Russian Orthodox Church of St. Catherine. Temple in the name of St.

The idea of ​​building a Russian Orthodox church in Rome was first expressed at the end of the 19th century. Archimandrite Kliment (Vernikovsky), who from 1897 to 1902 served as rector of the Russian Embassy Church. Archimandrite Clement managed to convince the highest church leadership and secular authorities of “the need to have an Orthodox church that corresponds to the dignity of Orthodoxy and the greatness of the Fatherland” in the city of the Supreme Apostles.

Already in 1898, on the initiative of Archimandrite Clement, fundraising began, which in 1900 was officially supported by Nicholas II, who made a “royal contribution” of 10 thousand rubles. Grand Dukes Sergei Alexandrovich and Mikhail Nikolaevich, Moscow factory owners and Siberian gold miners donated money to the temple.

The first composition of the Construction Committee was formed and headed by Archimandrite Kliment (Vernikovsky) and A.I. Nelidov, Russian Ambassador to Italy. A large number of projects for the future temple were submitted for consideration by the Construction Committee, including those completed by the famous Russian architect V.A. Pokrovsky and the master of Italian origin Moraldi.

In the fall of 1913, Emperor Nicholas II allowed the collection of donations to begin throughout Russia. During the same period, the Construction Committee issued an appeal that began with the words: “The Throne of God is placed in a rented apartment.” After its publication, fundraising accelerated significantly. In the summer of 1914, the State Bank of the Russian Empire opened a special account in the name of the temple under construction in the St. Petersburg office.

In 1915, the new Construction Committee headed by Prince S.S. Abamelek-Lazarev acquired a plot of the Tiber embankment near Ponte Margherita (Lungotevere Arnaldo da Brescia) in the name of the Russian embassy. By 1916, about 265 thousand lire had been collected - these funds could well be enough to carry out the necessary work. But the outbreak of revolutionary events in Russia prevented the implementation of the project.

In the early 1990s, the idea of ​​​​the need to build a Russian Orthodox church in Rome was again expressed. This initiative was blessed.

In 2001, on the territory of the Russian embassy villa Abamelek, which before the revolution belonged to the head of the Construction Committee, Prince S.S. Abamelek-Lazarev, a plot of land was allocated for future construction.

In May of the same year, bells cast at the ZIL plant were installed on the church belfry.

On December 7, 2007, during his visit to Italy, DECR Chairman Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad visited the territory of Villa Abamelek, where he consecrated the Church of St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Constantine and Helena, located on the ground floor of the church of St. Catherine.

The Church of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine is an Orthodox church built in 2009 in Rome. Located on the territory of the Russian embassy complex - Villa Abamelek. At the Church of St. Catherine there is a secretariat of the Administration of Parishes of the Moscow Patriarchate in Italy - which coordinates the activities of communities of the Russian Orthodox Church on Italian soil. The parish has the stauropegic status of the Russian Orthodox Church.

The idea of ​​building a Russian Orthodox church in Rome has a long history. At the end of the 19th century, on the initiative of Archimandrite Clement (Vernikovsky), who was then (1897-1902) rector of the Russian Embassy Church in Rome, fundraising began. Donations to the temple included: Nicholas II (10,000 rubles in 1900), grand dukes, factory owners, and gold miners. Since 1913, the collection of donations was announced throughout Russia. The site for the construction of an Orthodox church on the Tiber embankment, near Ponte Margherita, was purchased in the name of the Russian embassy in Rome in 1915 by the construction committee, which was headed by Prince Semyon Semyonovich Abamelek-Lazarev. By 1916, enough funds had been collected for the construction of the temple, amounting to about 265,000 lire. However, revolutionary events in Russia prevented the construction of the temple. The project to build an Orthodox church in Rome was returned to only 80 years later. The decisive contribution to the creation of the Catherine Church was made by Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, the future patriarch. During the construction of the temple we had to face a number of difficulties. Architect Andrei Nikolaevich Obolensky, who created the project selflessly, at first did not find understanding from the local authorities: “They looked at him in the municipality as if he were abnormal - what an Orthodox church in the capital of Catholicism!” To obtain permission to build on the territory of Villa Abamelek, the residence of the Russian ambassador, it was even necessary to initiate changes in the laws of the Lazio region. There were problems with raising funds for construction, since the temple had to be built with donations from individuals and companies. Construction began on January 14, 2001, when Archbishop Innokenty (Vasiliev) of Korsun, in the presence of Russian Foreign Minister I. S. Ivanov, consecrated the foundation stone on the site of the future church in the name of the Great Martyr Catherine. Active construction of the temple began in April 2005. During the construction process, changes were forced to make to the project, since according to current laws, no building in Rome can be taller than St. Peter's Basilica. According to the original design, it turned out that the domes of the temple under construction were higher than the dome of St. Peter's Cathedral. Therefore, it was necessary to raze the hill on which the temple stands so that the domes of the Orthodox church would not be higher than the domes of the main cathedral in the capital of Catholicism. On March 31, 2006, the consecration of the domes and crosses of the temple under construction took place. In May 2006, bells cast at the ZIL plant were installed on the church belfry. By May 2009, the construction of the temple complex...

The idea of ​​building a Russian Orthodox church in Rome was first expressed at the end of the 19th century. Archimandrite Kliment (Vernikovsky), who at that time was the rector of the Russian Embassy Church (1897-1902). A true patriot of Russia, Archimandrite Clement managed to convince the highest church leadership and secular authorities of the “need to have an Orthodox church that corresponds to the dignity of Orthodoxy and the greatness of the Fatherland” in the city of the Holy Apostles.

Already in 1898, on the initiative of Archimandrite Clement, fundraising began, which in 1900 was officially authorized by Nicholas II, who made a “royal contribution” of 10 thousand rubles. Grand Dukes Sergei Alexandrovich and Mikhail Nikolaevich, Moscow factory owners and Siberian gold miners donated money to the temple.

The first composition of the Construction Committee was formed and headed by Archimandrite Kliment (Vernikovsky) and Mr. A.I. Nelidov, the Russian Ambassador to Italy. A large number of projects for the future temple were submitted for consideration by the Construction Committee, including projects by the famous Russian architect V.A. Pokrovsky and the architect of Italian origin Moraldi.

In the fall of 1913, Emperor Nicholas II allowed the collection of donations to begin throughout Russia. During the same period, the Construction Committee issued an appeal that began with the words: “The Throne of God is placed in a rented apartment.” After its publication, fundraising accelerated significantly. In the summer of 1914, the State Bank of the Russian Empire opened a special account in the name of the temple under construction in the St. Petersburg office.

In 1915, the new Construction Committee, headed by Prince Abamelek-Lazarev, acquired a plot of land on the Tiber embankment, near Ponte Margherita (Lungotevere Arnaldo da Brescia) in the name of the Russian embassy. By 1916, about 265 thousand lire had been collected - this would be enough for construction. To this day, in the Church of St. Nicholas in Rome, a book of donations for the construction of the temple is kept, signed and sealed by the Russian ambassador, Mr. A.I. Nelidov. But the outbreak of revolutionary events in Russia prevented the implementation of the project.

In the early 1990s, the idea of ​​​​the need to build a Russian Orthodox church in Rome was again expressed. This initiative was blessed by His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Alexy II.

In 2001, on the territory of the Russian embassy villa Abamelek, which before the revolution belonged to the head of the Construction Committee, Prince S.S. Abamelek-Lazarev, a plot was allocated for future construction.

On January 14, 2001, Archbishop Innokenty of Korsun, in the presence of Russian Foreign Minister I.S. Ivanov, consecrated the foundation stone at the site of the future construction of the temple in the name of the Great Martyr Catherine, a saint equally revered by both Orthodox and Catholics.

Since 2001, during the Christmas and Easter periods, as well as on the day of remembrance of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine, services were held at the site of the future temple.

In June 2002, through the efforts of the leadership of the Russian embassy in Italy, a license to build a temple was obtained. The construction itself began in the summer of 2003.

On May 19, 2004, with the blessing of His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', a Fund to support the construction of the Orthodox Church of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine, the prototype of which was the pre-revolutionary Construction Committee, was registered in Rome.

On March 31, 2006, the consecration of the domes and crosses of the church under construction took place, which was performed by Bishop Mark of Yegoryevsk, deputy chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate.

In May of the same year, bells cast at the ZIL plant were installed on the church belfry.

On May 19, 2006, a minor consecration of the Church of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine took place. The rite of consecration was performed by Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad.

On December 7, 2006, the church community celebrated its patronal feast day for the first time. A festive Divine Liturgy took place in the church. The festive service was attended by the Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the Holy See N.I. Sadchikov, the Chairman of the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church Archpriest Vladimir Silovyov, an employee of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity priest Milan Just, as well as employees of Russian institutions in Rome, parishioners of the new temple.

In the spring of 2007, the first Easter service was held in the Russian church under construction in the name of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine in Rome. On April 7, 2007, on Holy Saturday and the coinciding feast of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the President of the Great Martyr Catherine Foundation, Abbot Philip (Vasiltsev), performed the Divine Liturgy, after which he blessed the Easter cakes.

On May 24, 2007, on the day of remembrance of Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius, the Divine Liturgy was celebrated in the Church of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine in Rome. The service was led by Archbishop Innocent of Korsun. On this day, when the Russian Orthodox community in Rome celebrated the Day of Slavic Literature and Culture for the first time in its history, the head of the V. Ivanov Center, Professor A. B. Shishkin, donated books from the collections of the Russian library in Lausanne (Switzerland) to the library of the Catherine Church.

On December 7, 2007, during his visit to Italy, DECR Chairman Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad visited the territory of Villa Abamelek, where he consecrated the Church of Saints Equal-to-the-Apostles Constantine and Helen, located on the ground floor of the Church of Saint Catherine under construction.

On May 24, 2009, with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', the great consecration of the temple took place. The rite of consecration and the first Divine Liturgy were led by Metropolitan Valentin of Orenburg and Buzuluk.

The desire to worship God and the shrines of parishioners from the Russian diaspora and just ordinary people in an Orthodox church prompted the clergy to build a new Orthodox church. So today in Rome there is the Church of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine of the Moscow Patriarchate.

History of origin

Rome is known as the city of Christian churches. But all 400 churches are related to Catholicism. Back in the nineteenth century, thanks to Archimandrite Clement Vernikovsky, the first step was taken towards the creation of the first Orthodox church in Rome. Clement was the rector of the Russian Orthodox Church from 1897 to 1902. Thanks to the patriotic attitude of the archimandrite, the highest church leadership and the highest ranks of government came to the conclusion that it was necessary to build a temple that would correspond to the dignity of Orthodoxy. It took a lot of time to build an Orthodox church in the capital of Catholicism. Having shown activity and perseverance, already in 1898 Archimandrite Clement managed to begin collecting donations. Two years later, in 1900, church mentor Clement received an approving response to the construction of the temple from the Tsar of the Russian Empire himself. Not only the Russian Tsar responded to help in the construction of the temple. A construction committee was created to create the temple. The first leading officials were Archimandrite Kliment and Nelidov (Russian ambassador to Italy). The committee faced a difficult choice. Many architectural projects were brought to their attention. Among these works one could find a plan by the Russian architect Pokrovsky. And also the works of the Italian master - Moraldi. Fundraising continued until 1916. So in 1913, Tsar Nicholas II officially announced in Russia the collection of funds for donations for the construction of a future Orthodox church. This fact significantly accelerated the process of collecting money. So by 1916, more than two hundred sixty-five thousand rubles were collected. This not a small amount of money could more fully cover all the costs that were associated with construction. But the revolutionary actions that began during this period in Russia stopped construction. And only in 1990, His Holiness Patriarch of All Rus' Alexei II again spoke about the need to build a temple on Italian soil. Ten years later, in 2001, the first stone was laid and consecrated. So from that moment on, the future temple was named in honor of the Great Martyr Catherine. On Easter and Christmas days, services were held near this stone. And only in 2003 the long-awaited construction began. On May 19, 2006, the official consecration of the church took place and since then liturgies have been held every Sunday.

Architecture

The Church of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine is made in the style familiar to Christians. The church is decorated with a gilded dome with an Orthodox cross. The interior decoration of the temple is quite elegant. The walls and ceiling are painted with paintings depicting the faces of saints. The altar of the temple is crowned with many icons.

Neighborhood

Next to the Church of St. Catherine the Martyr are the superb Piazza del Popolo, St. Peter's Square and the Spanish Steps.

Note to tourists

The Church of St. Catherine the Great Martyr is open from Thursday to Sunday. Most often, the church doors open at nine o'clock in the morning, but there are days when the liturgy begins at ten in the morning. The services end at around seven o'clock in the evening. There is a schedule of services on the official website of the temple.

The Church of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine is a functioning Orthodox shrine of modern times in Rome, subordinate to the Moscow Patriarchate. Located on the territory of the residence of the Embassy of the Russian Federation.

The Church of Catherine is interesting by the very fact of its existence - the center of the Russian Orthodox faith in the heart of the papal Catholic diocese. Confessional tensions are softened by the personality of the great martyr herself, because she was revered by Christians in an era when Catholics and Orthodox Christians were united.

During her lifetime, Catherine was a noble resident of Alexandria, received a decent education, and at the beginning of the 4th century. accepted Christ. Wanting to open the eyes of her contemporary to paganism, Catherine entered the imperial palace and participated in a theological debate with the court sages, as a result of which they all believed in Christ.

Such a daring act led to the girl’s imprisonment and quick execution, but before that, with her passionate speeches and unshakable faith, she converted the emperor’s wife and part of his army to Christianity - all of them were also executed.

Three centuries after these bloody events, Catherine’s followers found her incorrupt remains on Mount Sinai and transferred them to a new temple.

Story

The idea of ​​founding an Orthodox church in Italy appeared at the end of the 19th century. The first step was taken at the beginning of the 20th century, when the Russian embassy bought a plot of land on the embankment for the construction of a church, but the revolution turned the entire structure of society upside down and such a factor as religion disappeared for a long time from the life of Soviet people. The Diaspora at that time also could not provide significant assistance.

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In the 90s of the last century, many immigrants from those countries that constitute the canonical territory of the Moscow Patriarchate arrived in Italy. The idea of ​​​​creating a symbol of the Russian Orthodox Church in a foreign land gained new strength. The initiative quickly gained support among the clergy and in 2001, Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow solemnly blessed the creation of the Church of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine. Construction of the main part took only 4 years.

In 2006, the temple was consecrated for the first time, and since then regular services have been held there, and a children's parish school operates at the temple.

In May 2009, the world Christian community observed the solemn Great Consecration of the Shrine, a great celebration of faith and unity of the Russian Orthodox people, who dared to take a desperate step and did not stop at any difficulties.

Architecture and interior decoration

The chief architect was Andrei Obolensky, whose team was able to create an ideal harmony between the Orthodox tradition and Roman architectonics. The territory is located on a hill, which predetermined the architectural composition of the temple, starting from the foot of the Janiculum hill (Gianicolo) and ending at its top. In order not to be dissonant with Roman architecture, the main church is built in the form of a tent, and all the walls are lined with travertine, traditional for the original Roman architecture.

The lower aisle of the church complex is marked with a faience iconostasis in honor of Constantine and Helena. And the main part, the so-called upper church, has a main marble iconostasis. The latter’s project was created and mostly implemented by Alexander Soldatov, a teacher at the Moscow Icon Painting School. Being unconventional for the Russian church, the iconostasis consists of only two rows. The lower one is made in a modest manner without frills and inappropriate shine using fresco technique. The top row is already made in the usual medallion technique with gilding and rich decoration, paying tribute to Russian Orthodox traditionalism.

In 2012, painting began on the inside of the temple, which represents pictures of the path of the Great Martyr Catherine from birth to ascension. Within the walls of the temple there are a number of Orthodox relics that attract hundreds of parishioners here every day, both on their own initiative and as part of pilgrimage tours of Orthodox Christians from Russia and all over the world.

• To obtain a license to build a temple, had to make changes to some laws in the Lazio region, which previously prohibited any development in this corner of Rome.
• At the height of construction, local architectural authorities limited the height of the church, since no building in Rome could be taller (Basilica di San Pietro). The architect did not abandon his plan and solved the problem by “sinking” the building into the hill.

How to get there?

• Address: Via del Lago Terrione 77
• Bus: No. 64, go to the San Pietro stop.
• : Line A, Ottaviano-San Pietro station.
• Working hours: services are held at 9:00 and 17:00 according to the schedule indicated on the website.
• Official site: www.stcaterina.com

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