Malinniki, Sergiev Posad, Moscow Oblast Russia
Russian Orthodox
The church name, St. Nicholas in the Haystack, comes from the story of its founding. In the late 1300s a farmer found an icon of St. Nicholas in a haystack. He took the icon to the church in the nearest village. The next day the icon was back in the haystack. This happened three times. A villager then had a vision of St. Nicholas telling him not to move the icon, rather to build a church on the spot. A wooden church was built and the village named "Stogova" (haystack). In 1802 a brick church replaced the wooden one. The church was closed in 1937; the bell tower and main church demolished during the 1950s. Renewal began in 1996. Students from Abramtsevo school helped clear debris, remove trees and assist with worship. A chasuble with the orignal image was found in a Malinniki home. Restoration continues.