Cathedral of St. John the Baptist (Washington, D.C.)
The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Washington, D.C., is a cathedral of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia. It was originally founded as a parish church by Archbishop John Maximovich. For the first nine years, the congregation met for Divine Liturgy every Sunday in the Resurrection Chapel of the National Cathedral.[1]
History
The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist was founded by Archbishop John Maximovich in 1949 in a visit to the United States, Washington, D.C., to assist in establishing a community for Russian Orthodox refugees after World War II. That September, he helped form a parish dedicated to St. John the Forerunner, which initially held services at the Resurrection Chapel of the National Cathedral. In 1956, the parish secured land near Meridian Hill, and by 1958, the first phase of their church building was completed. Over the years, the structure expanded, adopting a Muscovite-Yaroslavl (also a type of Baroque) style, a variant of the Russian Revival architecture, with onion domes and an iconostasis.[2]
The Cathedral holds a regular schedule of services, including Saturday evening Vigils combining Vespers and Matins. They are conducted both in English and Church Slavonic. On Sundays, the Divine Liturgy is offered in English during the mornings, and in Church Slavonic from 10:30 a.m. Additional services are held on feast days throughout the liturgical year, primarily in Church Slavonic, reflecting the Cathedral's English Slavic heritage.[1]
References
- ^ a b "The Cathedral Church of St. John the Baptist - RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CATHEDRAL OF ST.JOHN THE BAPTIST". www.stjohndc.org. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
- ^ "RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CATHEDRAL OF ST.JOHN THE BAPTIST". stjohndc.org. Archived from the original on 2024-11-27. Retrieved 2025-04-26.
38°56′24″N 77°02′16″W / 38.9399647°N 77.0377079°W