Holy Spirit Cathedral- one of the largest Orthodox churches in the city of Kherson. Also known as "The Imported Church" or "Merchant's Church". Located at the crossroads of Kommunarov, Rabochaya and Dekabristov streets.
History
The construction of the Three Altars of the Holy Spirit Church lasted from 1804 to 1835. The duration of the construction work is explained by the lack of funds.
In January 1836, the Northern chapel was consecrated in the name of the Hieromartyrs of Chersonesos and the southern chapel in the name of the Archangel Michael, a little later - on August 16, 1836, the main Holy Dokhov Presto was also consecrated by Archbishop Gabriel (Rozanov).
The main support during the construction of the temple was provided by local merchants Galukhin, Bogdanov, Sikachev and Nosov, after whom the Kherson people called the church "merchant". The second name - "Privoznaya" - it received because of its location near the city market - importation.
Initially, the temple was made in the form of a square cross with a colonnade on all sides and a low dome.
In 1907, a refectory was added to the church, under which, in specially equipped rooms, Sunday readings were held. It is believed that this part of the temple was built by the Irlikov merchants.
After the revolution, in March 1922, all church valuables were taken out of the church, from May 1926 to September 27, 1937 the church was under the control of the renovationists. Then the interior of the temple was destroyed.
In 1937-1944, the temple premises were used as a storehouse for flour.
Divine services resumed only at the end of 1941 under the refectory, where the Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord was equipped.
In August 1944, the Holy Spirit Church was returned to the community of believers. In the period 1944-1953, the northern and southern limits of the church were completely restored. Unfortunately, the original painting of the temple has not been preserved.
Under the Reverend Nikon (Petin), in 1947, the Holy Spirit Church became a cathedral.
In 1955-156 the church acquired icons of Saints, Martyrs and Saints by Odessa artists.
In 1995, a bell tower was added to the cathedral. All the bells of the former bell tower were destroyed and small bells in the amount of 8 pieces were installed in their place.
The area occupied by the cathedral is 1441 sq.m, inside the temple - 762.51 sq.m. The height of the walls of the upper temple is 9.7 m. The height of the dome is 19.7 m. The dome is octagonal. The distance between opposite faces is 10.9 m.
shrines
- Kasperovskaya Icon of the Mother of God
- relics of St. Barsanuphius of Kherson
- relics of Saint Eutropia of Kherson
- relics of Blessed Domnica Aleshkovskaya
- revered icon of the Prmts. Paraskeva of Rome
- venerated icon of the righteous John the Russian
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Links
- http://kherson-sob.church.ua/o-sajte/
An excerpt characterizing the Holy Spirit Cathedral (Kherson)
And on a spring evening, in April,Brought to your window.
I gently took you by the shoulders
And he said, without hiding a smile:
“So I didn’t wait for this meeting in vain,
My beloved star...
Mom was completely subdued by dad's poems ... And he wrote a lot of them to her and brought them to her work every day along with huge posters drawn by his own hand (dad drew superbly), which he unfolded right on her desktop, and on which , among all kinds of painted flowers, it was written in large letters: “Annushka, my little star, I love you!”. Naturally, what woman could endure this for a long time and not give up? .. They no longer parted ... Using every free minute to spend it together, as if someone could take it away from them. Together they went to the cinema, to dances (which they both loved very much), walked in the charming Alytus city park, until one fine day they decided that enough dates were enough and that it was time to take a look at life a little more seriously. They soon got married. But only my father's friend (my mother's younger brother) Jonas knew about this, since neither from my mother's side, nor from my father's relatives, this union did not cause much enthusiasm ... My mother's parents predicted for her a rich neighbor-teacher, who they really liked and, according to their concept, my mother “suited” perfectly, and in my father’s family at that time there was no time for marriage, since grandfather was put in prison at that time, as an “accomplice of the noble” (which, for sure, they tried to “break” the stubbornly resisting dad), and my grandmother went to the hospital from a nervous shock and was very sick. Dad was left with his little brother in his arms and now had to manage the entire household alone, which was very difficult, since the Seryogins at that time lived in a large two-story house (in which I later lived), with a huge old garden around. And, of course, such an economy required good care ...
So three long months passed, and my dad and mom, already married, were still going on dates, until mom accidentally went to dad’s house one day and found a very touching picture there ... Dad stood in the kitchen in front of the stove and looked unhappy “replenished” the hopelessly growing number of pots of semolina porridge, which at that moment was cooking for his little brother. But for some reason, the "harmful" porridge for some reason became more and more, and poor dad could not understand what was happening ... Mom, struggling to hide her smile so as not to offend the unlucky "cook", rolled up her sleeves right there began to put in order all this “stagnant domestic mess”, starting with completely occupied, “porridge stuffed” pots, an indignantly hissing stove ... helplessness, and decided to immediately move to this territory, which was still completely alien and unfamiliar to her ... And although it was not very easy for her at that time either - she worked at the post office (to support herself), and in the evenings she went to occupations for passing examinations in medical school.
She, without hesitation, gave all her remaining strength to her exhausted young husband and his family. The house immediately came to life. In the kitchen, there was a stupefying smell of delicious Lithuanian "cepelins", which my father's little brother adored and, just like his father, who had been sitting on dry food for a long time, ate them literally to the "unreasonable" limit. Everything became more or less normal, except for the absence of my grandparents, about whom my poor dad worried very much, and sincerely missed them all this time. But now he already had a young beautiful wife, who, as best she could, tried to brighten up his temporary loss in every possible way, and looking at dad's smiling face, it was clear that she was doing it quite well. Dad's little brother very soon got used to his new aunt and followed her tail, hoping to get something tasty or at least a beautiful "evening story" that his mother read to him in great abundance before going to bed.
The three-altar Holy Spirit Church of the city of Kherson was founded in 1804. The construction of the front of the church took place in one summer, thanks to a large donation of 15 thousand rubles, but then, due to lack of funds, the construction was suspended and only in 1835 the construction of the church was completed.
The northern aisle in the name of the Hieromartyrs of Chersonesus and the southern aisle in the name of the Archangel Michael were consecrated in January 1836, and the main Holy Spirit Throne was consecrated on August 16, 1836 by Archbishop Gabriel (Rozanov).
According to the testimony of the same Archbishop, Kherson merchants showed special zeal in building the church: Galukhin, Bogdanov, Sikachev and Nosov, which is also confirmed by the oral tradition of local residents who called the Holy Spirit Church “merchant”.
The church was built near the city market - importation, and from that it became known as the "imported church". This name has survived to this day.
Initially, the temple looked like a square cross with a massive colonnade on all four sides and a low dome.
About 80 meters to the west of the temple, a beautiful five-tiered bell tower was built, consecrated on August 6, 1806 and serving as a parish church under the name of Preobrazhenskaya, since it had a patronal feast on the day of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Having existed for 135 years, it burned down in 1941, on the very day of the Transfiguration of the Lord - August 19. Its remains were dismantled to the ground in the post-war years. At present, where the throne of this church was, there is a chapel with an inextinguishable lamp inside.
In 1907, a refectory part was added to the cross-shaped Holy Spirit Church, as a result of which the church was significantly lengthened. Under the refectory part, a basement was equipped, where Sunday talks and readings were held, as well as rehearsals of the church choir. The locals-old-timers call the merchants Irlikovs the builders of the refectory.
The Holy Spirit Church was considered the richest and most beautiful in the city. The iconostasis, icon cases, icons, church utensils shone with gilding.
In godless times, the Holy Spirit Church suffered a great misfortune: in March 1922, church valuables were seized from it, and from May 1, 1926, the church was transferred by the city authorities to the renovationists, who kept it until September 27, 1937. Then everything was taken away from the temple and destroyed.
From 1937 to 1944, services were not held in the temple, and it was used as a storehouse for flour.
At the end of 1941, under the refectory part of the Holy Spirit Church, a temple was built in honor of the Transfiguration of the Lord, instead of the burned Transfiguration Church, and church services began to be performed in it.
In August 1944, the Holy Spirit Church, which was in a very deplorable state, was returned to believers, who began its restoration. A new iconostasis of the main chapel was built, the temple was put in proper order, and regular worship began. In subsequent years, 1944-1953, the northern and southern aisles were restored and consecrated. The old painting that was on the walls of the Holy Spirit Church has not been preserved.
Until 1945, the Assumption Cathedral, built in 1798, was the cathedral of the city of Kherson. In 1945, the department was transferred to the Catherine's Cathedral, built in 1791. And only under the Reverend Nikon (Petin), in 1947, the Holy Spirit Church, which had previously been the parish church of the city, became the cathedral.
From 1953 to 1960 The rector of the Holy Spirit Church was Archpriest Boris Georgievich Stark, who at the same time was the secretary of the Diocesan Administration. Serving in Kherson, he showed a bright talent not only as a wise pastor, setting a personal example of a steady desire to serve the Lord, but also as a church administrator. By his tireless labors, the Holy Spirit Cathedral was more well-decorated. In particular, new iconostases were built for the northern and southern aisles. In 1955-1956, icons of Saints, Martyrs and Saints were painted by Odessa artists and placed on the walls of the cathedral.
Until 1995, there was no bell tower in the cathedral. All large and small bells of the former bell tower were destroyed, and instead of them, small bells in the amount of 8 pieces were used, which were placed on the porch.
The area occupied by the cathedral is 1441 square meters. m, inside the temple - 762.51 sq. m. The height of the walls of the upper temple is 9.7 m. The height of the dome is 19.7 m. The dome is octagonal. The distance between opposite faces is 10.9 m.
Until 1991, the Kherson region was part of the Odessa diocese, the ruling Bishop of which visited the Holy Spirit Cathedral once a year, on its temple feast.
By decision of the Holy Synod of the UOC of February 11, 1991, as a result of the division of the Odessa diocese, the Kherson diocese was formed. Its first Ruling Bishop was Metropolitan Leonty (Gudimov), who is buried at the altar wall of the cathedral opposite the chapel of the Hieromartyrs of Chersonesus.
Through the efforts of the next administrator of the Kherson diocese, Bishop (since 2000 - Metropolitan) Illarion (Shukalo) (reigned 1992-1997), the Transfiguration lower chapel of the Holy Spirit Cathedral was consecrated, and a new one was built Bell tower.
At the same time, restoration work began in the cathedral, which continued under the subsequent Kherson bishops - Bishop Job (Smakouz) (1997 - 1999), Archbishop Jonathan (Yeletsky) (1999 - 2006) and Archbishop John (Siopko) (since 2006 - until now).
Holy Spirit Cathedral (before and after renovation)
His Beatitude Vladimir, Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine, visited the Holy Spirit Cathedral three times on a primatial visit: September 5, 1995 - on the day of the canonization of Hieromartyr Procopius, Archbishop of Kherson, August 9, 2008 - on the day of the canonization of St. Cathedral, and on July 15, 2009, on the day of the canonization of Blessed Domnica Aleshkovskaya, whose relics are in the church of St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Nina in the city of Tsyurupinsk (before the renaming - the city of Alyoshka), located on the site of the destroyed Assumption Convent in which the saint labored.
The main shrines of the Holy Spirit Cathedral of the city of Kherson are the miraculous copy of the Kasperovskaya Icon of the Mother of God, revered in the South of Ukraine, before which twice a month the Kherson clergy solemnly serve an akathist; the Image of the Savior not made by hands over the Royal Doors, which is lowered annually on August 29 and on the Week of the Triumph of Orthodoxy for the worship of believers; Theodorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God, before which a prayer service is served every Saturday; The Pochaev Icon of the Mother of God, which sailed to Kherson along the Dnieper; the icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker of Myra of Lycia, updated in the late 1990s; icons of the holy righteous John of Russia and the venerable martyr Paraskeva of Rome with particles of their relics, before which every Friday water-blessing prayers are served with special petitions; two reliquaries with the relics of the Saints of the Kiev Caves and many other saints of God; relics of St. Barsanuphius of Kherson, confessor, St. Eutropia of Kherson and Blessed Domnica of Aleshkovsky.
The Miraculous List of the Kasperovskaya Icon of the Mother of God
The Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands over the Royal Doors and the Fedorov Icon of the Mother of God
Icons of the Holy Righteous John of Russia and the Monk Martyr Paraskeva of Rome
Shrines with the relics of Saints Barsanuphius and Eutropia of Kherson
Arks with the relics of Blessed Domnica Aleshkovsky, the Monks of the Kiev Caves and Saints
In the church fence of the Holy Spirit Cathedral there are the graves of Archpriests Leonid Bogdanov and John Karlev.
There is no doubt that the Holy Spirit Cathedral, with its shrines, is one of the most beloved and famous temples among the believers of the city of Kherson and the Kherson diocese.
Kasperovskaya Icon of the Mother of God
Celebration:
Wednesday of Bright Week, July 12, October 14 (N.S.)
Here is how the church historian Archpriest Sergei Petrovsky describes the circumstances of the acquisition of this image: “During the reign of the blessed memory of Empress Elisaveta Petrovna, Slavic-Serbian settlements were scattered across the current districts of the Kherson province, Elisavetgrad and Alexandria. People from Transylvania, Serbia and other Slavic lands lived here, who arrived in Novorossia at the call of the Russian government to protect the southern borders of the empire from the raid of the Tatar and Turkish hordes. The state authorities gave them the opportunity to build small fortresses, established here for the Orthodox population a special, so-called Slavic diocese, and gave this border strip the name of Slavic-Serbia, Novo-Serbia.
Following the conquests of Russia, which followed in the 18th century under the reign of Empress Catherine II, the Serbian regiments were disbanded. Peaceful cities and towns were built around the former fortresses; and the people who lived in them took up agriculture, trade and cattle breeding. During the reign of Tsar Alexander the Blessed, there were many Russian-Serbian families in the Kherson region, who kept good morals, old customs and strong attachment to the Orthodox faith. And our miraculous Kasperovsky image of the Mother of God belonged to the Serbian family. Her ancestor, some kind of noble Serb, who settled in the Kherson province in the middle of the 18th century, brought the generic image of the Most Holy Theotokos from Transylvania. The shrine, like a blessing, passed from generation to generation and in 1809 was received by the Kherson landowner, the wife of staff captain Nikolai Kasperov, Juliania Ionovna. Who, when and where exactly wrote this image, no one knew and did not remember. And so, not far from the city of Kherson, in the small village of Kasperovo (now called Kizomys, Belozersky district, Kherson region) in a family of an humble and worldly position far from exalted, it was pleasing to the Mother of God to shine with signs and wonders.
The miraculous renewal of the image took place without witnesses, in the dead of night; in February 1840. For the Kasperov family, it is not known under what circumstances, mournful times have come, and the landowner Juliana often turned with fervent prayer to the Zealous Intercessor in front of her family image. Once during a prayer, at the third hour after midnight, Kasperova was surprised to find that the image suddenly “became so bright and alive” that after that the excited woman could not fall asleep until the very morning and spent the night in prayers to the Mother of God.
The Kasperovs, at a mutual consultation, decided not to disclose the miracle, but the good will of God judged it to be otherwise! The image was miraculously renewed, and since then numerous and obvious healings have begun to occur at the icon.
In the vicinity of the village of Kasperovka at that time, there was the village of Kizim. In the 40s of the 19th century, a small noblewoman Vera Burleeva lived here, the woman was ill for a long time, with a dead left hand. After vain attempts to heal, she hears in the spring of 1840 in a sleepy vision the voice of the Mother of God, sending her to Kasperovka to pray to the holy image. Burleeva, at her insistent desire, was brought to the house of Juliana Ionovna, where she prayed earnestly and received complete healing.
From this incident, - said Ms. Kasperova, - a rumor began to spread among the people, many began to come to my house, many came, prayed in the figurative room and received healing.
In the summer of 1843, three outstanding healings fall. After praying before the image of the Mother of God, a 13-year-old peasant boy from the city of Kherson, Ivan Shumyakov, who suffered from epileptic seizures, lost control of his arms, legs, tongue, and often lost consciousness, received perfect health. The Ochakov townswoman Maria Smeshnaya went home from Kasperovka quite healthy. Finally, after praying before the image of the Blessed Virgin and anointing with oil from the lampada, the mind of the Novo-Ivanovo peasant Paraskovya Semipudova, who had been possessed by madness for a long time, returned to her senses.
Rumors about healings from the icon forced the Novoivanovskiy priest Fr. Zelinkevich to offer the owner of Kasperovka to transfer the icon to the church. In the last days of January 1844, seven months after the priest's first proposal, Kasperova personally transferred the image to the parish church of St. Nicholas.
In 1846, the Kherson spiritual board instructed the dean of the city of Kherson to investigate the facts of healings and miracles that allegedly occurred from the icon from the village of Kasperovka. On the one hand, it was skeptical, because at that time there was no shortage of charlatans who, out of selfish goals, announced the appearance of imaginary "shrines", and on the other hand, hoping that through this image God's Providence really appeared in relation to the young South Russian lands. After the end of the work, the commission comes to the conclusion about the real miraculous power emanating from the face of the Virgin.
By this time, the entire Black Sea region already knows about the miraculous face, people come from Kherson, Ochakov, Odessa, Nikolaev and other places. Many miracles and healings came from the miraculous image in the past and at the present time. Many of them are described, many remained secret. Sincere sincere prayer did not go unheeded by the Zealous Intercessor.
Here is a noteworthy case that occurred in the spring of 1922 in the village of Gnilyakovo (now Dachnoye) in the Odessa region. A severe cholera epidemic hit the village. There were cases when up to 30 people died during the day. The village priest, exhausted, performed funeral services from morning until late at night. Then, on the recommendation of the priest, a group of local residents went to Odessa to the ruling bishop, with a request to bring the image of the Mother of God to the village of Kasperovsky. On July 13, on the day of the feast of the Cathedral of the Holy Archangel Gabriel, accompanied by the city clergy, the icon was taken to the center of the village right on the square, a public prayer service was performed in front of it, then the icon was brought to the local Holy Intercession Church. Not a single person died after the prayer service. In memory of this event, in gratitude to God and the Mother of God for deliverance from a serious epidemic, local residents have established the day of the Holy Archangel Gabriel to be considered a special day of God's mercy.
In the 50s of the last century, with the blessing of the Holy Synod and the permission of His Imperial Majesty, religious processions were made with the icon to the main cities of the Kherson diocese - Kherson, Nikolaev, Odessa.
On January 12, 1852, according to the Highest permission, His Imperial Majesty, Sovereign Emperor Nicholas I, a religious procession was established in Kherson.
In order to get closer to understanding how solemn this event was for the life of the city, we will give a brief description of it taken from the records of the remarkable dates of Kherson. “In 1852, on May 8, on the day of the feast of the holy Ascension, the procession was performed for the first time, in the most solemn atmosphere. According to the Highest approved ceremonial, the entire garrison, educational institutions and all authorities participated in it. From the guns that were at that time on the ramparts, a continuous salute was fired. Bishop Innokenty arrived on purpose from Odessa to participate in the procession. Since that time, the image of the Mother of God is solemnly brought to Kherson every year on Ascension Day and remains here until June 29.
In 1854, during the Crimean War, citizens of the city of Odessa sent a deputation to Bishop Innokenty with a letter of the following content: “Under the present circumstances, when our city is in a position from enemies, we make a humble request to Your Eminence to apply for permission to bring the Kasperovskaya icon of the Mother of God to the cathedral our temple for the entire time of the blockade of our city. With all our hearts we believe in the miraculous help of the Mother of God and hope that the presence of Her Face in our city will be an invincible bulwark against enemy attacks and the most reliable guarantee of our salvation.
The request of the inhabitants of Odessa was granted, and on August 6, 1854, the icon was brought in a procession from the village of Kasperovka to the Cathedral of the city of Odessa, where it remained until May 20, 1856.
On September 26, 1855, an enemy fleet of 120 pennants appeared on the Odessa roadstead. Every day in these difficult days, Christians, together with St. Innocent, offered up prayers before the miraculous image for the salvation of the city. One can only imagine the state of the townspeople, who have been under the muzzle of the squadron's deadly guns for a whole week, nevertheless, everyone was perplexed, what prevents the enemy from attacking the practically defenseless city.
On the eve of October 1, almost the entire population of Odessa gathered in front of the Cathedral Square, prayer services were served, in front of the Kasperovsky miraculous image, with the blessing of the lord, they began to read the penitential canon - everyone asked the Queen of Heaven to spare the city. On the day of the Protection of the Mother of God, a thick, almost impenetrable fog descended on the sea. Enemy ships in this fog lost their course and could not determine the correct direction of the intended strike. Another day - and the fleet suddenly left.
Some considered this deliverance an accident, others - ignorance by the enemy of our available forces and fear of the fire of coastal batteries. But the believing inhabitants of Odessa in those days, from young to old, thanked the Most Holy Theotokos. Indeed, Her omophorion was stretched out these days over the city and saved it from inevitable death. This day became especially memorable for the inhabitants of Odessa, on the same day, on the feast of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, one of the days of honoring the Kasperovskaya Icon of the Mother of God was also established.
This icon served as a great support and strengthening of the spiritual strength and faith of our people during the times of disasters that fell upon our Fatherland during periods of trials, when foreign enemy hordes approached our borders. She was evidence of the presence of the Protection of the Queen of Heaven for the Odessans, and for the Khersons and for the defenders of Sevastopol, for all who demanded Her maternal help.
In prayer before the miraculous image, everyone found encouragement, consolation, and hope for a safe outcome of wars. They were blessed by the Monk Innokenty, Archbishop of Kherson and Tauride, troops passing through Odessa to Sevastopol. They overshadowed the batteries arranged on our seashore and blessed the detachments assigned to them to protect the port and city. This image was worn in hospitals and infirmaries. They made a vow before him and they were admonished by the sisters of mercy, who took upon themselves the difficult task of serving in the army.
Thanks to the grace-filled help that appeared on the maritime borders of our state through prayers at this image, the Kasperovskaya Icon of the Mother of God is considered the patroness of the fleet, not only of the sea, but also of the air.
One fact is curious, from the history of the Crimean War, also associated with our miraculous image. When Saint Innocent during the siege of Sevastopol arrived with the Kasperovskaya Icon of the Mother of God in the city, for spiritual support of the troops, he sent to warn the commander in chief A.S. ".
To which the arrogant nobleman gave such an answer, “So tell the archbishop that he bothered the Queen of Heaven in vain - we can do without Her!” Soon Sevastopol fell.
In peacetime, the tradition of religious processions in the Kherson province was strictly observed until the advent of the godless power. As the descriptions of that time testify to this, the miraculous icon is annually brought in procession from the village. Kasperovka in Odessa, and remains there from October 1 until the fourth day of Easter. From the Feast of the Ascension stays until June 29 in the city of Kherson; from July 1 to August 1 - in Nikolaev. In all these cities, before the miraculous icon, on Fridays, an akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos is read. The last religious procession took place in 1918. With the advent of Soviet power, the tradition of religious processions was interrupted and resumed only in the 90s.
The official location of the icon was the village of Kasperovka, but he spent most of the year in Odessa and at this time this image is located in the Holy Assumption Cathedral of the city and is its main shrine.
The Kasperovskaya Icon of the Mother of God is a shrine that is reverently revered by the Orthodox residents of Odessa, Nikolaev, Kirovograd, Chisinau and Tiraspol, the Crimea, and many other regions of our fatherland. Far from one temple was built and consecrated in honor of our miraculous image, and not only in the Kherson province, but also far beyond its borders. With the acquisition of the miraculous image, many pious Christians considered it necessary to glorify the Mother of God, thereby responding with their zeal to God's mercy. Some in prayers and religious processions, some, arranging chapels and temples in honor of the holy image.
The main shrine of the Holy Spirit Cathedral of Kherson is the list of the miraculous Kasperovskaya Icon of the Mother of God, in front of which the cathedral of the city clergy reads an akathist to the Intercession of the Mother of God.
Every year on the patronal feast of the Holy Spirit Cathedral of Kherson, the Day of the Holy Spirit, the miraculous Kasperovsky Icon of the Mother of God is brought from the Holy Dormition Cathedral in Odessa, which, led by the Ruling Bishop, solemnly meets the clergy of the Kherson diocese and numerous believers from various churches of the diocese, and stays for several days in Kherson. During the farewell to the icon, a religious procession takes place through the streets of the city from the Holy Spirit Cathedral to the Church of All Saints.
As in past times, the Queen of Heaven, through Her miraculous image, continues to help everyone who comes to Her with faith for help and comfort.
Description
Holy Spirit Cathedral in Kherson
The center of urban trade in the 18th century was an imported market. In 1804, it was decided to build a temple on the lively Privoznaya Square. The cruciform church in the style of classicism, designed by the architect I.V. Yaroslavsky, stood out for its simplicity of architecture and slender proportions. Due to lack of money, the construction of the temple was completed only by 1836. A certain servant of God, Gr. I.R., donating 15 thousand rubles for the construction of the church.
A sad fate befell the temple in 1922, when all valuables were removed from it, and in 1926 it was closed for services. Only in 1941 did the restoration of the holy temple begin. Soon, in connection with the closure of the Catherine and Assumption Cathedrals, the parish church receives the status of a Cathedral.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the Church of the Holy Spirit was expanded, and in this form it appears before us today. There is probably no such collection of holy icons in any church in the Kherson region, representing both artistic and museum value. From the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra in 1912, the city of Kherson and the temple were presented with the icon of the Mother of God from the holy Mount Athos "It is worthy to eat." The icon of the "Grieving Mother of God" is especially revered in the cathedral. The following icons are of artistic value: the icon with the relics of "Seraphim of Sarov", the three-leaved icon of "Alexander Nevsky" in princely vestments (the Holy Great Martyr Barbara is depicted on the right side, and St. Nicholas on the left), the icon of "St. Miracle Worker", Kasperov's icon "The Mother of God with the Child", Pochaev's icon "The Mother of God", "The Mother of God with the Child" in salary, as well as the icon with museum value "Christ the Almighty".
In the temple are the relics of the holy fathers and great miracle workers: St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, St. John Chrysostom, St. Vladimir the Martyr of Kiev, St. Demetrius Metropolitan of Kiev and many others. And also in the cathedral are 96 relics of saints from the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra.
Now the Cathedral is the center of the Orthodox life of Kherson, it is through it that all the miraculous icons that visit the city pass. Recently, the icon of the Mother of God "Look at humility" visited the cathedral.
Holy Spiritual Cathedral (Privoznaya Church)
The three-altar Holy Spirit Church of the city of Kherson was founded in 1804. The construction of the front of the church took place in one summer, thanks to a large donation of 15 thousand rubles, but then, due to lack of funds, the construction was suspended and only in 1835 the construction of the church was completed.
The northern aisle in the name of the Hieromartyrs of Chersonesus and the southern aisle in the name of the Archangel Michael were consecrated in January 1836, and the main Holy Spirit throne was consecrated on August 16, 1836 by Archbishop Gabriel (Rozanov).
According to the testimony of the same Archbishop, Kherson merchants showed special zeal in building the church: Galukhin, Bogdanov, Sikachev and Nosov, which is also confirmed by the oral tradition of local residents who called the Holy Spirit Church “merchant”.
The church was built near the city market - the import, and from that it became known as the "imported church". This name has survived to this day.
Initially, the temple looked like a square cross with a massive colonnade on all four sides and a low dome.
About 80 meters to the west of the temple, a beautiful five-tiered bell tower was built, consecrated on August 6, 1806 and serving as a parish church under the name of Preobrazhenskaya, because her patronal feast was on the day of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Having existed for 135 years, it burned down in 1941, on the very day of the Transfiguration of the Lord - August 19. Its remains were dismantled to the ground in the post-war years. At present, where the throne of this church was, there is a chapel with an inextinguishable lamp inside.
In 1907, a refectory part was added to the cross-shaped Holy Spirit Church, as a result of which the church was significantly lengthened. Under the refectory part, a basement was equipped, where Sunday talks and readings were held, as well as rehearsals of the church choir. The locals-old-timers call the merchants Irlikovs the builders of the refectory.
The Holy Spirit Church was considered the richest and most beautiful in the city. The iconostasis, icon cases, icons, church utensils shone with gilding.
In godless times, the Holy Spirit Church suffered a great misfortune: in March 1922, church valuables were seized from it, and from May 1, 1926, the church was transferred by the city authorities to the renovationists, who kept it until September 27, 1937. Then everything was taken away from the temple and destroyed.
From 1937 to 1944, services were not held in the temple, and it was used as a storehouse for flour.
At the end of 1941, under the refectory part of the Holy Spirit Church, a temple was built in honor of the Transfiguration of the Lord, instead of the burned Transfiguration Church, and church services began to be performed in it.
In August 1944, the Holy Spirit Church, which was in a very deplorable state, was returned to believers, who began its restoration. A new iconostasis of the main chapel was built, the temple was put in proper order, and regular worship began. In subsequent years, 1944-1953, the northern and southern aisles were restored and consecrated. The old painting that was on the walls of the Holy Spirit Church has not been preserved.
Until 1945, the Assumption Cathedral, built in 1798, was the cathedral of the city of Kherson. In 1945, the department was transferred to the Catherine's Cathedral, built in 1791. And only under the Reverend Nikon (Petin), in 1947, the Holy Spirit Church, which had previously been the parish church of the city, became the cathedral.
From 1953 to 1960 The rector of the Holy Spirit Church was Archpriest Boris Georgievich Stark, who at the same time was the secretary of the Diocesan Administration. Serving in Kherson, he showed a bright talent not only as a wise pastor, setting a personal example of a steady desire to serve the Lord, but also as a church administrator. By his tireless labors, the Holy Spirit Cathedral was more well-decorated. In particular, new iconostases were built for the northern and southern aisles. In 1955-1956, icons of Saints, Martyrs and Saints were painted by Odessa artists and placed on the walls of the cathedral.
Until 1995, there was no bell tower in the cathedral. All large and small bells of the former bell tower were destroyed, and instead of them, small bells in the amount of 8 pieces were used, which were placed on the porch.
The area occupied by the cathedral is 1441 sq.m, inside the temple - 762.51 sq.m. The height of the walls of the upper temple is 9.7 m. The height of the dome is 19.7 m. The dome is octagonal. The distance between opposite faces is 10.9 m.
Until 1991, the Kherson region was part of the Odessa diocese, the ruling Bishop of which visited the Holy Spirit Cathedral once a year, on its temple feast.
By decision of the Holy Synod of the UOC of February 11, 1991, as a result of the division of the Odessa diocese, the Kherson diocese was formed. Its first Ruling Bishop was Metropolitan Leonty (Gudimov), who is buried at the altar wall of the cathedral opposite the chapel of the Hieromartyrs of Chersonesos.
Through the efforts of the next administrator of the Kherson diocese, Bishop (since 2000 - Metropolitan) Hilarion (Shukalo) (reigned 1992 - 1997), the Transfiguration lower aisle of the Holy Spirit Cathedral was consecrated, and a new one was built on August 12, 1996. Bell tower.
At the same time, restoration work began in the cathedral, which continued under the subsequent Kherson bishops - Bishop Job (Smakouz) (1997 - 1999), Archbishop Jonathan (Yeletsky) (1999 - 2006) and Archbishop John (Siopko) (since 2006 - until now).
His Beatitude Vladimir, Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine, visited the Holy Spirit Cathedral three times on a primatial visit: September 5, 1995 - on the day of the canonization of the Hieromartyr Procopius, Archbishop of Kherson, August 9, 2008 - on the day of the canonization of St. Cathedral, and July 15, 2009 - the day of the canonization of Blessed Domnica Aleshkovskaya, whose relics are in the church of St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Nina of the city of Tsyurupinsk (before the renaming - the city of Alyoshka), located on the site of the destroyed Dormition Convent, in which the saint labored.
The main shrines of the Holy Spirit Cathedral in the city of Kherson are the miraculous copy of the Kasperovskaya Icon of the Mother of God, revered in the South of Ukraine, before which every Friday the Kherson clergy solemnly serve an akathist; the Image of the Savior not made by hands over the Royal Doors, which is lowered annually on August 29 and on the Week of the Triumph of Orthodoxy for the worship of believers; The Theodorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God, before which a prayer service is served every Saturday; the Pochaev Icon of the Mother of God, which sailed to Kherson along the Dnieper; the icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker of Myra of Lycia, updated in the late 1990s; icons of the holy righteous John of Russia and the venerable martyr Paraskeva of Rome with particles of their relics, before which every Friday water-blessing prayers are served with special petitions; two reliquaries with the relics of the Saints of the Kiev Caves and many other saints of God; relics of St. Barsanuphius of Kherson, confessor.
In the church fence of the Holy Spirit Cathedral there are the graves of Archpriests Leonid Bogdanov and John Karlev.
There is no doubt that the Holy Spirit Cathedral, with its shrines, is one of the most beloved and famous temples among the believers of the city of Kherson and the Kherson diocese.
