Greek Sophia Church, Kherson
In Kherson, on the banks of the Dnieper has been 225 years dominates the Greek Sofia church, the oldest temple of the city. The walls of the temple prayed Prince Grigory Potemkin, the governor Ivan Hannibal, Alexander generals Suvorov and Fyodor Ushakov, Joseph Deribas.
If you look at the church from the side of the river, its structure seems to be a ship moored to the shore, and the round shape of the structure of windows adds a similarity. Today Greek church restored and shining domes and crosses covered with new sheet metal with gold.
The main value of the church - its interior decoration. The decoration is incredible iconostasis with hundreds of icons, which is a real masterpiece of Orthodox art of the 18th century. In the church are preserved and other church supplies, which are historical and cultural heritage: the Gospel in 1719, for the vessels of the sacrament of the late 18th century, the patron saint of the 19th century armchairs. And the old icons that are in the carved wooden Kyoto, would be an ornament of any museum in the world.
History Greek Sophia church
After the construction of the new southern port of Odessa and the relocation of the Greek community, Sofia church in 1808 was dedicated to the Nativity of the Virgin Orthodox church. Architecture and interior design of the church remained pristine.
Worship in the temple, interrupted just before the war, but with the beginning of the German occupation, service resumed and will not stop at the present time. The reason for this was the abbot of the Greek church, while Ozhigovsky Seraphim, who was hiding in the temple youth, rescuing from the export to work in Germany. On the territory of his house he built a hospital and saved the lives of 15 wounded Soviet soldiers, providing them with medical care, food and care.
For this the abbot received an award from the Soviet government medal "For Valiant Labor in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945" and premium leaf with the record "for holding church-patriotic work."
How to get to the temple
Greek Sophia Church is located in Kherson on the street Mother of God, 11. You can get there by trolley bus number 3, 4, taxi number 3, 7, 8, 16, 20, 29.
