page_title: Cornerstone
section_title: Eastern Churches
hierarchical_section_title: Cornerstone / Contemporary usage / Ecclesiastical / Eastern Churches
caption_attribution_description: a ceremony of laying the foundation of a church in Kyiv, Ukraine
context_page_description: The cornerstone is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure.
  Over time a cornerstone became a ceremonial masonry stone, or replica, set in a prominent location on the outside of a building, with an inscription on the stone indicating the construction dates of the building and the names of architect, builder, and other significant individuals. The rite of laying a cornerstone is an important cultural component of eastern architecture and metaphorically in sacred architecture generally.
  Some cornerstones include time capsules from, or engravings commemorating, the time a particular building was built.
context_section_description: In the Eastern Orthodox Church the blessing of the bishop must be obtained before construction on a new church may commence, and any clergyman who ventures to do so without a blessing can be deposed.  The "Rite of the Foundation of a Church" (i.e., the laying of the cornerstone) will differ slightly depending on whether the church is to be constructed of wood or of stone. Even when a church is built of wood, the cornerstone must in fact be made of stone.
  The cornerstone is a solid stone cube upon which a cross has been carved.  Below the cross, the following words are inscribed:
  In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, this church is founded, in honour and memory of (here the name of the patron saint of the new church is inserted); in the rule of (here the name of the ruler is inserted); in the episcopacy of (here the name of the bishop is inserted); in the Year of the World _____ (Anno Mundi), and from the Birth in the flesh of God the Word _____ (Anno Domini).
  In the top of the stone a cross-shaped space is hollowed out into which relics may be placed. Relics are not required, but they are normally placed in the cornerstone. If no relics are inserted in the stone, the inscription may be omitted, but not the cross.
  After the foundations for the new church have been dug and all preparations finished, the bishop (or his deputy) with the other clergy vest and form a crucession to the building site. The service begins with a moleben and the blessing of holy water. Then a cross is erected in the place where the Holy Table (altar) will stand, and the cornerstone is consecrated and set in place.
caption: The ceremony of laying the cornerstone of a church in Kiev, Ukraine
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