The Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God blessed with new crosses

On 4 July a ceremony took place at the site of the new Expoforum Convention and Exhibition Centre in which new crosses were consecrated and affixed to the cupolas of the Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God.

     

Addressing the ceremony, Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Management Committee at Gazprom, talked about how the Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, which is undergoing restoration work with support from Gazprom, was constructed at the end of the 18th century under the direction of Italian architect Giacomo Quarenghi. He left his mark on St Petersburg with such architectural landmarks as the Smolny Institute, the Alexandrovsky Palace and the former building of the State Bank of the Russian Empire. “Today the business community is paying its dues to the past by investing in the restoration of Orthodox shrines and architectural landmarks. I have no doubt that the Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God will come to be the heart and soul of the international ExpoForum Convention and Exhibition Centre, which is currently under construction”, Miller observed.

Igor Divinsky, Vice-Governor of St Petersburg, noted that it was symbolic that a church in the name of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God – ‘The Directress’ – had been constructed on Pulkovo Heights, which is known today as a transport hub and aviation interchange.

Three crosses made of stainless steel and covered with gold leaf were blessed by Bishop Markell of Tsarskoye Selo, who stated that a church building should always be adorned with a cross and that it cannot function as a house of God without one: “The cross is not merely a mark of Christian faith, but a sign of our strength, our conviction, and our fight against evil.”

Fragments of the Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, built by Giacomo Quarenghi and featuring a two-bell-tower design which is unusual in Russia, were found during pre-construction work for the ExpoForum Convention and Exhibition Centre. Lost during World War II, the church has now been restored based on the architect’s sketches and archive photographs. To this end, the charitable Foundation for the Reconstruction of Christian Cultural Monuments was established in 2010 with the blessing of the Russian Orthodox Church and with ExpoForum as one of its founders.

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The Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God blessed with new crosses

On 4 July a ceremony took place at the site of the new Expoforum Convention and Exhibition Centre in which new crosses were consecrated and affixed to the cupolas of the Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God.

     

Addressing the ceremony, Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Management Committee at Gazprom, talked about how the Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, which is undergoing restoration work with support from Gazprom, was constructed at the end of the 18th century under the direction of Italian architect Giacomo Quarenghi. He left his mark on St Petersburg with such architectural landmarks as the Smolny Institute, the Alexandrovsky Palace and the former building of the State Bank of the Russian Empire. “Today the business community is paying its dues to the past by investing in the restoration of Orthodox shrines and architectural landmarks. I have no doubt that the Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God will come to be the heart and soul of the international ExpoForum Convention and Exhibition Centre, which is currently under construction”, Miller observed.

Igor Divinsky, Vice-Governor of St Petersburg, noted that it was symbolic that a church in the name of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God – ‘The Directress’ – had been constructed on Pulkovo Heights, which is known today as a transport hub and aviation interchange.

Three crosses made of stainless steel and covered with gold leaf were blessed by Bishop Markell of Tsarskoye Selo, who stated that a church building should always be adorned with a cross and that it cannot function as a house of God without one: “The cross is not merely a mark of Christian faith, but a sign of our strength, our conviction, and our fight against evil.”

Fragments of the Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, built by Giacomo Quarenghi and featuring a two-bell-tower design which is unusual in Russia, were found during pre-construction work for the ExpoForum Convention and Exhibition Centre. Lost during World War II, the church has now been restored based on the architect’s sketches and archive photographs. To this end, the charitable Foundation for the Reconstruction of Christian Cultural Monuments was established in 2010 with the blessing of the Russian Orthodox Church and with ExpoForum as one of its founders.

More