The classical model of Byzantine church architecture is the Church of the Holy Wisdom, Hagla Sophia, built in Constantinople in the first half of the sixth century.  Its structure, which still stands today, is topped by a distinctive dome surrounded by a triple-bar cross.
Many means were used to express the Byzantine faith and its aspiration towards the Divine in the architecture.  Typically, a relatively plain façade sheltered an unsurpassed wealth of decoration.   Rather than a house of God, the space projected an image of a miniature universe in which the one and only God dwelt. Designers spiritualized space and dematerialized mass.  The polished surfaces or curved them to reduce the impact of their mass; they perforated other details such as those adorning the lintels or capitals to give the ethereal texture of embroidery of lace.
Sunlight, penetrating from above, illuminated the nave and lifted the dome to produce a sense of religious exaltation.  Emphasis on the height and length of these buildings was an attempt to unify their inner spaces. Continue reading →

JULY 5, 1992 – It was the day after the nation had celebrated the anniversary of its Independence.  A sunny, bright Sunday, and in the crowd that had gathered in the grassy field opposite St. John’s Cathedral Center were the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren of another group that had gathered nearly a entry earlier for the very same reason. 
These were the descendants of those who came to America from their native Eastern Europe to gain economic and religious independence for themselves and their families.  To their “new land,” they brought their culture, their customs, their languages, and most importantly, they brought their church.  Almost a hundred years earlier,  the church that was to become St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Cathedral. Was begun near the banks of the Monongahela River, close enough to their homes to be a focal point of their lives and near the steel mills that meant economic freedom.    Now, for the congregation of St. John’s. it was a “new beginning” and the spirit that brought their ancestors together long ago became a part of them as they looked on.   Continue reading →

Daniel Ivancho was born in the village of Jasinia, Maramoroš County in the Eparchy of Mukačevo (present-day Ukraine), on March 30, 1908. At the age of eight, he emigrated to the United States and settled in Cleveland, Ohio with his … Continue reading →

Basil Takach was born in the small village of Vučkovoje in Maramoroš County (present-day Hungary) on October 27, 1879. Following the example of his father and his uncle, young Basil entered the Seminary in Užhorod and was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Julius Firczak on December 12, 1902. After nine years of service as a parish priest, he was appointed Controller of the Eparchial Bank and executive officer of its printing society by the bishop.  In addition to these responsibilities, he also was named superior of the “Alumneum,” the Eparchy’s boarding school. His honesty, dedication and kindness made him one of the most loved and respected priests in the Mukačevo Eparchy. Continue reading →

Stephen John Kocisko was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on June 11, 1915, one of nine children of John and Anna (Somos) Kocisko.  After his graduation from De La Salle Catholic High School, he pursued his vocation to the priestly life by attending Nazareth Preparatory Seminary in St. Paul, Minn. Later, he was sent by Bishop Basil Takach for his philosophical and theological education to St. Josaphat Seminary in Rome where he earned a Licentiate (Master’s) Degree in Sacred Theology. Just prior to his departure for the United States, Bishop Alexander Evreinoff, the Russian ordaining prelate for Byzantine Catholics in Rome, ordained him to the priesthood on March 30, 1941. Continue reading →