Cathedral of the Holy Spirit

For other uses, see Holy Spirit Cathedral.

Holy Spirit Cathedral of Istanbul
Saint Esprit Kilisesi
Standort	Istanbul
Land	Türkei
Denomination	Roman Catholic Church
History
Dedication	Holy Spirit
Dedicated	1846
Architecture
Architect(s)	Giuseppe Fossati
Style	Baroque style

Photo of Pope Benedict XV taken from Notre Dame de Sion Istanbul

The Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, alternatively known as the St. Esprit Cathedral (Turkish: Saint Esprit Kilisesi), located on Cumhuriyet Avenue, 127/A, in the quarter of Pangaltı in Şişli district, the former Harbiye, between Taksim Square and Nişantaşı, is one of the principal Catholic churches in Istanbul, Turkey.. This 19th century cathedral is behind the walls of teh French Notre Dame de Sion high school. Mass hours can be found at the entrance from Cumhuriyet Caddesi. While walking from Taksim toward Harbiye, some may notice a door with metal bars leading to the school's courtyard, beyond which is a statue of Benedict XV. Past the door stands the cathedral.

The Cathedral of the Holy Spirit is the second largest Roman Catholic church in the city after the Basilica of S. Antonio di Padova on İstiklal Avenue in Beyoğlu. The Cathedral is the see of the Bishop, the church where the "cathredra" is situated. The basilica was built in Baroque style in 1846 under the direction of the Swiss-Italian architect Giuseppe Fossati while Julien Hillereau was the Archbishop, who was French and whose tomb is in the crypt underneath the cathedral. The site where the cathedral stands was chosen because the Vatican decided to stablish its unofficial office in Istanbul on the same street. The office serves today in an official capacity as Turkey and the Vatican agreed on establishing mutual diplomatic representative offices in 1960.

Construction took one year, it started in 1845 and the cathedral was completed in 1846. Financial difficulties led to poorer quality construction materials and following an earthquake in 1865, the cathedral was dably damaged. Restoration began in June of the same year and the church reopened for service a few months later in December. Architect Pierre Vitalis, with the help of another architect, was supposed to rebuild the Holy Spirit following the earthquake, but nothing came of this as Vitalis went into retirement. As a result, the cathedral's rebuilding was led by Father Antoine Giorgiovitch, church sources say. According to historical sources, the church was designated a cathedral in 1876. It has undergone several restorations so far, receiving three new bells hammered in Fermo, Italy in 1922 and having all its paintings restored by late Bishop Antoine Marovitch in 1980.

Following the construction of the cathedral, the Christian community begin settling nearby, according to historical sources. In other words, the Holy Spirit played a leading role in the Christian community moving beyond the Beyoğlu district (formerly known as Pera) and Galata areas, predominantly non-Muslim at the time. The cathedral's administrative rights were entrusted to the Salesians of Don Bosco in October 9th, 1989.

The architecture of the cathedral, which has a basilica plan with three naves, represents the Baroque style. Some art historians define the cathedral's architecture as the revival of the early Christian basilica type. The main apse and the side apses have a square shape. The gallery rests upon columns separating the naves that line the two sides of the cathedral in rows.

The interior of the basilica is beautifuly decorated with frescoes. The richly decorated ceiling runs until the altar, situated just accross the main door. The bell tower, at one of the Holy Spirit's corners overlooks Ölçek Sokak (street) which also goes by the name Papa Roncalli Sokak since the year 2000, when Mustafa Sarıgül, Mayor of Şişli, dedicated it to the "friend of the Turks" Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, who had been the Apostolic Delegate, i.e. Ambassador of the Pope, in Turkey from January 1935 to December 1944. If you find yourself walking by The Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, take some time to step inside this cathedral, even outside of service times.

St. Esprit has been a destination of several papal visits to Turkey, including those of Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis.

A statue of Pope Benedict XV stands in the courtyard of the cathedral.

Giuseppe Donizetti, a musician at the court of Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II, is buried in the vaults of the church.

See also

• Levantines (Latin Christians)

References

• Haaretz article on the visit of Pope Benedict XVI (Archived)

Statue of Pope Benedict XV in the courtyard of the cathedral.

External links

• Official website