Evening star., 1955-02-21
ThrongsAttend
Initial Service
AT Sophia's
$500 View Ceremony
At Greek Edifice,
Due to Be Cathedral
By Harry Bocos

By Harry Boeos
A magnificent neo-Byzantine
church building, destined to be
Washington'S third cathedral
was opened amidst holy ritual
and mass worship yesterday.
More than $500 members of
the st. Sophia Greek Orthodox
congregation crowded in and
around the new triple-domed
edifice at Massachusetts, avenue
and Thirty-sixth street NV. for
the ceremonies.
A police-led motorcade Of
more than 300 automobiles
brought many Of the worship
pers from the old church at
Eighth and L streets NV, where
the doors were locked for the
last time.
5Oth Year Celebrated.
The st. Sophia congregation
is celebrating its 50th anniver-
sary this year. The new SIS
million building, designated as
the next cathedral by the Greek
Orthodox Church in North and
South America. is the congrega-
tion's fifth home since its
founding. It will join Washing
ton Cathedral tEpiscopaD and
st. Matthews Cathedral (Ro-
man Catholic) as the center Of
diocese and seat of a bishop.
The Very Rev. Archimandrite
Aimilianos Laloussis. pastor Of
the church, cut bright red rib
bon at the new church doors and
led a procession of altar boys.
dressed in plum -colored, gold
brocaded robes into the church
and up the central aisle.
Then with thousands jammed
inside, and hundreds of others
listening outside over loudspeak-
ers, Father Laloussis faced east
to the altar, raised high the mas.
sive gold-bound Bible and in.
toned the opening words of the
Liturgy Of st. John Chrysostom.
traditional in the Greek Church
since the Fourth Century:
Blessed is the kingdom of the
Father. the Son and the Holy
Ghost, amen"
Behind him, in the choir loft,
the choir chanted the response,
Amen"
Chants Entreaties.
The priest began to chant his
entreaties, I'm peace let us be.
seech the Lord" and the choir
chanted back. "Kyrie Eleison,
Lord have mercy on u.s."
Dozens of tall white candles
flickered in candelabra set before
the tall altar screen. pointing
highlights in the ikons painted
on the gilded wood. The screen,
which depicts the life of Christ,
was transported from the old
church. 1t will be replaced soon
with a new screen now being
carved of marble in Greece. The
new screen, following a modern
trend in Greek churches, is being
made lower to permit the con-
gregation a better view of the
huge painting of the ascension
behind the altar.
The Gospel reading was from
st. Matthew's account of the
day of judgment, And before
him shall be gathered all the
nations; and he shall separate
them one from another, as a
shepherd divideth his sheep from
the goats; and he shall set the
sheep on his right hand, but the
goats on the left"
Asks Prayers for U. S.
In his sermon, Father Laloussis
asked prayers for the United
States, "the country of oppor-
tunity." which. he said, afforded
its people the abundance to build
such house of worship. At the
end of the two-hour service, he
read kilograms of congratulation
from Archbishop Michael in New
York, head of the church in
America, and from Archbishop
Athenagoras in Istanbul. patri-
arch of the Greek Orthodox
Church.
The president of the congre-
cation, Jack Pappadeas, who as
sisted in cutting the red ribbon
to open the church, asked his
fellow members to "abide by His
holy wisdom-the st. Sophia Of
God--to which this house and
monument is dedicated" Sophia
Is the Greek word for Wisdom.
The new cathedral-designate
has been a project Of st. Sophia
since 1943. Almost 81 million of
its cost has already been raised.
Still to be completed are the
installation of permanent pews,
stained glass windows. the mar
BILE altar screen, the pulpit and
bishops throne.
The membership of the church
numbers more than 1000 fami-
lies, about 5000 persons. The
old structure at Eighth and L
streets NV, which the church
used since 1920. has been sold
to the Rehoboth Church of God,
a colored Baptist group. Earlier
sites, all temporary, were at
Seventh and L streets NV,
Sixth and c streets NV. and
Sixth and G streets NV.
The Biennial Congress of the
Greek Orthodox Church in
North and South America, which
will meet next year in Washing
ton, is expected to proclaim the
Y1n aIN