Christianity appeared in Crimea in the 1st century after the Birth of Christ, when the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called, having received by lot Scythia and the Northern Black Sea region, preached the word of Christ, passing through Tauris. The Christian history of the Crimean peninsula is also inextricably linked with other saints, whose prayerful feat converted many to Christianity. Here it is impossible not to recall the first listeners, the disciples of the holy apostle: their names are Inna, Pinna and Rimma. These names are men’s.

After receiving holy baptism, they preached Christianity in pagan Scythia, and when they reached the Danube with their sermon, they were brutally drowned. Church tradition says that their relics rest in Alushta.

The Holy Martyr Clement, the pope, was exiled to the Crimea to work in the Inkerman quarries, and the history of the Inkerman Monastery, which is considered one of the oldest, is associated with his name. Later, the monastery was consecrated in the name of its founder.

A significant contribution to the development of Orthodoxy in Crimea was made by the Slavic enlighteners brothers Cyril and Methodius, who discovered mysterious signs on which books sacred to Christians – the Gospel and the Psalter – were written during their stay in Chersonesos. The unraveling of these signs became a powerful impetus for the creation of the Slavic alphabet in 863.

It was in Crimea, in Chersonesos, that the Kievan Grand Duke Vladimir was baptized in 988, and it was from Crimea that Orthodoxy came to Russia.

Without faith in God, without religion, there is no basis for a moral life, which is so important for society in our time of political difficulties, economic instability, market relations, when we encounter many obstacles and often lack mental strength. Orthodox pilgrimage often helps us to gain these powers and find our way to the Church. Pilgrimage is a spiritual work, a special spiritual feat. The main goal of a pilgrim is to come into contact with the shrine, his main feeling should be reverence. The meaning of pilgrimage is revealed in prayer, worship, and worship of shrines, and there are many of them in Crimea.

St. Innocent (Borisov), Archbishop of Kherson and Taurida, said: “Crimea seems to have been created to be our Russian Mount Athos…”

When visiting medieval rock monasteries, we see great similarities with Greek ones, but they can also be visited by women, unlike Athos. Those who can gather their strength and climb there, despite the lack of good roads and entrances, will have an unforgettable encounter with the strict and pure monastic life led by the holy ascetics of ancient times.

The ancient monasteries are especially revered by pilgrims and locals. These are the Holy Dormition Bakhchisarai Monastery, where the miraculous Crimean icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary was revealed; the monastery of the holy Silverless Martyrs Cosmas and Damian over Alushta, on whose territory there is a healing spring; the Annunciation Monastery on the southern slope of Mangup: on the top of this mountain was the capital of the ancient Christian principality of Feodoro (XII-XV centuries); Toplovsky Trinity-Paraskevsky Monastery with healing holy springs and baptismal fonts; St. George’s Monastery on Cape Fiolent, whose history is associated with the names of many remarkable personalities: emperors Alexander I and Nicholas II, the outstanding Russian poet Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin and others. St. George’s Monastery played an important role in the spiritual life of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.

It is very important in our time to remember that without faith and morality there is no patriotism. Visiting the shrines of Sevastopol or Kerch, it is impossible not to bow to the feat of the soldiers who selflessly defended our land in fierce battles. That is why, when developing pilgrimage programs, the staff of the pilgrimage center, which operates in the Simferopol and Crimean dioceses, named one of their programs for Sevastopol “And the peaceful call of the shrines and citadels of glory.” This program includes visits to shrines and memorials related to the defense of Sevastopol. It is available on this website.

When coming to Crimea, you need to start exploring the shrines of the peninsula from Simferopol, the capital of the Republic. There are many Orthodox churches in Simferopol. This is also the first temple of the city – the Constantino-Eleninsky Church, the temple in which Catherine II prayed during her trip to the Crimea (1787), and the St. Peter and Paul Cathedral, where the relics of the Crimean Saint Gurius (Karpov), Archbishop of Taurida and Simferopol, rest. His Grace Guriy did a lot for the Tauride Diocese: he founded the Tauride Theological Seminary, conducted extensive missionary activities, and fought against various sects. He was awarded many church and state awards for his work. Knowing Chinese, Vladyka Guriy translated the New Testament, the Psalter, and a number of liturgical books into it. Now you can visit the St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, recreated in the very center of the Crimean capital. This temple was blown up in 1930. This cathedral was recreated under the patronage of the President of Russia through the efforts of Metropolitan Lazar. In the Holy Trinity Cathedral of the women’s monastery, you can worship the relics of St. Luke of Crimea (in the world, Valentin Felixovich Voino-Yasenetsky). He was an Archbishop and a surgeon, who throughout his life set an example of combining the ministry of an archpastor and a doctor. Through the prayers of the saint, numerous miracles of healing from mental and bodily ailments were performed and are being performed, as well as changes in the spiritual state of people for the glory of God.

We really want people coming to Crimea, to this unique place with beautiful nature, gentle sun and warm sea, to discover the Orthodox Crimea for themselves.