During the concert,
operatic arias of Russian and European
classics were performed, the organizer of the event, Kasian's
spouse and the
head of the World Union of Old Believers, Leonid Sevastianov, told
journalists.
CONCERT HELD IN MOSCOW TO SUPPORT RESTORATION OF ANGLICAN CATHEDRAL
Interfax-Religiia, 13 June 2021
A charity concert by opera singer Svetlana Kasian was held in the residence of the British ambassador to the Russian Federation. All proceeds collected from its performance will go to the restoration of the Anglican cathedral of Moscow.
During the concert,
operatic arias of Russian and European
classics were performed, the organizer of the event, Kasian's
spouse and the
head of the World Union of Old Believers, Leonid Sevastianov, told
journalists.
Addressing the guests, British ambassador Deborah Bronnert recalled that the Anglican cathedral of Saint Andrew was built as a typical Anglican church in Victorian Gothic style and was consecrated in 1885, just a couple of years after the church of Christ the Savior.
Originally the Anglican cathedral served as a church. But after the revolution, at first the embassy was located in its building, and later it was a dormitory, and finally, due to the excellent acoustics of the cathedral, for 30 years the main studio of the "Melodia" recording company was located within its walls. In 2016 the building was returned to the Anglican community on a 49-year lease in keeping a promise made to Queen Elizabeth during her visit to Moscow in 1994.
As the ambassador noted, this church is "one of the sites of the meeting of East and West, a symbol of hope that tradition, faith, and culture are more important than politics, and that what unites us is more important than what divides us."
In his turn, the rector [chaplain] of the Anglican cathedral, Malcolm Rogers, noted that today the building of this cathedral is in deplorable shape. It is necessary to strengthen the foundation, the bricks and stones are worn, many pipes and building pieces have not changed since the day of its construction, and the building has begun "crumbling from the inside."
"Within the context of the plans for
restoration of the
city, we have been promised the allocation of resources for the
roof and walls,
but we must collect the money for the planning and work on
strengthening the
foundation. So far we have managed to collect about 15 million
rubles, which
went to urgent work on strengthening the foundation and project
development.
But in order to fulfill our obligations it is necessary to collect
another 10
million rubles, which under present conditions is very, very
difficult,"
the priest acknowledged. (tr. by PDS, posted 14 June 2021)
Related article:
World Union of Old Believers offers help to
settle dispute in Moscow church
June 8, 2021
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