![]() It took courage because the Roman emperor actually agreed with Arius and many bishops were persecuted after the council. At Nicaea, the bishops with great courage defended the divinity of Christ. He had many followers and the Church was in danger of actually splitting in half over the issue. At the time there was a theologian named Arius who taught that Jesus was a god but not the God. It was the year 325 and this council was to be the most famous in the history of the Church. Once the Church was free again, a few theological issues needed to be settled, so a great council was called in the city of Nicaea. After a time the persecution relented because they needed the prison space for actual criminals. At the time of the Roman Emperor Diocletian, many Christians were imprisoned for their faith, St. He became a Bishop and was known for his continued love for the poor and for children. His parents died while he was still young, and Nick gave away his entire inheritance to the poor and he entered the Church. Rd century in a town on the southern coast of Turkey. I personally have no problem with Santa Claus, but I will say that once we hear the actual, true history of this remarkable man, the secular legend seems boring in comparison. Nicholas to preside over the Centennial Epiphany service and to throw the cross during the dive.This coming Saturday, Dec 6 is the feast day of St. In January of 2006, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, spiritual leader of the Eastern Orthodox Church, came to St. ![]() Nicholas was elevated to cathedral status for West Florida in January of 1979. Honoring this, in 1975, the Tarpon Springs Board of Commissioners passed a resolution designating the city the "Epiphany City" of the United States. Nicholas was by then a significant center of community life as well, with major festivals surrounding Epiphany, Greek Independence Day, and Orthodox Easter. Construction began in 1941 and was completed in 1943, when it was consecrated by Archbishop Athenagoras (later Patriarch) at Epiphany. The parish added a school in 1925.īy 1935, the parish had outgrown the first church and began raising funds toward current structure. Stamatis Koutouzis was appointed the first parish priest. ![]() The first church, completed that year at a cost of $300 for the land and $3,500 for construction, was a wood frame structure painted white. By 1907, the population was large enough to support a Greek Orthodox church, a project put under the supervision of Nicholas Peppas, a native of Aegina. The trade attracted Greek immigrants as well as Greeks from other parts of the U.S. The community traces its history to John Cocoris, a native of Leonidio in Arcadia, Greece, who settled in the area in 1896 and became a prosperous sponge diver and trader. On December 4, 1969, the icon of Saint Nicholas was observed to have drops of moisture, and some consider it a Weeping Icon. Forty-one icons, sponsored by various members of the parish, were delivered in 1952, with more added in subsequent years. The interior is richly decorated with icons, many by Greek iconographer George Saclaridis. A new altar of Carrara marble was installed in 1965. It, along with the cathedra, choir stalls, and other components were obtained with help from George Frantzis. The altar was originally part of the Greek exhibit at the 1939 New York World's Fair. Within the dome are three large chandeliers imported from Czechoslovakia. Llorens of Atlanta, and the sixty ton altar, made of Pentelic marble. Noted features include 23 stained glass windows surrounding the dome depicting episodes in the life of Jesus and the saints, hand-painted by Joseph V. It is a local landmark which has been featured on postcards. Modeled in part after the Hagia Sophia in what is now Istanbul, it melds Byzantine and Gothic Revival styles. The domed main church building, designed by the Eugene Brothers of Chicago, was completed in 1943. A statue of an epiphany diver is located in front of the church. It is the largest such event in the Western Hemisphere, with thousands in attendance. ![]() Nicholas hosts an annual Epiphany celebration on January 6, in which Greek Orthodox boys aged 16 to 18 dive into Spring Bayou to retrieve a white wooden cross, said to bring the finder blessings for the year. Its noted Neo-Byzantine church is located at 36 North Pinellas Avenue. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral is a Greek Orthodox parish and center for Greek-American life in Tarpon Springs, Florida.
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