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[[File:Церковь Святого Николая (Манхэттен).jpeg|right|thumb|230px|St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, New York.]]'''St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church''' is a parish of the [[Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America]] in New York City, which stood at 155 Cedar Street in the City’s financial district, across from the [[w:South Tower|South Tower]] of the [[w:World Trade Center|World Trade Center]]. The church was completely destroyed in the [[w:September 11, 2001, attacks|September 11, 2001 attacks]] when the South Tower collapsed.<ref name="google1"> [http://books.google.com/books?id=8RFYzm0NwEIC&pg=PA16&dq=%22St.+Nicholas+Greek+Orthodox+Church%22+%22new+york%22&hl=en&ei=wfxZTIbpAYP-8Abd0omcCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDEQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22St.%20Nicholas%20Greek%20Orthodox%20Church%22%20%22new%20york%22&f=false Greek Orthodox Parishes Of New York State – A Photo Tour]. Lulu.com. pp.16-23.</ref> It was the only non-WTC building to be immediately destroyed by the attacks. On [[October 14]], 2011, ten years after the church was destroyed, an agreement for the reconstruction of the church was signed to site the new church at 130 Liberty Street, on Port Authority land.
== History ==
The building that came to house the church was built around 1832. In 1916, [[w:Greek American|Greek American]] immigrants started the congregation of St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and in 1922 started to hold worship services at the Cedar Street location.<ref>David W. Dunlap. [http://books.google.com/books?id=PWXnRWvl0Q0C&pg=PA233&dq=%22St.+Nicholas+Greek+Orthodox+Church%22+%22new+york%22&hl=en&ei=BP1ZTMCQDMH-8AaB3_mbCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CDYQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=%22St.%20Nicholas%20Greek%20Orthodox%20Church%22%20%22new%20york%22&f=false From Abyssinian to Zion: A Guide to Manhattan's Houses of Worship]. Columbia University Press, 2004.</ref><ref>A Schneider. [http://www.npr.org/news/specials/americatransformed/scene/011001.greekchurch.html America Transformed – St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church]. ''NPR.'' October 1, 2001.</ref> Serving the spiritual needs of the early immigrant community, the church also achieved prominence as a religious and cultural center for Greek shipping magnates passing through New York.
The church building was only 22 feet (6.7 m) wide, 56 feet (17 m) long, and 35 feet (11 m) tall, and was easily dwarfed by the 110 story Twin Towers, which were completed in 1972 and 1973. Despite its small size and unusual location, before the attacks the church had a dedicated congregation of about 70 families led by Father John Romas. On Wednesdays, the building was opened to the public and many people, including office workers from the towers and non-[[Greek Orthodox]], would enter the quiet worship space for contemplation and prayer. Among the church's most valuable physical possessions were some of the [[relics]] of St [[Nicholas of Myra|Nicholas]], St [[Catherine of Alexandria|Catherine]], and St [[Sabbas the Sanctified]], which had been donated to the church by the holy and right-believing Emperor Saint [[Nicholas II of Russia|Nicholas II]], the last czar of Imperial Russia. These relics were removed from their safe on holy days for [[venerationprayer]]; they were never recovered after the attack.
== September 11, 2001 ==
[[Image:World Trade Center January 1975.jpg|right|thumb|200px|St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, looking north toward World Trade Center.]]
The building was completely buried by the collapse of the [[w:South Tower|South Tower]] of the WTC. No one was inside when the church was destroyed. The [[w:Sexton (office)|church sexton]] and an electrician managed to escape only minutes before the tragedy.
The congregation members and Father Romas have temporarily relocated to [[w:St. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Cathedral|St. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Cathedral]] in Brooklyn.
== Plans ==
Following its collapse, donations of almost $2 million were received, as well as additional pledges of construction materials and appointments for the complete rebuilding of the Church. The city of Bari, Italy, where the relics of St. Nicholas were originally bestowed, donated $250,000. The government of Greece contributed $750,000 to these efforts, and the Ecumenical Patriarchate gave $50,000.<ref name=GOARCH1/>
The plans for rebuilding the World Trade Center complex included building a new St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, in a new location at 130 Liberty Street, quite close to the original site.<ref name="google1"/> The church would again house a worshiping congregation, and a museum would also be built for the projected large influx of visitors expected to come to the site.
During the [[Vespers]] service that was held on December 5, 2010, [[Demetrios (Trakatellis) of America|Archbishop Demetrios]] said that the [[Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America|Greek Orthodox Archdiocese]] would do anything to rebuild the church.
On [[February 14]], 2011, The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America filed a $20 million law suit against the [[w:Port Authority|Port Authority]] pursuant to [http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/42/1983.html Section 1983] of the Civil Rights Act ([[w:Title 42 of the United States Code|42 U.S.C.]] § 1983),<ref>Justia Federal District Court Filings & Dockets: Civil Rights Cases filed in the New York Southern District Court. [http://dockets.justia.com/docket/new-york/nysdce/1:2011cv00985/375176/ The Hellenic Eastern Orthodox Church Of Saint Nicholas Of The Downtown Part Of The City Of New York et al v. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey et al]. Filed: February 14, 2011. Case Number: 1:2011cv00985.</ref> requesting a grand jury trial for not rebuilding the church.<ref>[http://usa.greekreporter.com/2011/02/14/st-nicholas-greek-orthodox-archdiocese-of-america-file-lawsuit-against-ny-and-nj-port-authority/ St. Nicholas & Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America File Lawsuit Against NY and NJ Port Authority]. ''Greek Reporter USA.'' 14 February 2011.</ref><ref group="note"> "The St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church filed a $20 million lawsuit against the Port Authority and other agencies in Manhattan Federal Court yesterday for blocking the rebuilding of the tiny house of worship after it was destroyed on 9/11. The suit accuses the Port Authority of "arrogance, bad faith, and fraudulent conduct" and asks a judge to enforce an earlier agreement that church officials say the PA reneged on."<br>:* Scott Shifrel. ''Church sues PA for $20M.'' [[w:Daily News (New York)|Daily News (New York)]]. February 15, 2011.</ref>
===Final Agreement===On [[October 14]], 2011As a result of settlement discussions mediated by the Governor’s office, ten years after the church was destroyed, Port Authority and Archdiocese agreed to an agreement for independent engineering study to determine the reconstruction feasibility of siting the church Church at various locations in Liberty Park. The four-month study was signed that ended all legal actionled by Peter Lehrer, marking a major win for nationally renowned construction expert, who worked on the tiny churchproject on a pro bono basis with Director of World Trade Center Construction Steven Plate and independent engineers Gorton & Partners and McNamara/Salvia, Inc. The study concluded that structural issues could be resolved to site the Church at 130 Liberty Street at significantly reduced cost compared to the original agreement and with no delay to construction at the World Trade Center site.<ref>''[http://www.panynj.gov/wtcprogress/press_releasesItem.cfm?headLine_id=1474 PORT AUTHORITY AND GREEK ORTHODOX ARCHDIOCESE ANNOUNCE AGREEMENT ON REBUILDING OF ST. NICHOLAS GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH].'' The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey. Press Release Number: 122. Oct 14, 2011.</ref>
<blockquote>"On Friday, after a combined feat of political arm-twisting and reverse engineering, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo; Archbishop Demetrios, the primate of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America; and Christopher O. Ward, the executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, announced that the new church would be constructed at Liberty and Greenwich Streets, exactly where it was envisioned three years ago, but on a plot of 4,100 square feet, about two-thirds the size of the site in the earlier (2008) plan.<ref name=NYTIMES2011>David W. Dunlap. ''[http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/14/way-is-cleared-to-rebuild-greek-orthodox-church-lost-on-911/?scp=1&sq=st.%20nicholas&st=cse Way Is Cleared to Rebuild Greek Orthodox Church Lost on 9/11].'' NY Times. October 14, 2011, 2:21 pm.</ref></blockquote> The new church will rebuild on Port Authority land,<ref>''[http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2011/10/14/deal-struck-to-rebuild-st-nicholas-greek-church-near-wtc-site/ Deal Struck To Rebuild St. Nicholas Greek Church Near WTC Site].'' CBC Local Media (CBS New York). October 14, 2011 4:00 PM.</ref> and will be constructed on a platform above a spiral ramp to an underground parking area. It will also include a nondenominational bereavement center adjacent to it. The Port Authority estimates that it will spend about $25 million to construct the platform on which St. Nicholas will sit and provide the necessary utility hookups.<ref name="NYTIMES2011"/> The church will pay for anything built above ground.<ref name=ENI>Kevin Eckstrom. ''[http://www.eni.ch/featured/article.php?id=5227 Greek Orthodox church will rebuild at Ground Zero].'' ENInews/RNS. 19 October 2011.</ref>
<blockquote>"Father Arey said it was too early to predict whether St. Nicholas would have a dome. “It will look like an Orthodox church,” he said, “while the emphasis will be to be spiritually and contextually harmonious with the neighborhood.” Speaking of the 2001 attack, Father Arey said: “It wasn’t just an act of terrorism. It was an act of religious hatred at some level. Rebuilding the only house of worship destroyed on 9/11 is important for the psyche and the soul of the nation.”"<ref name="NYTIMES2011"/></blockquote>
Archbishop Demetrios said that "our pledge is to be a witness for all New Yorkers, that freedom of conscience and the fundamental human right of free religious expression will always shine forth in the resurrected St. Nicholas Church."<ref name="ENI"/>
==Notes==
<references group="note" />
== References ==
== External links ==
*[http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/week902/feature.html PBS Feature: Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church]. ''PBS.org: Religion & Ethics.'' September 9, 2005. Episode no. 902.
*[http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/24/nyregion/24greek.html?_r=1 Amid Furor on Islamic Center, Pleas for Orthodox Church Nearby]. ''NY Times.'' August 23, 2010.
'''Court Case'''
* Justia Federal District Court Filings & Dockets: Civil Rights Cases filed in the New York Southern District Court. [http://dockets.justia.com/docket/new-york/nysdce/1:2011cv00985/375176/ The Hellenic Eastern Orthodox Church Of Saint Nicholas Of The Downtown Part Of The City Of New York et al v. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey et al]. Filed: February 14, 2011. Case Number: 1:2011cv00985
* Scott Shifrel. ''Church sues PA for $20M.'' [[w:Daily News (New York)|Daily News (New York)]]. February 15, 2011.
* ''Orthodox church sues over temple destroyed on 9/11.'' The Associated Press State & Local Wire. February 15, 2011 Tuesday 1:18 AM GMT.
'''Agreement'''
* David W. Dunlap. ''[http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/14/way-is-cleared-to-rebuild-greek-orthodox-church-lost-on-911/?scp=1&sq=st.%20nicholas&st=cse Way Is Cleared to Rebuild Greek Orthodox Church Lost on 9/11].'' NY Times. October 14, 2011, 2:21 pm.
* Kevin Eckstrom. ''[http://www.eni.ch/featured/article.php?id=5227 Greek Orthodox church will rebuild at Ground Zero].'' ENInews/RNS. 19 October 2011.
* ''[http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2011/10/14/deal-struck-to-rebuild-st-nicholas-greek-church-near-wtc-site/ Deal Struck To Rebuild St. Nicholas Greek Church Near WTC Site].'' CBC Local Media (CBS New York). October 14, 2011 4:00 PM.
* ''[http://bilirakis.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4207&Itemid=115 Hellenic Caucus Co-Chairs Applaud Agreement to Rebuild St. Nicholas Church].'' Congressman Gus Bilirakis - 2011 Press Releases. October 14, 2011.
[[Category:Churches|Nicholas]][[Category:USA Churches|Nicholas]]
