Catholic Church of St. Catherine

Catholic Church of St. Catherine

The Catholic Church of St. Catherine (Russian: Католическая церковь Святой Екатерины) in St. Petersburg is one of the oldest Catholic churches in all of Russia. It is part of the Archdiocese of Moscow headed by H.E. Msgr. Paolo Pezzi. It is located on Nevsky Prospekt.

History

Construction

On December 12, 1705 Peter the Great signed a charter that would allow the construction of Catholic churches in Russia. The church itself (though not the building with which it is today associated) was founded in 1710. [Cite book | title = The Catholic Church and Russia | isbn = 0754636100 | author = Dennis J. Dunn | year = 2004 | publisher = Ashgate Publishing | page = 30 ]

In 1738 Empress Anna granted permission for the church to erect a structure on Nevsky Prospekt, the main street of St. Petersburg. The project, however, met continued problems. The initial designs were based on work by Domenico Trezzini, the architect who designed the Peter and Paul Cathedral and was then deceased. His designs, however, were abandoned in 1751. In the 1760s, the French architect Jean-Baptiste Vallin de la Mothe drew designs for the church, but he returned to France in 1775 and it fell to the Italian architect Antonio Rinaldi to complete the church. On October 7, 1783, the church was completed. Because the Empress at the time was Catherine II of Russia (also known as Catherine the Great), the church was named after St. Catherine of Alexandria." [http://www.catherine.spb.ru/page_e.phtml?query=eng_history History of St. Catherine's Roman Catholic Parish] ", Catholic Church of St. Catherine. Retrieved on June 5, 2008.]

During the Russian Empire

The Catholic Church of St. Catherine is connected with many important personalities of Imperial Russia. In 1798, Stanisław August Poniatowski, the last king of Poland was briefly buried at the church (in 1938, after 140 years in the crypt, he was returned to Poland [" [http://www.catherine.spb.ru/page_e.phtml?query=eng_history History of St. Catherine's Roman Catholic Parish] ", Catholic Church of St. Catherine. Retrieved on June 5, 2008.] ), as was, in 1813, the French general Jean Victor Marie Moreau. One parishioner of the church was Auguste de Montferrand, who would go on to build the Saint Isaac's Cathedral. Auguste de Montferrand married in the church and later had a wake here before his wife took his coffin back to France. Even in Imperial Russia, several well-known aristocrats had accepted Catholicism.

The church was run by different monastic orders in its history. Originally run by Franciscans in 1800 Emperor Paul I turned the church over to the Jesuits. In 1815, the church was run by Dominicans, and finally in 1892, the church ceased to be governed by an order and fell under the auspices of Diocesan priests, though a Dominican community remained at the church. On the eve of the Russian Revolution of 1917, the church membership numbered more than thirty thousand parishioners.

Soviet Persecution

Under the Soviets, the activities of the church were repressed. The leader of the Catholic Church in Russia, Konstantin Budkevich, was shot to death in 1923. The Church, however, remained open until 1938. In 1938 the church was closed and ransacked. Artifacts, icons and books from the church's splendid library were thrown out to the street. The temple was further damaged by a fire in 1947, that destroyed the internal decorations of the church and its organ.

For 30 years, the building was used only for storage until plans were made to rebuild the Church as an organ hall for the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra. These plans were never completed, however, as the building was again ravaged by fire in 1984. Instead the government used the building as offices and apartments.

Restoration

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Catholic Church in Russia began to operate once more in the early 1990s. In February 1992, city authorities decided to return the building to the Catholic Church. That same year, the Church began rebuilding. According to the church, after being closed by the Soviets in 1938, a 20-year-old woman went into the ransacked temple and retrieved the crucifix out of the sanctuary. When the building was returned to the Catholic Church, she returned the crucifix. The first stage of restoration was finished by October of 1992, with a temporary altar in place for worship. In October of 1998 a Chapel of the Annunciation was opened. The main altar was completed and blessed in 2000. The restoration of most of the church was completed in 2003, and the central gates were opened. Restoration of the interior of the church is ongoing.

Architecture

Like many churches, the building is in the shape of a Latin cross. The transept of the church is crowned by a large cupola. The temple is 44 m in length, 25 m in width, and 42 m in height. The sanctuary has room for about 2,000 people. The main facade of the church has a monumental arched portal, which rests on self-supporting columns. Above the facade is a high parapet, with the figures of four evangelists and angels on top. Above the main entrance is an inscription from the Gospel of Matthew (in Latin): "My house shall be called the house of prayer" (Matthew 21:13) and the date the church was completed.

References

External links

* Church of St. Catherine official Web site ( [http://www.catherine.spb.ru/page_e.phtml?query=international_en in English] ; [http://www.catherine.spb.ru/ in Russian] )

*


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Church of St. Catherine, Banská Štiavnica — The Roman Catholic Church of St. Catherine (Slovak: kostol sv. Kataríny) in Banská Štiavnica, Slovakia was built in the years 1488 91 in late Gothic style. Its nave is topped by a star shaped vault. The crypts below the church contain burial… …   Wikipedia

  • Catholic Church — This article is about the church in communion with the See of Rome. For other uses, see Catholic Church (disambiguation). Roman Christianity redirects here. For other uses, see Roman Christianity (disambiguation). Part of a series on the Catholic …   Wikipedia

  • Catholic Church hierarchy — The term Hierarchy in the Catholic Church has a variety of related usages. Literally, holy government , the term is employed in different instances. There is a Hierarchy of Truths,[1] which refers to the levels of solemnity of the official… …   Wikipedia

  • Eucharist in the Catholic Church — The institution of the Eucharist has been a key theme in the depictions of the Last Supper in Christian art, as in this 16th century Juan de Juanes painting. At the Last Supper, on the night he was betrayed, our Savior instituted the Eucharistic… …   Wikipedia

  • Marian art in the Catholic Church — Our Mother of Perpetual Help, an icon of the Cretan school, in Rome since the 15th century, which has long been a very popular image for Catholics. Reproductions are sometimes displayed in homes or elsewhere. Archangels Michael and Gabriel are… …   Wikipedia

  • History of the Roman Catholic Church — The History of the Catholic Church from apostolic times covers a period of nearly 2,000 years, [August Franzen, Kleine Kirchengeschichte Neubearbeitung, Herder,Freiburg,1988, p.11] making it the world s oldest and largest institution. It dates… …   Wikipedia

  • Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales — The Catholic Church in England and Wales is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, the Christian Church in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, currently Pope Benedict XVI. It traces its origins to the original Christian community founded by… …   Wikipedia

  • Syro-Malankara Catholic Church — Malankara Syrian Catholic Church Founder St. Thomas the Apostle (AD 52) Archbishop Mar Ivanios (1930) Current Head: Baselios Cleemis Regions with significant populations   …   Wikipedia

  • Roman Catholic Church — The Roman Catholic Church, officially known as the Catholic Church, [] ] Norman, p. 12] Pope Benedict XVI summarized this mission as a threefold responsibility to proclaim the word of God, celebrate the sacraments, and exercise the ministry of… …   Wikipedia

  • Melkite Greek Catholic Church — The coat of arms of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church. Founder Apostles Peter and Paul Independence Apostolic Era Recogn …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”