Izhevsk, the church "Philadelphia": a description and interesting facts

The capital of Udmurtia is the city of Izhevsk. The Philadelphia church settled here. It is a Protestant religious organization, which is part of the Russian Church of Evangelical Christians. In Izhevsk, it is located in the Ustinov district. You can easily find a church on the street of Labor.

Protestant Church

There are very few Protestants in Russia. Therefore, the right of one of the capitals of this religion is Izhevsk. The Philadelphia church appeared here in 1998, when the construction of the building was completed.

In general, Protestants - this is one of the directions of Christianity, along with Orthodoxy and Catholicism. Its appearance is connected with the global epoch of the Reformation in Europe, when the anti-Catholic movement was very strong. Protestantism was born in the 16th century.

The development of Protestantism in Russia

Protestantism, of course, is not the largest religious organization in Russia, but it occupies its strong place, has a sufficient number of supporters and followers. Many of them come to Izhevsk. The Church of Philadelphia is for them a kind of spiritual center.

In our country, according to experts, the most popular is Orthodoxy. Supporters of this religion are about 75% of believers. 5% profess Islam. A large proportion of non-believers and atheists, about 10% of them. Most of the other popular religions in the world have about 1% of adherents in Russia. These include Protestantism, as well as Catholicism, Judaism and Buddhism.

History of the Church

In the territory of post-Soviet Russia, the first Protestant communities began to emerge in 1992. During the reign of Soviet power, religion was actually outlawed. And if the Orthodox still had the opportunity to go to the temple under the contemptuous glances of those around them, then for Soviet Protestants there were practically no loopholes.

One of the first Protestant communities chose Izhevsk as its center. The Philadelphia church originated in a rented building on Club Street. Here, the project of building their own cult building was discussed. A competition was announced. It was won by a married couple Shavaliev. Nellya Mansurovna and Airat Fatkhulovich took up the implementation of this idea.

Start of construction

Several years passed from the project to the construction of the building. The first works began in 1998. The materials and labor of the workers were allocated foreign funding - the money went to Izhevsk. The Church of Philadelphia began to acquire the first features. The money came mainly from the funds of the Protestant church and from private donors from Scandinavia.

However, money often was not enough, so the work was carried out intermittently. The official opening took place only in 2011. So there was Philadelphia (the church). Izhevsk has become an attractive city for Protestants.

An interesting fact is that two years have passed since the works were completed before the issuance of a permit to operate the building. Only in 2013 it was received. And this was achieved only through the court. Udmurt judges admitted that all the conclusions in the refusal to operate the prayer house are invalid, and the decision of the State Construction Supervision Committee to prohibit the building is illegal.

Ceremonial opening of the church

The grand opening ceremony took place shortly after Christmas, January 25, 2013. Festive Protestant worship lasted three days.

In particular, Sergei Ryakhovsky, who is a bishop of Russian Protestants, a well-known national public and religious figure, participated in it.

Has earned in a daily mode after that Philadelphia (church). Izhevsk in a sense became a place of pilgrimage for Protestants. After all, they do not have many churches of their own in Russia.

Church of Philadelphia (Izhevsk)

Today it is a modern church. Its building includes a huge meeting hall, which can accommodate about one thousand a hundred people. There is a spacious conference hall for 140 participants.

The church has a modern sports and recreation complex, a shop selling Christian literature, a Sunday school with several classes, a Bible college for those who want to continue their spiritual education.

The Christian Church of Philadelphia today is one of the largest Russian Protestant churches. By total area it is among the leaders. The four-story building is located almost seven thousand square meters.

Sermons in the Church of Philadelphia

Not only its scale and large areas attract many church of Philadelphia (Izhevsk). The sermons that are read here give spiritual strength to many believers. At least, the Protestants themselves say so.

As the abbots of the temple themselves tell, their sermons are similar to the adventure novels of the French science fiction writer Jules Verne. Like him, believers are invited to a fascinating journey through unknown spaces before them. In this church, believers are invited to make an equally fascinating journey than the heroes of Verne. But not to distant unexplored beaches, but according to the Bible.

According to the Protestants themselves, there is no less interesting and exciting here. First of all, for the mind and heart.

Church of Philadelphia (Izhevsk) - sect?

True, not everyone believes that the Protestant Church of Philadelphia is harmless and harmless. Many people call it a sect.

Some blame the Protestant church for destroying their families. There are cases when the wife for the sake of the ministry of this church with the children left her husband, independently filing for divorce.

It is also noted that the service itself is more like not a religious rite, but a theatrical performance. This also makes many call the activities of Philadelphia sectarian. The hall, according to the stories of curious parishioners, is more like a musical theater. It is not ordinary wooden benches, as in Catholic churches, but balconies and boxes with soft seats.

The thundering music is constantly heard, the pastor broadcasts as if from the very sky. Parishioners are encouraged to constantly sing songs, climb and dance. All this introduces people into a trance. And they often sing under karaoke. The lyrics are displayed on the big screen. At the same time, on a regular basis, everyone is reminded of the need to donate voluntarily. They are collected both directly at the entrance to the temple, and passing through rows with bags.

In the very church of Philadelphia, of course, refute any allusions to sectarianism. According to the Protestants themselves, any Christian or religious movement that does not bring a real change in the life of the people can be referred to a sect. In this case, the society is really threatened with serious danger, such exercises must be protected from people by any available legal methods.

However, in the Russian judicial practice there is no clear definition of what a sect is. Therefore, this term is often interpreted in its own way. The ministers of the church of Philadelphia like to give as an example the definition of the sect, which give the famous Orthodox philosophers - Bulgakov and Florensky. In the opinion of these learned men, the sect can only include that religious teaching that does not contribute to the development of human thought, does not help morally and spiritually develop parishioners and pastors.

Summing up, it should be noted that officially the Izhevsk church of Philadelphia is not banned, not recognized as a sect. Its activities are fully authorized in the territory of the Russian Federation.