Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (Moscow)
Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Holy Virgin Mary Собор Непорочного Зачатия Пресвятой Девы Марии | ||
---|---|---|
Style Gothic revival | | |
Administration | ||
Archdiocese | Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Moscow | |
Parish | Peter and Paul parish | |
Clergy | ||
Archbishop | Paolo Pezzi |
The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Holy Virgin Mary is a
The construction of the cathedral was approved in 1894 by the
In the 21st century, after 58 years of non-religious use, the cathedral is once again the setting for regular liturgical celebrations in multiple languages—Russian,
History
First construction period
At the end of the 19th century, only two Catholic churches existed in Moscow: the
Bearing in mind the council's requirements, on 16 May 1895 the parish purchased a 10 hectare (22 acre) site on Malaya Gruzinskaya Street, then located on the city outskirts and surrounded by fields and vegetable gardens. Today, the site is in the
A further condition imposed by the city read as follows: "In the light of the two existing Roman Catholic churches, the future church shall be larger, with a cross on the
The church was consecrated on 21 December 1911 as the "Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Holy Virgin Mary". It soon obtained the status of a chapel in the Peter and Paul parish. The consecration received extensive coverage in the Russian and Polish press. The Moscow newspaper Russkoye Slovo wrote:
In the filthy, wretched Malaya Gruzinskaya (Little Georgian) Street, forsaken by God and the city, there rose the wonderful, highly artistic solidity of the new Roman Catholic church, dedicated to the Immaculate Conception of Holy Virgin Mary. Tremendous in magnitude and height, ... with a plenty of conning turrets and towers with crosses. The new cathedral makes a deep impression ... [Every detail] looks impressive and eminent: Not the slightest stylistic flaw could be seen or detected.[4]
From 1911 to 1917, money was collected for interior furnishings, which were relatively sparse apart from the impressive main altar. (These original furnishings remained until the 1930s.) Parts of the draft plan were abandoned: the floor was not constructed from marble as intended, but poured from plain concrete; outside there were no pinnacles on the façade. Writings vary on when the pinnacles were built: some claim they were built in 1923,[5] but others argue that they were not completed until the renovation of the cathedral in 1999.[4][6] Observers that argue for an earlier construction date state that they were damaged during World War II and left dismantled for some time.[5]
Closure and conversions
In the aftermath of the Russian Revolution in 1917, the Provisional Government was overthrown by the Bolsheviks, and Russia became part of the new Soviet Union. As the promotion of state atheism was a part of Marxist–Leninist ideology, the Soviet government ordered many churches closed. The Peter and Paul parish was formally dissolved by the communist government in 1929, and offering the Mass was forbidden. The church lost much of its surrounding gardens in 1935—a school was built there the following year—and the church was finally closed on 30 July 1938 (the St. Peter and Paul Church, Moscow had met the same fate nine days earlier). The church was plundered after its closure, and many items, including the main altar and the organ, were lost. The church was used for several months as a vegetable store, and was then reconstructed as a hostel and its interior divided into four floors.[4]
The main tower's spire was removed during the Battle of Moscow to prevent the Luftwaffe from using it as a landmark. Shortly after the war ended in 1945, sections of the gardens were annexed for the building of an apartment block. A fire in 1956 caused the collapse of the lantern over the principal tower's dome. Existing tenants were slowly rehoused, and members of the Mosspetspromproyekt (Russian: Мосспецпромпроект) research institute took possession of the former church. The research institute dealt primarily with project drawings for industrial facilities,[4] but also designed the Olympic cauldron used at Lenin Stadium for the 1980 Summer Games.[7]
During the 1960s and 1970s, the building's exterior became increasingly dilapidated;
Return to religious use
The
In January 1990, a group of Catholics in Moscow formally founded the parish of the Immaculate Conception of the Holy Virgin Mary. On 13 April 1991
From 7 June 1991, Masses were celebrated each Sunday in the churchyard—the institute still occupied the building. On 15 July 1991, Father Josef Sanewski, a member of the Salesians of Don Bosco, was appointed the new parish priest. Religious education had been given regularly under the direction of the Salesian Sisters since 29 November 1991. At the same time, the first charities were founded for nursing and aid to the poor. The vice-mayor of Moscow, Yury Luzhkov, signed a decree in favour of the Church on 1 February 1992 ordering the institute to vacate the property by 1994. Parish members entered the building on 2 July 1992, and occupied the institute's workshop. Moscow City Council agreed to allow the church to occupy the space, which was subsequently walled off from the remainder of the building. There, in the former workshop, Mass was celebrated regularly.[4][5]
The dividing wall was removed by parish members on 7 March 1995, while others started clearing the truss. The institute called the police,
As a result, Senior Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, a Yeltsin appointee, signed a decision for the removal of the institute. The decision, dated 7 March 1995, ordered the institute's departure by 1996. Simultaneously, the institute wrote to Luzhkov describing the earlier events from their perspective, and requested compensation for loss of the building. In a meeting with the Polish Ambassador, Stanisław Ciosek, on 15 March 1995, the acting mayor of Moscow, Alexander Musykantski, assured him that the return of the church would be complete by the end of the year.[5]
On 19 March 1995, a Mass was celebrated in the reclaimed part of the church under the direction of
Restoration and reconsecration
In the early 1990s, plans were made by the Office for Monument Protection to restore the church by 1997, the 850th anniversary of Moscow's foundation. This proposal was not implemented because of the dispute over occupancy. However, in 1995, the city determined that the parish would be responsible for restoration costs. A commission was founded for the planned restoration, chaired by parish priest Josef Sanevski, Russian historian Stanislav Durnin, and Polish building contractor and politician Grzegorz Tuderek.[4]
From 1996 to 1999, the church was restored with the help of sponsors
Architecture and facilities
The cathedral, built in a neo-Gothic style, is a cruciform pseudo-basilica with three naves and an apse. It was constructed entirely from red brick, and was not rendered externally. The five-bay main aisle extends for 65 metres (213 ft), each with lateral arms 13 metres (43 ft) long. The octagonal lantern tower above the crossing is 30 metres (98 ft) high. The façade is based on the design of Westminster Abbey, and the tower loosely on that of Milan Cathedral.[5][12] Typically for old-style church buildings, each side aisle is strengthened by five buttresses, the ten together symbolising the Ten Commandments. Crosses were erected, as part of the renovation, surmounting each principal tower; the central façade pinnacle and two other façade pinnacles feature the crests of John Paul II and archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz.[12]
The first ten steps to the
Interior
On each side on the entry of the cathedral is a stone
There are benches in the main aisle and confessionals in the side aisles. The confessionals contained benches until the closure of the church in 1938. After its reconstruction, the left side was reserved for women, and the right for men.[12] Both side aisles are separated from the main aisle by pillar files, consisting of four columns and two half columns. The columns and the roof are painted in white, and the walls in cream. The floor is constructed from light and dark grey marble slabs in a chequered pattern.[12]
Most of the 8.5-metre (28 ft) high stained glass windows have
The entry to the
Organ and bells
The present
The cathedral's pipe organ was built in 1955 by Orgelbau Kuhn AG of
The original 10-metre, 32' pipe stayed in Switzerland and was built into a new organ in the Münster Cathedral, which belongs to the Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance. This pipe, capable of reproducing a tone of 16.35 Hz, the bass note C0 four octaves below middle C, was recreated in Moscow and added to the cathedral's organ in 2009.[14]
The five church bells are located on the cathedral's roof behind a tripartite screen of lancet arches on the left side of the façade. They were poured by the Felczyński bell foundry in Przemyśl, Poland and donated by bishop Wiktor Skworc[4][12] The bells are electronically activated. The largest weighs 900 kilograms (2,000 lb) and bears the name "Our Lady of Fátima". The other bells are named, from the smallest to the largest: "John Paul II"; "St. Jude", named after the patron saint of archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz; "Anniversary-2000"; and "St. Victor", named after the patron saint of Bishop Wiktor Skworc.[4][12]
21st century
On 11 February 2002,
The re-installed organ—with 74 stops, 4
In the fall of 2016, New York City-based Clarion Choir and its director,
See also
- List of churches in Moscow
- Russian Byzantine Catholic Church
- St. Andrew's Anglican Church, Moscow
References
- ^ "Russlands größte katholische Kirche" [Russia's largest Catholic church] (in German). Deutschlandradio. Archived from the original on 29 May 2020. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
- ^ "Kath. Kathedrale in Moskau verlegt Gottesdienste" [Catholic Cathedral of Moscow rescheduled service] (in German). Priesterbruderschaft St. Pius X. Archived from the original on 6 September 2012. Retrieved 27 December 2011.
- ^ храм римско-католический [Roman Catholic church] (in Russian). Министерство культуры Российской Федерации—Главный инофрматционно-Вычислителый центр. Archived from the original on 4 February 2012. Retrieved 30 December 2011.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s История кафедрального собора в Москве [History of the cathedral church of Moscow] (in Russian). Catholic.ru. Archived from the original on 20 March 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m О Храме [About the church] (in Russian). Official website of the church. Archived from the original on 21 March 2009. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
- ^ a b c d e TV documentary about the cathedral, from the series "Myths and Legends", at TV channel Stolitsa; (in Russian), retrieved 30 March 2009
- ^ "I. Фонды учреждений, организаций, предприятий-разравотчиков проектной дукументации" [Fund agencies, organisations, economic developers project documentation] (in Russian). Московское Городское Объединение Архивов. Archived from the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 3 January 2012.
- ^ Through Vladimir Vysotsky's Moscow and his literature heroes, an essay by Lyubov Ossipova, May 1985; watch online Archived 21 September 2021 at the Wayback Machine (in Russian), retrieved 30 March 2009
- ^ Watch 1991, pp. 74, 147–149.
- ^ Московские власти проводят подсветку католического собора [Lightning implemented on the Catholic Cathedral by Russian administrations] (in Russian). NEWSru.com. 9 November 2005. Archived from the original on 6 June 2023. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
- ^ "Instytut Zabytkoznawstwa i konsewatorstwa" [Institute of Cultural Heritage and Conservation] (in Polish). Nikolaus Kopernikus university in Toruń. Archived from the original on 8 September 2009. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l О Храме » Архитектура храма [About the church » Architecture] (in Russian). Official website of the church. Archived from the original on 29 March 2009. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
- ^ a b Jan Smirnitski (17 January 2005). Дядя, дай подудеть! [Uncle, am I allowed to smoke?] (in Russian). Moskovskij Komsomolets. Archived from the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
- ^ a b "Organ". "De Boni Arte" Charitable Foundation. Archived from the original on 30 March 2012. Retrieved 30 December 2011.
- ^ "Firmenportrait 1955–2005" [Portrait of a company 1955–2005] (in German). Orgelbau Schmid Kaufbeuren e.K. Archived from the original on 4 June 2023. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
- ^ Greg Watts (14 February 2004). "Russia and Rome Rethink Relations". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 1 August 2023. Retrieved 31 January 2012.(subscription required)
- ^ О Храме » Расписание Богослужений [About the church » Membership] (in Russian). Official website of the cathedral. Archived from the original on 15 April 2009. Retrieved 21 April 2009.
- ^ Международный фестиваль органной музыки. [International festival of organ music] (in Russian). 10 February 2005. Archived from the original on 4 June 2023. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
- ^ Clarion Choir Extends the Visibility of Maximilian Steinberg's Passion Week Archived 2 December 2022 at the Wayback Machine, Orthodox Arts Journal, September 28, 2016.
Further reading
- O. N. Orobey; O. I. Lobov (2001). Stroiteli Rossii. XX vek: antologiya (Cтроители России. XX век: антология) (in Russian). O Master Verlag. ISBN 5-9207-0001-7.
- P. V. Sytin (2008) [First published 1948]. Iz istorii moskovskikh ulits (Из истории московских улиц) (in Russian). Moscow: Exmo Verlag. ISBN 978-5-699-24988-6.
- Glasnost in Jeopardy: Human Rights in the U.S.S.R. Helsinki Watch. March 1991. ISBN 978-0-929692-89-0. Retrieved 6 January 2012.
External links
- Official website of the cathedral with historic photographs and videos (in Russian)
- More than 200 photographs of the cathedral; inside and outside (in Russian)