Clergy, Churches & Map

Father Viktor Meshko, born in Ukraine in 1973, lives with his family in Germany. He is a priest of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, married, father of four children and grandfather. With a doctorate in theology and psychology, he combines spiritual depth with human warmth – in pastoral care, in his counselling practice and in social work.

The Resurrection Cathedral (Christi-Auferstehungs-Kathedrale) is the main cathedral of the Berlin Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate). It was built between 1936 and 1938 by architect Karl Schellberg on behalf of the Prussian Building and Financial Directorate, replacing an earlier Russian Orthodox church at Hohenzollerndamm 33 that had been demolished. The cathedral is designed as a three-nave basilica in the Russian-Byzantine style, featuring a dome crowned by a striking blue onion dome flanked by four smaller onion turrets. It was consecrated on 13 May 1938. The iconostasis originates from the predecessor building and traces back to an old garrison church near Warsaw. The cathedral suffered only minor damage during World War II; after extensive renovation it was rededicated in October 1952. In early 2011 the Moscow Patriarchate acquired the land on which the cathedral stands.

Location & Founding.
In picturesque Buchendorf near Starnberg (≈700 residents), about 17 km from downtown Munich, an Orthodox women’s monastery dedicated to St Grand Duchess Elizabeth has existed since 2005, directly behind the Roman Catholic Church of St Archangel Michael.

Prayer & Worship.
At the heart of monastic life are divine worship and personal prayer. The full daily liturgical cycle is served each day; the Divine Liturgy is celebrated three to four times a week, including Sundays.

Work & Crafts.
The monastery maintains a prosphora bakery, sewing room, embroidery, and bookbindery. The sisters cultivate a vegetable garden (raising seedlings in greenhouses), plant potatoes, keep chickens, and run beekeeping. Honey and propolis supply the monastery’s small natural apothecary, where handmade salves of various compositions are prepared.

Youth & Formation.
Since its founding, the monastery hosts the annual Martha-Mary Summer Camp for girls, offering an introduction to monastic life and friendships with peers from Orthodox parishes across Germany and other countries—strengthening their church life.

Spiritual Character.
Following the Gospel model of Martha and Mary, work and prayer are inseparable. Under the guidance of their spiritual father, the sisters unite obedience and prayer in every task. Regardless of duties, all attend the full cycle of services—an expectation also for pilgrims who come for several days to be spiritually renewed.

“The obedience I fulfill in the monastery is entrusted to me by God; my relationship with God depends on how I fulfill it.” — Gerontas Emilianos Vafidis

Leadership.
The monastery is headed by Abbess Maria (Sidiropoulou).

Romanian Orthodox parish of the Holy Apostle Andrew, founded in 1997 (Romanian Orthodox Metropolis for Germany, Central and Northern Europe).

Services are held in the St. Barbara church; the parish also serves Aschaffenburg and Bad Mergentheim.

Greek Orthodox parish of St. Demetrios (Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Germany, Ecumenical Patriarchate) with its own church on Demetriosplatz, serving the faithful between Cologne and Bonn.