Stavropoleos Monastery facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Stavropoleos Monastery |
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Mănăstirea Stavropoleos
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The monastery in April 2021
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| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Eastern Orthodox |
| Patron | Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel |
| Year consecrated | 2008 |
| Status | Active |
| Location | |
| Location | 4 Stavropoleos Street, Sector 3, Bucharest |
| Architecture | |
| Architectural style | Brâncovenesc |
| Founder | Archimandrite Ioanichie Stratonikeas |
| Completed | 30 October 1724 |
| Materials | Stone |
The Stavropoleos Monastery (called Mănăstirea Stavropoleos in Romanian) is an Eastern Orthodox monastery for nuns. You can find it in the heart of Bucharest, Romania. Its church is built in a special Romanian style called Brâncovenesc style.
The church is dedicated to two important saints: St. Archangels Michael and Gabriel. The name Stavropoleos comes from a Greek word meaning "The city of the Cross." The monastery is also famous for its love of Byzantine music. It has a choir and the biggest collection of Byzantine music books in Romania.
Contents
A Look Back in Time
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How it Started
The church was built in 1724. This was during the time when Nicholas Mavrocordatos was the Prince of Wallachia. A Greek monk named Ioannikios Stratonikeas started it. He built the church and a monastery right next to his inn. The money from the inn helped support the monastery. This was a common way for monasteries to get money back then.
In 1726, Ioannikios became a metropolitan (a high-ranking bishop) of a place called Stavropolis. Because of this, the monastery he built was named Stavropoleos. Ioannikios passed away in 1742 when he was 61 years old. He was buried right there in his church.
Changes Over the Years
The inn and other buildings connected to the monastery were torn down in the late 1800s. Over the years, the church was damaged by earthquakes. These quakes caused the dome (the round roof) to fall. The beautiful paintings inside the dome were fixed in the early 1900s.
Today, only the church itself remains from the original monastery. There's also a newer building from the early 1900s. This building holds a library, a meeting room, and a collection of old icons (religious paintings). It also has parts of wall paintings saved from other churches. These churches were destroyed during the communist rule in Romania. A famous architect named Ion Mincu designed this new building.
Since 1991, Father Iustin Marchiș has been the leader of the church. He is the first hieromonk (a monk who is also a priest) to lead the church in a hundred years. The nuns and priests living here do their regular prayers and also work to fix old books, icons, and special church clothes. The church's choir sings a special kind of music called neo-Byzantine music. This music uses a single voice part with a deep, steady background sound. This style of singing is quite rare in Romanian churches today.
The Monastery's Amazing Library
A Treasure Trove of Books
The monastery's library has more than 8,000 books! These books cover many topics like religion, byzantine music, art, and history. You can find writings from early Christian thinkers, Bibles, and books about church services. There are also books on history, sermons, and how to teach religious lessons. The library has dictionaries for old languages and books about Byzantine art and Orthodox icons. You can also learn about Romanian history from the 1700s here. Some books came from the personal collection of Vasile Drăguț, an art historian.
The library has many very old books. There are over 80 handwritten books (manuscripts) and 400 printed books. These books are in Romanian, Greek, and Church Slavonic. The collection of Byzantine music books is the largest in all of Romania. Many of these were given by two experts in Byzantine studies, Sebastian Barbu-Bucur and Titus Moisescu.
Digital Future
The monastery has started a cool project to make its old books available online. They are digitizing them so more people can read and learn from them.
The Sounds of Stavropoleos
Singing Ancient Melodies
The music sung during church services is called neo-Byzantine music. It is based on the works of Romanian singers from the 1800s. These include Macarie the Hieromonk, Nectarie the Hermit, Anton Pann, and Dimitrie Suceveanu. They also sing Greek chants translated into Romanian, and some newer songs.
The Stavropoleos Byzantine Choir started in 1994. It is led by archdeacon Gabriel Constantin Oprea. He sings and leads services at the Stavropoleos Church. He also teaches Byzantine music at the National University of Music Bucharest. The choir has performed in Romania and in other countries. They also make CDs of their music.
Gallery
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Title page of the Holy and Godly Gospel Book (1723, now in the monastery's library) printed during the reign of Nicolae Mavrocordat.
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Byzantine music notation style in an 1823 "Book of Hymns at the Lord's Resurrection" from the monastery's library.
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Icon of Archangel Michael (1756) in the collection of the monastery. He is one of the patron saints of the church.
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Painting by Henric Trenk
See also
In Spanish: Monasterio Stavropoleos para niños
