Project 200 temples: Burning Bush in Otradnoye 

The Burning Bush is one of the most revered symbols of the Mother of God in Russia. The burning bush became popular because this image has long been considered the most miraculous means of protecting people from fire. The most common expression of veneration of this image are icons, but the temples of the Burning Bush, specifically dedicated to this image, are considered more effective. Churches, cathedrals, chapels and temples of the Burning Bush were built with the goal of saving people and their homes from fires, the main sanctuary of which was the miraculous image of Our Lady of the Burning Bush.

Burning Bush protector from fires

It was vital for the wooden fly to have an icon of the protector of fire. The very first throne of the Burning Bush was consecrated after another big fire in the Russian capital and only in 1648. Then, on the burnt Malaya Dmitrovka, where a wooden church stood, they decided to build a temple in the name of this icon. The Mother of God remained for a long time at the Nativity of Christ and also burned in the fire. However, since there have never been churches near the Burning Bush in Russia, they decided to build a stone church with the previous consecration of the main altar in the name of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, and with it to build a new chapel in the name of the Burning Bush. Patriarch Paisius of Jerusalem himself asked Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich about this. The ruler agreed and ordered money to be allocated for the construction of the first church in Moscow and throughout medieval Rus' with a chapel of the Burning Bush. It was consecrated in 1652.

JANUARY 2022

The first temple of the Burning Bush

The very first Temple of the Burning Bush in Russia was a church built in 1680 in Moscow on the New Konyushennaya Sloboda. In old Moscow, Konyushennaya Sloboda was a compact place of residence for newlyweds. Previously, in Moscow, the stable was located on Kulishki, but after the accession to the throne of Ivan IV the Terrible, it was moved to the territory of the current Starokonyushenny courtyard. Having moved to a new place, the couple were one of the first to build a small wooden church dedicated to the memory of John the Baptist, which was especially revered by the couple. Such churches, named after John the Baptist, were usually built in stables. In the mid-17th century, church buildings in Moscow were restored, and the parishioners of Konyushennaya Sloboda built a stone church. It was consecrated in 1653. In those days, wooden houses in Moscow often suffered from fires. After one of these fires, all the buildings of the Konyushennaya Sloboda burned down, only the new stone church survived,

After this fire, it was decided not to restore the couple’s settlement in the old place, and the equestrian village was moved to a new place behind Zemlyany Val between the current Smolensky Boulevard and Plyushchikha. In Novaya Konyushennaya Sloboda, the newlyweds again built another temple in 1680, but this time, after changing the traditions of a stable settlement, the temple was consecrated not in memory of John the Baptist, but in order to save the village from fires, it was given the name of the burning bush. The famous icon of the Burning Bush was brought here, donated to the Moscow Patriarchate by the monks of the Catherine Monastery in 1390, which previously stood in the Annunciation Cathedral of the Kremlin.

According to the surviving archives, there were almost no fires in the parish of the Neopalimovskaya Church, which was built mainly from wooden houses. When another fire broke out in Moscow, the ancient icon of the Burning Bush was carried through the houses in a religious procession, the fires seemed to begin to bypass the parish of this church, and the houses of the parishioners remained undamaged. The Church in the name of the Burning Bush icon of the Mother of God in the courtyard of Novy Konyushenny was the first and only church in Moscow consecrated in the name of this image of the Mother of God. The Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin with the Neopalimovskaya Church, which was visited by many Muscovites. Preserved in memory of the fact that the revered image of the Burning Bush originally stood in the Kremlin.

In 1899, the Temple of the Burning Bush was restored. With donations from parishioners, the iconostasis was gilded and the paintings were restored. Subsequently, the Temple of the Burning Tina was considered an architectural landmark in the Smolensky Boulevard area. Unfortunately, the Church of the Burning Bush in Novaya Konyushennaya Sloboda has not survived to this day. An old photograph has been preserved with a view of the Temple of the Burning Bush at the corner of the 1st and 2nd Neopalimovsky lanes.

In 1929, the Moscow City Council decided to demolish the Church of the Burning Bush because it had no architectural value. In the spring of 1930, the Church of the Neopalimovsky Bush on the corner of 1st Neopalimovsky and Novokonyushenny was demolished, but the names of the Neopalimovsky parishes remained with its name. The place looks completely different now; modern skyscrapers stand on the site of the Temple of the Burning Bush.

Where to stay

The temple complex does not yet include a building to accommodate pilgrims. However, near the cathedral there are hotels and hotels that are always ready to accommodate visitors in their rooms.

Temples of the Burning Bush today

There are not many Temples of the Burning Bush, but they are located in different cities and towns, some have existed for several centuries, but there are some that were built more recently. The construction of churches of the Burning Bush in our days has become possible not only for the restoration of Christianity in Rus', but also for an attempt to thus stop the increasing frequency of fires, especially in forest areas, during which people die and thousands of people and hectares of forest are burned. Here are some of them.

The Temple of the Burning Bush on the territory of the All-Russian Research Institute of Fire Protection in Balashikha was built in 2007 on the initiative of the leadership of VNIIPO.

The Church of the Burning Bush in the village of Dyatkovo, Bryansk region, is famous for its crystal iconostasis, made by craftsmen and artists of the Dyatkovo Crystal Factory.

In the village of Ordynskoye, the administrative center of the Ordynsky district of the Novosibirsk region, the Temple of the Burning Bush has existed for several years.

In the taiga city of Tynda on the BAM, in October 2022, a new chapel of the Burning Bush icon was consecrated as a talisman against forest fires.

A small chapel-temple of the Burning Bush, a protector from fires, was built in Syzran.

In Kostroma, the Ministry of Emergency Situations built a new chapel-temple of the Burning Bush, the patroness of the fire department.

The Burning Bush church-temple in the town of Sosnovy Bor, Lomonosov district, Leningrad region, was built in 2004.

The Church of the Burning Bush in the village of Sukhaya Berezovka, Voronezh region, was built in 1834 at the expense of Countess Anna Alekseevna Orlova-Chesmenskaya. In the 30s of the twentieth century, the church was closed and for many years was used as a repair shop. In 1994, it was taken under state protection as an architectural monument.

The Church of the Burning Bush in the Vostryakovo microdistrict in Domodedovo was built on the site of an old church on the Vzletnaya platform. Created in September 2003 on the day of Vostryakov’s 65th birthday. Construction was completed in 2011.

The Temple of the Burning Bush in the village of Kishleevo, Sobinsky district, Vladimir region, was built in 2009-2011 on the site of the destroyed Assumption Church. It was originally built in 1997 as a temple to Vladimir of Kyiv near the Sviblovo metro station; in 2009 it was dismantled in connection with the construction of a shopping and entertainment center and moved to Kishleevo.

The Temple of the Burning Bush in Ozerki is a single-altar wooden temple of simple architecture. Consecrated on September 17. 2014. Attributed to the Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord in the village of Ozerki, Talmensky district, Altai Territory, belongs to the Barnaul diocese.

The current “Burning Bush” temple in the village of Olympus, Kursk region, was built in 1904. The temple was closed in July 1934. The temple building was covered with bread from the Sukovka cellar. In March 1935, bread was exported. Believers asked for permission to open the temple, and in 1937 the temple was transferred for use to the community of believers in the village of Olympus. Since this year, services in the church have not stopped. By resolution of the cult commission of the Presidium of the Kursk Regional Executive Committee dated December 30, 1940, the Temple of the Burning Bush was ordered to be closed. The temple was not closed, probably due to the outbreak of the war. Worship services did not stop even in wartime. On April 11, 1944, the temple building was transferred to unlimited and free use. Belongs to the Kursk diocese.

The Church of the Burning Bush in Kubinka was built and consecrated in 2017 by Bishop Roman of Serpukhov with the blessing of Metropolitan Juvenaly. The Church in honor of the Burning Bush Icon of the Mother of God is located on the territory of the Kubinka-60 dacha cooperative.

Temple-chapel of the icon of the Mother of God “Burning Bush” of the 11th fire department in St. Petersburg. The consecration on June 27, 2003 is timed to coincide with the 200th anniversary of the St. Petersburg professional fire brigade. A memorial to firefighters was created in the church: the names of more than 2,000 firefighters who died in service from the time of the siege of Leningrad to the present day are engraved on the walls.

Church of the Burning Bush in the Mother of God-Milostovsky Monastery in Kadoma, Ryazan region. Built from 1896 to 1910. Closed in 1930. Today it occupies the school building at the technical institute.

The Cathedral of Our Lady of Neopalimovskaya in Ulyanovsk is a small wooden church. The year of construction was 1912. In 1940 it was closed, but in 1941 the Temple of the Burning Bush was returned to believers. The renovation was carried out in 1991.

There are churches and chapels in apparently sparsely populated areas. Then, on the island of Mizh in Lake Onega, opposite the village of Lambas-Ruchey, on the site of the disappeared village of Mizhostrov, there is a wooden church-temple of the Burning Bush.

And these are not all the temples of the Burning Bush that exist today in the vast expanses of Russia. Such churches serve, like all Christian cathedrals, to perform Christian rituals, but their main goal is to strengthen faith in the miraculous power of the Burning Bush icon to protect people and their homes from fires.

Contacts and information for pilgrims

Phone numbers:

• abbot;
• secretary (on this phone on weekdays from 10:30 to 16:30 you can find out information about the work of clubs, class schedules or get other additional information);
• accounting;
• security;
• church shop.

You can contact the church shop to register for services, weddings, baptisms, funeral services. At the end of 2022, the church website became able to submit requests and notes online. To provide such a service, there is a “Requirements” tab in the right column of the site; when ordering online, you must make a donation. So, 50 rubles. – this is the recommended amount when submitting a note for the liturgy (list), 100 rubles each. – prayer service and memorial service, 1000 rubles. - forty-year-old for a year.

If it is not possible to make a donation, then a note can be sent through the “Contacts” section. The temple has a “Book of Mutual Help”, in which you can not only ask for support, but also offer your help to the temple or parishioners.

Patronal feast of the church

This is September 17, the feast of the image of the Most Pure Virgin “The Burning Bush”. Its name goes back to the Old Testament story about a thorn bush burning with unearthly fire, from the flame of which the Lord Himself turned to the prophet. Moses (Ex. 3:5), sending him to lead His people out of Egypt.

The unburnt bush is considered a kind of symbol of the Most Pure Virgin, who preserved her virginity after the Incarnation and Birth of the Savior, She Whose love embraces and transforms the world. It is not for nothing that the halo around the figure of the Mother of God on this particular icon of Her is special; it is a star with eight rays surrounding the Mother of God. The same is the halo of the Savior on the icon of the Transfiguration.

N.V. Dmitrieva, in her book about the Mother of God images, writes:

Isn't this a revolution similar to the change in the soul of the prophet? Moses, is needed by many of our contemporaries who have lost, but are looking for God?

Sunday School

A Sunday school is organized at the church. Classes are held here for 3 children's age groups.

Schedule for children of the younger group (6–8 years old):

• 13 o’clock – God’s Law;
• 13 hours 40 minutes – liturgics;
• 14 h. 30 min. - choral singing;
• 15 hours 10 minutes – lessons in fine arts.

Classes for middle group children (8–10 years old):

• 13 o’clock – God’s Law;
• 13 hours 40 minutes – liturgics;
• 14 h. 30 min. – ISO;
• 15 hours 10 minutes - choir lesson.

Class schedule for children 12–16 years old:

• 13 o’clock – God’s Law;
• 13 hours 40 minutes – lesson on moral theology;
• 14 h. 30 min. – reading practice;
• 15 hours 10 minutes – choir;
• 15 hours 50 minutes – fundamentals of church art.

Social work, everyday life

The church carries out broad and varied social work. Various circles have been organized (for example, an Evangelical circle and a circle for the study of Orthodox doctrine), clubs, a Sunday school operates, various training programs have been developed, and assistance is provided to those in need.

Church embroidery

From 2022, a 2-year training in church embroidery is being conducted. Everyone is welcome, ages 14 and older.

In the first year of study, in classes that last 4 hours, students master goldsmithing and other types of sewing:

• gimp;
• cord;
• beads;
• satin stitch

The second year course is devoted to face sewing, as well as the basic techniques of sewing faces, icons, and shrouds.

Cinema Club

The film workshop is open to young parishioners aged 13 to 17 years. The club has developed an interesting training program.

It includes:

• studying the basics of dramaturgy and cinematography;
• development of film scripts;
• creating posters for your films;
• video editing and processing.

During the training period, which takes place under the guidance of specialists, the guys learn to create documentaries.

Students choose topics at their own discretion:

• fiction films-parables;
• social videos;
• films about famous people of the past.

Altar School

After the evening service on Fridays, classes are held at the altar school. It is open to parishioners who want to become sextons or serve as a reader. Studying here will allow you to experience the sacrament of serving at the Altar.

Temperance Club

There is a sobriety club at the temple, where everyone who needs this kind of help has the opportunity to get a free consultation with a narcologist, psychotherapist, or psychiatrist. If necessary, by appointment, you can get an appointment with specialists from the Federal State Budgetary Institution “National Medical Research Center named after. V. P. Serbsky."

Help for Christian refugees

The clergy of the temple provides serious assistance to Christian refugees. Until now, Christianity is the most persecuted religion in the world. In countries such as Somalia, Afghanistan, Korea (North), Libya, Pakistan, Christianity is persecuted, forcing true believers to emigrate. Finding themselves in Russia, where immigration legislation is strict, such people need help.

The Nearby Home Foundation, headed by Dionisy Grishkov, the rector of the temple, provides serious support to the following refugees:

• collaborates with organizations welcoming Christian refugees;
• provides legal assistance;
• financially supports migrants and their families (pays rent, medicines, etc.).

In addition, regular assistance is provided to parishioners in need, and since the beginning of 2022, food preparation has been organized in the clergy house, which is distributed to the homeless at the station on Thursdays.