Orthodox Church of St. Paraskeva, Vilnius

The Orthodox Church of St. Paraskeva in Vilnius, Lithuania, is a significant landmark and an essential part of the country's religious history. It is the oldest Eastern Orthodox church in Lithuania and is one of only two fully Lithuanian-language parishes of the Orthodox Church in the country.

The first Orthodox church of St. Paraskeva was built in 1346 at the request of Grand Duke Algirdas's first wife, Maria Yaroslavna of Vitebsk. This church was constructed on the site of a temple to the pagan god, Ragutis. Unfortunately, this church was destroyed by fire in 1557, and it was later rebuilt only to burn down again in 1611. The church was given to the local Eastern Catholics, but in 1655, it was returned to the Orthodox Church and renovated.

During the Great Northern War, in 1705, the church was visited by the Russian tsar Peter the Great, who prayed there for military victory. During the same service, Abram Petrovich Gannibal was baptized, with the tsar serving as the godfather. Three years later, the victorious tsar decided to grant some of the conquered Swedish flags to St. Paraskeva's church.

In 1748, the building was again destroyed by fire and rebuilt in 1795. However, it stood closed during the following forty years, slowly falling into decline. In 1864, on the orders of the Russian local government, it was rebuilt and enlarged in Neo-Byzantine style by Nikolay Chagin.

The church suffered severe damage during World War II, but it was later renovated. However, the Stalinist government didn't allow the Russian Orthodox Church to start holding its services there. Initially, a Museum of Atheism was to be opened there, but in the end, the church was turned into a gallery of Lithuanian folk art. The church was only given back to the Orthodox Church in 1990 and reconsecrated by Metropolitan Chrysostom the following year. Since then, it has been an auxiliary church of the Cathedral of the Theotokos.