St. Theodosius Orthodox Christian Cathedral

07/02/2026

Cathedral Restoration Update

As we move into July, we are grateful to share continued steady progress on the restoration of St. Theodosius Cathedral.

An important step has been reached with the completion of the temporary protective roofs over the north, east, and south sections of the cathedral. These structures allow crews to continue working in nearly all weather conditions and are expected to remain in place through the summer, with removal planned for September, once the permanent roof work is completed.

Work has advanced from demolition and smoke mitigation into new roof framing, sheathing, and insulation. We are currently focused on the south section, while also completing remaining work on the west roof, where the fire originated. At the same time, crews are beginning construction of the large square roof structure that will support the cathedral's main dome.

Another encouraging update is that the cathedral bell has been professionally cleaned and inspected. Aside from some smoke-related discoloration, it remains in excellent condition. A new striker will have to be fabricated so the bell will once again ring with its full voice.

Our goal remains to complete Phase One of the roof restoration by the end of November. Thank you for your continued prayers, encouragement, and support. Each week brings us closer to returning to our beloved cathedral.

05/28/2026

Hard to believe it has been two years today since our beloved Cathedral of St. Theodosius was damaged by fire. During this journey, we have learned many lessons — patience, trust, forgiveness, and perseverance in faith.

Our St. Theodosius community is deeply grateful to all of you for your prayers, support, encouragement, and financial help. The grace of God, with your kindness and love has carried us through these difficult years and continues to give us hope as we move forward together.

May God bless you all.

05/15/2026

05/15/2026

When building a new church, the process typically follows a clear order: the church structure and roof are completed first, and only after everything is finished outside do we move inside to begin the artwork and interior work.

With this restoration, however, the process is in many ways reversed. Our priority is not only construction in the usual sense, but also the protection of what already exists inside the cathedral — the frescoes, fine art, woodwork, and sacred interior space. Because of this, we must first build extensive temporary protective roofing systems before we can safely open and repair or replace the fire-damaged sections of the roof.

The north gable has been completed, and a temporary roof structure is now in place. We have also removed all burned and damaged roofing elements. In addition, we have begun constructing a temporary enclosure for the east roof section, which should be completed soon. These initial weeks of the restoration have focused primarily on carefully removing charred and fire-damaged materials while ensuring the interior remains protected. In the next phase, we will begin the roof framing work.

We are grateful to share that we were awarded $90,677 from the Intervention Fund for shoring and securing two large domes that required stabilization and support. The shoring work on the two medium-sized domes is now nearly complete and is expected to be removed at the end of August. The Intervention Fund is an emergency grant program under the umbrella of the National Fund for Sacred Places, a program of Partners for Sacred Places in collaboration with the National Trust for Historic Preservation

Thank you ALL for your support, both prayerful and monetary.

04/05/2026

Sitting on Your throne in heaven, carried on a foal on earth, O Christ God! Accept the praise of angels and the songs of children who sing: Blessed is He that comes to recall Adam!

03/23/2026

https://youtu.be/OIdT66XbOyg?si=wqRTDx-P_saEuq6S

On Sunday, March 22, the church held a special prayer service on the cathedral’s front steps ahead of the restoration work.

03/23/2026

https://youtu.be/2cek-qLaRmU?si=gGbr3jLXPHGXmK9m

St. Theodosius held a prayer service Sunday to mark the beginning of the restoration process as crews prepare to begin the first phase of repairs.

03/22/2026

This Sunday, we served a prayerful service for the beginning of the cathedral’s restoration, asking God to bless the work, grant His grace, and send His angel to protect all involved.

Tomorrow, WR Restoration will begin mobilizing, and together with subcontractors, they will start the restoration work on the cathedral.🙏

02/05/2026

Blessed Feast of St. Theodosius of Chernigov!

On this day, we commemorate the repose of Saint Theodosius that took place on February 5, 1896. Our heavenly patron, St. Theodosius, reposed in the Lord, and numerous miracles began to occur.
Please take a moment to pray to our parish patron for the restoration of our cathedral!

Troparion in Tone Four
Most excellent among hierarchs, o blessed Theodosius,
You have been a light for your flock.
Since you passed to the eternal dwelling place.
Pray at the throne of the King of Glory
to deliver usfrom the evils engulfing us ///
and save our souls, O Holy One, through your prayers.

Kontakion in Tone Four
You labored forChrist, the Chief Shepherd, O Holy Hierarch Theodosius,
by leading your rational sheep to graze in spiritual pastures.
And you receivedfrom Christ the Savior the gift of healing
to cure the bodily and spiritual infirmities of all who come to your healing relics.
Pray, O holy one, for them who call upon you ///
so that our souls may be saved from the deception of the enemy.

Canonization of the Chernigov saint was based on 49 new cases of miracles that were carefully investigated. The complete incorruptibility of the saint's body was also confirmed and contributed to his canonization. On June 26, 1896, the Holy Synod issued a resolution on the glorification of Saint Theodosius, Archbishop of Chernigov, as a saint.