The island of Patmos among believers is strongly associated with John the Theologian. It was on this island that the Apostle of the Apocalypse was visited. There he wrote the last book of the New Testament.
But there is its own island Patmos in Russia, near the village of Chemal, in the Altai. And on it is a small church in the name of John the Theologian. In the 19th century, a wandering missionary, Brother John, came to the village. For a solitary prayer he was transported to the island. He built a small cell there. Later, fate brought Hieromonk Macarius here. Through his efforts on the shore of Katun, a church was erected in honor of John the Theologian. Father Makarios served in the temple, but for prayer he also loved to cross to the island. After a while, Father Makariy left Altai. Later he became Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomensky.
In 1915, the church was moved to the island, and a wooden bridge was built for the crossing. Metropolitan Makariy came to consecrate the temple in Chemal. He was very concerned about the village and its inhabitants.
He opened a women’s monastic community here, and with it — a parish school. He looked for teachers for the school himself and provided textbooks.
After the revolution, the community was dissolved, the temple was closed. And in 1920, it burned down.
But the Russian land is rich with enthusiasts. The deeply religious Moscow photographer Viktor Pavlov made the restoration of the temple his life’s work. Thanks to him, the temple was built anew, having studied a lot of archival materials, old photographs. In 2001, the church was consecrated.
Now the temple is the hermitage of the Barnaul Women’s Znamensky Monastery.
Charitable Foundation Holy Land
Russian Temples and Monasteries
