Vyksa Iversky Convent. Monastery – Vyksa, Iveron, women’s

Vyksa Iversky founded convent in 1864 as an almshouse by the novice of the Gethsemane monastery V.I. Merkulov, residents of the village. Vyksa to the holy fool Dimitry Pivovarov († April 5, 1868), spouses E.V. and N.Ya. Kokin, A.Ya. and E.P. Borodachev. In 1860-1862. Pivovarov, influenced by conversations with Merkulov, converted from the Old Believers to Orthodoxy and settled in a hut in a cemetery, 4 versts from Vyksa. In the early 60s. XIX century The Kokins and Borodachevs decided to found a monastery for poor girls and widows near Vyksa, and in 1863, on the recommendation of the blessed one. Demetrius visited the Gethsemane monastery of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. According to legend, St. Filaret (Drozdov) blessed the creation of the monastery, and entrusted the leadership of the sisters to Merkulov. (Merkulov’s spiritual mentor, Schemamonk Gregory, who died in 1862, bequeathed to him the founding of a women’s monastery.)
In October 1863, Merkulov arrived in Vyksa. On rented from gr. Sheremetev, 5 acres of land a mile from the village of Merkulov served a prayer service, erecting a cross as a sign of the future monastery. The dedication of the Vyksa Monastery is associated with the bringing of the miraculous Oran Icon of the Mother of God in a religious procession to Vyksa at the end of November 1863. According to the records of Hieromonk Job, he miraculously blessed the proposed construction site of the monastery, and on the night of November 29, he saw in a subtle dream the construction of the monastery church of the Vyksa Monastery, which was accompanied by the singing of the troparion to the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God. The area chosen by the elder has long been revered by the people as holy. Tradition says that here at night the bells were ringing repeatedly and burning candles were visible.
With the blessing of Nizhny Novgorod Bishop Nektary (Nadezhdin), with donations from the residents of Vyksa, 3 cell buildings, a tented belfry, a refectory, a wooden fence, outbuildings. The refectory of one of the buildings served as a prayer room; on June 23, 1868, the house Iveron Church was consecrated, in which there was a copy of the Moscow Iveron Icon of the Mother of God. In 1864, 12 sisters lived in the almshouse, led by the head Neonilla Chestnova, the eldest in age and somewhat familiar with the rules and regulations of monastic life; by 1868 there were about 50 sisters.
St. Barnabas drew up communal rules for the Vyksa Monastery. The sisters lived in cells one at a time, did not have any property, and it was forbidden to keep pets or songbirds. The strictness of the diet was exceptional; dairy and oil were allowed only on Saturday and Sunday. It was forbidden to collect donations in the cities; the almshouse existed exclusively with funds raised from the saints. Barnabas merchants-philanthropists, including Rybakov and Yakovleva (in 1873 the community’s capital was about 15,000 rubles, in 1886 - 31,950 rubles, in 1916 - 738,211 rubles). The sisters called the monk “Breadwinner.” St. Barnabas regularly corresponded with both the boss and each sister, and visited the monastery 6-7 times a year.
On May 18, 1874, when the number of sisters exceeded 100 people (among them was schema-nun Daria, mother of St. Barnabas), the almshouse was renamed the Vyksa Iverskaya women's community, the head of which was Maria, daughter of D. Pivovarov.
Around 1878 between St. Varnava and Pivovarova, who showed self-will and disobedience to the elder, a conflict arose that led to discord. With the blessing of Bishop Macarius (Mirolyubov) of Nizhny Novgorod, Pivovarova expelled from the monastery 150 sisters who were devoted to St. Barnabas. The manager of the Vyksa factories, Meshkov, and the Vyksa magistrate gave shelter to the exiles. There are 50 people left in the community. At the end of January 1880, visiting the monastery, St. Barnabas briefly reconciled the boss with the sisters. Soon, violating the commandments of the monk not to send the sisters to collect money, the boss sent 2 nuns to collect donations, but they lost the collection books. Upon their return, the sisters were immediately expelled from the monastery. On June 28, 1881, Bishop Macarius came to the community and, at the insistence of the boss, removed another part of the sisters from the monastery. After an audit carried out by a commission of the Holy Synod, at the beginning of 1882, Pivovarova was removed from the abbotship, the community was headed by the experienced nun Mitrofaniya (Maria Mikhailovna Kryukova), transferred from the Rybinsk Sophia Monastery. After the death of Abbess Mitrofaniya in 1892 (buried behind the altar of the Assumption Church), the former treasurer of Abbess Pavel (Praskovya Ivanovna Kokushkina) was elected abbess.
With donations mainly from Moscow and St. Petersburg merchants and nobles G. F. Shustov, N. A. Zhuravlev and A. I. Reshetnikov, V. N. Muravyov (the future St. Seraphim Vyritsky), the stone 5-domed Iveron Cathedral was built in the monastery With cave church(1872-1877), a bell tower with holy gates (1874-1876, 1894), a 2-story hospital building with an almshouse and a house 5-domed Assumption Church (1884-1887). Thanks to the arched opening that connected the hospital with the church, seriously ill patients could listen to the service without getting out of bed. The hospital and almshouse were built in fulfillment of the request of Schema-nun Daria (Merkulova), who died in the Vyksa Monastery.
On July 8, 1886, the community received the status of a 3-class monastery, where 151 sisters lived. The funds of the Vyksa Monastery amounted to 31,950 rubles, there were 19 acres of estate land. A stone 2-story refectory (1886-1889, 1894), abbot (1890) and singing (1897) buildings were built in the monastery. Under the refectory there were 2 pneumatic stoves that heated the building. In 1897-1902. to the east of the Iversky Church, according to the design of the architect P. A. Vinogradov, a 4-pillar, 5-domed Trinity Cathedral was erected, the main altar of which was consecrated in 1909, the Ascension and All Saints chapels - in 1912. In 1913, a metal gilded iconostasis was erected , all paintings were carried out by the Palekh artel of N. M. Safonov. The cathedral, with an area of ​​about 1600 sq. m., accommodated 4 thousand people. The Iversky Monastery flourished and was famous for its splendor throughout Rus'.
After his death in 1906, Rev. Barnabas's donations dropped sharply, and construction was not carried out.
From 1907 until its closure, the monastery was ruled by Abbess Seraphim.
In the Vyksa Monastery the icon of St. Sergius of Radonezh with a piece of wood from his coffin and the icon of the Mother of God “Quick to Hear”, brought from Athos.
By the beginning of the 20th century. On the territory of the monastery (20 hectares) there was a steam engine, a water supply system, a bathhouse, 2 ponds, several wells, a barnyard (60 heads of cattle), a horse yard (20 horses), an orchard and flower beds, vegetable gardens with greenhouses. For Rev. Varnava, a 2-story wooden house was built in a pine forest, and a hotel for 400 people was built for pilgrims. 10 km from the Vyksa Monastery there was a plot of land of 150 acres with a forest, an apiary for 150 beehives and 4 wooden outbuildings for the sisters. A factory was built next to the monastery, where baked bricks were made. The monastery owned 2 residential apartment buildings in Moscow and a chapel in St. Petersburg. With funds from the monastery, parochial schools were built in Vyksa (for 60 students) and in the village. Motmos. In the Vyksa Monastery they were engaged in icon painting, bookbinding and shoe making, gold embroidery was mastered, there was a bookstore, a library, a photo workshop, and a pharmacy. In 1915, the Vyksa Monastery received the evacuated Illukst Orthodox School from the Courland province.

Three monastery shrines were especially revered:
- icon of the Iveron Mother of God,
- metal artistic tomb with parts of the relics of St. saints “numbering up to 100”,
- font and statue of the Weeping Christ (currently located in the Church of the Nativity).

The ensemble of the monastery consisted of:
- Assumption Hospital Church,
- the majestic Iversky Temple,
- Cathedral Life-Giving Trinity, appearance reminiscent of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior,
- a bell tower, the largest bell of which weighed 1076 pounds, as well as white-stone residential and utility buildings and other monastery buildings.

The territory of the monastery, bordered by dense forest, was decorated with luxurious flower beds, alleys and orchards. The walls of the temples were painted by artists from the famous Palekh workshop of Safonov.
Even the arrangement of buildings itself had a symbolic meaning. The monastery complex evoked associations with the heavenly city of Jerusalem described in the Apocalypse (XXI, 12-16) and depicted on icons.
Pilgrims flocked from all over Rus' to visit this blessed place.
On May 9, 1919, Archbishop visited the Vyksa Monastery. Nizhny Novgorod Evdokim (Meshchersky) installed nun Margarita as abbess, and on May 10, 1919, he tonsured 56 sisters. In 1920, 424 people lived in the monastery.
In 1921, part of the buildings was occupied by the district executive committee, and Red Army soldiers, penal prisoners, and factory specialists were accommodated in cell buildings. By the decision of the Presidium of the Nizhny Novgorod Provincial Executive Committee of May 30, 1924, the Vyksa Monastery was closed, some of the nuns moved to the Diveevsky Seraphim Monastery, a store and a pharmacy were located in the cells, and people were accommodated.
In 1923-1927 The Trinity and Assumption churches, the entire Iveron Church, the fence, and the 3 upper tiers of the bell tower, which was adapted for a water tower, were partially destroyed. Other buildings were given to the Vyksa Metallurgical College, a boarding school and other organizations.
In 1937-1938 On charges of anti-Soviet activities, former nuns E. I. Malutina, A. I. Shevelkina, O. I. Kostina, Kh. V. Bulaeva, A. K. Morozova, M. V. Dubovitskaya, L. were convicted and exiled to the correctional labor camp. K. Konstantinova, Markellina and Maria Bautkin.
On October 26, 1991, on the day of the celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, the religious community was registered. Priest Alexander Kulikov was appointed its rector, under whose leadership work was carried out to recreate the first functioning church. It became the building of a former church shop, connected to the bell tower. It was converted into a temple and the main altar was consecrated in honor of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God.
On February 25, 1993, on the day of the feast of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, the first Divine Liturgy was served here.
In 1995, part of the buildings of the Vyksa Monastery was transferred to the Russian Orthodox Church.
By decree of Metropolitan Nikolai (Kutepov) of Nizhny Novgorod on October 25, 1996, the first nuns of the reviving monastery were 3 nuns of the Diveyevo monastery, older sister- nun Theophylacta (Levinkova) from the Tolga Monastery.
On February 17, 1997, the Vyksa Monastery was officially opened. Currently, the Trinity Cathedral is being restored, regular services are held in one of its chapels, and the house of St. Barnabas, 2-story building.
A joyful event in the life of the reviving parish was the return to the monastery of the surviving shrine - the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God. The icon was in a deplorable state, so a decision was made to restore it. The shrine is sent to the Diveyevo Monastery, where, through the efforts of the restoration sisters, it receives a rebirth.
They say that when the icons of the Trinity Cathedral were thrown into a pile not far from the temple prepared for destruction, the gathered believers heard crying coming from there. It stopped only after the residents of a nearby house secretly removed the image of the Iveron Mother of God. Recently, a miraculous event happened to this icon again - during its restoration, self-renewal occurred.
When clearing the rubble in the Trinity Cathedral, the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God was removed from under the rubble of bricks, which further strengthened faith in the Heavenly Patroness.
In 1997, the community was renamed into a monastery, the first abbess of which was the nun Theophylacta (Levinkova). With a small number of sisters, she resumed the monastic life of the ancient monastery. And on October 24, on the eve of the celebration of the patronal feast of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, with the blessing of Metropolitan Nikolai (Kutepov), the first 14 sisters were dressed in cassocks.
The Incessant Psalter began to be celebrated in the monastery.
Gradually, the former monastery buildings are transferred to the monastery, in particular the former Merchant Hotel, in one of the halves of which the diocesan Theological School is located.
Effective since November 1999 Board of Trustees on the restoration of the narthex of the Trinity Cathedral of the monastery, headed by the dean of the Vyksa district, Archpriest. Gennady Kolokolov.
On February 11, 2002, nun Vera (Mironova) (in monasticism – Antonia) was appointed senior sister of the monastery.
Through the joint efforts of benefactors and sisters of the monastery, the vestibule of the Trinity Cathedral was repaired. The rite of consecration of the porch in honor of St. Barnabas of Gethsemane was celebrated on November 27, 2003 by Bishop George of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas. Since that time, daily morning and evening services have been held here. The main shrines of the monastery were also moved here - the miraculous icon of the Iveron Mother of God and the reliquary with a particle of the relics of St. Barnabas.
On August 17, 2004, nun Antonia (Mironova) was appointed abbess of the Iversky Convent with the laying of a pectoral cross. The ceremony of confirmation as abbess took place in the Old Fair Cathedral Nizhny Novgorod. Today 14 sisters will join the monastery. They work in various obediences. The monastery has a large farmstead, a barnyard where cows, goats, and a poultry house are raised. In the courtyard of the cell building (the former house of St. Barnabas) there is a flower garden, and exotic plants grow on the windows of the cells.
In April 2005, one of the rooms on the first floor of Barnabas’s house was converted into a “children’s room.” Today, five orphan girls live and are raised in the Iverskaya monastery under the tutelage of the mother abbess.

Pages from the Chronicle of the Monastery

In the chronicle of the monastery we find the following words: “Upon his arrival in Vyksa at the end of 1863, Fr. Varnava, together with Kokin and Borodachev, began looking for a place to build an almshouse, from which in the near future the wonderful, well-appointed Iverskaya monastery would emerge and become the object of reverent surprise for everyone... With the onset of spring 1864, construction of an almshouse began at Vyksa, completed by the fall of that same year. Thus, in 1864, the Vyksa women’s almshouse arose, in which initially 12 women and the holy fool Dimitri could find shelter.”
Literally on the first pages of the Chronicle of the monastery, the names of pious Vyksa residents are named: Dmitry Pivovarov, Yegor Vasilyevich Kokin and his wife Natalia Yakovlevna, Alexei Yakovlevich Borodachev and his wife Ekaterina Petrovna, whose concerns and financial donations began the history of our monastery. Why did these people so desire to establish a Holy monastery in native land?
We find the answer in the Chronicle of the monastery: “The monastery was erected in a central area in relation to factory villages, the inhabitants of which consist not only of Orthodox Christians, but of a large number of schismatics and even non-believers. Here, due to the infection of schism and constant vain activity, many of the Orthodox have a cold attitude towards the church and its statutes.” Undoubtedly, the true patriots of Orthodoxy worried about the spiritual and moral state of their fellow countrymen, prayed, and the Queen of Heaven blessed the meeting of the Vyksa merchants with the elder of the caves of the Gethsemane monastery of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, Hieromonk Varnava, who was the builder of the Iveron Monastery on Vyksa.
The abolition of serfdom in 1861 caused a massive exodus of poor peasants to the cities, where they went in search of a livelihood. This in turn led to the disintegration of many families, especially since women's labor in cities was used to a lesser extent than men's. For a significant number of women, monasteries turned out to be the only refuge from poverty and death, giving them the opportunity to continue living, moving away from worldly worries and bustle, saving their souls through feasible feats and praying for loved ones and relatives. Priest Pavel Florensky wisely called monasteries “a spiritual sanatorium for many wounded souls.” According to statistical data for Russia, since 1861 there has been a significant increase in newly created monasteries, especially for women. By 1917, there were 37 monasteries in the Nizhny Novgorod diocese, of which 9 were male and 28 were female. One of the women's monasteries that arose in post-reform times is the Vyksa Iversky Monastery.
The small almshouse was gradually developed and expanded. On May 25, 1865, Elder Barnabas sent an icon of the Mother of God called “Iverskaya” and the newly built monastery was named “Iverskaya”. The number of its inhabitants by this time reached more than 50 people. By 1873, the position of the Iverskaya almshouse was strengthened and economically strengthened. At this time, over 100 sisters already lived here. In 1886, the women's community near Vyksa received the status of a third-class monastery. By 1910, not only the ensemble of the monastery was finally formed, but the economic part of the monastery was completely organized. Its territory, now about 20 hectares, included, in addition to the main ensemble, a barnyard where up to 60 heads of cattle were kept, small cattle, a horse yard for 20 horses, and extensive vegetable gardens with greenhouses. The monastery had a drainage system and had its own water supply with a pumping station powered by a steam engine. On a special plot of about 150 hectares, located 9 km from the monastery, construction timber and firewood were harvested. There was also a beekeeper with 150 hives and four wooden residential outbuildings. At a brick factory located not far from the monastery, fired bricks were produced for monastery construction, up to 800,000 pieces per season (from May 1 to August 1). In addition, the monastery owned a courtyard of two houses in Moscow, as well as a chapel in St. Petersburg. The monastery was not only able to provide for its own needs, but was also engaged in charitable activities. With his funds, parochial schools were built in Vyksa and the village of Motmos.
For Fr. Barnabas, the construction of the monastery was one of the main undertakings of his entire life. He devoted more than 40 years to this. The priest lived by the concerns of the monastery, found rich benefactors, personally supervised the construction, the life of the sisters, their spiritual state, coming to Vyksa up to 7 times a year. His mother, schema-nun Daria, lived in the monastery almshouse on equal terms with all the sisters who were there. The construction of the monastery sharply reduced unemployment among the common people, instilled fear of God, reverence for those in power, and restrained the people from revolutionary uprisings. During his lifetime, Father Varnava was honored to see magnificent churches and cell buildings and other buildings of the monastery.
The Iveron Cathedral Church had 6 altars: the central one - the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, the right aisle - St. Basil the Great, etc. Xenia the Roman, left side chapel - St. Nicholas the Wonderworker and St. Sergius of Radonezh. In the underground part of the temple or caves there were also three altars: the central one - to the Cathedral of the Archangel Michael and other ethereal Heavenly Powers, the right aisle - the Supreme Apostle Peter and the Martyr Agrippina, the left aisle - St. Gerasim of Jordan and the Venerable Martyr Anastasia of Rome.
The five-domed Assumption Church was consecrated in honor of the Most Glorious Ascension of the Mother of God into heaven after Her Dormition (celebration August 17/30). The almshouse adjacent to the Assumption Church consisted of two floors. The upper floor consisted of six rooms, in addition to the hallway, the necessary other hospital rooms. From the hospital corridor, a door led to the choir and the sick could freely attend divine services, standing in the choir. The lower floor consisted of an almshouse with six rooms for elderly sisters and a refectory for them.
The largest and most significant building of the monastery was the five-domed stone cathedral church in the name of the Life-Giving Trinity, built according to the design of the architect I. A. Vinogradov, founded eight fathoms from the Iversky Church. The capacity of the temple was designed for 6,000 people; it had two chapels: the right one - in honor of the Ascension of the Lord and the left one - All Saints.
In 1876, the construction of a four-tier bell tower was completed, which housed 18 bells with a total weight of more than 2,000 pounds. The largest bell weighed 1076 pounds. In the upper floor of the bell tower there was a clock with special bells, which chimed every quarter of an hour: “Who can avoid the hour of death?” Two stone buildings adjoined the sides of the bell tower. The first housed a shop for selling books and utensils, where the current Iverskaya Church is currently located, and in the second building lived two bell-ringer sisters (currently not preserved).
There were 25 residential buildings inside the monastery, which housed: a prosphora, a hotel, a hospice room, a candle workshop, an icon-painting workshop, a gold-embroidery workshop, photography, a dentist's office, a bookbinding shop, a shoemaker's shop, a tailor's shop, a flower shop, a kvass shop, a bathhouse, a laundry room, barns - all of this was serviced by the sisters of the monastery . The monastery had large orchards, flower beds with beautiful flowers, which were sometimes arranged so that you could read words, for example, “God save the Tsar.” Citrus fruit trees and other plants unusual for our area could be seen in winter garden. There was a monastery store where there were necessities for both rich visitors and the poor: threads, velvet, fabrics, etc.; as well as monastery-made products: cottage cheese, cheese, vegetables, fruits, pickles, sausages and other meat delicacies. According to the monastery charter, the sisters of the monastery never consumed meat products (this is the charter of all Orthodox monasteries). Life flowed quietly and calmly in the monastery. By 1917, 85 nuns and 395 novices lived there, not counting candidates undergoing monastic training.
After the revolution of 1917, the Vyksa Iversky Monastery did not escape the fate of a huge number of Russian monasteries. In 1919 the monastery was closed. Its buildings housed institutions of the new government, various educational establishments, workshops, etc. Some of the buildings were used for housing. Religious buildings, now seen as a symbol of an alien ideology, were eliminated or given a civilian appearance. In 1923, based on the decrees of the republic to combat famine in the Volga region, many gold and silver crosses, frames, icons, books with precious stones. Constructions that were unnecessary from a utilitarian point of view were dismantled. Thus, the brick left over from the dismantling of the monastery walls and the Iversky Church in 1925-1929 was used in the construction of the Palace of Culture of Metallurgists, a clinic and a maternity hospital. During these same years, the vault of the Assumption Church was dismantled, the Trinity Cathedral and bell tower were blown up. The complex of monastery buildings, which lost its original purpose, received the name of the village named after Lepse. Gradually, its territory, which now had many “owners,” became increasingly cluttered, and the appearance of the buildings was distorted. The once exemplary monastery farm was eventually completely ruined. Some of the sisters went to stay with relatives, and the rest settled near their native monastery. Many of the former nuns of the monastery had to endure the hardships of prison life. The State Archive contains documents of those hard years. Here is part of the indictment against one of the sisters: “Elena Ivanovna Malutina is accused of being a member of a counter-revolutionary group of churchmen, repeatedly organizing gatherings in her apartment... systematically conducting a counter-revolution among the population. propaganda about the death of Soviet power... against collective farm construction and praised the order old Russia. She spread provocative rumors that the tsar and his family were supposedly alive, that Nicholas II would soon rise again to the Russian throne, and at the same time addressed to the leaders of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) and the Sov. authorities expressed themselves in an insulting and terrorist form. She distributed counter-revolutionary literature among the population, the book “24 Protocols of the Elders of Zion.”
From the founding to the closure of the monastery, it was ruled by six abbess: the original schema-nun Neonilla, nun Maria (Pivovarova), Abbess Mitrofania, Abbess Paul, Abbess Seraphim, and Abbess Margarita. For more than 70 years after them, the life of the glorious Holy monastery froze. But it is impossible to wipe off the face of the earth the place chosen by the Queen of Heaven for those who want to please Her and the Lord Jesus Christ through feasible deeds and prayer. On October 14, 1992, on the Feast of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, the community of the Church of the Iveron Mother of God was registered, and on February 25, 1993, on the day of the feast of the Iveron Mother of God, the first Divine Liturgy was served in one of the buildings of the destroyed monastery. Thus a prayer candle was lit for the revival of the desecrated shrine. With tireless zeal, led by the priest Fr. Alexander (Kulikov), numerous members of the community, involving their relatives and friends, worked to clear the ruins of the Trinity Cathedral, improve the transferred buildings and the territory of the reviving monastery.
October 25, 1996 - the day of celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, Metropolitan Nicholas of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas declared the opening day of the Vyksa Iveron Convent, sending sisters from the Seraphim-Diveyevo Convent to begin monastic life. Divine services in the monastery began to be performed according to the monastery charter, the reading of the incessant psalter, a common meal, and a rule for the sisters were established. On Sundays, before the Divine Liturgy, a prayer service is served to the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God with an akathist for chanting. The buildings and cells are gradually being repaired, the transferred territory is being cleaned and beautified. The most extensive work in terms of scale and cost was the restoration of the vestibule of the Trinity Cathedral, which was headed by the dean of the Vyksa district, Archpriest Gennady (Kolokolov). With the help of benefactors, a throne, an altar, an iconostasis were made, and interior decoration for the renovated part of the once majestic five-domed cathedral. On November 27, 2003, in the vestibule of the Trinity Cathedral, His Eminence Bishop George, Bishop of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas, consecrated a throne in honor of the founder of the monastery - St. Barnabas of Gethsemane, the Wonderworker of Radonezh.
Today, 13 sisters live in the Iverskaya monastery, there is a subsidiary farm and vegetable gardens. There is also a library, which is visited not only by the sisters of the monastery, but also by students of the Theological School, as well as many Vyksa residents. The most main shrine The monastery is the miraculous Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, preserved from the times of the old monastery, painted by the sisters of the monastery. An equally revered shrine is a particle of the relics of St. Barnabas of Gethsemane and his surviving personal stole.
Let us, brothers and sisters, give thanks to the Lord God and the Queen of Heaven for having built such a wonderful monastery on our Vyksa land, helping it survive the years of ruin and desolation and blessing it to be reborn again!
The abbess of the Vyksa Iversky Convent is nun Antonia (Mironova).

The Vyksa Iversky Monastery was founded in 1864 by Rev. Barnabas of Gethsemane, with the blessing of St. Philaret (Drozdov), Metropolitan of Moscow. At the beginning it was an almshouse for 12 nuns.

On May 25, 1865, Elder Barnabas sent an icon of the Mother of God called “Iverskaya”, and the newly built monastery was named “Iverskaya”.

The first head of the almshouse, with the blessing of St. Barnabas, Neonilla Chestnova was appointed, who was the oldest in years and most familiar with the rules of monastic life. She led the almshouse for 10.5 years, until in 1874, by decision of the Holy Synod, the almshouse was elevated to the status of a community. Neonilla was one of the first sisters to take monastic vows with the name Nektaria, and later took the schema with the name Neonilla.

In 1877, the Temple was consecrated in honor of the “Iveron” Icon of the Mother of God. On the day of the celebration of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, July 8/21, 1887, the community was converted into a third-class coenobitic monastery. Also in 1887, the hospital Church was consecrated in honor of the “Assumption of the Mother of God.” In 1909, the main altar of the Trinity Cathedral was consecrated; the right and left altars were consecrated in 1912.

In 1919 the monastery was closed. In 1927, the Holy Trinity Cathedral and the bell tower were blown up, the Iversky Church and the monastery wall were dismantled. The last abbess Margarita was shot on December 26, 1937 and buried at the Bugrovsky cemetery in Nizhny Novgorod.

The architectural ensemble of the monastery was formed from 1872 to 1903: churches, a bell tower, numerous cell buildings, and outbuildings were built. A solid brick fence with four octagonal towers in the corners was built along the perimeter.

The architectural complex of the monastery included:

Temple in honor of the “Iveron” Icon of the Mother of God: built in 1877 under the leadership of the architect I. F. Karataev in the Russian-Byzantine style;

Bell tower - 4 - tier, 57 m high. Built in 1876 according to the design of I. F. Karataev with elements of classicism and forms of Russian architecture of the 17-18 centuries, then in 1894 a fifth tier was built - overall height was 68 m. On the upper tier of the bell tower there was a clock with special bells, selected according to tones and playing the melody “Who can escape you, the hour of death?” every fifteen minutes.

The hospital building with the church in honor of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary was built in 1887 according to the design of A.P. Beloyartsev in the Russian style;

Cathedral of the Life-Giving Trinity - built in 1902 by architect P. A. Vinogradov in the Russian-Byzantine style).

The complex of buildings and structures was a striking example of an ensemble from the period of eclecticism.

In our time, the monastery gains fame thanks to our main shrines: the “Iveron” icon of the Mother of God and particles of the relics of St. Barnabas of Gethsemane, which is located in the Assumption Church. The icon of the Mother of God was painted by the sisters of the monastery before its closure in the 19th century. XX centuries IN Soviet time The icon was secretly kept in a pious Vyksa family. When the first church in honor of the Nativity of Christ was opened in the city, the icon was transferred to this church, and then transferred to us in the monastery after the opening of the church in honor of the “Iveron” icon of the Mother of God. People receive help through prayers in front of the miraculous icon. Pilgrims come from different cities to pray at our shrines.

On October 26, 1991, a religious community was registered under the leadership of Priest Alexander Kulikov, through whose efforts in 1995 a temple was consecrated in honor of the “Iveron” Icon of the Mother of God, located in the premises of a former church shop (in the 90s it was an abandoned warehouse). Also, thanks to the community, favorable conditions were created for the beginning of monastic life; the house of Elder Barnabas was prepared for the reception of the first nuns (in Soviet times it was a nursery). On October 26, 1996, Metropolitan Nikolai (Kutepov) announced the opening of the monastery and read out a Decree on sending sisters from the Seraphim-Diveevsky Monastery to the Vyksa Iversky Convent to begin monastic life, among them was the current abbess of the monastery, Abbess Anthony.

In November 2003, the chapel of the Trinity Cathedral was consecrated in honor of St. Barnabas of Gethsemane. In 2012, the bell tower with a full set of bells and chimes was restored, Iversky Square was opened, in the center of which there is a monument to St. Barnabas of Gethsemane. In February 2016, the Assumption Church was consecrated, where daily services are currently held. The monastery operates a Sunday school and a lecture hall for adults.

The most important shrine of the monastery is the miraculously preserved from the times of the old monastery, the miraculous icon of the Mother of God “Iverskaya”, painted by the sisters of the monastery. An equally revered shrine is a particle of the relics of St. Barnabas of Gethsemane and his preserved personal epitrachelion.

Not all buildings have yet been completely transferred to the monastery, and therefore only a small part of the territory is fenced.

Every year on July 19 - the day of remembrance of the Council of Radonezh saints, which includes St. Barnabas, a citywide religious procession is taking place with an icon and a particle of the relics of St. Barnabas. The religious procession is led by Bishop Varnava of Vyksa and Pavlovsk. The religious procession ends in Iversky Square in front of the monument to St. Barnabas prayer service to the Cathedral of Radonezh Saints.

About the rules of the monastery.

Every day a full daily cycle of worship is performed in the monastery. The morning rule begins at 6-45, it includes the midnight office, reading two chapters from the New Testament, an akathist to the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, etc. Barnabas of Gethsemane (alternately). Then on weekdays, most of the sisters, having asked for the blessing of Mother Abbess, go to obedience, which continues until the evening. On simple days, only elderly sisters and those whose obedience allows remain for the Liturgy, but on major holidays all the nuns are required to gather for the Liturgy. Sisters receive communion on major holidays, but those who wish can receive the blessing to receive communion more often - once a week. The incessant psalter is read around the clock.

During the day, the sisters gather at 12-00 for lunch, at 16-00 for afternoon tea and dinner after the evening service, during the meal they listen to the lives of the saints and the teachings of the holy fathers. The sisters live in their cells one at a time, according to the will of St. Barnabas. Each sister has a cell rule. The monastery is big family, sisters support each other.

Now there are 22 sisters in the monastery, mostly all elderly, the oldest is 88 years old.

In the life of all sisters, the main thing is the remembrance of God, the prayerful, heartfelt repentance of the mind before the Lord and the Patroness of the monastery - Holy Mother of God. The nuns learn the correct attitude towards labor obediences, as sacrificial service to their neighbors, which gives them joy and spiritual strength, despite their own mental and physical infirmities and heavy workload. The sisters try, in the words of the apostle, to “bear each other’s burdens” and to be condescending towards the shortcomings of others.

We request collection Money for the restoration of the Holy Trinity Cathedral.

Our details:

Religious organization "Vyksa Iversky Convent

Vyksa diocese (Moscow Patriarchate)"

TIN 5247013210,

Gearbox 524701001,

BIC 042202718,

Payment account 40703810414040000031 in PJSC AKB SAROVBUSINESSBANK, Sarov

C/account 30101810422020000718

Iversky Convent in Vyksa (Russia) - description, history, location. The exact address and website. Tourist reviews, photos and videos.

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In 1863, wealthy Vyksa merchants decided to do a good deed - to establish an almshouse. The Monk Barnabas from the Holy Trinity-Sergius Lavra was invited to choose a place for her. He went into the forest and suddenly stuck a branch in the thicket. There they built a house where three nuns, 12 almshouses and the holy fool Dimitri Pivovarov settled, who protected them from the dangers of life away from people. Two years later, Father Barnabas sent them a copy of the image of the Iveron Mother of God, and the newly created monastery began to be called Iveron.

A 5-domed cathedral church in the name of the Life-Giving Trinity grew up in the monastery courtyard, accommodating up to 6,000 people. The ringing of 18 bells could be heard from the 4-tier bell tower. Daily services were held in the Assumption Church. In 1919 the monastery was closed. In 1927, the cathedral and bell tower were blown up, burying the schema sisters who refused to leave the monastery alive under the ruins. The refectory housed a metallurgical technical school. The ruins returned to the church only in 1991.

What to see

In recent years the monastery has changed a lot. The bell tower was restored from the ruins: the gilded dome, bells and clock on the upper tier were returned to it. First, service was resumed in the surviving chapel of the Trinity Cathedral, and then in the Assumption Church.

The main shrine of the monastery is the miraculous Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, preserved in secret by the guard and brought to the monastery after its revival. The restoration was entrusted to one of the sisters with a diploma from the Art Academy. For a whole year she did not leave her cell, so as not to lose inspiration and not to interrupt her work. Nowadays the icon stands in a floor icon case to the left of the iconostasis. Parishioners assure that rays of goodness and love emanate from her to everyone who comes here with a pure heart.

Trinity Cathedral stands completely covered with scaffolding, and the work is still far from being completed. But the old contours are already emerging majestic building. Other rooms of the monastery are also gradually being rebuilt. A hospice house and a free canteen for pilgrims have been opened. There is a parochial school and an orphanage where 13 girls and 2 boys grow up. The nearby Vyksa Orthodox Theological School houses the Iversky Monastery Museum, where numerous photographs and documents are exhibited.

The Vyksa Iversky Convent was founded in 1863 by the Monk Barnabas of Gethsemane. The monastery began with an almshouse, the ruler of which was recognized and ruled for ten years by one of the first twelve nuns, Neonilla Chestnova.

The area chosen by the elder has long been revered by the people as holy. Tradition says that here at night the bells were ringing repeatedly and burning candles were visible.

From mid-1874 to 1882, for seven years, the monastery was managed by Maria Pivovarova. During her reign, the first stone church and bell tower were built, and the front wall of the fence was also built. Since 1882, the nun of the Sophia Rybinsk Monastery, Elder Mitrofaniya (Kryukova), was appointed head of the community. Under her, in 1887, the Iveron community was elevated to the level of a third-class monastery, and the abbess was elevated to the rank of abbess. The next abbess from 1892 was Nun Pavla. With her on August 17, 1897, the foundation stone of the majestic cathedral in honor of the Life-Giving Trinity took place. And from 1907 until its closure, the monastery was ruled by Abbess Seraphim.

The Iversky Monastery flourished and was famous for its splendor throughout Rus', attracting crowds of pilgrims. Three monastery shrines were especially revered: the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, a metal tomb with particles of the relics of saints “up to 100 in number,” a font and a statue of the Weeping Christ (now located in the Church of the Nativity of Christ).

The ensemble of the monastery consisted of: the Assumption Hospital Church, the majestic Iversky Church, the Cathedral of the Life-Giving Trinity, which in appearance resembled the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, a bell tower, the largest bell of which weighed 1076 pounds, as well as white-stone residential and utility buildings and other monastic buildings. The walls of the temples were painted by artists from the famous Palekh workshop of Safonov. Even the location of the buildings had a symbolic meaning, evoking associations with the heavenly city of Jerusalem.

After the October Revolution, the Iversky Monastery did not escape the fate of other Russian monasteries. In 1919 the monastery was closed. Church property, icons and utensils were nationalized. Monastic buildings and some churches were used by Soviet organizations or were given over to housing. In 1927, the bell tower was blown up and the Cathedral of the Life-Giving Trinity was destroyed. The schema sisters, who did not want to leave the monastery during the explosion, were buried alive in cave cells.

For decades, only the ruins of the cathedral and bell tower, as well as the popular name of the area “Monastery,” spoke of the glorious past of this holy place.

On October 26, 1991, on the day of the celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, the religious community was registered. Priest Alexander Kulikov was appointed its rector, under whose leadership work was carried out to recreate the first functioning church. It became the building of a former church shop connected to the bell tower. It was converted into a temple and the main altar was consecrated in honor of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God. On February 25, 1993, on the day of the feast of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, the first Divine Liturgy was served here. At the same time, in the early 90s, restoration work began in the house of the Venerable Elder Barnabas, as well as clearing debris and stone from the blown-up Trinity Cathedral.

A joyful event was the return of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God to the monastery. The shrine was in a deplorable state; the necessary restoration was carried out by the sisters of the Diveyevo monastery. They say that when the icons of the Trinity Cathedral were thrown into a pile not far from the temple prepared for destruction, the believers heard crying coming from there. It stopped only after the image of the Iveron Mother of God was secretly removed from the pile. When clearing the rubble in the Trinity Cathedral, the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God was removed from under the rubble of bricks, which further strengthened faith in the Heavenly Patroness.

In 1997, the community was renamed into a monastery, the first abbess of which was the nun Theophylacta (Levinkova). This year, the first sisters of the monastery began to read the Indestructible Psalter. Gradually, the former monastery buildings, in particular the former Merchant Hotel, which housed the diocesan theological school, were transferred to the monastery.

On November 27, 2003, Archbishop Georgy of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas performed the rite of consecration of the porch in honor of the Monk Barnabas of Gethsemane. Since that time, daily morning and evening services have been held here. The main shrines of the monastery were also moved here - the miraculous Iveron Icon of the Mother of God and the reliquary with a particle of the relics of St. Barnabas. On August 17, 2004, by decree of the ruling bishop, nun Antonia (Mironova) was appointed abbess of the Iversky Convent with the laying of a pectoral cross.

On June 21, 2007, Bishop George consecrated a house for the children taken under the care of Iversky convent. The monastery in Vyksa became the first monastery whose abbess took orphans under her care. The first children appeared here in April 2005 - now 13 girls live in the monastery.

Temples of the monastery

The porch of the Trinity Church in honor of St. Barnabas of Gethsemane
Temple in honor of the Iverskaya Icon of the Mother of God

Shrines

Iveron Icon of the Mother of God
A particle of the relics of St. Barnabas of Gethsemane
Particle of the relics of Peter and Fevronia of Murom
Particle of the relics of St. Nicholas
Particle of the relics of St. Luke Voino-Yasenetsky
Particles of the relics of the Optina elders
Particle of the relics of Simeon of Verkhoturye
A particle of the relics of St. Fyodor Sanaksarsky and others.

Services are held daily in the narthex in honor of St. Barnabas of Gethsemane at 8-00 and at 17-00 (at winter time at 16-00).
On major revered holidays and on parental Saturdays, early liturgies are celebrated in the Iversky Church, beginning at 6-00. Weddings, baptisms, and funeral services are also held there.

The monastery publishes the newspaper “Iversky Leaf”, published once a month, circulation 998 copies.

A museum of the history of the monastery is being formed.

Social service

The monastery conducts extensive social activities. Every week, the clergy of the monastery visit the house of mercy, where they serve prayers and give communion to the elderly and sick.

An orphanage has been created at the monastery, where 12 orphan girls are raised. The monastery also provides care and assistance to other children's institutions. Among them is boarding school No. 1 of the city of Nizhny Novgorod, Orphanage in the city of Navashino, the Pelican orphanage and a correctional boarding school in the city of Vyksa.

The monastery also provides charitable assistance to convicts, sending them food, spiritual literature, icons, personal hygiene items, clothing, and shoes.

Exposition of projects of the Cathedral in 1999

The Iveron monastery was founded in 1863 by the venerable elder of the Gethsemane monastery of the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, Fr. Barnabas (Merkulov) with the blessing of St. Philaret (Drozdov), Metropolitan of Moscow.

The area chosen by the heart has long been revered by the people as sacred. Tradition says that where the monastery now stands, burning candles were visible many times at night, and bells were ringing. They still bewitch in the ruined mighty Cathedral in honor of the Life-Giving Trinity, which is waiting for benefactors to recreate its former splendor and beauty. Miraculous phenomena accompanied the founding of the monastery, and on November 28 (December 11), 1863, the miraculous icon of the Mother of God of Oran was brought to Vyksa, with which the site for the construction of the monastery was consecrated. Subsequently, the Mother of God continually, through the prayers of the venerable elder Fr. Barnabas, helped in the construction of the monastery.

Two monastery shrines were especially revered: the icon of the Iveron Mother of God, the patroness of monastics, a miraculous source of healing, as well as a metal artistic tomb with parts of the relics of many holy saints “numbering up to a hundred”, on this moment not preserved.

We read the chronicle and cannot be amazed at the previous buildings - the majestic five-domed churches: Assumption, Iveron, Cathedral of the Life-Giving Trinity. The cathedral, created according to the design of P.A. Vinogradov, whose appearance resembled the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, was an adornment not only of the Nizhny Novgorod diocese, but of all of Rus'. The monastery complex also included a giant bell tower, on which a large bell weighed 1076 pounds, beautiful white stone buildings and other monastic buildings, surrounded by orchards, alleys and forests. The walls of the temples were decorated with Palekh paintings made by Safonov’s workshop, known not only in Russia but also abroad.

The system of placing buildings, related to their purpose, had both a functional and symbolic meaning. The planned monastery complex evoked associations with the Heavenly City of Jerusalem described in the Apocalypse (XXI, 12, 16) and depicted on icons, with ideas about paradise. Pilgrims flocked from all over Russia to visit this blessed place.

The founding father of the monastery - the most venerable hieromonk Varnava - was vigilantly concerned about the prosperity of the monastery he founded and the improvement of the nuns. Among the many distinguished guests was Emperor Nicholas II, who came to the elder with repentance in 1905.

Thousands of spiritual children of the blessed elder bitterly mourned the death of Fr. Barnabas in 1906. Comrade Chief Prosecutor of the Holy Synod V.N. Sandler and the now famous Seraphim Vyretsky (merchant V.N. Muravyov) decided to bring the work of the monk to the end. With their funds, the chapels of the Cathedral of the Life-Giving Trinity were rebuilt: in 1909 the main chapel, and in 1912 the right chapel in the name of the Ascension of the Lord and the left chapel of All Saints. One of the attractions in the Cathedral was the font with the “weeping Christ”, from which they received healing. At the moment it is in one of the parish churches in Vyksa.

And finally, the Cathedral appeared before the eyes of people as a great, powerful Russian hero, whose beauty had no equal. But terrible times were approaching.

After the October Revolution, the Iversky Monastery did not escape the fate of a huge number of Russian monasteries - in 1919 the monastery was closed. Many buildings were taken by the authorities, some of the buildings were used for housing. In 1927, the bell tower and the Cathedral of the Life-Giving Trinity were blown up. The explosions were so powerful that local residents had to be evacuated to the forests. The schema sisters, who did not want to leave the monastery, were buried alive in underground cells. All church utensils and parts of the interior were sent abroad, as well as to nearby monasteries; some of the icons were destroyed.

In 1991, on October 26, the day of the celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, the registration of the recreated religious community was certified. And finally, the first service took place on February 25, 1993. A joyful event in the life of the parish was the return to the territory of the monastery of the surviving shrine - the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God. They say that after the explosion of the Trinity Cathedral, all the icons were thrown down near the temple, and crying was heard from there. Residents of a nearby house removed an image of the Iveron Mother of God from a pile of icons, after which the crying stopped. Recently, a miraculous event happened to this icon again - during its restoration, self-renewal occurred. A portrait of the venerable elder Fr. Barnabas, written during his lifetime.

When clearing the rubble in the Trinity Cathedral, the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God was removed from under the rubble of bricks, which further strengthened faith in the heavenly intercessor.

In 1997, nun Theophylacta (Levenkova) was appointed abbess of the monastery. The backbreaking work of restoring the monastery fell on its first inhabitants. Today, 29 nuns live in the Iveron monastery. Their range of work is extensive - they sow, plant, farm and do construction. In their difficult work, the sisters hope for the help of the heavenly patroness; they believe that the Cathedral of the Life-Giving Trinity, and then the entire monastery, will be restored.

Since November 1999, the Board of Trustees has been operating for the restoration of the narthex of the Trinity Cathedral of the monastery, headed by the dean of the Vyksa district, Archpriest. Gennady Kolokolov.

On February 11, 2002, nun Vera (Mironova) (in monasticism - Antonia) was appointed senior sister of the monastery. Through the joint efforts of benefactors and sisters of the monastery, the vestibule of the Trinity Cathedral was repaired.

The rite of consecration of the porch in honor of St. Barnabas of Gethsemane was celebrated on November 27, 2003 by Bishop of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas Georgy (Danilov). Since that time, daily morning and vespers services have been held here. The main shrines of the monastery were moved here - the miraculous icon of the Iveron Mother of God and the reliquary with a particle of the relics of St. Barnabas. The monastery is always ready to receive pilgrims who want to contribute to the restoration of the monastery of the Mother of God of Iveron on Vyksa land.