The Immaculate Conception Cathedral ( el, Καθεδρικός Ναός της Αμιάντου Συλλήψεως της Θεοτόκου) is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

church located on Frangon street in the city of

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...

, in northern

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

. The church follows the Roman or

Latin rite Latin liturgical rites, or Western liturgical rites, are Catholic rites of public worship employed by the Latin Church, the largest particular church ''sui iuris'' of the Catholic Church, that originated in Europe where the Latin language once ...

and functions as the seat of the Apostolic Vicariate of Thessaloniki (''Vicariatus Apostolicus Thessalonicensis'' or Αποστολικό Βικαριάτο Θεσσαλονίκης).

History

Foundation

In the 18th century, the Catholic community in Thessaloniki was served by the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus ( la, Societas Iesu; abbreviation: SJ), also known as the Jesuits (; la, Iesuitæ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

. In 1713, the Jesuits built St. Louis Church next to the French consulate. On 30 March 1740, it became a

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

. Two years later, a new larger church, also named St. Louis, was built. In 1773, with the suppression of the Society of Jesus, the Jesuits was banned from Greece and the Lazarists replaced them. In 1839, a fire destroyed a third of the city, including the church. The church was rebuilt within a year and dedicated to

Mary, mother of Jesus Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...

and her Immaculate Conception.''History of the Cathedral of Virgin Mary's Immaculate Conception of Thessaloniki'', ed. Pandelis Printezis, 2009

Construction

On 7 October 1896, the foundation stone of the current church was laid. The church was designed by

Vitaliano Poselli Vitaliano Poselli (1838–1918) was an Italian architect from Sicily, mostly known for his work in the city of Thessaloniki in northern Greece. Life He was born in Castiglione di Sicilia in 1838, and studied in Rome. In 1867, the Catholic Church ...

. The parish priest at the time was Fr Erique Heudre. Construction was financially aided by a French tobacco merchant, Frederick Charnaud. The crypt was completed and consecrated on 30 May 1897, it was dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and decorated by Michael Bucar, a Lazarist brother from Slovenia. On 3 May 1900 the church was consecrated by

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Augustus Bonetti of PalmyraArchbishop Augustus Bonetti
from catholic-hierarchy.org, retrieved 19 January 2021 and Fr Francois Xavier Lobry, the Lazarist

provincial Provincial may refer to: Government & Administration * Provincial capitals, an administrative sub-national capital of a country * Provincial city (disambiguation) * Provincial minister (disambiguation) * Provincial Secretary, a position in Can ...

in Turkey. In 1926, the church became the seat of the Apostolic Vicariate of Thessaloniki; which is composed of the Roman Catholic communities in northern Greece.

Repair and renovation

Although the church survived the

Great Thessaloniki Fire of 1917 250px, The fire as seen from the quay in 1917. 250px, The fire as seen from the Thermaic Gulf. The Great Thessaloniki Fire of 1917 ( el, Μεγάλη Πυρκαγιά της Θεσσαλονίκης, 1917) destroyed two thirds of the city of T ...

, it was heavily damaged during World War II. The roof, decoration furnishings and organ were all destroyed. After the war, repairs were carried out. The roof was rebuilt, the church was redecorated, and new furnishings, stained glass windows and an organ were installed. In the early 1970s, the altar was moved and in 1981 the crypt was renovated. In 2000, the church building was repainted. In 2008, new lighting, heating and air-conditioning systems were installed.

Parish

The Masses are celebrated in Greek and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

. Sundays at 8:00 am and 10:00 am are offered in Greek and English at 7:00. In the city there is also a Catholic cemetery in Ampelokipoi.

References

External links

*
Apostolic Vicariate of Thessaloniki
{{DEFAULTSORT:Immaculate Conception Cathedral, Thessaloniki Roman Catholic cathedrals in Greece Churches in Thessaloniki Italianate architecture in Greece Roman Catholic churches completed in 1902 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Greece