On Sunday, February 7, Bishop BENJAMIN, Priest Christopher Swanson and Priest John Anderson (The Diocese of the South,) were blessed by His Eminence, Metropolitan VLADIMIR of St. Petersburg and Lagoda to serve the Divine Liturgy in the Kazan Cathedral with one of his vicar bishops, Bishop MARKEL.

The Kazan Cathedral was built at the beginning of the 19^th century as the Imperial Church of the Romanov dynasty.  Built in the classic style and very reminiscent of both the Vatican in Rome and the US Capitol, the cathedral contains the remains of Field Marshal Kutuzov, the commander of the Russian army in the victory over the French invader, Napoleon.  It clearly reflects the sensibilities and taste of that epoch, both in its design and furnishings.  It is one of the largest Christian temples in the world.  Its altar is greater in size than Holy Trinity Cathedral in San Francisco.  One cannot help but feel dwarfed in the expansive Imperial Church.

The Exterior of the Kazan Cathedral

The cathedral contained many spiritual treasures at one time but was closed after the Russian Revolution and reopened by the godless Soviet authorities as the Museum of Atheism.  Its gold and siver iconostasis and artistic treasures were removed and many precious icons and relics taken away or destroyed.When the cathedral was finally returned to the Church, a massive restoration project began.  It is not complete.  But, as the Church moved in and began to systematically go through the Cathedral itself and chambers connected to it, several important discoveries were made.  Among them was the revealing of the relics of St. Seraphim of Sarov and St. Hermogenes (Hermogen) of Moscow.  Far from complete, the total restoration of the cathedral will take years to finish.

Bishop Markel and Bishop Benjamin address the faithful of the Cathedral

Priests Christopher Swanson and John Anderson among the cathedral clergy

The rector, Archpriest Pavel Krasnotsvetov, informed the delegation that most of the restoration was being done by the cathedral’s own workshops.

The delegates visited the St. Catherine Roman Catholic Church and the Ss. Peter and Paul German Lutheran Church later in the afternoon.  These two churches were not spared the wrath of the Soviet authorities either.  The Catholic church was used for storage and was slated to be made into a concert hall.  During the remodeling, a fire began and the interior was badly damaged.  Restoration of the church began after the fall of communism.  The church was also the resting place of the last King of Poland who ended his days in St. Petersburg.

The Lutheran Church was particularly sad to see.  Once the center of a large German-speaking population, it too was closed after the Russian Revolution.  During Stalin’s time, the interior was gutted and a swimming pool created in the interior.  The pool has been difficult to remove and the building has not been restored, but rather adapted for worship.

An unrestored side altar of the Roman church which has been kept in the condition it was found when the church was returned

On Tuesday, the delegation visited the Alexander Nevsky Lavra and the St. Petersburg Theological Academy.  The visit began with a panikhida served at the graveside of Protodeacon Andrey Chishov who was one of the founding members of the Sister Churches Project from the Russian side.  The service was conducted by Fr. Alexander Tkachenko.  The grave of Metropolitan NIKODIM of St. Petersburg was visited as was the memorial to St. Benjamin of Petrograd, the patron saint of Bishop BENJAMIN.  After arrest and trial by the Soviets, the New-Martyr Benjamin was shot and buried at an unknown location.

The Memorial of St. Benjamin of Petrograd

A monument at a place in the monastery cemetery where monks of the Lavra were shot by the Soviets. The bullet holes can still be seen in the wall.

A meeting was held with the abbot of the Lavra, Bishop NAZARY.  The delegation was shown the monastery’s icon studio and restoration workshop.  A reception in the Golden Hall of the Metropolitan’s residence was held.  Metropolitan VLADIMIR graciously received the delegates and personally showed them the restoration of the headquarters of the St. Petersburg Diocese that has taken place so far.

The icon restoration studio

Metropolitan VLADIMIR receives the delegation

The Metroplitan gave Bishop BENJAMIN a beautiful panagia and Metropolitan VLADIMIR was presented with a piece of walrus ivory that had been decorated with a scrimshaw depiction of a walrus and killer whale made by a Native Alaskan.  The Metropolitan was at one time Bishop of Irkutsk, the city from which St. Innocent left for the Alaskan Mission.

The Metropolitan addresses the delegates at a festive Cheesefare luncheon in the Golden Room.

Following the reception, the delegates proceeded to the Theological Academy.  Members of the faculty showed the delegates the library, chapel and classrooms.  A dialogue exploring possible ways the SPSC might be of help to the Academy took place. Bishop BENJAMIN also discussed possible ways in which the St. Petersburg Diocese might be of help to the Diocese of Alaska by teaching Alaskans some of the skills involved in cleaning and restoring icons.