Cathedral History

Around the turn of the 20th century, many immigrants from Syria and Lebanon settled in Pittsburgh, PA. Those who were Orthodox worshipped in the Russian Orthodox Church, but knew they needed a priest who could communicate with them in their own language. This need was satisfied in 1908 when Bishop RAPHAEL Hawaweeny (Saint Raphael of Brooklyn) assigned Fr. George Michael as the first pastor of our community in Pittsburgh. Thus began our pilgrimage of faith.

We owe our continued progress to our founders and to our current members for glorifying God and giving our posterity a solid foundation to build upon!

Although the St. George parish was organized in 1908, plans for a church building did not begin until March 1913. The church, under the name of its patron, St. George, was consecrated by Bishop AFTIMIOS Ofiesh in 1917.

In 1951, a young, recently ordained priest, Fr. Paul Romley, was assigned as pastor of St. George. Soon, committees from St. Michael of Homestead and St. George of Pittsburgh met to work out the details of a merger, which took place in January 1953.

Under the leadership of Fr. Paul, a Building Fund Committee was organized in 1954. A lot was purchased on the corner of Dawson Street and the Boulevard of the Allies in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh. On August 22, 1954, groundbreaking ceremonies were held for the new St. George Church. By the middle of 1959, the magnificent edifice was completed (with the exception of the domes, which were added in the 1960s). The mortgage was burned in October 1967.

In the mid to late 1940s, the first choir was organized at St. George, providing the parish with liturgical music sung in English. Today, the St. George Liturgical Choir draws from both the Byzantine and Russian traditions.

A significant milestone occurred on May 6, 2005 when Bishop THOMAS Joseph was enthroned as Bishop of Oakland (Pittsburgh) and the East at our church. Our church was elevated to the status of a cathedral. The Diocese was subsequently renamed the Diocese of Charleston, Oakland, and the Mid-Atlantic.

In January of 2012, Father Joshua Makoul and his wife Khouria Tammy moved to Pittsburgh from Allentown, PA. Father Joshua now serves as the Dean of St. George Cathedral.

Today, the parish includes more than 425 families. The people of St. George have, on many occasions, risen to meet great challenges and converted frustration into achievement. We pray that God will bless us and guide us to face the future boldly, continuing our pilgrimage of faith.

Most of this history was written by Richard T. Esper, Proto-Psalti, St George Cathedral.