St. Raymond Maronite Cathedral (St. Louis, Missouri) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St. Raymond's Cathedral |
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 Location in Missouri
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| 38°37′3.91″N 90°11′56.81″W / 38.6177528°N 90.1991139°W | |
| Location | 931 Lebanon Dr. St. Louis, Missouri |
| Country | United States |
| Denomination | Catholic Church |
| History | |
| Founded | 1911 |
| Architecture | |
| Style | Byzantine Revival |
| Completed | 1975 |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles |
St. Raymond's Cathedral is an important Maronite Catholic church in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. It serves as a main church, called a co-cathedral, for the Maronite Catholic Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles. This means it's one of the two main churches for this group, the other being in Los Angeles.
Contents
History of St. Raymond's Cathedral
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In the late 1800s, many families from Lebanon and Syria moved to St. Louis. They settled near the Mississippi River. In 1898, these immigrants started a church called St. Anthony the Hermit Parish. Father George Emmanuel, a monk, was their first priest.
Founding the Church
A group of immigrants from Hadchit, Lebanon, found a place for a new church. They bought land at 923-25 LaSalle Street. This is how St. Raymond's Church began. The next year, Father Joseph Karam came from Hadchit to be the first leader of the church. A hall for church events was built in 1951. The church building you see today was finished in 1975.
Important Events and Leaders
Father Robert Shaheen had worked at St. Raymond's since 1967. In 2000, he became the bishop for the Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon. The next year, St. Raymond's was named a co-cathedral. This made it one of the two main churches for the Eparchy. A new building for the Eparchy's offices was completed in 2002. A special shrine to Our Lady of St. Louis was dedicated in 2007. The Maronite Heritage Institute, which teaches about Maronite history, opened in 2011.
A Special Ordination
On February 27, 2014, a special event happened at St. Raymond's Cathedral. The Rev. Wissam Akiki became a priest. Bishop Elias Zaidan led the ceremony. Pope Francis gave his approval for this ordination. This was important because Akiki was the first married Maronite priest to be ordained in the United States in almost 100 years.
See also
In Spanish: Catedral de San Raimundo (San Luis) para niños
