←Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith

Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith

Photo of route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”
18 points5 km4 hours

This route introduces the difficult fate of Syzran's religious buildings. Before the revolution the town had 22 churches, two monasteries, and a theological school. Five old churches have survived to this day, forming a kind of Triangle of Faith. Learn more with Susanin's route.

Route author

Susanin Team

Things to do

  • 📜 Learn the city's history
  • 🏛️🕰️ Compare the eras
  • 🏰🕵️‍♂️ Discover a legend

Route points (18)

  1. Tourist Center — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Tourist Center

    🏟️ Architectural landmark · 📜 Historic site

  2. Spasskaya Tower of the Syzran Kremlin — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Spasskaya Tower of the Syzran Kremlin

    🕵️ Urban legend · 🏟️ Architectural landmark · 📜 Historic site

  3. Kozlovsky Monument — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Kozlovsky Monument

    🗿 Monument

  4. Memorial Complex — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Memorial Complex

    🗿 Sculptures

  5. Church of the Nativity of Christ — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Church of the Nativity of Christ

    🕍 Place of worship

  6. Syzranka River — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Syzranka River

    🔭 Viewpoint

  7. View of the Krymza. Kremlin Embankment — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    View of the Krymza. Kremlin Embankment

    🔭 Viewpoint

  8. Panorama of the Zakrymza Side — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Panorama of the Zakrymza Side

    🔭 Viewpoint

  9. Kazan Cathedral — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Kazan Cathedral

    🕍 Place of worship

  10. Cannons at the Local History Museum — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Cannons at the Local History Museum

    🏛️ Museum · 🕵️ Urban legend

  11. Bridge over the Krymza — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Bridge over the Krymza

    🌉 Bridge

  12. Elijah Church — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Elijah Church

    🕍 Place of worship

  13. Old Pharmacy Building — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Old Pharmacy Building

    🕵️ Urban legend

  14. Monastery Embankment from Above — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Monastery Embankment from Above

    🔭 Viewpoint · 🚶‍♂️ Waterfront

  15. Ascension Monastery — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Ascension Monastery

    🕍 Place of worship

  16. Church of the Ascension — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Church of the Ascension

    🕍 Place of worship

  17. Feodorovskaya Church — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Feodorovskaya Church

    🕍 Place of worship

  18. Monastery Embankment from Below — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

    Monastery Embankment from Below

    🚶‍♂️ Waterfront

Elijah Church in Syzran

Point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

Elijah Church — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”
Elijah Church — point on route “Orthodox Syzran, or the Triangle of Faith”

Point 12

Elijah Church

🕍 Place of worship

A Church with Three Altars

The Ilyinsky Church, or the Church of the Prophet Elijah in Zakrymza, has three altars: of the Prophet Elijah, St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, and the Three Holy Hierarchs. The church has a single dome. The Elijah Church once gave its name to the sloboda (settlement) on the surrounding land. This is where the first settlers lived: Cossacks and soldiers transferred here to guard the state's borders. Internatsionalnaya Street, where the church stands, was also formerly called Ilyinskaya.

Historical Background

The church of the Holy Prophet of God Elijah was originally wooden; then, from 1776, a stone church with a tall four-tier bell tower was built. The building was badly damaged in the fire of 1906, which began in just this part of town. The Elijah Church was rebuilt in 1912–13. By the early 20th century the Ilyinsky parish was the largest in Syzran. It ran two Sunday schools and two town parish schools, one for boys and one for girls. The church was closed in the 1920s, after the town council dissolved the “Living Church” organization, which had occupied the building after the October Revolution of 1917. In 1931 the building was converted and handed over to the seven-year factory school of the Moscow-Kazan Railway. The bell tower was probably demolished then; it has not been restored to this day. In 1940 the building was leased to the Syzranselmash plant, which held it until the early 1990s. In 1993 the plant vacated the premises, and the church was handed over to the Church. Its condition was evidently far from good: restoration took 18 years. The first service in the renewed church was held in late April 2011.

The Hieromartyr

From 1920 to 1930 the rector of the Elijah Church was Ioann Suldin. In the 1930s he was arrested several times. On January 14, 1938, the priest Ioann Suldin was shot by order of an NKVD “troika.” At the Jubilee Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church, held in Moscow in 2000, the priest Ioann Suldin was canonized as a hieromartyr.

Children's Center

One of the new buildings near the Elijah Church houses the Children's Diocesan Educational Center. It was founded in 2008 with the blessing of Metropolitan Sergius of Samara and Novokuibyshevsk and with the support of the Government of the Samara Region. At the center, any child aged 4 to 18 can attend classes in a variety of creative groups free of charge and take part in children's festivities.