above the clouds.
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After the icon was painted, it spent almost 6 months in the monastery of Ambrose. Beginning in 1890, the elder himself and the nuns prayed to the icon. Believers began to recognize the icon as miraculous.
Churches of the Sredneuralsky Convent
There are four temples on the territory:
- Temple in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Spreader of the Loaves” . Located on the third floor of the building. It contains the relics of saints and miraculous icons.
- Temple in honor of the icon of the Kazan Mother of God . On the ground floor there is a refectory and cells, and the temple itself is located on the second floor. It is customary to enter this temple barefoot, taking off your shoes before entering.
- Temple in honor of the icon “Protection of the Holy Mother of God”.
- Church of the Holy Trinity . This temple has two altars. The lower church is consecrated in honor of the Royal Passion-Bearers, and the upper one in the name of the Holy Trinity. Near this temple there is a fifteen-meter cross dedicated to the executed royal family.
Miracles of the “Bread Spreader”
The first miracle created by the icon was the rich harvest of the Shamordino fields in a time of famine.
Another miracle also happened when, immediately after the prayer service in front of the described icon in the women’s community of the Voronezh province, the long-awaited rain began to fall during a dry season. The result was a saved grain harvest.
Father Ambrose's desire to depict the Virgin Mary soaring in the sky above a rich harvest was not accidental. The monk knew that people needed help not only for the soul, but also for the body in obtaining their daily bread.
It is not for nothing that the current monastery is called the abode of faith and love. Many stories of healing have happened within its walls. Often, relief from illnesses comes after such an important rite as unction.
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This story is also noteworthy. It is known that the Central Urals monastery was built with money from parishioners and donations. Once funds were collected to pay for the services of builders, but they went to treat a seriously ill woman. There were no sources for repaying the debt. But then a significant contribution came from a donor, who helped pay off the workers.
They also tell the story of Olga, a girl with cancer, who was taken to a monastery for care. While praying, the girl made a vow that if she was healed, she would devote her life to monasticism. After some time, Olga really felt better, but succumbing to persuasion, she left and left the holy place. Unfortunately, the illness returned, and the girl was again brought to the nuns. But the second time the miracle did not happen.
Take note! The temple is still being built with funds donated by pilgrims or believers who have recovered from illnesses. And construction is moving quite quickly.
Miracles of the Sredneuralsky Monastery
The realities of the modern world are least conducive to expecting miracles. But in the Sredneuralsky Monastery the Divine presence is so felt that miracles do not seem unnatural.
Miracles began during the construction phase. The builders' salaries were paid through donations. One day, a seriously ill woman who needed expensive treatment came to the abbot, and the abbot gave her all the money intended to pay the workers’ salaries. And the next day a rich man arrived and made a large donation - and the workers were safely paid. Some will see this as a mere coincidence, while others will see it as God’s providence.
A notable case is that of a teenage girl named Olga. Her parents brought this girl to the monastery in the last stage of cancer; she could no longer walk or even sit. While in the monastery, the girl made a vow to the Mother of God that she would become a nun if she was healed. Soon her condition miraculously improved, she began to walk and even run. Her friends arrived and began to dissuade her from becoming a monk, and Olga succumbed to persuasion - she renounced her vow, left, and soon returned in an even more serious condition. Olga took the schema under the name Anna and soon died. In her suicide letter, she wrote that she was grateful to God for the illness and would not want to change fate with anyone.
But the most important miracle of the Sredneuralsky Convent is the atmosphere of true love that everyone who comes there feels. Truly, in such places it seems that Heaven is getting closer.
Social mission
The main difference between this place and all others is the atmosphere of complete and unconditional love. Any pilgrim or visitor will be able to feel from their own experience sincere affection and participation. Nuns perform an important mission.
In their care are:
- disabled people;
- hospice residents;
- single mothers with children;
- abandoned children.
The hospice for cancer patients has 20 beds. The hospital is located on the 1st floor of a residential building. The sick are cared for here, given communion, confession and unction.
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The nuns, together with their charges, live as one family: if necessary, they deliver the sick to medical institutions, run the household, care for animals and teach children at school. Getting food for the nuns of the monastery is not a problem. They are not afraid of work.
The monks live as a friendly family
The farm has:
- horses,
- bird,
- bees,
- garden,
- field.
The residents of the monastery live autonomously and are not afraid of the crisis. Having grown the grain, they grind it with their own hands in the mill. They will draw fresh water from a well and heat the temples and buildings using an individual boiler house.
School
To educate children and train their own personnel, a school with external education was organized on the basis of the monastery. It belongs to the school of Tsarevich Alexy. Children are taught to read the ancient Russian language, compose prayers, conduct worship services, sing in the choir and the ability to understand the Law of God.
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Currently, the school has about 46 students, each of whom has his own confessor. Former students often become seminarians, but there are also those who wish to continue studying in higher educational institutions. Also, 4 temples were built on the territory, and 5 are currently under construction.
School
Organization of the Sredneuralsky Convent
We can say about the farming carried out on the territory of the monastery that it is almost completely autonomous.
Subsistence farming can fully provide for everyone in the monastery. The farm has its own farm with livestock, poultry and horses, its own garden, and workshops. Your own mill allows you to grow your own bread. The boiler room and well provide their heat and water. The monastery is famous for its cottage cheese and honey. Everyone who has tasted them in the monastery dining room notes the excellent taste of these products.
The hospitable house, designed for 25 people, allows, with the hospitality characteristic of this place, to receive pilgrims.
The monastery also has its own school. It is attached to the school of Tsarevich Alexy in Yekaterinburg. Teachers are chosen from among the monks, that is, those who, for whatever reason, live in the monastery. The school provides a more than decent education.
The 20-bed hospital is designed for cancer patients in the final stages of the disease. Here they can take communion and confess.
How to get there
How to get to the Central Urals Holy Women's Monastery. Those who decide to make a pilgrimage should choose the city of Yekaterinburg as their starting point. Next, you should get to the Central Urals convent along the Serovsky tract until the 30th km mark. It will also be useful to know that every day transport departs from the Northern Bus Station of platform No. 1 completely free of charge, making trips to the monastery and back.
The address where you can make the pilgrimage is: Sredneuralsk, Severny proezd, 15 A. The official website of the monastery will provide complete information and a schedule of services. Phone number of the monastery office.
