Schedule of services. The tragic history of the Catholic Cathedral in Georgians Cathedral on Georgian Street November 20

The organ is the king of instruments. And any self-respecting royal dynasty dates back to the depths of centuries. And it is true. A foreshadowing of the organ can be seen in the Pan flute and bagpipes. The organ was invented by the ancient Greek Ctesibius, who lived in Alexandria, Egypt. True, this organ was water and sounded during gladiator fights, as well as during the inauguration ceremony of emperors. The image of a water organ is found on the coins of Emperor Nero, a famous music lover.

In the 4th century, organs appeared that were quite royal in their sound, and in the 7th century, Pope Vitalian introduced the organ into the Catholic Church. Byzantium of the 8th century was universally and deservedly famous for its organs! True, they were rather rough in appearance, and the keyboard was so wide that the keys were struck not with fingers, but with fists. However, the royal courts of that time were not particularly distinguished by their moral sophistication.

Already in the 14th century, the organ acquired pedals, i.e. keyboard for feet. Playing with two hands and two feet significantly increased the performer's capabilities. And in XV, the width of the keys has finally decreased and the number of pipes has increased. And we got the king of musical instruments we know and love today. Further improvements, although important, were not so significant.

Any royal dynasty must have some secret. The organ also has it. The organ heals souls. His nobility is so great that any simple melody played on his trumpets becomes high music. By the way, the number of pipes in some organs reaches up to 7000. And in order not to get confused in all this diversity, they are grouped by registers. A register is a set of pipes with the same timbre and being, as it were, a separate instrument. When meeting with an organ, the organist must register. After all, each instrument is absolutely individual - the number of registers sometimes reaches up to 300. Also, in order not to be distracted while playing, the organist prepares the tones of keyboards - manuals - in advance. The organ has several of them - on the largest ones there are up to seven.

It is the retinue that makes the king. The more majestic the king, the larger the trail of his music. And organ music was written by the best composers. And, of course, the closest and most trusted of them is Johann Sebastian Bach. By the way, Bach, although he was a great organist, treated his playing with a grain of irony. “You just need to know which keys to press and when, and the organ will do the rest,” he answered when asked how he succeeded.

The organ is like an orchestra. But he is more majestic than an orchestra. It has more than two thousand years of history behind it. And an equally boundless future. We love the organ and recognize its primacy in the wonderful kingdom of music. After all, he is the true king of instruments.

You can truly experience organ music only by hearing it at a live concert. Not one, even the most advanced acoustic system, does not convey the vibrations, air movements and magic of the melodies of the “king of instruments”. Its power and variety of overtones combined with violin, saxophone and other instruments create an enchanting sound that is impossible to forget.

The Bel Canto Charitable Foundation brings to your attention a varied poster of organ music concerts in Moscow halls. You can select a suitable event below on this page. Our charitable foundation offers a variety of program formats, from a classical organ concert to an audiovisual production. You can purchase a ticket by going to the section of the event you like, where you will find not only a description of the event, but also the time it will take place. There you can pay for your favorite places in a convenient way. All changes in the schedule are immediately reflected in the poster.

There are several Catholic churches in Moscow. The church on Malaya Gruzinskaya Street is perhaps the largest of them. The decision to build it was made in 1894. In those days, there were simply a huge number of Catholics living in Moscow. These were French, Poles, etc. (30 thousand people). The two Catholic churches (St. Louis and St. and Paul), which already existed in the capital in the 19th century, were simply not enough. The parishioners themselves collected money for the new church - both Muscovites and residents of other regions of Russia. Donations also came from abroad. For example, 50 thousand rubles were sent from Warsaw.

Construction of the church

Construction of the Roman Catholic Cathedral began at the beginning of the twentieth century. - in 1901. The project was developed by one of the most famous architects of the capital and the whole country - Bogdanovich-Dvorzhetsky. Thomas Iosifovich was a parishioner of the Church of St. Peter and Paul and taught painting, architecture and sculpture at the Moscow School. In order to build a new temple, believers had to apply for permission from Nicholas II and the Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church. 10 hectares of land were purchased for the cathedral. Its construction cost about three hundred thousand rubles in gold.

Church after the revolution

The opening of the new church took place in December 1911. Masses were held in the temple both before and after the revolution. In 1937, the church on Malaya Gruzinskaya was the first of all that operated in Moscow to be closed. After this, almost all church paraphernalia disappeared without a trace. Even the organ and altar were taken away. The beautiful façade was disfigured. Various secular organizations began their work in the church. A huge number of partitions were erected inside the temple and redevelopment was done, as a result of which the interior changed beyond recognition.

Church after the war

During World War II, a bomb hit the Roman Catholic Cathedral. However, the building did not suffer too much damage. In the first days of the war, the church turrets were dismantled, since they could serve as a good reference point for German pilots. As a result, the building completely lost its charm. After the war, the main spire of the church was also destroyed.

In 1976, they wanted to turn the temple into an organ music hall. However, these plans were not destined to come true. At that time, about 15 secular organizations operated within the walls of the church. Of course, no one wanted to move to a new place.

Until the 90s, the church was also used as a warehouse. The need for its return to believers began to be discussed in 1989. In 1990, priest Tadeusz Pikus celebrated a mass on the steps of the church. Despite the frost, a huge number of believers came to the church. They all prayed for the temple to be returned to them. The first official mass after 1937 was held in the cathedral on June 7, 1991.

Church on Malaya Gruzinskaya today

In 1992, Yu. M. Luzhkov signed a decision on the gradual transfer of the temple premises to Moscow Catholics. However, it was not possible for a long time to evict the Mosspetspromproekt Research Institute that occupies the temple. In 1995, believers independently dismantled the wall separating this secular institution from the parish and tried to empty the premises of office furniture. However, the intervention of riot police ruined the plans of the Catholics. The believers were expelled from the church. Some of them were even injured.

After this incident, Catholic Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz turned to Boris Yeltsin with a request to resolve the conflict between the parish and the research institute. As a result, Mosspetspromproekt was transferred to another building. By the end of 1995, the temple was completely handed over to believers. It was consecrated on December 12, 1999 by the legate of the Pope, the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Angelo Sodano. By the end of the century, the cathedral was completely restored. The parishioners collected money for the reconstruction, as during the construction of the temple. The work was supervised by Andrzej Steckiewicz. As a result, the cathedral became a real decoration even for such a rich city as Moscow. The Church on Malaya Gruzinskaya looks great these days, you can see this from the photographs posted in the article.

In 2005, the Basler Munster Cathedral (Basel, Sweden) donated an organ to the church. This instrument allows you to perform absolutely flawlessly musical compositions from different eras.

Today, as in the past, masses are held in the temple in Armenian, English, Polish, French and other languages. Priests marry newlyweds, baptize newborns, and see off the dead on their last journey. As in all Catholic churches, there is an organ in the church.

Temple interior

Entering the Roman Catholic Cathedral on Malaya Gruzinskaya, a believer immediately sees a cross decorated with flowers hanging on the wall. There are no icons in the church, as in all Catholic churches. But there is an altar, near which masses are held. The interior of the church is incredibly beautiful. Stained glass windows - colored panels assembled from pieces of glass - give it a special charm. Darkness, high arches, flickering candles and organ music set the believers in the appropriate mood.

Architectural features

The building was built of red brick in a neo-Gothic style. This architectural direction can be considered to some extent traditional for Catholic cathedrals. It originated in France and very quickly spread throughout Europe. Its main distinguishing feature is the monumentality and upward striving of all elements. Many Catholic cathedrals, including the church on Malaya Gruzinskaya, are decorated with a huge number of turrets with thin spiers. The main axis of the temple is located strictly on the North-South line. This is one of the differences between the church and the Orthodox Church, in which the main entrance is usually located in the west.

The temple on Malaya Gruzinskaya is a basilica built in the shape of a Latin cross. The eastern facade of the church is very similar to the facade of the famous Westminster Cathedral in Great Britain. There are exactly 11 steps leading to the main gate of the temple. This means the 10 commandments, plus the symbol of Christ himself. Only by observing the instructions of Jesus can one enter the kingdom of heaven.

What is the difference between Catholicism and Orthodoxy

Temples are built by both Catholics and Orthodox. The difference between these two directions of Christianity, however, is quite significant. But first, let's talk about their similarities. Both of these churches are distinguished by the presence of a rigid hierarchical structure, their own laws, as well as religious and cultural traditions. Of course, the main object of worship in both places is Jesus Christ, as well as the one God the Father. Both Catholics and Orthodox Christians especially venerate the Virgin Mary and all the apostles. Both of these directions have their great martyrs and saints.

What's the difference? The division of Christianity into Catholicism and Orthodoxy occurred a very long time ago - in the 11th century. In 1054, the Patriarch of Constantinople representatives of the Pope, who answered him in kind. Since then, Catholics and Orthodox Christians have not held services together. The unification of these two directions of Christianity seems extremely problematic in our days. Too many changes to the original traditions have occurred over the centuries of schism.

Catholicism is, first of all, a holistic church. All its members and components are strictly subordinate to the Pope. does not differ in such monolithicity. In this regard, it is more democratic. There are Constantinople, Russian, Georgian, Serbian and other Orthodox churches. There are also differences in religious canons. For example, Catholics believe that the Holy Spirit can come from both the Father and the Son. The Orthodox believe that only from the Father. There are also differences in the way churches treat their parishioners. In Catholicism, for example, divorce is strictly prohibited. The Orthodox Church sometimes allows them.

What other Catholic churches are operating in Moscow at the moment?

The Church on Gruzinskaya is not the only Catholic church in the capital. There are others:

1. Church of St. Louis. This church was founded back in 1791. At the beginning of the 19th century (1827-1830), a new one was built in the style of a basilica on the site of the old building. The church was erected according to the design of the architects D.I. and A.O. Gilardi. After 1917, this church did not close, and masses continued to be celebrated there. In 1992, all buildings that belonged to the church before 1917, including the lyceum building, were returned to the believers.
2. and Pavel. This is another church in Moscow, founded a long time ago - in 1817. The new building was built in 1903-1913. designed by architect V.F. Valkot. After the revolution, the temple was closed, and various secular organizations were located in it. Today this church has again been handed over to believers.
3. Anglican Church of St. Andrey. This church was founded in 1814. The current building was erected in 1882-1884. The temple project was developed by the Englishman R. K. Freeman. In 1920 the church was closed. At the moment it has been handed over to believers.

Churches of Moscow. Addresses

Catholic churches in the capital can be visited at the following addresses:

1. Roman Catholic Cathedral: st. Malaya Gruzinskaya, 27.
2. Church of the Apostles Peter and Paul: trans. Milyutinsky, 19, apt. 18.
3. Church of St. Ludovika: M. Lubyanka, 12.

The Catholic Cathedral, unusually beautiful in its architecture, is located in Moscow on Malaya Gruzinskaya Street. This is the largest church in Russia. The neo-Gothic style cathedral is an architectural monument. There is an amazing atmosphere here.

The cathedral building was erected in 1911, but the final finishing work was completed only in 1917. In 1938, the temple was taken away from Catholics. From that moment on, the cathedral went through difficult times. Much was looted and simply destroyed, including the altar and organ. The gradual revival of the temple began in 1989. In December 1999, restoration work was completed. The temple was consecrated by Cardinal Angelo Sodano, ambassador of Pope John Paul II. Since that time, the temple has officially been the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The cathedral grounds are very well maintained. The building itself is decorated with beautiful lighting.

The walls of the cathedral are decorated with frescoes

Grotto of the Virgin Mary

The cathedral is beautiful not only outside, but also inside.

The cathedral is the center of spiritual and cultural life. Within its walls, not only divine services are held, but also concerts of sacred and classical music.

Excellent acoustics allow you to enjoy music to the fullest.

In 2005, the cathedral received a new organ as a gift from the Lutheran Cathedral of Switzerland.

This is one of the largest organs in Russia - 5563 pipes. It can be compared to a huge living organism that comes to life at the touch of human hands. The sounds of the organ fill the entire cathedral. Listening to the organ, you experience unique amazing sensations: an elastic sound wave pierces right through, three-dimensional sounds penetrate into all your insides. You feel the music on your skin. Organ concerts bring together people of different cultures and religions.

The concerts last more than an hour, but as you soak in the wonderful music, you don’t feel the time. It seems like only a few minutes have passed. At the end of the concert there is silence for some time.

The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the largest Catholic cathedral in Russia.

One of the two operating Catholic churches in Moscow, along with the Church of St. Louis of France (not counting the Catholic chapel of St. Olga).

History of the cathedral

In 1894, the council of the Roman Catholic Church of Sts. Peter and Paul in Milyutinsky Lane appealed to the Moscow governor with a request to allow the construction of a third Catholic church. Permission was obtained on the condition that construction was carried out far from the city center and especially revered Orthodox churches, without towers or external sculptures. The neo-Gothic project of F. O. Bogdanovich-Dvorzhetsky, designed for 5,000 worshipers, was approved, despite the failure to comply with the last condition.

The main volume of the temple was built in 1901-1911. Money for construction was collected by the Polish community, whose number in Moscow at the end of the 19th century reached 30 thousand people, and by Catholics of other nationalities throughout Russia.

Statue in front of the cathedral

The temple, called the branch Church of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, was consecrated on December 21, 1911.

The construction of the temple cost 300 thousand rubles in gold, additional amounts were collected in 1911-1917 for decoration and the purchase of church supplies. Finishing work inside the temple continued until 1917.

In 1919, the branch church was turned into a full-fledged parish. Its rector became the 34-year-old priest Fr. Michal Tsakul (1885-1937).

In 1938, the temple was closed, church property was looted, and a dormitory was organized inside. During the war, the building was damaged by bombing and several turrets and spiers were destroyed. In 1956, the Mosspetspromproekt Research Institute was located in the temple. The building was redeveloped, completely changing the interior of the church, in particular, the main volume of the internal space was divided into 4 floors. In 1976, a restoration project was developed for the building, where it was supposed to house an organ music hall, but this project was never implemented.

In 1989, the cultural association “Polish House”, uniting Moscow Poles, raised the question of the need to return the temple building to its natural and legal owner - the Catholic Church. In January 1990, a group of Moscow Catholics founded the Polish Catholic parish of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. On December 8, 1990, on the occasion of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Fr. Tadeusz Pikus (now a bishop), with the permission of the authorities, celebrated Mass on the steps of the cathedral for the first time after a 60-year interval. Several hundred people attended this first service. Regular services began to be held on June 7, 1991.

In 1996, after a long scandalous eviction of the Mosspetspromproekt Research Institute, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary was transferred to the Catholic Church. Over the course of several years, large-scale restoration and restoration work was carried out in the temple, and on December 12, 1999, the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, solemnly consecrated the restored Cathedral.

In March 2002, the Moscow Cathedral took part in a joint prayer of the Rosary with Pope John Paul II and Catholics from several European cities, organized through a teleconference.

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Cathedral architecture

Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary- neo-Gothic three-nave cruciform pseudo-basilica. According to various evidence, it is believed that for the architect the prototype of the facade was the Gothic Cathedral in Westminster Abbey, and the prototype of the dome was the dome of the Cathedral in Milan. After restoration, the cathedral has some differences from its original appearance before its closure in 1938, just as before 1938 it had differences from the 1895 project.

Gothic cathedral in Westminster Abbey

Cathedral in Milan

There is a cross on the spire of the central turret, and the coats of arms of Pope John Paul II and Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz on the spiers of the side turrets.

In the narthex there is a sculpture of the Holy Cross with Christ Crucified. Above the bowls of blessed water, at the entrance from the narthex to the nave, a brick from the Lateran Basilica is embedded in the wall on the left, and a medal for the anniversary year 2000 is on the right.

The central nave has two sectors of benches separated by a passage. At the beginning of each side nave there are confessional booths. At the end of the left nave is the Chapel of Divine Mercy, in which there is a tabernacle and an altar of the Blessed Sacrament. Both side naves are separated from the main nave by colonnades, 2 half-columns and 5 columns in each colonnade. The ceilings of the main and side naves consist of cross vaults, which are formed by diagonal arches. The side longitudinal naves of the cathedral have five buttress columns each. The 10 main buttresses on which the main volume of the temple rests, according to the ancient canons of temple architecture, symbolize the 10 commandments.

Lancet window openings are decorated with stained glass. Under the window openings, on the inner surfaces of the walls, there are 14 bas-reliefs - 14 “standings” of the Way of the Cross.

Behind the first pointed arch of the ceiling, between the first pair of semi-columns, above the narthex room there are choirs. Since the time of the Counter-Reformation, that is, from the middle of the 16th century, the choirs have been located at the rear of the nave, and the choirs in the same way are located Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. According to the original design, the choirs were supposed to accommodate 50 singers, but in addition to the choir itself, an organ was installed in the choirs.

The transept gives the building Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary the plan is in the shape of a cross. This is the famous diagram in which the image of Christ on the cross is superimposed on the plan of a typical church. In this case, the head of Christ is the presbytery with the altar located in it, the torso and legs fill the nave, and the outstretched arms turn into a transept. Thus, we see the literal embodiment of the idea that the Church represents the Body of Christ. This type of layout is called cruciform.

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In the presbytery Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary there is the most important element of the temple - the altar, lined with dark green marble, - the place where the Eucharistic Sacrifice is offered. The altar contains particles of the relics of St. Andrew the Apostle, St. Zeno, the patron saint of Verona, St. Gregory of Nyssa, St. Gregory of Nazianza, Saints Cosmas and Damian, St. Anastasia, virgin and martyr, as well as a particle of the veil of the Blessed Virgin Mary - a gift from the Diocese of Verona. On the altar is an image of the letters alpha and omega, the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, a symbol of the beginning and end. To the right of the altar is the pulpit. The pulpit of the cathedral, like the main altar, is lined with dark green marble. At the rear of the presbytery there is another raised platform of three steps, adjacent to the wall of the apse of the temple. This part is called the de-ambulatory. The episcopal see and seats for the clergy are located here.

The presbytery of the cathedral is separated by wooden carved partitions from the Chapel of Divine Mercy with the altar of the Holy Gifts and from the vestibule of the sacristy. In the presbytery, on the wall of the apse, there is a Crucifixion. The height of the Crucifixion in the cathedral is 9 meters, the figure of Christ on the cross is 3 meters. On both sides of the Crucifixion there are 2 plaster figures - the Mother of God and the Evangelist John. Both sculptures were made by sculptor Svyatoslav Fedorovich Zakhlebin near Moscow.

On the left side of the façade, directly behind the pointed arcade, there are five bells made at the famous Polish Felczynski factory in Przemyśl and donated by Bishop Wiktor Skvorets of Tarnów. The largest of the bells weighs 900 kg and is called Our Lady of Fatima. The rest, in descending order, are called: “John Paul II”, “Saint Thaddeus” (in honor of the patron saint of Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz), “Jubilee 2000” and “Saint Victor” (in honor of the patron saint of Bishop Skvorets). The bells are driven using special electronic automation.

cathedral organ

Organ Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of the largest organs in Russia and allows for stylistically flawless performance of organ music from different eras. The instrument consists of 74 registers, 4 manuals and 5563 pipes.

The Kuhn organ of the Roman Catholic Cathedral in Moscow is a gift from the Evangelical Lutheran Cathedral Basel Münster in the Swiss city of Basel. The instrument was built in 1955. In January 2002, work began on dismantling the organ, after which all parts of the organ, except register No. 65 Principal bass 32`, were transported to Moscow. The disassembly and installation of the organ was carried out by assistants and employees of the organ-building company "Orgelbau Schmid Kaufbeuren e.K." (Kaufbeuren, Germany) under the leadership of Gerhard Schmid, who, at his own request, performed all the work free of charge. After Gerhard Schmid died on September 9, 2004 at the age of 79, work on installing the organ was led by his son, Gunnar Schmid.

In 2009, it is planned to install the missing 32-foot register Principal bass 32`

IN Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary Masses are held in Russian, Polish, Korean, English, French, Spanish, Armenian and Latin, as well as youth meetings, catechesis classes, and charity concerts of organ and sacred music. At the cathedral there is a library and a church shop, the editorial office of the Russian Catholic magazine “Catholic Messenger - Light of the Gospel”, the office of the regional branch of “Caritas” and the “Arts of Good” charitable foundation.

The cathedral is located at: st. Malaya Gruzinskaya, 27/13