Cleveland, October 30, 2025
Photo: chicagodiocese.org
The St. Sergius of Radonezh Cathedral in Cleveland celebrated its 75th anniversary over the weekend, with services led by His Eminence Metropolitan Nicholas of Eastern America and New York, First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia.
The anniversary festivities began on Saturday evening, October 25, when Met. Nicholas arrived and served a panikhida for the deceased clergy and founders of the parish, which is one of the oldest in the diocese. This was followed by the All-Night Vigil, with the cathedral choir singing the services, reports the ROCOR Diocese of Chicago and Mid-America.
Photo: chicagodiocese.org
On Sunday morning, October 26, Met. Nicholas was greeted at the cathedral entrance by nine priests and three deacons, led by cathedral rector Archpriest Ilya Marzev. The bells rang out from the cathedral bell tower as the hierarchical Divine Liturgy began. A large number of subdeacons, readers, and altar servers assisted at the services, and many faithful received Holy Communion from two chalices.
Following the Liturgy, a cross procession took place outdoors. At the conclusion of the services, several awards were presented. A Synodal Decree signed by all members of the Synod of Bishops was read, congratulating the parish on its anniversary. Archpriest Peter Selenoi, a retired cathedral clergyman, received the medal of the Kursk Icon Second Class in recognition of his 50th anniversary as a priest. Met. Nicholas also presented the cathedral with a hand-painted icon of the Royal Martyrs and gave Fr. Ilya Marzev the ROCOR Centenary jeweled cross.
The celebration continued at the St. Sava Serbian Cathedral Hall, where the parish children and choir performed. Those gathered shared memories of the founding clergy and longtime members of the cathedral.
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Photo: chicagodiocese.org
St. Sergius parish was founded in July 1950 when Russian Orthodox faithful in Cleveland began holding services in a converted garage chapel. The first pastor was Archimandrite Anthony (Medvedev), later Archbishop of San Francisco. In 1952, the community built a church that grew significantly over the following decades.
As parishioners moved to the suburbs, the parish purchased property in Parma in 1979 and began constructing the current cathedral. Services started in the unfinished building in 1981, and the cathedral was completed and consecrated in 1987 with Metropolitan Vitaly presiding.
The cathedral’s interior frescos were painted by Archbishop Alypy (Gamanovich), who served as vicar bishop of Cleveland from 1975. The iconography includes one of the first depictions of the Royal Martyrs following their 1981 glorification. Large feast and saint icons were painted by former rector Fr. Theodore Jurewicz.
Today the parish has approximately 100 members, with active Church school, sisterhood, and brotherhood organizations.
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