Odranishki Monastery of St. Peter and Paul

Overview

The Odranishki monastery “St. St. Apostles Peter and Paul ”is a functioning Orthodox monastery in Western Bulgaria. The monastery is located in the Erul Mountains near the village of Odranitsa, 25 km north of the town of Zemen and 60 km north of the town of Kyustendil. It was founded in the 17th-18th century and was rebuilt in 2001 and is now in operation. The monastery has no preserved old foundations, it was built on the supposed site of the old monastery. The only thing left of the old one is the icon of “St. Peter and Paul ”, which was on the altar, dating from the 17th century, is now located in the church, located in the courtyard of the monastery. In the yard of the monastery there are two chapels, a church and a residential building, which houses the abbot of the monastery. Since 2006 the abbot of the monastery is Father Ephraim. The Odranishki monastery “St. Apostles Peter and Paul ”is located about 2.5 km northeast of the center of the village of Odranitsa. It is located in a picturesque valley of the southern part of the Erul Mountains, originating from the foot of Pavlov rid peak. The current Odranishki Monastery was preceded by a monastery founded in the Middle Ages, about which there is no information, neither about the time of its founding, nor about when it was destroyed. It was first restored in 1870 or 1886, according to various sources. The monastery lasted until the arrival of the atheistic socialist government in Bulgaria in 1944, after which it was abandoned and gradually fell into disrepair, until it completely collapsed in the winter of 1985/86. the holy place. The new church was built on the foundations of the old temple. The only thing left of the former monastery is the icon of St. St. Peter and Paul, stored in the Historical Museum in Pernik. It dates from the middle of the 19th century and, according to experts, its author is a Russian artist. The icons and the iconostasis were made by the brothers Ivan (icon painter) and Marko (woodcarver) Hadjiikonomov from Bansko. In its present form, the monastery was built between July 1, 1999 and May 30, 2000, built in just 325 days. Since September 16, 2001 it has been inhabited, with some interruptions, by monks, and since July 1, 2006 the abbot of the spiritual institution and its only inhabitant is the young father Ephraim. The monastery is a beautiful and neat complex of a church, a residential building and 2 chapels. The chapels are lavishly painted, and the church is still to be painted (autumn 2008). There is a large and evergreen meadow around, and next to it, next to the forest, there are places for recreation and camping.