• 21 Aug, 2019

• By, Wikipedia

Romanian National Salvation Cathedral

The People's Salvation Cathedral (Romanian: Catedrala Mântuirii Neamului; People's Redemption Cathedral a better translation of the name), also known as the National Cathedral (Romanian: Catedrala Națională), is an Eastern Orthodox cathedral under construction in Bucharest to serve as the patriarchal cathedral of the Romanian Orthodox Church. It is located in central Bucharest on Spirea's Hill (Arsenal Square), facing the same courtyard as the Palace of Parliament which is the heaviest building in the world, the cathedral having a one-tenth of its weight and about one-fifth of its volume. Situated behind the Palace of Parliament, this will make it 50 metres taller than the Palace, and will help to make the cathedral an iconic landmark in the city. The People's Salvation Cathedral to 135 metres (443 ft) height (ground-cross), holds a dominant position in Bucharest's cityscape, being visible from all approaches to the city.

It is the tallest and largest Eastern Orthodox church building by volume, and area, in the world. The People's Salvation Cathedral will have the largest collection of church mosaics in the world (interior decoration) when it is completed, having about 18,000 square meters, including the mosaic of the altar is about 3,000 square meters. The mosaic of the National Cathedral contains glass tesserae from Venice, and Carrara stone from Pietrasanta, Italy. Also the People's Salvation Cathedral has the world's largest Orthodox iconostasis (23.8 meters length and 17.1 meters height) and the world's largest free-swinging church bell.

The cathedral is dedicated to the Ascension of Christ, which in Romania is celebrated as the Heroes' Day, and to Saint Andrew the Apostle, protector of Romania. The cathedral was consecrated on 25 November 2018 by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I, Patriarch Daniel of Romania and Metropolitan Chrysostomos (gr) of Patras from the Greek Orthodox Church. On the same day as the consecration, the very first church service of the cathedral took place and was led by both Patriarch Bartholomew and Patriarch Daniel. The first patronal feast of the People's Salvation Cathedral was celebrated on 30 November, on the day of 'Saint Andrew the First Called', and the Liturgy was officiated by Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem and Patriarch Daniel of Romania. The first Te Deum of the cathedral was celebrated on 1 December 2018.

Cathedral records

• is the largest by volume (323,000 m) and area (6,000 m), the tallest (127 m at the moment), longest (126 m) and heaviest (420,000 tons) Eastern Orthodox Church building in the world. It is also one of the largest church buildings in the world.
• has the world's tallest top dome outside (121 m) without the lantern and cross. It has the 2nd tallest inner dome without oculus in the world (106 m), and the 3rd tallest domed church building in the world (135 m when completed; 127 m at the moment).
• will have the largest mosaic collection (interior decoration) in the world when it is completed (18,000 m).
• has the tallest (44 m inside), widest (25.2 m inside) and longest (78.6 m inside) Eastern Orthodox church nave in the world. It is the 2nd widest and 8th tallest among all naves in the world (only 2 meters lower than the nave of St. Peter's Basilica, which is the second tallest nave in the world).
• has the world's largest free-swinging church bell (25.2 tons).
• has the world's largest iconostasis (407 m).
• has hosted the largest number of religious leaders (the Pope, the Ecumenical Patriarch, the Patriarch of Jerusalem and the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church) among all church buildings in the world.

History

Background

The idea of a national cathedral first emerged following the Romanian War of Independence (1877–1878), which was mainly fought between the Russian and Ottoman Empires. The church was to symbolise the victory of Orthodox Christians over the Ottoman Muslims. The idea was shelved for lack of consensus on design, location and funding. The Unification of the Romanian Principalities in 1859, entailed a unitary organisation of church structures in Moldavia and Wallachia within the Holy Synod (1872), thus the assembly of hierarchs increased to 12 members, including: the Primate Metropolitan (chairman), the Metropolitan of Moldavia and their suffragan bishops of Râmnic, Buzău, Argeș, Roman, Huși and Lower Danube (Galați) and one auxiliary vicar-bishop for every diocese. The old Metropolitan Cathedral had proved overcrowded, especially during the national holidays, such as the Proclamation of the Kingdom of Romania and the crowning of King Carol I of Romania (10 May 1881), when none of the over one hundred churches in Bucharest was able to receive those who would have wanted to participate in the official service. Therefore, at King Carol I's desire, Romania's Assembly of Deputies and the Senate voted in favour of the Law no. 1750 on the construction of the Cathedral Church in Bucharest, promulgated by King Carol I on 5 June 1884.

On 10 May 1920, King Ferdinand I sent a royal letter to Archbishop Miron Cristea, the first Metropolitan-Primate of Greater Romania, supporting the project, but this had no effect. In 1925, after the Romanian Orthodox Church became an independent patriarchate, Metropolitan Cristea now newly enthroned as the first Patriarch of All Romania, suggested Carol Park as a site, but Bibescu Vodă Square (Unirii Square) was chosen instead. There, in 1929, a cross (calvary) was raised. Lack of funds meant the construction was postponed and later forgotten.

Patriarch Teoctist was the one who re-launched the project of building a National Cathedral, in this sense sanctifying a cross on 5 February 1999 as the cornerstone of the future cathedral, in the place of Unirii Square that had previously been sanctified by Patriarch Miron Cristea. Meanwhile, there had been an epochal event, which was the visit by Pope John Paul II to Romania (7–9 May 1999).

On 16 February 2005, the Bucharest City Hall proposed to the Patriarchate "as the most suitable place to be available" for the structure, which was the Arsenal Hill, considered the highest place in Bucharest. Following the Patriarchate's approval, the Government of Romania promoted the Ordinance no.19/17 March 2005 for the building of the People's Salvation Cathedral. Then the Chamber of Deputies voted to give the building site of 110,000 m to Romanian Patriarchate by the protocol of 13 February 2006. The Arsenal Hill was recommended after three other locations were proposed at different stages (Piața Unirii 1999, Alba Iulia Square 2001, Carol Park 2004). Three churches were demolished (Alba Postăvari, Spirea Veche, and Izvorul Tămăduirii), and two churches had been moved (Schitul Maicilor and Mihai Vodă), by the communist regime to build civic centre and the Palace of the Parliament, previously known as the House of the People (Romanian: Casa Poporului). The cornerstone for the construction of the People's Salvation Cathedral was sanctified on 29 November 2007, being officiated by Patriarch Daniel the sixth Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church.

Building began in 2010, and after almost a decade of construction, the cathedral was consecrated on 25 November 2018. The consecration was held in presence of 100 priests including 60 bishops, where the special guests were the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I and Metropolitan Chrysostomos of Patras. Approximately 55,000 people attended at the Divine Liturgy which took place inside the cathedral just after its consecration.

Name

Metropolitan-primate Miron Cristea proposed the name of the cathedral on 10 May 1920, when spoke in front of the Holy Synod and King Ferdinand, about building a People's Cathedral meant to celebrate the birth of Greater Romania. "Will prove to be a visible symbol of our unity in faith and law" metropolitan-primate Miron explained, and King Ferdinand took the floor referred to a Church of Redemption, while Metropolitan Pimen Georgescu resorted to another phrasing mentioning People's Redemption Church. The Romanian word "neam" is difficult to translate in English, because the term people does not convey properly the sense of unity of blood and lineage that "neam" suggests, and it is perhaps better expressed by formulas like ethnic nation or kin. The national identity is a kind of ancestor worship, a system of kinship in which national heroes occupy the place of clan elders in defining a nation as a noble lineage. The word "mântuire" just like "neam" specifically Romanian, is also a complex term. Even though it is commonly translated as salvation, it retains a spiritual nuance that makes redemption a better alternative. Patriarch Daniel explained in 2008 the choice of name at the symposium "New Patriarchal Cathedral", saying: "this name is a manifestation of gratitude or thanksgiving brought to God for the deliverance of the Romanian nation from oppression and alienation".

Feast days

The Ascension of God is the first celebration of the day, because it is also the day of the Romanian heroes of all time and of all places, and the second is the celebration of Saint Apostle Andrew the first called, Protector of Romania. Patriarch Daniel said about the first celebration: "The homage to the memory of the Romanian heroes during World War I, who fought for national freedom, unity and dignity, must be today a source of inspiration and renewal for patriotic Romanians. That is why, the main dedication of the People's Salvation Cathedral is the Lord's Ascension when we celebrate the Day of Heroes. Thus, besides the practical necessity of the future National Cathedral, this is also a national spiritual symbol, being dedicated to the worship of those who have sacrificed themselves for the defense of the homeland and the Orthodox ancestral faith and for the freedom of the Romanian people". Patriarch Daniel said about the second celebration: "This building will be a symbol of national unity because the feast of Saint Apostle Andrew, which was placed the day before the National Day on 1 December, shows that the national unity has settled with us on the Romanians primarily on spiritual unity, on unity of faith, thought and sentiment. Our church greatly contributed to the development of the Romanian language and Romanian culture."

Construction

Romanian Patriarchy launched on 28 December 2009 the tender for the selection of the project of the People's Salvation Cathedral. The design proposal should include the feasibility study (SF) and the technical documentation for the construction authorization (DTAC). The delivery term of the documentation accompanied by the proposed model layout was established on 31 May 2010. In June, the Patriarchal Commission for coordination and verification of design works, together with the technical subcommittees for evaluation on architecture, resilience and facilities specialties analyzed the projects presented and determined the scores obtained by the participants. Later, between 30 June and 1 July (2010), the commission of final evaluation of projects under the chairmanship of Patriarch Daniel met at the Patriarchal Palace. Vanel Exim based in Bacău was chosen for the architectural design of the cathredal. On 2 September 2010, the building's construction permit was obtained. To begin the cathedral's construction, 24 notices were needed from various state institutions and the city hall of Bucharest. The works officially started on 15 December 2010, with the breakdown of the axes of the building.

In December 2010 – June 2011, the company Foretis Inject executed the 80-centimeter thick mulled walls of foundation up to 15.8 meters deep (north-south walls), and the company Lufin Construct excavated 90 thousand cubic meters of soil from the foundation. On the higher north–south walls, the anchorages were mounted on three levels, on the shorter east–west walls were mounted two-level anchorages, and the last level of anchorages is located below the groundwater level. The hanger rods have a 75 degree inclination towards the foundation wall, and the fastening was made with the help of 750 concrete-drilled anchorages by the Italian company CasaGrande.

On 28 June 2011, the contract with Bog'Art company for the construction of the building's foundation was concluded. In July 2011 – April 2013, the cathedral was built up to the nave floor of 6.8 meters from the ground. The deep foundation is a 120-meter-long monoblock structure, composed of a network of concrete beams and was imposed to avoid sliding the foundation to earthquakes. The foundation was built between December 2011 - June 2012 and the basement until April 2013. The main building of the cathedral is designed as a structure independent from the walls surrounding foundation, moving like a piston in a cylinder. Around the foundation between the lead tank and mulled walls, an 8-centimeter insulation of expanded polystyrene is arranged, which allows the cathedral's movement in all parts to the earthquake.

For the waterproofing of the cathedral, Bog'Art engineering team together with Swiss engineer Franco Sticher conducted many tests over three months in Romania and Switzerland. Were tested the bitumen foil, bentonite foil, polyurethane foil and lead foil. Due to the corrosion indestructibility, the whole foundation of cathedral was dressed in a lead tank. In November–December 2011, over 120 welders welded 10 thousand square meters lead foils. About 400 tons of lead were used horizontally (4 mm thick) and vertically (3 mm thick) in the cathedral's foundation. Lead has a high plastic deformation capacity without breaking, required quality under conditions of the building massiveness. It is used in high-voltage power cables as shell material and as a protective sheath for underground or underwater cables, to prevent water diffusion into insulation.

On 22 July 2013, the contract was concluded with the Austrian company Strabag for the construction of the building's superstructure. In June 2015, the height of the structure was raised by more than half. To the achievement of vaults, the upper part of nave and dome for not putting pressure on the nave's floor, a metal scaffolding structure weighing 1100 tons was installed in the form of trapezium with base at 27 meters and gradually raised up to 45 meters.

For the People's Salvation Cathedral were used 145 thousand cubic meters of heavy concrete, about 40 thousand tons of reinforcement and 22 thousand tons of bricks, bringing the weight of the cathedral to about 420 thousand tons, over the weight of Saint Isaac's cathedral of 322 thousand tons, and at the same time it is the heaviest Eastern Orthodox Church building. For the People's Salvation Cathedral was used about 12% of the quantity of concrete and steel used in the Palace of Parliament. The concrete used (C40/50) for the People's Salvation Cathedral is same concrete used for the Vidraru Dam, which showed its resistance to the 1977 earthquake without any crack. The thickest rebar used in reinforced cement concrete (RCC) is BTS500-S of 32 millimeters diameter.

Were used 6,200 cubic meters of solid bricks produced at Câmpulung Muscel and 7,800 cubic meters hollow bricks produced at Târgu Jiu. For solid bricks, was used clay from the Grui hill near Câmpulung Muscel. The bricks used are absorbent, so that with the application of the first layer of plaster, due to the brick's porosity there is adhesion between the mortar layer and brick. When the bricks are hit they make a glass sound. The cathedral wall from outside to inside has the following structure: hollow bricks, flexible reinforcements (steel bars), rigid metal structure (welded sheets metal reinforcement), flexible reinforcements and solid bricks.

Energy efficiency is assured by massive walls of resistance and brick used on the inside and outside of them. The cathedral is designed to withstand earthquakes of 9 on the Richter scale. The cathedral should receive its final touch, the paintwork, by 2025 according to the Romanian Orthodox Church. The chapel of the cathedral was built in 2011, exclusively from sponsorships. In this chapel, there are liturgical services for the good works of the People's Salvation Cathedral, for the workers, but also for the founders and donors. In the chapel is a copy of the Icon Theotokos Acheiropoieta (Prodromiţa) from the Romanian Skete Prodromos in Mount Athos. Also, here is the reliquary with the relics of Saint John Chrysostom, the 37th archbishop of Constantinople.

Architecture

Design and mosaic

The design of the new cathedral was debated by parties including the Romanian Senate and the Mayor of Bucharest. The winning design featured elements of architectural details from all the Romanian provinces and territories in an area that would make the cathedral complex one of the largest religious sites in the world. The cathedral is projected for over 20,000 people in the main cathedral building and underground galleries. A total of 7,000 worshipers can attend the holy liturgy at the same time, with a 1,000 member choir, clergy and 6,000 pilgrims in the main cathedral building. The underground chapel could accommodate 5,000 pilgrims, and the underground St. Andrew's Cave gallery could accommodate over 10,000 pilgrims. In the whole complex could accommodate 125,000 visitors on an area of 11 hectares, and in the piazza could accommodate 43,000 visitors. The main cathedral has 6,050 square meters (floor nave) and with stairway has 8,400 square meters. The plan of cathedral is 126 metres (413 ft) length, 68 metres (223 ft) width, and 135 metres (443 ft) (ground level) height. The main building is elevated 6.8 metres (22 ft) with the basement area extending to 15.8 metres (52 ft) below ground level. The basement area which extending below the ground level, has 7,200 square meters. The volume of the cathedral is 323 thousand cubic meters, with the basement 479 thousand cubic meters and with the pedestal 508 thousand cubic meters. The cathedral together with the underground gallery Saint Andrew have 595 thousand cubic meters.

Along with the Palace of Parliament, the Romanian Academy, the Ministry of National Defense, the cathedral can be seen as a vertical axis or a unifying pole for these buildings in a unitary and representative urban ensemble. Also, the cathedral located on Spirea's Hill (Arsenal Square) near the Ministry of National Defense, can be considered the Cathedral of Romanian heroes of all times, who sacrificed themselves for the defense of the homeland.

In January 2018, the Patriarchate requested portfolios with mosaics made by painters from all over Romania, throughout their careers, the winner will make the mosaic of the National Cathedral. The iconographer Daniel Codrescu won, and together with his team he started working in February. The team has about 60 people, most are top specialists in iconography and mosaic art, and a few apprentice students. They work in the workshop and on the construction site. After the iconographic scenes are made, painted, and chosen the model of the tesserae by Daniel Codrescu, the drawings are sent to the Romanian Patriarchate for approval, then part of the team makes the mosaic with millions of tesserae according to the drawings, and finally the rest of the team assembles the mosaic on wall.

According to the iconographic plan, the mosaics of the cathedral show the historical basis of the Orthodox Church, thus the iconography of the cathedral includes: the Church of the Apostolic Age rendered by the representation of the twelve Apostles, the Church of the Patristic Age of the holy fathers from the Greek, Syriac, Latin and Slavic Churches, and the Romanian Orthodox Church old and contemporary. In addition to the saints from the universal church, on the walls of the cathedral will be represented the great saints of the Romanian nation. Also, certain spaces inside the cathedral will be dedicated to the confessors saints from the Romanian communist prisons, such as the priests Stăniloae, Sofian, Cleopa, Partenie Gherasim and others. The mosaic of the cathedral is made according to the hesychastic tradition and in the Neo-Byzantine style. The architecture of the cathedral is a synthesis between tradition and contemporaneity, through national architectural elements such as Brâncovenesc porches, Transylvanian towers and Moldavian niches (Romanian: ocnițe).

For the mosaic of the People's Salvation Cathedral, is mainly used glass made in Venice and Carrara stone. The Murano glass is processed by the Venetian foundries Orsoni and Mosaici Donà Murano. The Orsoni foundry produce 24K gold leaf mosaics, blown gold and Venetian smalti in more than 3,500 colors. The smalti Orsoni was used in the decoration of the St.Mark's Basilica, Sagrada Familia, or Washington Basilica. The Carrara stone was used in many sculptures of the Renaissance, such as Michelangelo's Pietà, and in the mosaic technique. The gold glass was chosen after the glass used at St.Mark's Basilica, being lighter in color. Murano glass from Orsoni Venezia was used to restore the St.Mark's Basilica, the same company that supply the glass to the People's Salvation Cathedral.

The tesserae are made of colored glass. The gold glass, on the side from the wall they are green-blue, to better reflect the light on the golden side, from the viewer. First, the figures were drawn and then painted "in the mirror" on a paper support and over them was mounted the mosaic, with the gold layer facing inside, towards the painted support. After applying the mosaic painting on the wall and cleaning the paper support on which it had been mirror-mounted, the mosaic remains mounted with the golden part of the tesserae towards the onlooker. For soldering is used a natural glue, made of water and flour, which after fixing on the wall, will be easy to soak and wash with the paper on which it was glued. In Byzantium, lime mixed with sand was used, which dried quickly, which did not allow very detailed finishes. Making a square meter are used approximately 16 kg of mosaic involves joining about 10,000 tesserae, applied with a special cement-based adhesive, working 4–7 days to arrange them according to the difficulty and size of the pixelization. For the People's Salvation Cathedral will require about 400 tons of tesserae, covering an area of 25,000 square meters.

The vaulted nave reaches an interior height of 44 meters, being the Orthodox church with the highest interior nave and among the highest in the world. With a nave width of 25.2 meters, People's Salvation Cathedral is the church building with the second-widest nave in the world after St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City (27 m). Hagia Sophia in Istanbul has bigger span (31 m), but it has not a nave in the strict sense. By comparison, the nave of the People's Salvation Cathedral has about 2,650 square meters with 78.6 meters (colonnade - iconostasis) by 65.1 meters (transepts), and the main hall of the Hagia Sophia has about 2,400 square meters with 78.1 meters (250 Byzantine foot - without altar) by 37.5 meters (120 Byzantine foot - transepts). If the main cathedral door and the iconostasis door are opened, visually between a person from entrance (colonnade) and the middle of the altar table are 106 meters, and if it is in the nave's middle (under the main dome), from the floor it sees the dome ceiling (Pantocrator) also at 106 meters.

The floor of the cathedral will be covered with marble from Rușchița, the best marble in Romania. This marble has been used for many famous buildings: Romanian Parliament Building, Milan Cathedral, Hungarian Parliament Building, Istana Nurul Iman etc. The eagle in the Oval Office at the White House, one of the American symbols, is white Rușchița marble. Rușchița is the most renowned marble deposit in Romania. The quarry is located in Caraș-Severin County, south of the Poiana Ruscă Mountains. The marble from Rușchița is subsequently processed at Simeria, where the final product is made. The marble models used mainly for the cathedral are Rușchița Classico and Rușchița Champagne. The Rușchița Classico has a white-yellow color, and the Rușchița Champagne has a white-pinkish color. Inside the cathedral is used Rușchița marble up to 4 meters height, and the marble for the access steps of the cathedral has 7 cm thickness.

Vratsa marble from Bulgaria, it is used outside the cathedral up to 7 meters height. Vratsa stone for its hardness is used for window-door frames. For the interior decorations in the nave and altar Carrara marble is used. It is quarried from the Apuan Alps mountains, near the city of Pietrasanta, Italy. Carrara marble is a type of marble popular for use in building decor. The marble from Carrara was used for some of the most remarkable buildings in Ancient Rome, such as Pantheon, and other notable construction such as Siena Cathedral, Legislative Palace of Uruguay, Glasgow City Chambers, Finlandia Hall and the Akshardham (New Delhi).

The National Cathedral has 27 bronze doors with iconographic representations. The four-ton bronze doors are 2 meters width with 6.35 meters height at the arch. These are coordinated by a computer system that command the automatic opening of the doors in case of alarm. The doors were made at Süßen by Strassacker. The same company also made the bronze crosses on the towers. Initially, six companies from Austria and six companies from Germany were contacted and finally the company from Süßen was chosen. The bas-reliefs of the saints are life-size. Over 50 saints are represented on the doors of the cathedral. At the entrance on the main doors is the Mother of God and the Savior Jesus Christ. On the doors are represented martyrs, hierarchs, including over twenty Romanian saints. In 2017, Patriarch Daniel said that, the cathedral belongs to all Romanian saints, from all parts of the country.

The People's Salvation Cathedral has 396 windows and the largest window is the Ascension of Christ stained-glass from entrance (90 sqm) that cost 200 thousand euros. The frameworks of the galvanized arched windows with stainless steel clamping systems were made in Belgium by Reynaers company and electrochemically treated by anodizing. The double secured glazing of 6 millimeters each were made in Ploiești by Valras Prod. The galvanized frameworks have two sets of windows, the secured ones and the stained-glass windows.

In 2022 the Nativity of Jesus scene having 178 square meters was completed in the southern apse, and in February 2024 the apse and arch were completed. The south apse's registries below the conch are four in number. The two upper registers of the hemicycle are related to the family theme, among which: the Visitation, Adoration of the magi, Joseph's dream, flight into Egypt, presentation of Jesus at the temple, Jesus blessing the children, wedding at Cana, census of Quirinius and others. The two lower registers of the hemicycle contain saints and Romanian rulers (ro:domni). The south apse's arch contains three registers: Christian martyrs (below), Jesus at the age of twelve in the temple (middle) and the tree of Jesse (upper).

The vaulted nave on which the dome rests reaches an interior height of 40.35 meters. The "triumphal" vault between the altar and nave includes the iconographic representation of twelve Old Testament Prophets, the venerable Melchizedek, along with the throne of Hetoimasia and the representation of the heavenly powers: Cherubim, Seraphim and Angels. The prophets shown in medallions of 1.8 meters, hold in their hands symbolic representations, anticipating Theotokos and the foreshadowing of the incarnation of the Lord Jesus Christ. The main mosaic of the "triumphal" vault is Hetoimasia (gr:ἑτοιμασία), also known as the throne of the Last Judgment or the Second Coming. The scene contains: the dove of the Holy Spirit, the spear and sponge on a stick, the nails from the cross and crown of thorns. An empty throne with a Gospel Book on it, was being placed in the chamber of church councils to represent Christ, at the First Council of Ephesus in 431. The scene is inspired by the painted church exterior at Voroneţ Monastery in Romania (1547). On the mosaic Hetoimasia's edge is written (gr-Ps:88; en-Ps:89) "Justice and judgment are the habitation of Thy throne; mercy and truth shall go before Thy face".

The dominant feature is the huge elongated dome, which will have a total height of 135 meters (ground-top cross), and will become the third tallest domed church in the world, after Basilica of Our Lady of Peace and St. Peter's Basilica. It also has the tallest top dome outside in the world without the lantern-cross with 121.1 meters. At the lantern's top the cathedral rises to 127.1 meters from the ground. The Pantocrator cupola of the People's Salvation Cathedral has 106.3 meters height from the floor, surpasses the interior height dome of St.Peter's Basilica which has 101.8 meters from the floor of the basilica. The diameter of cupola is 16.8 meters inside, with 18 meters concrete making a hemispherical shape, and the concrete dome was completed on 24 May 2019. The dome is surrounded by six towers, and at the western end is the bell tower or campanile, 86.8 meters height crossless, which contains the world's largest free-swinging church bell.

The overall style is Romanian revival, a synthesis of Renaissance revival through the high dome, Romanesque through the façade with towers, and Neo-Byzantine through the bell tower. Both the dome and the hexadecagonal outer cupola are a feature inspired by the tempietto shape of the St. Peter's Basilica. The outer dome's façade has some similarities to the northern façade and choir of the Sacré-Cœur, Paris Basilica. In the Romanian space, among sources of landmark are several buildings. The dome's peristyle surrounded by sixteen arches, the six upper octagonal towers with squared basis, three linear moulding around the building find at the Dormition of the Theotokos Cathedral, Cluj-Napoca. The bell tower's façade with the porch, and the Byzantine compound dome with two rows of pendentives, find at the Timișoara Orthodox Cathedral. Also from the Coronation Cathedral, Alba Iulia find the arches, cornice, and the robust façade of the bell tower by side buttresses. The portal with the bell tower's rosette and the porch resemble that of the Antim Monastery and the Cașin Church in Bucharest.

The dome is set on a rectangular-octagonal shaped drum which has 1,350 square meters. Around the dome is a row of circular shields, adorned with the cross of Saint Andrew. The main part to visit is the dome's peristyle with sixteen arches supported on each side by continuous colonnade with a circumference of 93 meters around the dome and 29.4 meters in diameter. The arcades are supported by scallop capital of simplified Corinthian order. The capital together with its abacus, have octagonal shape in the towers and bell tower, and at the dome have hexadecagonal shape. The large stained glass windows will be mounted around the dome, each measuring 11.45 meters height by 1.35 meters width. Above the peristyle is the belvedere dome surrounded by a balustraded balcony at 97.8 meters height from the ground, behind a small semioval windows. Above this attic rises the cupola covered with gilded copper, and ribbed in accordance with the spacing of the columns. The outside cupola is pierced by sixteen small skylight just below the lantern, but these are barely visible from the ground level by an onlooker. The inner connection cupola-lantern, is achieved by a spiral metallized staircase. The roof sheet is a CuAl5Zn5 alloy (Tecu-Gold), where copper has 91.55% (99.99% purity) and 8.45% aluminium bronze, and was made by the German company KME. The copper sheet area used for the cathedral is 19,913 square meters.

The inner dome consists of two parts supported by two rows of pendentives, with a total area of 4,200 square meters, and the highest point of the dome's ceiling rises 106.25 meters above the floor of the nave. The upper dome having 2,830 square meters, with a diameter of 16.8 meters is supported by pendentives at 52.75 meters height, and will consists the mosaics: Christ Pantocrator and the registers of the nine heavenly powers. The lower dome with a diameter of 25.2 meters is supported by pendentives at 40.35 meters height, having 1,370 square meters which will include scenes from the Savior's life, Theotokos and the holy apostles, prophets, hierarchs.

The Pantocrator cupola has about 450 square meters, of which the Pantocrator mosaic represents 150 square meters and the surface's rest is represented by the mosaic of the nine heavenly powers. With a diameter of 12 meters, of which the face is 4.5 meters, the making of the Pantocrator mosaic required over six months and 2.4 tons of tesserae were used. In February 2024, began assembling of the Pantocrator mosaic on the dome's ceiling at the highest point of the worship's place, and the dome's mosaic will be finished in 2025. Christ is wearing a blue mantle and a purple robe, he is the King of kings and shows strength, austerity and almighty. The arched eyebrows accentuate the horizontal lines of the arms, and the nose that intersects with the horizontal lines creates a symbolic cross. Around the Pantocrator mosaic are two quotations from (gr-Ps:79; en-Ps:80) "O God!, o God!: look down from heaven and behold, and visit this vineyard which Thy right hand hath planted, and it perfects her"; and (gr-Ps:32; en-Ps:33) "The Lord looketh from heaven, He beholdeth all!"; Amen. The Pantocrator mosaic is mainly inspired by the mosaics from the mosaic Deesis (Δέησις, "Prayer") in Hagia Sophia located in the upper south gallery, dating back to 1261, from the southern dome of the Chora church, and from the dome of Daphni monastery an eleventh-century Byzantine architecture monastery.