St. John the Theological Church was erected as the first of the churches of the Orthodox complex, occupying 2 hectares within the boundaries of Baltiyskaya, Shumakov, Vzletnaya and Lazurnaya streets. For a long time there was a vacant lot on the site of the former sports airfield. The temple complex has become an architectural decoration of a "sleeping" microdistrict with a typical multi-storey building.

The sketch of the church of St. John the Theologian was made by the Moscow architect-restorer Irina Timofeeva in the tradition of early Moscow architecture. It shows the building canon of the Old Russian churches (20 measures in width, 30 in length and 50 in height). The building was designed by the architect Kirill Khrabrykh.

The white stone temple is crowned with five gilded domes with crosses. The top of the central cross reaches a height of 46.5 meters. Reflections of the sun on the main dome, framed by smaller gold bulbs, give rise to the effect of a “necklace with a medallion”. The belfry of the temple has nine bells, the largest - "blagovest" - weighs more than a ton (1200 kg).

The top of each facade is decorated with several arched elements resembling kokoshniks (zakomaras), with mosaic icons in the center. The same relief decoration is applied on the basis of the five chapters. In the altar part of the temple, the facade bends with a wave of three semicircular towers (apses) with spherical domes. Rectangular vestibules with a gable roof protrude from the center of the remaining facades. Two massive staircases leading to the temple through the west and south portals begin under spire-like tents with four columns.

The chapel of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Duke Vladimir and the baptismal chapel of St. Macarius of Altai are located in the basement of the church. The solemn consecration of the main chapel of the Church of St. John the Theologian, the construction of which began in 2003, took place in October 2009.

Three years later, a small Byzantine-style temple in honor of the Bethlehem infant martyrs was erected on the territory of the complex. Under the cornice, this red-brick church for special prayers is surrounded by a smalt mosaic with a fruit and leaf pattern, symbolizing eternal life.

Over the year, by the fall of 2016, a wooden church-belfry with a height of about 20 meters was completed and consecrated. It is designed in the Old Russian style - with keeled barrels decorating the facades and tents. In the gallery attached to this church in honor of the icon of the Mother of God "Adding the Mind", there is a training center for bell-ringing art.

Photo: Pavel Filatov