St. Theodosius Orthodox Cathedral

The Thirteen-Cupola Cathedral Since 1896

Thirteen cupolas for Christ and the twelve apostles, a cross-shaped plan modeled on the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow and a parish founded by Russian settlers in 1896: St. Theodosius remains the oldest Orthodox parish in the state of Ohio and a jewel of the Tremont neighborhood.

It all began at home: in 1895 a settler arrived in Cleveland who brought his countrymen together, and they prayed at his house until they built a first church at Literary Road. The parish wanted to be named for St. Nicholas, but in 1896 the Russian Church glorified Theodosius of Chernigov, and the community chose him.

The present cathedral was founded on September 23, 1911 and consecrated in 1912. In the early 1950s a Russian artist, Andrei Bicenko, painted the walls after the frescoes of St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, and the Slavonic prophecies and verses were translated into English so that parishioners and guests could understand them. By 1999 the frescoes had darkened from the soot of the steel mills, incense and candles, and a restoration brought back their brightness.

In 1936 and 1946 the cathedral hosted All-American Councils of the Church, and from 1958 services here were also served in English. You may recognize the cathedral from the movies as well: the wedding scenes of the 1978 film The Deer Hunter were shot here.

In May 2024 a fire damaged the roof and the main dome, and the cathedral is now being restored while services are held in the parish hall next door.