Mănăstirea Ciuflea (Biserica Sfântul Mare Mucenic Teodor Tiron)

What you see

The white stone church with gilded domes stands on the street that bears its name, Strada Ciuflea. Inside, the winter church holds an icon of the Panagia Portaitissa, brought here from Mount Athos on 2 May 2008, and a small relic of Saint Theodore Tyron. A marble plaque by the south wall recalls the two brothers who are buried here.

History

Teodor Ciufli (1796-1854) and his brother Anastase (1801-1870) were Aromanian merchants who moved from Macedonia to Bessarabia in 1821. Teodor wanted to have a church built; after his death in 1854 Anastase carried out his wish. Construction was approved that same year and the church was consecrated on 6 June 1858. Both brothers were buried there.

In 1962 the Soviet regime closed the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Lord in the city centre, which became an exhibition hall. The head of the Moldovan church moved to Ciuflea, which thus took over the role of cathedral and remained a centre of the Orthodox faith during the years of state atheism. In 2002 the church became a monastery; today a community of nuns lives there.

The site also carries a dark history. On 6 April 1903 the Chișinău pogrom began in front of this church, three days of violence against the Jewish population that caused an international outcry. The city has created a commemorative route about it that passes by here.

Tips for your visit

The church is a short walk from Piața Centrală, so it is easy to combine with a visit to the market, and a fifteen-minute walk from the cathedral in Parcul Catedralei. It is a working monastery. Cover your shoulders and knees, women wear a headscarf, and during services stay at the back and do not take photos. A Sunday morning during the liturgy gives the best impression of church life; on the feast of Saint Theodore it gets crowded.