Description of the attraction
The church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Vyritsa was founded on September 10, 1906, and its solemn consecration took place on June 22, 1908.
At the end of the 19th century. along the entire length of the Tsarskoye Selo line of the Nikolaev railway, many settlements arose, among them the village of Vyritsa. The entire area of the village was divided into plots, which were sold for the construction of country dachas. A plot was also allocated for the construction of the temple. But the decision as to which religion the temple will be for was not immediately decided. The Finnish population from the nearby villages professed Lutheranism, therefore they made a demand to build a church here. But a meeting of the owners of the land plots located here decided to build an Orthodox church. The landowner Kornilov allocated land for its construction free of charge. He also donated a land plot for the organization of a cemetery at the temple.
The construction of the new church was carried out with donations from parishioners, the largest of which were made by the head of the sobriety society Vyrits I. A. Churikov, and an employee of the State Sign Bystroumov.
The Peter and Paul Church in Vyritsa was a wooden building made in the form of a cross with a dome and a high bell tower; it accommodated more than 800 parishioners. A parish was formed immediately at the church. In addition to Vyritsa, it included the villages of Petrovka and Krasnitsa.
Initially, the priest of the Vvedenskaya Church, Father Sevastian Voskresensky, conducted services in the church (later he became the rector of the Intercession Church at the monastery courtyard in the city of Gatchina and was shot in 1938). Then, until 1926, priest Georgy Preobrazhensky conducted services in the church. The next rector of the temple, Simeon (Biryukov), was arrested in 1931 and sent to Usalye (Vishlag). Deacon Arkady (Molchanov) was arrested with him. After the arrests of the clergy, the priest Andrei Kornilov was appointed the rector of the church, who served here for 7 years, then he was arrested and then shot.
In 1938, the temple was closed, and at first a club was located in its premises, then a military registration and enlistment office. During the Great Patriotic War, the dome and belfry were destroyed by aerial bombs. The explosion collapsed the wall of the altar. The Germans who came to Vyritsa set up a stable in a dilapidated church.
In 1942, former parishioners of the church under the leadership of Archimandrite Seraphim (Protsenko) asked to return the church to the German commandant's office. The petition was granted. The inhabitants of the village began to restore the temple. In just a few days, a plywood throne, an iconostasis, and the roof were restored. The temple was consecrated again by Archimandrite Seraphim. After the end of the war, Archimandrite Seraphim was arrested and sentenced to twenty years of correctional labor. In the mid-1950s. he was released early. Seraphim died in Vyritsa, but his grave has not been found.
After the liberation of Vyritsa, the temple was closed again, and its then abbot Nikolai Bagryansky was arrested. In 1944, the authorities allowed the opening of the temple. At that time, Archpriest Vladimir (Irodionov) served in the church, who was also arrested in June 1945. Until 1961, Archpriest Boris Zaklinsky was the rector of the church. This past camp and exile priest managed to raise the ruined temple from the ruins.
Archpriest Boris with his own hands restored the wall of the altar, demolished by the explosion, and the belfry. Thanks to his efforts, parish debts were covered, the church was painted and new bells were purchased. Under him, the temple was decorated with new icons and a tabernacle, the Holy Chalice of silver and the Holy Gospel in a silver setting.
On November 23, 1952, Bishop Roman of Tallinn and Estonia re-consecrated the church. Holy relics were placed under the throne. At the same time, the temple was decorated with banners, a seven-branched candlestick from the destroyed church of the village of Bolshie Yaschey, an iconostasis, a chandelier, the Royal Doors from the temple in the village of Vvedenskoye, a new throne was installed, faced with slabs of marble. On June 5, 1952, a trophy ark with the relics of the holy saints was installed in the church, which, most likely, was brought from Rome, as evidenced by the letter on it. In 1963, Archpriest Vladimir Sidorov was appointed rector of the temple, who continued the work of restoring the temple. During the period of his ministry, the roof was repaired, a metal chased plaque with the image of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross was installed on the front side of the throne.
The parish is currently headed by Vladimir Vafin. The main shrines of the temple are the reliquary ark, the image of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God.
