Yanino-1, Leningrad Province, Russia, November 17, 2022
Photo: nevnov.ru
The church in the village of Yanino-1, outside St. Petersburg, Russia, was completely devastated in a fire that broke out on the night of November 12.
The wooden Church of the Holy New Martyr Benjamin of Petrograd stands almost completely in ashes. The walls and roof are full of holes.
But even in the midst of such tragedy, there was room for a miracle, parish priest Archpriest Alexy Fomin told Nevsky News.
Although the altar suffered the most, at the same time, the fire completely bypassed an icon of Christ the Savior that was hanging in the High Place.
“We found an icon under the rubble today. We pulled it out, and it’s practically untouched. It’s a miracle. There’s no other way to describe it. It fell face down, and even the rug in the altar was preserved underneath the icon. Everything else was badly damaged,” Fr. Alexy said.
Photo: nevnov.ru
The priest explained that the icon had been hanging on a rope, which itself was burnt. The icon fell neatly to the floor and remained untouched by the flames, although it had been hanging in the very center of the fire.
Altogether, about 40 icons were saved, but the church itself needs to undergo serious restoration work. The dome on the roof needs to be replaced, Fr. Alexy said, as there’s a serious danger of collapse.
An investigation is underway. Thus far, no signs of arson or short-circuiting has been found.
Follow OrthoChristian on Twitter, Vkontakte, Telegram, WhatsApp, MeWe, and Gab!
