Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception is a Ukrainian Greek Catholic

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

located in the Poplar neighborhood of

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

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. It is the seat for the Archeparchy of Philadelphia.

History

Ruthenians A ''Ruthenian'' and ''Ruthene'' are exonyms of Latin language, Latin origin, formerly used in Eastern and Central Europe as common Ethnonym, ethnonyms for East Slavs, particularly during the late medieval and early modern periods. The Latin term ...

, who are

Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

belonging to the

Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church The Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church, also known in the United States as the Byzantine Catholic Church, is a '' sui iuris'' (autonomous) Eastern Catholic particular church based in Eastern Europe and North America that is part of the worldwide ...

(an Eastern Catholic church of the

Byzantine Rite The Byzantine Rite, also known as the Greek Rite or the Rite of Constantinople, is a liturgical rite that is identified with the wide range of cultural, devotional, and canonical practices that developed in the Eastern Christianity, Eastern Chri ...

) and were known as such in the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...

, started immigrating in sizable numbers to the United States in the late 1870s. A Ruthenian priest immigrated in 1884 and blessed their first church building in

Shenandoah, Pennsylvania Shenandoah is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, Schuylkill County in the Coal Region of Pennsylvania. It is distinct from Shenandoah Heights, Pennsylvania, Shenandoah Heights, which is part of West Mahanoy Tow ...

. The earliest immigrants to Philadelphia settled in Northern Liberties between Sixth and Seventh Streets, south of Girard Avenue. They founded Immaculate Conception parish in 1886. In 1964, as plans were being made to replace the 1907 cathedral, several members of the congregation wanted the new church to be built in the suburbs where they lived. Archbishop Ambrose Senyshyn chose to build on the property where the old church stood hoping that the East Poplar Redevelopment Area would rejuvenate the neighborhood. The

cornerstone A cornerstone (or foundation stone or setting stone) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry Foundation (engineering), foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entir ...

was laid on October 16, 1966 and it contains a stone from St. Peter's tomb that

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...

gave to Archbishop Senyshyn.

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

visited the cathedral on October 4, 1979.

Architecture

The cathedral was designed by Julian K. Jastremsky in the Byzantine Revival style and loosely inspired by the

Hagia Sophia Hagia Sophia (; ; ; ; ), officially the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque (; ), is a mosque and former Church (building), church serving as a major cultural and historical site in Istanbul, Turkey. The last of three church buildings to be successively ...

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. The cathedral's central dome is covered with 1/4 inch square ( 1.6129 cm² ) Venetian glass tiles made of 22 karat gold fused in the glass. The dome's interior features a mosaic of the Pantocrator. At the base of the dome there are 32 windows. They depict the coat of arms of the regions of

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

, the popes, the bishops and the religious orders that contributed to the growth of the Ukrainian Catholic church in the United States. The mosaic on the sanctuary wall features the

Theotokos ''Theotokos'' ( Greek: ) is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern Christianity. The usual Latin translations are or (approximately "parent (fem.) of God"). Familiar English translations are "Mother of God" or "God-beare ...

. Below the Mother of God is a mosaic of the

Last Supper Image:The Last Supper - Leonardo Da Vinci - High Resolution 32x16.jpg, 400px, alt=''The Last Supper'' by Leonardo da Vinci - Clickable Image, ''The Last Supper (Leonardo), The Last Supper'' (1495-1498). Mural, tempera on gesso, pitch and mastic ...

. To the right of that mosaic is one depicting the Emmaus from the

Gospel of Luke The Gospel of Luke is the third of the New Testament's four canonical Gospels. It tells of the origins, Nativity of Jesus, birth, Ministry of Jesus, ministry, Crucifixion of Jesus, death, Resurrection of Jesus, resurrection, and Ascension of ...

, to the left is a mosaic of the Visitation of the Holy Trinity from the

Book of Genesis The Book of Genesis (from Greek language, Greek ; ; ) is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its Hebrew name is the same as its incipit, first word, (In the beginning (phrase), 'In the beginning'). Genesis purpor ...

. The stained glass windows in the sanctuary portray 12 six-winged angels as described in the

Book of Isaiah The Book of Isaiah ( ) is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible and the first of the Major Prophets in the Christian Old Testament. It is identified by a superscription as the words of the 8th-century BC prophet Isaiah ben Amo ...

. The Iconostas was designed by Chrystyna Dochwat. In the middle are the Royal Doors on which there is a depiction of the

Annunciation The Annunciation (; ; also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Annunciation of Our Lady, or the Annunciation of the Lord; ) is, according to the Gospel of Luke, the announcement made by the archangel Gabriel to Ma ...

and icons of the

Four Evangelists In Christian tradition, the Four Evangelists are Matthew the Apostle, Matthew, Mark the Evangelist, Mark, Luke the Evangelist, Luke, and John the Evangelist, John, the authors attributed with the creation of the four canonical Gospel accounts ...

. To the right of the Royal Doors features the icons of Christ the Teacher, St. Stephen the First-Martyr (on the deacon door), and

St. John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

. To the left of the Royal Doors portrays icons depicting the Mother of God with the infant Jesus, St. Michael the Archangel (on the deacon door) and St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. Above the Royal Doors is the icon of the Last Supper. At the top of the Iconostas is a depiction of the crucifixion and an icon of Christ the King.

Crypt

Below the cathedral sanctuary is the crypt that contains the remains of Philadelphia's Ukrainian Catholic bishops: *Bishop Soter Ortynsky, OSBM *Archbishop Constantine Bohachevsky *Archbishop Ambrose Senyshyn, OSBM *Archbishop Stephen Sulyk

References

{{reflist

External links

Official Cathedral Site

St. Mary's Ukrainian Cemetery
/ 438 Cedar Road, Fox Chase, Pennsylvania. Byzantine Revival architecture in Pennsylvania Roman Catholic churches completed in 1966 Roman Catholic churches in Philadelphia Eastern Catholic churches in Pennsylvania Northern Liberties, Philadelphia Religious organizations established in 1886 Rusyn-American culture in Pennsylvania Ukrainian-American culture in Pennsylvania Ukrainian Catholic cathedrals in the United States Church buildings with domes Eastern Catholic cathedrals in Pennsylvania Cathedrals in Philadelphia Ukrainian-American culture in Philadelphia 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States

History

Architecture

Crypt

See also

References

External links