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 shaped like 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

In Orthodox Moscow it is a little unusual to see a classic Catholic cathedral. The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Moscow on Malaya Gruzinskaya Street is precisely such an example of a classical Catholic cathedral. They decided to build the temple in 1894, when the number of Catholics in Moscow exceeded 30 thousand people. Poles who lived in Moscow collected money for it. And the cathedral was built according to the design of the Moscow architect Foma Iosifovich Bogdanovich-Dvorzhetsky. The facade is based on the Gothic cathedral in Westminster Abbey, and its dome is reminiscent of the dome of the Cathedral in Milan. Construction of the cathedral took place from 1901 to 1911. And in December 1911 it was inaugurated.

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But in 1937 the temple was closed, and its property was stolen and destroyed. Over the years, the interior of the cathedral was rebuilt by various organizations. And in 1989, Moscow Catholics asked to return the cathedral to the Roman Catholic Church. In 1991, Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov signed a decree on the transfer of the temple, but it dragged on for several years. And so on December 12, 1999, the cathedral was consecrated by the legate of Pope John Paul II, the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Angelo Sodano and became the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

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On the bell tower of the temple there are four bells, the largest of which, “Our Lady of Fatima,” weighs 900 kilograms and rings at 12 noon and 12 at night, as well as 15 minutes before the service. The rest 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).

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Jesus and the sheep. The Lord feeds his sheep. Sheep are all believers who graze nearby, and the Lord gives them food.

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05. Mother Teresa - created many schools, shelters, hospitals for poor and seriously ill people. In 1979, she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, and in 2003, Mother Teresa was beatified by the Catholic Church.

06. There are 14 bas-reliefs on the sides of the cathedral. They show the 14 Stations of the Cross of Christ

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12. Before entering the cathedral, believers wash their hands and make the sign of the cross and bow before the holy gifts. At the top is the medal "Anniversary 2000"

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17. Electric organ

18. "Live" organ from "Kuhn". This is one of the largest organs in Russia. It was donated to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Moscow from the Evangelical Reformed Cathedral "Basel Münster" in the Swiss city of Basel. The organ itself was made in 1955. And in 2002 they began to dismantle it and transport it to Moscow. All work on installing the organ in Moscow was carried out free of charge. On January 16, 2005, a solemn mass was held with the consecration of the cathedral organ under the presidency of Metropolitan Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz

19. The temple has three aisles. The naves are separated from each other by ten columns. Each column symbolizes one of the commandments of the Lord.

20. Icon with a cross who handed over a piece of bread to freedom, a man imprisoned in the 1930s

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24. Appearance of the Virgin Mary to children in Fatima. She is known to have made three prophecies. I further quote from the document "Third Memoir", written by Lucia, one of those children, at the request of José da Silva, bishop of the city of Leiria:

1. “The Mother of God showed us a huge sea of ​​fire, which seemed to be underground. Demons and souls in human form were immersed in this fire, like transparent burning coals, all blackened or like dark bronze. Floating in the fire, they then rose into the air flames shooting out from within themselves along with great clouds of smoke, then falling back in all directions like sparks in a huge fire, without weight or balance, amid screams and groans of pain and despair that shocked us and made us tremble with fear. could be distinguished by their terrible and disgusting likeness with terrible and unknown animals, completely black and transparent. This vision lasted only a moment. How can we ever sufficiently thank our good Heavenly Mother, who prepared us in advance, with a promise, in her first appearance , take us to heaven. Otherwise, I think we would die of fear and horror."

2. “You have seen hell, where the souls of poor sinners go. To save them, God wants to establish in the world the veneration of My Immaculate Heart. If what I tell you is fulfilled, many souls will be saved and a time of peace will come. The war will soon end .But if people do not stop insulting God, a worse war will begin under Pope Pius XI. When you see the night illuminated by an unusual light, know that this is a great sign of God that God is ready to punish the world for its atrocities through war, famine, and persecution of Church and the Holy Father. To prevent this, I have come to ask for the consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart and for communion in reparation for sins on the first Saturday of the month. If my requests are heard, Russia will convert and a time of peace will come. If not, then she will spread her mistakes throughout the world, causing wars and persecution of the Church. The good will be tormented, the Holy Father will suffer much, some nations will be destroyed. In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to me, and she will be converted and some time of peace will be given to the world."

3. “I write out of obedience to You, my God, who ordered me to do this through His Eminence the Bishop of Leiria and the Mother of God.
After the two parts that I have already explained, to the left of the Mother of God and a little higher, we saw an Angel with a fiery sword in his left hand. Blazing, the sword emitted tongues of flame that could have burned the entire Earth, but they died out, touching the magnificent radiance that the Mother of God radiated towards them from her right hand. Pointing to the ground with his right hand, the Angel shouted in a loud voice: “Repent, repent, repent!” We saw in an infinitely bright light that there is a God, something similar to how images of people appear in a mirror when they pass in front of it: a bishop dressed in white - it seemed to us that this was the Holy Father. There were other bishops, priests, and religious men and women there. They climbed up a steep mountain, at the top of which was a large Cross made of rough balsa tree trunks. Before getting there, the Holy Father passed through a large city, half in ruins, half shaking. He walked stopping, suffering from pain and grief, and praying for the souls of those whose corpses he met on his way. Having reached the top of the mountain, on his knees at the foot of the Cross, he was killed by a group of soldiers who shot bullets and arrows at him. And in the same way there died one after another other bishops, priests and religious men and women, and various laymen of different ranks and classes. On both sides of the Cross stood two Angels, each with a crystal crypt in his hand, into which they collected the blood of the martyrs and sprinkled it with the souls making their way to God."

25. Saints John and Dominic

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27. Crucifix showing the deceased Christ

28. The font in which infants are baptized

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30. Bells that are rung before the start of the service

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32. Under the dome

33. Knee support during the wedding

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35. The sun is a niche in which the Holy Gifts are located

36. The icon was painted at the request of Faustina Kowalska, a nun from Poland who had stigmata. One day the Lord appeared to her and said: “Write me as you see me.” She went to the artist and this icon appeared

37. Mother of God

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40. Pope John Paul II

41. Confessional

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47. Way of the Cross of Christ

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50. Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Lourdes is a city in France. He gained his fame after in 1858, the 14-year-old girl Bernadette Soubirous received multiple miraculous apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

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52. Roman Catholic Archdiocese of the Mother of God in Moscow

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54. Monument to the victims of the Armenian genocide in the Ottoman Empire

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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 divine 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 from 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

In Moscow, in ancient times, there was a small isolated territory - the Georgian Sloboda, which was owned by the king of this state, Vakhtang VI. From those ancient times, only the names of the streets remained - Gruzinsky Lane, Gruzinsky Val, Gruzinsky Malaya and Bolshaya streets.

The church on Malaya Gruzinskaya stands out from the rest of the buildings located nearby

Now on Malaya Gruzinskaya in building 27/13 there is a unique church - the Cathedral Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Built in the neo-Gothic style, the temple building stands out among the nearby buildings with its austere and majestic appearance with unusual architecture.

The church on Malaya Gruzinskaya owes its name to one of the most important characters of the Christian faith - the Virgin Mary (Most Holy Theotokos, Queen of Heaven, earthly mother of Jesus Christ).

Architect, exterior decoration, architectural ensemble

The church began its history in 1894. At that time, the Catholic diaspora in Moscow was growing noticeably. As a result, its representatives raised the question with the Moscow governor about the need to build a larger temple capable of accommodating a large number of believers. By this time there were already 2 Catholic churches in Moscow.

The Moscow authorities issued permission for the construction of a religious building, but put forward certain conditions. The cathedral had to be built away from Orthodox holy places and not in the city center. At the same time, there should not be any statues or towers on the building.

The church on Malaya Gruzinskaya was designed by the architect F. Bogdanovich-Dvorzhetsky.

He developed and presented to the public a design for a cathedral in a neo-Gothic style that could accommodate 5,000 parishioners. At the same time, he ignored the conditions put forward regarding the absence of statues on the facade and towers.

Despite this, the project won the competition and was recommended for construction. A plot of land was purchased on Malaya Gruzinskaya Street for the construction of the cathedral.

History of construction

The purchased plot had a certain significance for Catholics. This is where the main Polish diaspora lived. Representatives of this community collected the main funds for the construction of the cathedral. In total, the total cost of the temple was 300 thousand rubles. silver

Construction of the religious building began at the beginning of the 20th century. Its construction lasted almost 10 years. Completed at the end of 1911. In winter (December 21), the church was consecrated.

Interior decoration was carried out even after the opening, right up to the revolutionary events of 1917. During the first period of the formation of the Soviet Union, the Catholic Church did not close for almost 20 years. Regular services were held there.

However, the situation in the country still led to the closing of the cathedral in 1937.

The property of the religious building was looted and destroyed. The organ and altar were destroyed. The facade of the building was disfigured.

Subsequently, the building was used as a hostel and redevelopment began. During the Great Patriotic War, the cathedral was damaged by German bombs. A number of towers and spiers were lost. After the war, the main spire of the temple was dismantled. Reconstruction of the building continued.

In 1956, the Mospetspromproekt research institute moved into the former building of the Catholic Cathedral. This structure continued major internal reconstructions, changing it beyond recognition, creating 4 full floors.

Church before restoration

In 1976, the Moscow authorities decided to create an organ hall on the basis of the building. But the institutions that were located in the church building, and there were about 15 of them, categorically refused to move, which led to the refusal to implement cultural plans.

However, the Catholics of Moscow, united under their leadership by the Polish House association, continued their activities aimed at returning the religious building to the believers. In 1989, they submitted an official request to the Moscow authorities to return the temple building to the Roman Catholic Church.

The city authorities reacted favorably to the requests of believers and in 1990 the first mass was celebrated in front of the temple. It became iconic, the first in almost 60 years.

However, we had to wait another 5 years before the cathedral was completely returned to the possession of the capital’s Catholic diocese. The Mosspetspromproekt research institute refused to move out of the building.

The final point in the process of returning the church to believers was set in 1996, when the Moscow Catholic Diocese received from the city authorities documentary materials confirming the right to perpetual use of the building.

Immediately after the transfer of the church, restoration began. It dragged on for 3 years. At the end of 1999, the envoy of the Pope, Cardinal Sodano, illuminated the cathedral. A few years later an organ was installed in it.

Interior decoration

The interior of the cathedral is impressive. Thus, the spire of the central inner turret is decorated with a cross, into the side spiers of which the coats of arms of John Paul II and Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz are inserted. In the vestibule of the temple there is a sculpture of Christ crucified on the cross. At the bowls with holy water, a brick from the Lutheran Lutheran Basilica and a special medal from the year 2000 are inserted into the walls.

In the central part of the church there are two sectors with benches. They are separated by passages. Next to the side passages there are rooms for confession - confessionals. On one side of the left nave (the nave is the part of the room bounded by columns) there is a chapel. Inside there is a tabernacle with an altar of Gifts.

The side naves are separated from the hall by a colonnade. Their ceilings are vaulted in the form of a cross, created by arches. Each nave is individually supported by five buttress columns. Their total number is 10, which symbolizes the 10 main Christian commandments.

Cathedral organ

The windows of the cathedral are lancet, with stained glass window openings. Below them there are 14 bas-reliefs that symbolize the 14 “stations” on the Way of the Cross. Next to the first ceiling arch, above the narthex (entrance area of ​​the temple vestibule), a choir was erected. Previously, the cathedral project envisaged accommodating about 50 singers. However, a choral organ was installed in this place.

Shrines, icons, relics of the temple

In the central place of the church there is its main element - the altar. It is lined with dark green marble.

It contains particles of saints that belong to:

• To Chief Apostle Andrew;
• Saint Zeno(Zeno of Verona), patron saint of children and fishermen;
• Saint Gregory of Nazianza(Theologian or Gregory of Nazianzus) is revered as one of the founders of the Church, Archbishop of Constantinople;
• Saints Cosmas and Dimian(brothers, unmercenaries, miracle workers and healers);
• cover particle Virgin Mary, donated to the church by the Diocese of Verona.

On the right side of the altar is the pulpit. It is also in dark green marble. In the presbytery, in the rear part, there is an elevation consisting of 3 steps. It is adjacent to the apse (a semi-domed temple projection). There are places for clergy, as well as a bishop's chair.

The crucifixion is located in the presbytery. It reaches 9 meters in height. On the cross is Jesus Christ 3 meters high. On the sides of the crucifix are sculptures made of plaster: St. John the Evangelist and the Mother of God.

Clergy, mentors

The Church on Malaya Gruzinskaya has its own staff of clergy. Represented by the Metropolitan of the Moscow Archdiocese, the vicar general, the rector of the cathedral, cathedral administrators, two parish vicars, three priests responsible for assistance in the transition. There is a clergyman representing the Armenian Catholic parish and a priest from the Spanish community.

There are 6 sisters on staff. They represent 3 monastic orders: Salesians of Don Bosco; Daughters of Mary Help of Christians; Congregation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Parish and choir

The parish of the church is extensive. It includes all Catholics living in the west and south of Moscow. Formally, these are parishioners of the parishes of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Holy Family.

The church has its own choir, parish and liturgical. There is a choral singing class in the basement of the cathedral. It holds classes once a week, on Wednesdays. In addition, those who wish can try their hand at a youth vocal and instrumental ensemble.

Interesting facts about the cathedral in the surrounding area

The church on Malaya Gruzinskaya Street is famous for its bells. They are located on the left side of the facade, behind the arch. There are only 5 bells. They were made in Poland at the world famous Falczynski factory. Donated to the cathedral by Bishop Skvorets. The largest reaches a weight of more than 900 kg.

Each bell has its own name (in descending order by weight):

1. "Our Lady of Fatima."
2. "John Paul II".
3. "Saint Thaddeus"
4. "Anniversary - 2000".
5. "Saint Victor"

The bell sound is produced by an electronic machine.

Not far from the location of the church on Malaya Gruzinskaya Street there are other attractions of the capital:

• Moscow Zoo;
• monument to Mother Teresa.
• Embassy of the Polish Republic;
• Georgian Park;
• Cemetery Vagankovsky;
• Shchukin's city estate.

Social work, everyday life

Free tours are offered at the Cathedral. But only by appointment. Their times are Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, when there are no services. Outside excursion groups can also visit the temple. But they also require prior agreement.

Catechesis activities (teaching the basics of the Catholic faith and the order of church life) are carried out in the church. The church shop and library are open to those interested. There is a canteen for the poor. The editors of the “Light of the Gospel” newsletter found refuge in the cathedral.

Ave Maria concert in the cathedral:

The Church on Malaya Gruzinskaya is regularly used by the Art of Good Foundation for organ concerts. Paid entrance. Ticket prices range from 300 to 3000 rubles. The schedule of performances can be found on the foundation's website.

Sunday School

There is no Sunday school in the cathedral. Here you can only gain additional knowledge in the field of English. Classes are conducted in children's groups, since the main recipients of information are children. They are recruited from the age of 3 years.

English language courses have such features as a game form of teaching, a friendly atmosphere, and naturalness in language acquisition. Teachers who have experience working with children starting from 3 years of age are involved in the classes.

Patronal holidays

The Temple on Malaya Gruzinskaya is a religious cult structure of the Roman Catholic Church. Masses, services, patronal feasts are held in strict accordance with the provisions of the calendar of Catholic dates. A detailed list of church events for the year can be found on the church website.

Service schedule, operating hours

The Roman Catholic Cathedral is open daily. It is open to the public from 8:00 to 20:00. Closed for a technical break from 12:45 to 15:30, except Sundays.

Catholic Easter

Divine services in the temple are held daily. The schedule is shown in the table.

Church opening hours
Day	time	Name masses, service language
Sunday	8.30 — 20.00	in Polish, Russian, Korean, Latin, children's mass, Armenian liturgy
Monday	​7.45 – 19.00	in Russian, Polish, worship of gifts
Tuesday	​7.45 – 20.45	in Russian, Polish worship of gifts
Wednesday	7.45 – 18.00	in Russian, worship of gifts
Thursday	7.45 — 19.00	in Russian, Polish
Friday	7.45 – 19.00	in Russian, adoration of the gifts, vespers
​ Saturday	7.45 – 18.00	in Russian, worship of gifts, Sunday in Russian

Information for pilgrims

Persons wishing to visit the church on Malaya Gruzinskaya, pilgrims living outside of Moscow, need to remember that the cathedral does not provide accommodation. You need to think in advance about where you will live. You also need to familiarize yourself with the operating hours and the events that take place there.

Where is it located, what is in the surrounding area, how to get there

The cathedral is located at: Moscow, Malaya Gruzinskaya street, building 27/13. This religious institution has its own official website Catedra_ru

The most convenient way to get to the church without delay is the following:

1. First you need to get off at the Krasnopresnenskaya metro station.
2. Then move along Krasnaya Presnya Street in a western direction, towards Tretyakovsky Val.
3. After 500 meters you need to turn onto Malaya Gruzinskaya Street, walking along it for about 600 m and the goal will be achieved.

Another popular way is to choose ground route transport. To the cathedral, which is located next to Klimashkina Street, take bus number 116. Its route starts at the Belorussky railway station.

Near the church on Malaya Gruzinskaya Street there are stops for other public transport. So you can use buses 12, 18, 35, 39, 40, 53, 64, 66, 69, 125, 567. Trolleybus: 54. Minibus: 254M.

Useful video on the topic

History of the cathedral:

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, supposedly to remove a dangerous target for bombing, then 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 always find 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 they are 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 kniksen, 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 is often played by children and young people.
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 meetings of 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 Catechist School and 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 perfectly 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. :)