Orthodox Church of the Nativity of Theotokos

Visited: June 14, 2014

Orthodox Church of the Nativity of Theotokos in Kuriste was built in 1890, perhaps the first orthodox church on the island. The building stones were brought from Riga.

 

Orthodox Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (or Orthodox Church of St Prince Vladimir...) in Narva-Jõesuu

Visited June 8, 2013

I am not sure I have the name of this church correct. the website I often use to find more information on a church, Wayfarer's Churches 2013, lists the church as Orthodox Church of St Prince Vladimir in Narva-Jõesuu. And as best as I can tell from the picture, this is the church I saw.

However, the sign on the church, as best I can tell, says this is the church of the Mother of God Kaazan Icon.

The website says that the Orthodox Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God is in Sillamäe. I did visit the church they have pictured as well, but it was built in 1990 and is way too new for this blog.

At an rate, the church I visited in Narva-Jõesuu is definitely the church that was built in 1867 and moved to Narva-Jõesuu from Mereküla in 1948. It is an adorable little church with the beautiful icons you expect of an orthodox church on the inside...

...and the cute wood carved creatures you might expect to find in the Great Smokey Mountains on the outside.

There was a sweet old lady at the church who spoke no English but did speak both Russian and Estonian who let us in and who sold my in-laws, who visited with us, a lovely souvenir to take back to the states.

Bascilica of Jekaterina in Pärnu

Visited May 20, 2013

According to the sign on the church, the orthodox Church of Jekaterina was begun in 1765 and completed in 1768, a century before the majority of orthodox churches here. It was built by order and financed by the Russian Queen Catherine II.

Orthodox Church of the Dormition of the Mother of God in Tahkuranna

Visited May 20, 2013

We made a road trip to Riga this weekend. I did take some church pictures there, but those aren't for this blog.

Instead, I found a few churches I hadn't shot before, including the Orthodox Church of the Dormition of the Mother of God in Tahkuranna.

This church was built in 1872 and is out in the middle of the woods right by the water. It is the home church of Konstantin Pats, the first president of Estonia.

Orthodox Church of St Mary Magdalene in Haapsalu

Visited May 11, 2013

We found the Estonian Orthodox Church of St Mary Magdalene while walking along the prominade after lunch in Haapsalu. It was built in 1852 and is really beautiful on the outside. Of course...I didn't get to go inside. I have the worst luck with locked churches!!

Orthodox Cathedral of St Simeon and the Prophetess Hanna in Tallinn

Visited March 30, 2013

This is a church I have never noticed. It is on a street I have been down, but if I ever saw it, it just didn't jump out.

The Orthodox Cathedral of St Simeon and the Prophetess Hanna was begun in 1752 and completed in 1755.

It is located down near the harbor on the route I usually take to catch the ferry to Helsinki. It is a pretty little wooden church that looks like it came out of a fairy tale. It was build on the initiative of Russian sailors, and it the second Orthodox church to have sprung up as part of the suburban building boom that followed the Great Northern War. The first, as you know, was the Orthodox Church of the Nativity of the Mother of God (Kazan Icon) that I wrote about yesterday.

The coastline in this area was considerably closer to the city then than it is now, owing to the land being filled it, so this church was practically on the edge of the water, and legend has it that rubble from shipwrecks was used for landfill for the church.

Like most churches in Estonia, the building was seriously damaged during Soviet times, when it was turned into a sports hall. During that time, it lost its bell tower and onion dome, but the church was fortunatley restored after Estonia re-independence. Since 2001, an Estonian Orthodox congregation has been active there, and they have services on Sundays at 10am.

Luckily for me, this church was open, so I was able to get some shots of the beautiful interior as well.

Orthodox Church of the Nativity of the Mother of God (Kazan Icon)

Visited March 30, 2013

I see this church nearly every day, but I had never taken a picture of it. I had been told, incorrectly as it turns out, that it was built in 1901. So it was just outside of my date range. Still, it was one I planned to do a post on anyway, just because it was cool looking. It was just filed under "when I get around to it."

With a little spare time on Easter weekend, I decided to look it up on the internet and wander over to take some pictures. It is only a few blocks from my apartment.

Turns out, the Orthodox Church of the Nativity of the Mother of God (Kazan Icon), was not built in 1901.

It was built in 1721, and is the oldest specifically orthodox church in Estonia.

The church was the first church to be completed after the Great Northern War in the early 18th century, a conflict that ended with Estonia under tsarist Russian rule. After the war, Tallinn's suburbs were growing quickly as the town was absorbing more and more Russian immigrants. And so churches like Our Lady of Kazan were built.

Even the repairs are older than 1901...the church was repaired extensively in the 19th century, giving it a neo-classical façade and interior. And sevices are still held there, on Saturdays at 5pm and Sundays at 8am. I even saw a priest in the churchyard (you can see him in the bottom picture).

Church of the Transformation of the Lord in Lümanda

Visited February 27, 2013

So I know it has been a while since I posted. I have had two problems. The first is, I have been too busy to go see many churches. And the second is, of those churches I have seen, I have been too busy to post about them. Good Friday seems like an appropriate time to start catching up.

So I actually saw the Church of the Transformation of the Lord in Lümanda a month ago. I was doing regional outreach to Saaremaa, and this chuch was near a school I spoke to about Black History Month.

The church was constructed in 1870. I don't know much more about it than that, but it is a nice little church out in the country.

Prophet Elijah Orthodox Chapel in Malvaste, Hiiumaa

Visited: Not yet!

This post is totally cheating...for two reasons. First, it was built in 1906, so really it falls outside my established date range. It is too new.

And second, I haven't actually visited it yet.

My section runs the Embassy's Regional Outreach program, where we send teams of one American and one Estonian out into the Estonian counties. And this picture was snapped by one of my staff members during a visit to the island of Hiiumaa because she knew I liked churches and this one is just cool.

Prophet Elijah Orthodox Chapel is a simple, one room building with a straw roof on its chapel section. It was actually moved to the site in 1925.

I do plan to visit. I'll update this post when I do!

EDIT:
I am a cheater no more! I visited this church on June 14, 2014 during a trip to Hiiumaa. So finally I have some pictures of my own!