History of the temple

On January 7, 2000, Priest Alexei Struve from Paris celebrated the first Divine Liturgy in a rented premises that had been adapted for use as a church.

In 2000, at the invitation of his spiritual children, Archpriest Vladimir Koryak moved from Rostov-on-Don to Spain, where he began providing spiritual guidance and pastoral care to the parish of the Archangel Michael.

On November 21, 2002, on the feast day of the church’s patron saint, Bishop Michael of Claudiopolis (Storozhenko) laid the foundation stone and a cross was erected at the site of the future church. This was truly a historic event, attended by a large number of worshippers, representatives of the Altea municipal administration, members of the Spanish public, and Orthodox and Catholic clergy from the province of Alicante. The event received extensive coverage in the Spanish press and on television.

The question of the construction and location of the church was coordinated with the local authorities over a long period and, largely thanks to the musician Mstislav Rostropovich and Queen Sofía of Spain, was finally resolved.

The church was based on the design of a 17th-century wooden church from the Arkhangelsk region—a cross-shaped church with five domes and an octagonal bell tower.

In 2004, a log structure—the traditional symbol of Russia—was commissioned and transported from Kirov. Seventeen sea containers carrying timber for the log structure, as well as the domes from Volgodonsk, were delivered. In the same year, specialists from Kirov began assembling the church.

On July 18, 2004, the parish general assembly unanimously decided to petition Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Rus' and the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church for recognition of the parish as belonging to the Moscow Patriarchate.

On December 24, 2004, by decision of the Holy Synod, the parish of Saint Archangel Michael was received into the Diocese of Korsun of the Moscow Patriarchate.

On April 30, 2005, the first Paschal service was celebrated in the church, which was still under construction.

In 2005, construction began on the spiritual and educational centre of the Saint Michael Church complex.

In 2007, work began on the interior frescoes, carried out by iconographers from Sergiev Posad.

On November 11, 2007, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', who at the time was Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations and Metropolitan of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, celebrated the Great Consecration of the Church of the Archangel Michael. Metropolitan Kirill was concelebrated by Archbishop Innokenty (Vasilyev) of Korsun and clergy of the Diocese of Korsun. The festive choir of Moscow's Danilov Monastery sang during the Divine Liturgy. Orthodox worshippers from Russia and throughout Spain took part in the consecration ceremony. Among the distinguished guests were the Catholic Archbishop of Alicante, Monsignor Rafael Palmero; the Mayor of Altea, Andrés Ripoll; Head of the Russian Imperial House Maria Vladimirovna Romanova; Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Spain Alexander Kuznetsov; Consul General of the Russian Federation in Barcelona Dmitry Kazemirov; and other distinguished guests. The church's ktitor, Mikhail Valeryevich Botsko, was awarded the Order of St. Sergius of Radonezh, III Class.

On May 22, 2008, with the assistance of Dmitry Kazimirov, Consul General of the Russian Federation in Barcelona, the Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker Charitable Foundation, together with Mikhail Botsko, Chairman of the Parish Council, installed on the grounds of the church complex the only monument to Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker in Spain. The bronze sculpture was created by S. M. Isakov, an Honoured Artist of Russia.

On the feast day of Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker, Archpriest Dmitry Smirnov, Chairman of the Synodal Department for Cooperation with the Armed Forces and Law Enforcement Agencies of the Moscow Patriarchate, celebrated the festive service and consecrated the monument to Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker.

The monument to Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker faces directly towards the church domes. The bronze monument, including its granite pedestal, is five and a half metres high. The bronze archbishop holds a sword and a model of the church in his raised hands. This image is frequently found in Orthodox iconography and symbolizes the readiness to defend the Faith and protect the city. Saint Nicholas is also regarded as the heavenly protector of the province of Alicante.

A particularly significant fact is that the monument to Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker in Anadyr, in the east of Russia, was conceived by the Foundation as one of four representations of Saint Nicholas located at the borders of Russia: in Kaliningrad in the west, on Franz Josef Land in the north, and in Maykop in the south. The locations of these monuments form a cross when connected by lines. The monument in Altea became the westernmost representation on the Eurasian continent, thereby extending and completing the shape of the cross to include Europe.

For his special contribution to the creation of the Russian Orthodox community in Altea, Spain, and to the installation of the monument, Mikhail Ivanovich Chepel, one of the founders and General Director of the Foundation (now Hieromonk Michael), awarded Mikhail Botsko, Chairman of the Parish Council, the Order of Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker.

Since the establishment of the parish, more than 2,000 Sacraments of Baptism have been celebrated, approximately 90% of them for children, as well as more than 300 Sacraments of Marriage (Weddings).