This is one of the most popular attractions in the history of the Russian Orthodox religion. It is popularly known as the major monastery of the Russian Orthodox Church in Moscow Oblast of Russia.
New Jerusalem, the beautiful Voskresensky Monastery has given rise to the eponymous village, which has grown into the town of Voskresensk, currently known as Istra. This town of Istra is +-40km outside of Moscow city.
Although the building looks new and fresh, it was founded in 1656 by Patriarch Nikon as a patriarchal residence in the vicinity of Moscow. The monastery took its name from the concept of New Jerusalem. This site was chosen for its resemblance to the Holy Land. According to its history, the River Istra represents the Jordan, and the buildings represent the ‘sacral space’ or holy places of Jerusalem.
Founded in the 17th century by patriarch Nikon, New Jerusalem Monastery was designed after Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It is a functioning monastery and a monument of a great architectural and cultural value. The ceiling inside the main church of this monastery is amazing. You can walk along half the walls that surround the entire property.
History tells us that, The Patriarch Nikon , in his time recruited a number of monks of non-Russian origin to populate the monastery because it was intended to represent the multinational Orthodoxy of the Heavenly Jerusalem. During its secularization in the 17th centuries, this place used to have over 13, 000 peasants. But in 1918, the New Jerusalem Monastery was closed down. Then in 1920 we saw a museum of history and arts and another of regional studies established on the premises of this monastery. This is what led to the Moscow Oblast Museum of Regional Studies opened in 1935, in one of the monastic buildings.
Unfortunately in 1941, the German army ransacked the New Jerusalem Monastery and before their retreat they blew up its unique great belfry; the towers were demolished; the vaults of the cathedral collapsed and buried its famous iconostasis, among other treasures. But after many years of it being closed and not being utilized, there was an interest to open the monastery which in 1959, the museum was re-opened to the public.
The New Jerusalem Monastery was re-established as a religious community only in the 1990s. In March 2009 Russianpresident Dmitry Medvedev signed a presidential decree on the restoration and renovation of the New Jerusalem Monastery.
As of June 2016, there has been great restoration done in the main cathedral, with much of the interior reconstructed and readorned. The great belltower was rebuilt to old designs. The monastery is open to visitors and is actively serving again. Many thousands of visitors come each day, especially on holidays.
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