The Church of St. Nicholas of Myra in Novaya Sloboda
The Church of St. Nicholas of Myra in Novaya Sloboda in the Synodal Missionary Department (Patriarchal Suburb) is an Orthodox church in the Tverskoy District of Moscow (Iverskoye Parish of the Central Vicariate of the Moscow Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church). The temple was rebuilt several times since its construction in the late XVI-early XVII century. In 1903-1905 the hipped belfry and the refectory were built. In 1934 the temple was closed, in 1937 it was rebuilt to house the Central Anti-religious Museum. The altars were replaced by a five-storey building in the style of Stalinist architecture, which gave the temple its modern appearance. From 1945 to 2017 the temple housed the Soyuzmultfilm studio. In February 2018 the building was handed over to the Russian Orthodox Church. Before the church was closed it had three altars: the central one in honour of the Smolensk icon of the Mother of God, the northern one in honour of St. Nicholas of Myra and the southern one in honour of the Conception of the Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord John. At present the Smolensk side chapel (now on the first floor of the building) and the Nicholas side chapel are being reconstructed. On Saturdays the temple holds services in English and French. The main shrine of the temple is an exact copy of the Holy Cross discovered in 1423 on the Sakhot bog near the village of Godenova (Godenova Cross). Among the shrines of the temple is an icon of the Holy Martyr Antipas, Bishop of Pergamon, to whom people pray for toothache (as there is a dental research institute nearby).
Saint Nicholas, Archbishop of Myra, the Wonderworker (c. 270 – c. 345) was born in Patara into a Christian family. He was marked by piety from his childhood. He gave his fortune to charity after the death of his parents. He was elected as Bishop of the city of Myra in Lycia (modern name – Demre, Turkey) at the end of the persecution of the Emperor Diocletian. He took part in the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea, where he condemned the heretic Arius and passionately defended Holy Orthodoxy. He is especially venerated as the patron saint of sailors and travellers, as well as the innocently condemned and slandered. In Russia, St. Nicholas was the most revered saint from the very beginning of the spread of the Christian faith, even before St. Nicholas, the equal of the Apostle Prince Vladimir. According to legend, the first Christian ruler of Kiev, Askold, was named in his honour at his baptism. The example of the righteous life of St. Nicholas of Myra and the numerous posthumous miracles of his relics and icons still attract the hearts of the faithful.
Address: Moscow, Dolgorukovskaya str., 25
