Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Catholic Cathedral on Small Georgian, masses, concerts Catholic Cathedral on Big Georgian
The Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the largest Catholic church in Russia. It rises in Moscow, on Malaya Gruzinskaya Street and decorates it with its pointed neo-Gothic towers. The building was erected in 1911 by the Polish community in Moscow.
In prayer and good deeds
The Roman Catholic Cathedral has not held services since 1938. And only in 1999, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, who arrived from the Vatican, consecrated it and gave his blessing. Now the cathedral holds services according to the Roman Catholic rite not only in Russian and Polish, but also in English, Spanish, French, Vietnamese, Korean and Latin. In addition, divine services and holy masses are held according to the Armenian rite.
Much attention is directed to charitable events, including music concerts to raise funds. On the territory of the cathedral there is a library, the editorial office of a church magazine, a church shop and offices of charitable organizations. The church organizes youth meetings to attract the younger generation to the Roman Catholic Church. In the cathedral, those interested are taught Gregorian chant and improvisational organ playing.
Organ music
Not only Catholic believers visit the Roman Catholic Cathedral. Many people are attracted to classical organ music. The organ in this cathedral is the largest in Russia, it includes 5563 pipes. Just imagine this amount. This is a huge musical organism that comes to life from contact with a person.
At the concerts they play Handel, Mozart, other great composers and, of course, Bach, the unique master of organ music. In addition to the amazing sensations, there is surprise at the composer’s skill. What kind of computer must he have in his head to harmonize almost six thousand different voices into one amazing melody that speaks so clearly to listeners? The sound fills the entire cathedral, carries upward, fills a person. The elastic wave of sound becomes tangible and can be felt by the skin. An indescribable, amazing feeling.
Tears welled in the eyes of many listeners. Others listen with their eyes closed, others hold their breath, afraid to move. After the last chord there is complete silence for some time. People do not believe that the music has died down and will not resume. After all, the concert lasts more than an hour, but from the listener’s perception it seems that only a few minutes have passed...
One can only speak in superlatives about organ concerts; they evoke unprecedented sensations. This example clearly shows that the interpenetration of cultures and religions can enrich the worldview of all peoples without exception, making their spiritual life a little richer.
If you walk along Malaya Gruzinskaya Street, you will certainly pass by a building in the neo-Gothic style. This is the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary - the main Catholic church in Russia.
Looking at the arrow-shaped spiers with silver crosses reaching into the blue sky, it is difficult to imagine that this was not always the case. But our temple had a very complex and tragic history.
It was built at the beginning of the twentieth century for the Russian Catholic community, which included mainly Poles. Consecrated in 1911 in the name of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, but, in general, served as a branch of the now closed church of St. Peter and Paul, which could no longer cope with so many parishioners (more than 30,000). Donations for construction were collected from all over the country and even from abroad. The temple was built from 1899 to 1911, but decoration was carried out until 1917.
The design of the temple was developed by a parishioner of the Church of St. Apostles Peter and Paul, a famous Moscow architect, Pole by birth, Tomas (Foma) Iosifovich Bogdanovich-Dvorzhetsky, teacher at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. The building was designed in the neo-Gothic style (i.e., the “new Gothic” style, the distinctive features of which are red brickwork, high black roofs, lancet windows). The prototype of the facade was the Gothic Cathedral in Westminster (England).
This is the facade in the year of consecration, and on the right is the old-style altar, which was lost.
The revolution broke out, and with it years of persecution of any religion. The temple operated until 1937, then it was closed, and then in 1938 it was completely taken away from Catholics. But the attack on the temple began even earlier. In 1935, part of the territory was taken away from him for the construction of a school.
After the closure, the gradual destruction of the cathedral began. Church property, including the altar and organ, was plundered and destroyed, and the façade was disfigured. The temple was given over to various organizations, which disfigured it beyond recognition, dividing it into 4 floors with ceilings. The temple continued to be destroyed - during the war, the spiers were demolished, ostensibly to remove a dangerous target for bombing, after which the spire was removed from the dome and the remaining territory was taken away for a residential building.
Towards the end of the twentieth century, in 1976, they remembered the temple and decided to transfer it to the main department of culture for reconstruction and organization of an organ music hall there. But it didn’t work out due to the resistance of the organizations located there.
And in 1989, Moscow Catholics demanded that the temple be returned to the Catholic Church - to its rightful owners. Thus began the slow process of reviving the temple.
In 1990, the first mass was celebrated on the steps of the temple. The parish of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary was established, and the struggle began to return the temple to the believers.
Since June 1991, Mass began to be celebrated in the church courtyard every Sunday. In July 1991, Salesian Father Joseph Zanevsky was appointed rector of the church, who still holds this post. In the same year, charitable activities and catechesis began in preparation for the sacraments. In 1993-1995, the building housed the Higher Theological Seminary - Mary Queen of the Apostles, and for some time the Catholic College of St. Thomas Aquinas. I remember its graduates told how during the break they ran to venerate the Holy Gifts in the basement, and then rushed back to class. Now both institutions have their own buildings. The Catholic seminary moved to St. Petersburg, and now the university is located somewhere on Baumanka, it seems.
At the beginning of 1992, the mayor of Moscow signed an order to transfer the temple to believers. But it was not possible to evict the Mospetspromproekt Research Institute, which has occupied the Temple since 1956. The parishioners, with their own efforts, cleared several rooms in the basement of debris and began to hold services there.
It was cramped and dark, but there was no way out.
On May 9, 1995, Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz addressed an open letter to Russian President B.N. Yeltsin regarding the situation around the Temple. As a result, Moscow Mayor Yu.M. Luzhkov signed a decree on the transfer of Mosspetspromproekt to new premises and the transfer of the Temple to believers by the end of 1995.
However, there was no guarantee that this decision would be implemented. The rector of the parish, Father Joseph Zanevsky, called on believers to pray for the return of the temple and to fast. On Thursdays and Fridays, adorations of the Blessed Sacrament began to take place in the temple, and prayer processions around the Temple began to take place on Sundays. Believers even had to seize premises, which led to clashes with the police. Finally, on January 13, 1996, the Mospetspromproekt association left the Temple building. And on February 2, 1996, the parish of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary received documents for indefinite use of the building. But it was more likely a memory of the cathedral that once was, and not the cathedral itself.
All that was left of it were dilapidated walls. It is not appropriate to celebrate the Eucharist in such a place.
The gradual restoration of the building began, donations were again collected from all over the world, as during construction.
On December 12, 1999, the Vatican Secretary of State, Legate of Pope John Paul II, Cardinal Angelo Sodano solemnly consecrated the restored Temple, which has since become the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Not long ago we celebrated the eleventh anniversary of the re-consecration of the cathedral. And this year we will celebrate its centenary. “And I say to you: you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18.) The temple was reborn like a phoenix from the ashes. And I hope it will last for many, many centuries.
The photographs in this part, except for the modern ones, are naturally not mine. Found on the Internet and taken from the parish website catedra.ru. However, they are also hanging out all over the network. So it’s difficult to say what and where it was taken from, but the main thing is the essence.
After restoration, the temple and parish began to live a full life.
The cathedral has turned into a real cultural center, where classes on the basics of Christian doctrine are held, charitable activities are conducted (an orphanage, a Caritas center operates, donations are collected for various needs), sacred music concerts and various meetings are held.
Sometimes our cathedral reminds me of a densely populated city. :)
You enter these cast-iron gates, crowned with a Latin cross, and find yourself in a place of coolness, peace and quiet.
Yes, it’s always calm there, even despite the fact that a lot of children from surrounding houses are running around the territory, and on Sundays it’s actually a multinational kindergarten. Local residents love to come here because no one will drive them away and there is no danger here. There is no playground, but the children's population always finds something to do.
In place of the construction trailer, a statue of the Good Shepherd with sheep was erected. You can argue endlessly about its artistic value, but children simply adore it.
This is what she usually looks like. The children race sheep and try to climb up the staff and into the arms of Jesus. This year they decided to break them off and planted them all around with flowers and fenced them off, but in my opinion it was a waste. Let them play for themselves.
I love watching the children, the well-fed pigeons roaming around the area in large numbers, and just admiring the towers going up into the sky.
I also look at the stained glass windows from the outside, trying to guess which is which.
But it's not that simple. The inside of the glass looks completely different.
I never get tired of all this, because at any time of year and day the cathedral is always different.
In the deepening twilight, only a black outline can be discerned, and in the darkness the backlight turns on, causing the entire building to glow orange, as if glowing from within.
I really enjoy walking around the area, which looks quite well-groomed and landscaped. There are spruce trees that are decorated before Christmas, and the rector started greenhouses and planted a bunch of flowers.
Sometimes you go out into the yard, and he’s walking around with a garden hose and watering his flower garden.
Last year, luxurious red roses bloomed near the church kiosk.
The grotto of the Virgin Mary of Lourdes near the Curia building is now also buried in flowers.
And the administration itself is not lagging behind.
There are flowers in almost every square centimeter. :)
Whatever you say, winter is much more boring.
Although it depends on how you look at it. Amazing encounters happen all year round. In this photograph, two Franciscan monks suddenly materialized. Then I only saw them on the display. You can't make it up on purpose. And this is our church kiosk, where there is a good selection of Christian literature, you can buy candles, icons, crucifixes, crosses and everything that is necessary for the external expression of faith.
This is the cathedral rose. There are Latin letters VMIC (Virgo Maria Immaculata Concepta - Virgin Mary Immaculately Conceived). The eleven steps symbolize the 10 commandments + the commandment of obedience, necessary to enter the gates of heaven, which in this case symbolize the doors of the temple.
Christ yesterday, today and always... Only following this motto will lead us to the Father's house.
Having entered the doors of the temple, you find yourself in the vestibule or narthex, as it is sometimes called.
There are parish notice boards, a concert program and announcements for the oratory - a youth center. There are also tables where they place the program of concerts, the Living Word (reflections on the Gospel readings for the week), various newspapers and magazines (for example, Light of the Gospel or the Salesian Bulletin). However, not only that. You can find a lot of interesting things if you check regularly.
There are also four doors. The right door near the entrance leads to the emergency exit from the temple, where the toilet is located on the landing, and it is also where the stairs leading to the choir are located. On Sunday mornings, it is from there that our choir members descend.
The left door near the entrance leads to the ground floor, where there are also many different useful rooms, but more on them later. The door near the notice board leads to the hall of Mary Help of Christians - one of the classrooms where, in fact, for almost a whole year I received, so to speak, an initial theological education, in other words, I underwent catechesis before Communion. The hall itself is almost no different from a school class or university auditorium - desks, a blackboard, a window. Except it’s a little cramped there and there’s a crucifix hanging on the wall. Where would we be without him?
Between the two doors there is a Crucifix. On both sides of it there are donation boxes - the left one is intended for the repair of the temple, and the right one is for those in need.
In the last days of Great Lent, the Crucifix and, in general, all the crosses in the temple are covered with purple cloth. This is a symbol of the fact that God sometimes hides His face from us, but He is still here, suffering for our sake.
Since last spring, the Polish flag with a mourning ribbon stood there for a long time - in memory of the deceased Polish delegation. The parish has historically always united Poles, although now many Russians have appeared. But many priests and nuns are from Poland, so this directly concerns them.
This is what the porch looked like on the day the plane carrying the Polish delegation crashed.
And finally, the fourth door leads to the main room - the worship hall. On both sides of the door there are bowls of blessed water or crypts.
To go inside, you need to put your hand in the water and make the sign of the cross over yourself. Catholics of the Latin rite and those simply living according to the Latin rite perform it in the following way: the fingers are folded into a boat (symbol of the five wounds of Christ), then the hand is on the forehead, then on the chest somewhere in the area of the solar plexus, on the left shoulder, on the right shoulder. They all end differently. I put my hand on the area of my heart, someone makes a gesture as if they are going to squeeze a cross on their chest in their hand, someone simply lowers their hand, I once saw someone bringing their fingers closer to their lips. This gesture seems to imitate kissing a ring with a cross, if I'm not mistaken. However, they may fold their fingers a little differently. There are as many as five options, it seems, but in Russia the one I described is the most common. By the way, it is not forbidden to be baptized as Orthodox Christians. No one will beat you, because firstly, Catholics of the Byzantine rite are baptized in the same way, and secondly, it makes no difference how you are baptized - the most important thing is the symbol of the Cross of the Lord. Catholics of the Armenian rite generally cross themselves under their armpits, and no one looks at them askance.
After you have crossed yourself, you can enter.
Upon entering, we find ourselves in the central nave, which ends with an altar, where the most important thing is celebrated - the Eucharist, followed by the Crucifixion (9 meters high).
When entering, you usually need to bow your head to the Cross, but most parishioners kneel on their right knee. In general, this gesture is prescribed to be performed when passing by the Tabernacle. Previously, it was in the altar, in many old churches this is still the case, but after the Second Vatican Council there was a tendency to move it somewhere to the side. In our country, the Holy Gifts are kept in the Chapel of Divine Mercy, so it is not necessary to kneel at the entrance, but most people do it anyway.
To the left is the gatekeeper's table, where our grandmothers take turns on duty. They keep order, the donation box is monitored and questions can be answered. On both sides of the entrance there are confessionals, where there is a priest during each mass. There the sins of those who repent are absolved.
They look something like this, but in the photo it is closed, which are located closer to the sacristy. They are almost never used, except on major holidays, when there is a long queue, so I’m not very familiar with its structure - I’ve never been there. It is clear that in the center there is a place for the priest, and on the sides for the confessor, but that’s all. The open one is almost the same, only there are no doors. The priest sits in a booth in the center, and you must come up from the side, kneel down on a special board and, in fact, say everything you need through the bars and listen to the instructions. For those who are particularly nervous or ignorant, a piece of paper with the rite of confession, which nevertheless has a certain liturgical form, is specially glued at eye level. Although it is recommended to know it by heart, since it is not glued everywhere.
While you walk around the temple, you can admire the stained glass windows. Ours are very beautiful.
Purple prevails everywhere, because the photograph was taken during Lent, and purple is the color of repentance.
I usually turn into the left aisle, since I’m used to sitting on the left side and my favorite place for prayer is there.
Bas-reliefs depicting scenes of the Passion of Christ are hung along the walls of the cathedral. During Lent, a special Way of the Cross service is held on Fridays, during which the faithful walk in procession with a cross and candles, stop at each of the fourteen images (or stations) and reflect on these episodes prayerfully. This is the twelfth - the Crucifixion.
And this is the most sacred place of the temple - the Tabernacle. On the left is the chapel of the Virgin Mary of Fatima, and in front is the Chapel of Divine Mercy. The yellow circle is the door behind which is the Holy Sacrament. A lamp is always burning near them - the only light that is not extinguished at night. When you cross this passage or want to enter or leave the chapel, you need to bend your right knee and you can cross yourself, saying silently or out loud 3 times: “May the Most Holy Gifts - the true Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ - be glorified.” But the minimum obligatory for a Catholic is kneeling and full kneeling, and not some kind of curtsy, as some do. It’s better then to do nothing at all than to imitate for show.
In the left aisle there is a statue of the Virgin Mary of Fatima, after whom it is named. There are benches with gene reflections - you can sit down, you can kneel. There is also a gene reflection room near the statue itself. Usually the most personal intentions are exalted there, at least that’s how I see it. Near the statue there are candle holders where you can leave a burning candle. In general, in the Latin rite there is no such large-scale tradition of placing candles everywhere, but, in principle, they can be left as a sign of prayer or as a sacrifice to the temple. You can do it right here. Candles are bought at the store, but you can bring your own.
Nearby there is a box for notes with requests to the Virgin Mary, which are read every Wednesday during the Novena to the Mother of God Helper of Christians.
Here previously stood a bust of blessed Pope John Paul II and a statue of Judas Thaddeus, one of the apostles. On the side of the bust of the Pope is an announcement of Benedict XVI's intentions for the current month. For July they are as follows:
· that in every country in the world, elections to government bodies are carried out fairly, openly and honestly, with respect for the free decision of every citizen;
· that Christians everywhere, especially in large cities, strive to contribute fruitfully to the causes of education, justice, solidarity and peace.
There is a pious duty of every Catholic to pray as often as possible in accordance with the intentions of the Pope. To make it easier, they are announced.
And now the bust has been moved to a small shelf near the altar.
In the same chapel there is another confessional and another emergency exit, which is used on days when a musical concert is breathing down the neck of the evening Mass. Then the parishioners are let out through this door so that there is no crowd.
There is also an electric organ very close by, which is used on weekdays.
And a large organ, donated by the Lutheran Cathedral in Germany, stands in the choir. It is played only on Sunday mornings, on holidays and during concerts.
If you are going to the right side chapel of St. Joseph, then, when passing by the altar, you need to bow to the Cross.
Here is a statue of St. Joseph with the Baby Jesus. Previously, these chapels were intended for separate prayers for men and women. There were men on the right and women on the left, but now this tradition has long died out.
There is also a particle of the relics of St. Therese of Lisieux, a young Carmelite nun who is considered the patroness of missionaries. There is also a gene reflection room here, so you can pray at the relics.
There is also another donation box, as well as a statue of the Salesian saints - St. John Bosco and St. Dominic Savio, his student.
A little further on the left is the door to the sacristy, where the nun on duty sits, who writes information in the parish register, accepts donations for masses in personal intentions, and there is also a room for priests and ministers who put on liturgical vestments here. Here you can also talk to the priest, ask for confession at odd times, or consecrate some objects.
Nearby there is a kind of warehouse for church utensils - a font that is brought to the altar only during baptisms, a cross that is worn during ceremonial processions, a carpet that is used only on special occasions (for example, during weddings), portable reflectors for those getting married, and more The icon of the Virgin Mary of Fatima, especially revered by Russian Catholics, is carried in a solemn procession around the temple every 13th day of the month in memory of the apparitions of the Virgin Mary in the Portuguese town of Fatima, which directly concerned Russia.
There is also a tank with blessed water, which you can drink or take home.
The right side aisle is sometimes used to reconstruct Gospel events. At Easter there is the Holy Sepulcher, and at Christmas time there is a nativity scene.
At Christmas, in my opinion, the temple looks most beautiful.
There are Christmas trees and garlands everywhere.
Both the altar and the pulpit look festive.
After morning mass on New Year's Day it is quiet and calm.
And the sun shining through the stained glass windows.
To leave the hall, you need to perform the same actions as when entering, but in reverse order.
Now you can walk to the ground floor or to the crypt. To do this, you need to dive into the door to the left of the main entrance to the temple. There will be stairs to the basement.
On the first landing there will be such a wall of memory, where the names of Catholics who suffered for their religious beliefs during the years of persecution are listed.
The history of the Catholic Church in Russia was not easy, sometimes there were very tragic pages, but this is a topic for a separate post. I heard a lot of chilling stories from old women.
The staircase ends in a hallway with a counter where concert tickets are sold. Some people don’t pay attention to the fact that there is still something there.
If you go deeper, you find yourself in a hall where there is a sofa, and there are also wall newspapers about the history of the Salesian order and its activities in Russia. And there is also table football, which children and young people often play.
If you go up the steps, you find yourself in a rather long corridor with many doors. The first door on the left is the library, where you can borrow a book or rummage through a file of old newspapers.
The first door on the right is the oratory, a youth center where some of the guys from the parish spend a lot of time. There you can chat, pray together, drink tea and watch a soulful film, for example.
Nearby is a large statue of the Virgin Mary, almost human-sized. I really like her.
After the oratorio there is a hall. Blessed Laura Vicuña. I don’t know its exact purpose, but there is something like an altar inside and sometimes some meetings are held there. For example, a draw for Missionary Lottery prizes.
The second door on the left is the hall of St. Maria Dominica Mazzarello. This is a classroom. Catechesis, meetings, circles, and prayer groups are held there.
Next is the Hall of the Holy Angels, also educational and for various meetings, and on the right is the Hall of St. Joseph for large-scale meetings - for example, for the Living Rosary once a month or for registering for catechesis, which traditionally attracts a lot of people. This hall is the largest, so it is ideally suited for such events.
On the wall there is a crucifix and there are images of the Mysteries of the Rosary, one of the most popular Catholic prayers - all four parts, 20 mysteries in total.
You can't do without a bulletin board either.
Next there is a door, behind which the corridor continues. To the right will be the choir room where choristers rehearse, and to the left is Caritas, a charity. Afterwards the corridor widens and you can see several doors. If you go to the right, you will find yourself in the anteroom, where the door leads to the premises of the Catechist School and the Bible Study School, and the far door leads to the chapel, which is traditionally occupied by the Korean community.
During last year's renovation, masses were held there on weekdays. There are two altars in the chapel.
This is where the Tabernacle is located and where the Tridentine Mass is celebrated twice a month.
I don’t understand this old rank at all. I only know that it is much longer than the new one, everything is in Latin and the priest serves with his back to the people.
I don't really like the chapel itself. The Asian flavor is too pronounced - even images with an Asian face type are very distracting.
The chapel has another altar on which Mass is celebrated in the usual manner. There is another door through which the priests enter and exit. It is completely transparent, so you can see everything that is going on in the corridor, and this is not very cozy, because there is a camp confessional there. There are no overlaps, so everything is clearly visible. There is also a mini-sacristy and another exit from the temple. This is a short walk through the cathedral, lifting the veil of mystery. :)
The largest Catholic cathedral in Russia, oddly enough, is located in Gruziny, a historically Orthodox Georgian settlement. Over more than a hundred years of history, the cathedral has survived closure, looting, bombing during the Great Patriotic War, reconstruction as a research institute, and large-scale restoration.
Not all Muscovites know about the small district of Gruzina in the center of Moscow, between Presnya, the Zoo and the Belorussky railway station. One can guess about the once prosperous Gruzinskaya Settlement - the possession of the Georgian king Vakhtang VI - only by the names of the streets: Bolshaya and Malaya Gruzinskie, Gruzinskiy Val, Gruzinskiy Lane. On Malaya Gruzinskaya, 27/13 there is the largest Catholic cathedral in Russia - Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
In 1894, due to the growth of the Catholic community in Moscow, the need arose to build a third, more spacious church. Council of the Church of St. Peter and Paul applied for permission to build a cathedral from the Moscow governor: permission was received on the condition of construction away from the center and the main Orthodox shrines, without towers and external sculptures. The project of a neo-Gothic church for 5,000 parishioners by F. O. Bogdanovich-Dvorzhetsky won the competition and was approved, despite the violation of the last condition, and the site on Malaya Gruzinskaya was acquired. The location was not chosen by chance. Although Georgians historically had their own Orthodox Church of St. George the Victorious, founded in 1750 (also closed and damaged during Soviet times), many Poles lived in the area. It was the Polish community that collected the bulk of the funds for the construction, which cost 300 thousand silver rubles. Ten years of construction were completed in 1911, and on December 21 of the same year the temple was consecrated.
Finishing work was carried out until the revolution of 1917, and for the first twenty years of Soviet power, the church managed to maintain the parish and continue services. Everything changed in 1937: the temple was closed, church property was looted or destroyed, the altar and organ were destroyed, and the facade was disfigured. Redevelopment into a dormitory has begun inside. At the beginning of the war, the cathedral was heavily damaged by bombing - several towers and spiers were destroyed. After the war, the main spire over the once richly decorated altar was dismantled and redevelopment continued into workers' dormitories, then vegetable storage facilities, various workshops, offices and organizations.
In 1956 he moved to the church Research Institute "Mosspetspromproekt", which divided the building into 4 floors, thereby changing the interior beyond recognition. Twenty years later, in 1976, it would seem that luck should have smiled on the cathedral: the Moscow authorities created a project to transform the cathedral into an organ music hall. However, the 15 organizations that occupied the building refused to move. Finally, in 1989, Moscow Catholics, led by the association "Polish House" submitted a request to return the temple to the Roman Catholic Church. A year later, on the occasion of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary, a mass was celebrated on the steps of the church with the permission of the authorities. This was the first service of the cathedral in 60 long years. However, it took another 5 years for the diocese to return the church - the Mospetspromproekt Research Institute refused to move out. In 1996, the parish finally received documents for perpetual use of the building from the authorities.
The main restoration work took about three years; at the end of 1999, Vatican Cardinal Angelo Sodano arrived in Moscow for the ceremonial illumination of the church. A few years later, the cathedral was returned to its main treasure - the organ, for which the project provided for special acoustics. This time the organ was donated by the Swiss Lutheran Cathedral. Today the body Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception- one of the largest in Russia: it has 74 registers, 4 manuals and 5563 pipes, allowing you to perform organ music of any era, starting from the early Middle Ages.
Today, the main Moscow church is open to the public, and masses are celebrated there in Russian, Polish, English, French, Korean and Latin. As one of the main organ music halls, the cathedral conducts music courses in Gregorian chant and organ improvisation. For more than 10 years, together with the “Art of Good” charity foundation, the temple has been holding sacred music concerts open to the public. On September 7, a new season was opened; in total, 10 more concerts will take place in September, where you can hear not only the organ. The program also includes violin, trumpet, vocals, saxophone, polonaise, and a concert for children.
At any time of the year you can walk around the temple grounds. On Catholic Christmas, the cathedral turns into a real winter fairy tale, and near the fence a small house appears to grow out of the snow - a barn with figures of Jesus in a manger, the Virgin Mary, animals and angels. Having survived the revolution, war, destruction, celebrating the return to the diocese and the centenary, the church is one of the brightest and most peaceful churches in Moscow.
You can view the program and buy a ticket on the website: http://artbene.ru
Cathedral website: http://www.catedra.ru
Anastasia Dorogova
The first Lutherans appeared in Moscow in the 16th century. These were artisans, doctors and merchants invited from Europe. And already in 1694, Peter I founded a Lutheran stone church in the name of the holy apostles Peter and Paul - which was consecrated a year later, in his personal presence. During the Great Moscow Fire of 1812, the temple burned down. And the parish acquired the Lopukhins’ estate near Pokrovka, on Starosadsky Lane. With the funds of the King of Prussia, Frederick William III, as well as with the participation of Alexander I, in June of the following year, the reconstruction of the purchased house into a church began - a dome and a cross were erected. On August 18, 1819, the temple was consecrated. In February 1837, an organ sounded there for the first time. In 1862, a reconstruction was carried out in the neo-Gothic style, according to the plan of the architect A. Meinhardt. And in 1863, a bell, donated by Kaiser Wilhelm I, was raised to the tower.
The church played a huge role not only in the religious, but also in the musical life of Moscow - famous Moscow and foreign performers performed there. It is enough to mention the organ concert of Franz Liszt, which took place on May 4, 1843.
On December 5, 1905, the church was consecrated as the Cathedral of the Moscow Consistorial District. In 1918, the cathedral received the status of the Cathedral of Russia, and then of the entire Soviet Union.
However, in the post-revolutionary years, persecution of religion began in the USSR. The building was taken away from the community. In 1937, the cathedral was converted into the Arktika cinema, and then transferred to the Diafilm studio. Unfortunately, the redevelopment completely destroyed the entire interior. In 1941, the church organ was evacuated to the Novosibirsk Opera House, where it was partially scrapped and partially used as decoration. And before the World Festival of Youth and Students in 1957, the cathedral spire was dismantled.
In July 1992, by decree of the Moscow Government, the building was returned to the community. And in 2004, after much effort, we managed to find sponsors, both among individuals and among organizations. This made it possible to begin large-scale restoration work. Finally, on November 30, 2008, during a solemn service, the consecration of the revived cathedral took place.
Currently, in addition to divine services, the cathedral hosts numerous concerts - musical instruments sound, amazing voices sing, and magical music comes to life. The SAUER organ installed opposite the altar (built in 1898 by Wilhelm Sauer, one of the largest organ-building firms in Germany) is one of the few romantic organs of the nineteenth century preserved in Russia. The unique acoustics of the Evangelical Lutheran Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul makes it possible to fully enjoy its sound.
Rules of conduct in the Cathedral
The Evangelical Lutheran Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in Starosadsky Lane is a functioning cathedral. Concerts are held here during free time from services, thereby opening up the opportunity for everyone (regardless of beliefs and views) to join the thousand-year-old cultural heritage of Russia and Europe. Here, as in any public place, there are certain rules:
Entry tickets
Admission to most concerts is by ticket. Advance tickets are sold at the theater and concert box office and on the website.
On our website there are discounts of 50% of the full price in any sector except VIP, and for preferential categories of citizens. To buy tickets with a 50% discount on this site you need to register and subscribe to the newsletter. Our discount cards can be used within an hour before the concert in the cathedral itself. The discount card is valid for all tickets in any sector except VIP.
Return of tickets is possible only on the terms of the selling organization, if this is provided for by their rules. When purchased on the organizers' websites, tickets can be returned no later than 3 days before the concert date with a percentage charge for banking services. Unused tickets are valid for other concerts; they must be rebooked via the contact email on the organizers' website. The organizers have the right to replace the announced concert with another, in which case tickets can be returned to the place of purchase, or rebooked for another concert.
On the day of the event, payment for attending concerts is accepted by the Cathedral staff within an hour before the start in the form of a set donation for the maintenance of the Cathedral in an amount corresponding to the cost of the concert, taking into account available benefits and discounts.
Remember that to visit the Cathedral at other (non-concert) times, invitations are not required. The cathedral is open from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00. Tickets are also not needed in cases where the event poster or program states that admission is free.
Appearance (dress code)
It is not necessary to select evening dresses: concerts take place within the walls of the existing Cathedral of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul - you just need to remember this. Among the strict regulations: clothing should not reveal the neckline, back or shoulders; it should not contain provocative inscriptions or images. For the rest, you can get by with a completely democratic form of clothing (excluding shorts and miniskirts)
Our lovely listeners are free to choose what they want to wear: whether it’s a dress or trousers; Covering your head is not necessary. Men are supposed to be in the Cathedral without a headdress.
Please note that there is no wardrobe in the Cathedral. Visitors enter the temple wearing outerwear, which they can, if desired, take off and keep with them. During the cold season, the Cathedral premises are heated.
Age
Concerts in the Cathedral are open to everyone, including children. Age restrictions for daytime concerts for the whole family and children's events at 15:00 in the stalls from 3 years old, on the balcony from 12 years old. For evening concerts at 18 o'clock in the stalls from 6 years old, on the balcony from 12 years old, for evening concerts at 20 and 21 o'clock in the stalls and on the balcony from 12 years old.
If the child starts crying or being capricious, you will have to go out into the vestibule with him or even leave the concert early.
Safety
Please, we urge you to refrain from coming to the Cathedral for the concert with animals, as well as food, drinks, suitcases and other large, explosive or cutting objects. You will not be allowed into the hall with them. It is not permitted to enter the Cathedral premises on roller skates, skateboards and scooters, to bring in and leave scooters, roller skates, skateboards, bicycles and strollers for storage, or to enter the Cathedral territory in cars. There are no parking spaces on the territory of the Cathedral. Paid parking is available in all alleys around the Cathedral.
BEFORE THE CONCERT
What time is best to arrive?
The hall opens in 20 minutes. To enter the hall you need to go through control of purchased electronic tickets at the registration desk and receive the concert program. It takes a few minutes, but there is a line before you start. Therefore, we recommend arriving 40-45 minutes before. After the start of the concert, entry into the hall is allowed during applause, so as not to disturb other listeners.
20 minutes after the start of the concert, entry into the hall is allowed only to the balcony. If the balcony is closed for technical reasons, late listeners will enter the hall only during breaks between numbers of the concert program, and visitors are required to occupy the empty seats closest to the entrance (the seats indicated on the latecomer’s ticket lose their relevance)
We ask you to be understanding and not to be late.
I'm thinking of purchasing a ticket just before the concert...
Yes it is possible. Sales begin an hour before the concert. Within an hour before the start of the concert, you can pay for attending the concert in the form of a set donation for the maintenance of the Cathedral in an amount corresponding to the cost of the concert, taking into account available benefits and discounts. In such cases, we highly recommend arriving a little earlier in order to be able to choose the seats according to your preference from those available, because... before starting, they may not stay and just stroll through the beautiful grounds of the Cathedral.
Sobriety of mind and peace of mind
Please remain calm and take your time once the custodians begin allowing students into the hall. This type of behavior is not only inappropriate in church, it is also dangerous to your health. We count on your understanding!
Ticket control
Please be prepared to show your entry tickets to the rangers. If you have a special ticket purchased with social discounts, be prepared to also show a document confirming the fact of the social discount.
Seats in the central and side naves, central and side balconies
Please take seats in the indicated sector strictly according to your tickets.
If you have chosen seats in the side naves and on the side balcony, you can take a row and place exclusively in these sectors, and not in the central ones. We ask you not to change seats in the central sectors during the concert.
If you have any difficulties, please contact the caretakers for help.
History of the Cathedral
You can learn in detail about how our Cathedral is structured on a guided tour. We kindly ask you not to perform it privately, and not to walk around the Cathedral for such a purpose (“to look”) before the concert. Moreover, we ask you not to enter the altar area or behind the fences. After the concert, if you wish, you can ask our employees any questions about the structure of the Cathedral (they wear name badges).
DURING THE CONCERT
Photo and video
It is possible to take pictures in the Cathedral during a concert, but only without flash and not in front of the performers, so as not to interfere with the concert. Filming of performers is carried out only at their request and with the consent of the concert organizers. If you are going to post photos or videos on a social network, please, if possible, put a geotag (Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul) and the hashtags #fondbelcanto and #LutheranCathedral
About what is unacceptable
Once again we earnestly ask you to remember that the Cathedral is a functioning church. Please follow generally accepted rules of conduct. If you do not comply with them, you may be asked to leave the hall. In the temple, as in other public places, you cannot kiss, behave provocatively, be rude or disturb other people. If the caretaker asks you to leave the hall, you must do so immediately. You can find out the reasons and all the circumstances in the vestibule of the administration.
Applause and flowers
During concerts in the Cathedral, you can express your approval by applauding. Those interested can give flowers to the performers at the end of the concert.
Additionally
After each concert you can sign up for a tour of the Cathedral.
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
