Starocherkassk Army Cathedral of Christ’s Resurrection is the main temple of the Southern Military District. It is not without reason that the word “army” appears in the name of our cathedral. Indeed the idea of ​​its creation connected the temple with the defenders of the southern borders of the Motherland – Cossacks. The Resurrection Cathedral was the first army temple in Russia until the creation of another Cossack temple – Ascension cathedral in Novocherkassk.

But having lost its former official status, the first stone temple of the Don did not lose its spiritual significance for military people. For hundreds of years, the Resurrection Cathedral has remained a point of attraction for people of various ranks.

In September, our cathedral celebrated its 300th anniversary. Officers and commanders of the Southern Military District took part in the celebrations dedicated to this event. At the end of the Divine Liturgy, on the feast of the Founding of the Resurrection Church at Jerusalem, the Metropolitan of Rostov and Novocherkassky gave his blessing to the Resurrection Military Cathedral to become the main church of the Southern Military District. The blessing of the lord was accompanied by the solemn transfer of a copy of the military banner of the Southern Military District. This fact means that from now on, the military of the South of Russia, from a soldier to a general, will be able to consider our cathedral their second home, where you can go to the Divine Liturgy, pray or seek spiritual advice.

On Sunday, December 8, 2019, an event took place in the cathedral proving that the status of the main temple of the Southern Military District is not just words. The guests of the cathedral on this day were more than a hundred soldiers and officers of the Don land, led by the deputy commander of the Southern Military District, Major General Zharov, Vladimir Levontievich. The senior priest of the cathedral Valery Voloshchuk, conducted an extensive excursion to the audience and not only told about the church and its history but also talked with the military about the faith, the Church and spiritual life.

According to father Valery, a man can be a real man only by being religious. Faith is the inner core that organizes a person’s life, makes him whole, cohesive and purposeful, and in difficult life moments that happen in the life of every military man, the Faith gives strength and courage to make the right decision.

The tour of the cathedral was not only a monologue of the senior priest, soldiers asked questions and were sincerely interested in both the external and internal aspects of Christian life. At the end of the meeting, Major General Zharov Vladimir Levontievich noted that each soldier will be able to attend the Resurrection Army Cathedral for prayer and participation in worship – for this you will need to contact your military authorities.

I would like to wish this large-scale meeting to become a precedent and lay a good start in strengthening the Christian faith in the military personnel of the Southern Military District.