New sanctuary has arisen - Greek Orthodox congregation ready to open new church
http://www.ajc.com - By TUCKER McQUEEN
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Andy Sharp / AJC
The Very Rev. Sebastian Skordallos, leader of Holy Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church, stands at its new amphitheater. The first service in the church is Saturday.
For two years, passers-by have watched as a massive, golden-domed church has risen in east Cobb.
The $4.4 million Greek Orthodox Church is the only Byzantine church in suburban Atlanta. Besides the cathedral in Atlanta, the closest Greek Orthodox parishes are in Cumming and Athens.
Holy Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church, at 3431 Trickum Road, will open its sanctuary in a celebration at 4 p.m. Saturday. The ceremony, called Thyranoixa in Greek, will be led by Archbishop Demitrios, the head of the Greek Orthodox Church in America; Metropolitan Alexios of Atlanta, head of the Atlanta area churches; the Very Rev. Sebastian Skordallos, leader of the Marietta church; and the Rev. George Pallas, its pastor.
The 460-seat church is rooted in the traditions of Orthodox churches from the sixth to eighth centuries. The classic Byzantine style church, which faces east, as dictated by tradition, is built as a square on the ground level and a cross on the second level and topped by a 45,000-pound copper dome.
The building has a stone, brick and stucco exterior. Two copper domes -- the large one and a smaller one over a chapel -- rise from a terra cotta tile roof. Outside, an amphitheater will seat 500 for festivals and community events. The church plans to bring in an iconographer in about two years to paint religious images on the interior of the dome and the church walls.
The church organized in Cobb about 15 years ago with the vision of building a traditional sanctuary. The group met at different locations, including a storefront on Sandy Plains Road, before buying 7 acres 10 years ago on Trickum.
The congregation built a temporary sanctuary that will now become a fellowship hall.
When parishioners broke ground for the sanctuary two years ago, the projected cost was around $2 million. Unexpected expenses increased that amount by $2 million more. Because the ground was sandy, 200 pilings had to be driven 60 feet into the bedrock before construction could begin.
"The community has always supported us," said Skordallos. "This church is majestic, yet embracing and intimate. We pride ourself that people feel welcome here."
The native of Cyprus has led the church since 1993. He has seen a growing population create a need for a place to worship for families with a Greek background. In metro Atlanta, there were about 10,000 people of Greek ancestry in 2000, according to census figures.
Marlene Bond, who moved to east Cobb when she was in the fifth grade, said her family had to drive to the cathedral in Atlanta to attend church when she was a child. She comes from a Greek family and her husband converted to Greek Orthodox when they married. The couple plan to raise their 15-month-old son, Aidan, in the church and are grateful one will be nearby.
"I want our son to grow up understanding his Greek heritage," she said.
