NEW YORK (RNS) Leaders of a Greek Orthodox church that was destroyed during the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center broke ground on a new St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church that will overlook the 9/11 memorial.
The new domed building is scheduled to open in 2016, the same year as the church’s 100th anniversary. The church has raised $7 million of about $38 million needed.
Plans to rebuild the church were stalled by a dispute with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which is in charge of overall rebuilding efforts at Ground Zero. Under a 2011 agreement brokered by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the church agreed to drop its lawsuit in return for building at a larger site.
On Saturday (Oct. 18), government and church leaders joined on a concrete platform surrounded by steel foundation beams and orange construction netting to break ground for the church, designed by renowned Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava.
Patrick J. Foye, executive director of the Port Authority, said the future building would be “an iconic house of worship,” comparable to St. Patrick’s Cathedral in midtown.
“Just as the Greek Orthodox Church celebrates the birth, mourns the death and praises the resurrection, today we celebrate the rebuilding and the blessing of the hollowed land on which it will stand,” Foye said.
Former New York Gov. George Pataki, who was governor during 9/11, said the return of St. Nicholas to Ground Zero will fill in a missing piece of the rebuilding process.
“We had remembrance, we had commerce, but without St. Nicholas, we did not have faith,” Pataki said. “Well now today, we have remembrance, we have commerce, we have that rock, we have faith, right here at St. Nicholas.”
Pataki said it was appropriate that the rebuilt church would be Greek Orthodox.
“It was the Greek city-states that gave us our belief today in freedom,” he said to cheers from the crowd. “It will now be the Greek Orthodox Church that is the rock of faith that anchors all that is done here at Ground Zero.”
st nicholas
Calatrava, who also designed the nearby World Trade Center Transportation Hub, said he took his inspiration from the Hagia Sophia and the Church of the Holy Savior in Chora, both in Istanbul. Fusing stone and glass, light will glow from the inside out rather than by exterior floodlights.
The church will fit about 150 people at a time in a 4,100-square-foot building on the corner of Liberty and Greenwich streets. While small, the rebuilt church will be able to accommodate twice the 80 or so worshippers that were standing room only in the old church.
Some items from the old church were recovered, including a crushed bell, a candelabra, a few Bibles, mangled candles and two icons, which will be housed in the new church. Relics of St. Nicholas were never recovered.
Archbishop Demetrios, who heads the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, recalled the day when church leaders first saw the destroyed church, which was hit by falling rubble from the twin towers.
“We remember this very place filled with ruins, hiding under piles of debris, the pulverized remains of 3,000 innocent victims. Breathing a very heavy air, saturated with the dust of storm, wood, iron and with tiny particles of human bodies, we remember walking with heavy hearts to the specific place where our St. Nicholas stood as a building. … The church was not there,” he said. “We stood there frozen, paralyzed and cried.”
The church will include an interfaith and nonsectarian space for reflection and meditation.
“It will be a refuge for people in need of spiritual comfort, regardless of their specific beliefs or unbeliefs,” Demetrios said.
st nicholas
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: A woman grieves at her husband's memorial at South Tower Reflecting Pool before the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center before memorial observances are held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Chang W. Lee-Pool/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Paola Braut, of Belgium, cries over a photograph of her son Patrice along the edge of the North Pool during memorial observances at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Justin Lane-Pool/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Hattie Wilson places her hand over her heart during the singing of the National Anthem as she mourns her nephew Det. Joseph Seabrook during memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Robert Sabo- Pool/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Members of the New York Police Department, Fire Department of New York salute at the beginning of the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Chang W. Lee-Pool/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Janice Lynch, of Queens, New York, pauses at the inscription of her friend Patricia Massani's name at the North Pool for the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Justin Lane - Pool/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Members of the New York Police Department, Fire Department of New York and Port Authority Police Department carry an American flag past one of the reflecting pools at the beginning of the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Chang W. Lee-Pool/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Maria Cioccone, of New York, places a flower in the inscribed name of her son Alex along the edge of the North Pool Memorial site during observances at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Justin Lane-Pool/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: People stand at the South Tower Reflecting Pool before the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center before memorial observances are held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Chang W. Lee-Pool/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: A man carries a sign before the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center before memorial observances are held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Chang W. Lee-Pool/Getty Images)
President Obama Marks Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks At The Pentagon
ARLINGTON, VA - SEPTEMBER 11: Security personnel observe on the roof of the Pentagon prior to a ceremony to mark the 13th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorists attacks at the Pentagon Memorial September 11, 2014 in front of the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Members of the New York Police Department, Fire Department of New York and Port Authority Police Department carry an American flag past one of the reflecting pools at the beginning of the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
Sept 11 Anniversary
United States Navy veteran Richard Fill, of Easton, Penn., looks up at 1 World Trade Center during a moment of silence on the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014, in New York. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)
September 11th Anniversary
President Barack Obama stands at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, September 11, 2014, for a moment of silence marking the 13th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the United States. (JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Memorial visitors mourn as officials carry an American flag past them at the beginning of the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
September 11th Anniversary
US President Barack Obama (L), First Lady Michelle Obama and Vice President Joe Biden (R) stand for a moment of silence on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, September 11, 2014, marking the 13th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the United States. (Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: A woman cries prior to the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
Sept 11 Anniversary
Jose Colon, of New York, looks up at 1 World Trade Center before a ceremony marking the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014, in New York. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: A woman who did not wish to be identified pauses at the edge of the North Pool during memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Justin Lane- Pool/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Members of the New York Police Department, Fire Department of New York and Port Authority Police Department carry an American flag past one of the reflecting pools at the beginning of the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Family members etch their loved one's names in paper prior to the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
Sept 11 Anniversary
Victims' family members visit the South Tower Memorial Pool before memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center in New York, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014. (AP Photo/The New York Times, Chang W. Lee, Pool)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: An American flag is placed in an inscribed name along the edge of the North Pool during memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Justin Lane- Pool/Getty Images)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Sam Pulia, mayor of Westerchester, IL, and a former police officer of the same town, salutes the name of his cousin, New York firefighter Thomas Anthony Casoria, who was killed in the South Tower, prior to the the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center in in New York on September 11, 2014. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Andrew Burton - Pool /Getty Images)
Sept 11 Anniversary
Mercedes Arias, left, and her boyfriend, Thomas Cascio, visit the South Tower Memorial Pool before memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center in New York, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014. Arias' father, Joseph Amatuccio, worked at Emergency Squad 7 and was killed in the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/The New York Times, Chang W. Lee, Pool)
Obama Sept 11 Anniversary
President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama stand during the playing of Taps on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014, as they observe a moment of silence to mark the 13th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
Sept 11 Obama
A woman reaches out to touch rose on one of the benches of the Pentagon Memorial at the at the Pentagon, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014. President Barack Obama will attend the wreath laying later this morning to to mark the 13th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
Sept 11 Obama
From left, President Barack Obama, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, and Joints Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey bow their heads during a moment of silence at the Pentagon, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014, to mark the 13th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
Sept 11 Obama
Flowers sit on one of the benches of the Pentagon Memorial at the at the Pentagon, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014. President Barack Obama will attend the wreath laying later this morning to to mark the 13th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
Obama Sept 11
A man places a flower on one of the benches of the Pentagon Memorial at the at the Pentagon, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014. President Barack Obama will attend the wreath laying later this morning to to mark the 13th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Sam Pulia, mayor of Westerchester, IL, and a former police officer of the same town, mourns over the name of his cousin, New York firefighter Thomas Anthony Casoria, who was killed in the South Tower, prior to the the memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center in in New York on September 11, 2014. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Andrew Burton - Pool /Getty Images)
Sept 11 Anniversary
Kevin Brosnan, a retired NYPD detective, visits the South Tower Memorial Pool before memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center in New York, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014. Brosnan's friend, Robert W. Hamilton, of Rescue Squad 41, was killed in the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. (AP Photo/The New York Times, Chang W. Lee, Pool)
Sept 11 Anniversary
A flower is placed on Vincent Francis Giammona's name at the South Tower Memorial Pool before memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center in New York, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014. (AP Photo/The New York Times, Chang W. Lee, Pool)
Sept 11 Anniversary
Police officers, rear, patrol a few blocks from the National September 11 Memorial at the World Trade Center site before a ceremony marking the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014, in New York. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)
Sept 11 Anniversary
A woman walks with a child near United States flags with 1 World Trade Center, rear left, in the background, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014, in Jersey City, N.J. The country is observing the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
New York Commemorates 13th Anniversary Of September 11th Attacks
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: A family stands at the edge of the North Pool during memorial observances held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2014 in New York City. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on Flight 93. (Photo by Justin Lane- Pool/Getty Images)
The NFL will allow players to wear protective Guardian Caps during games beginning with the 2024 season. The caps were previously mandated for practices.
Atlanta Falcons first-round draft pick Michael Penix Jr. said quarterback Kirk Cousins called him after he was picked No. 8 overall in one of the 2024 NFL Draft's more puzzling selections.
Tyrese Haliburton hit a floater with 1.1 seconds left in overtime to give the Indiana Pacers a 121–118 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. The Pacers lead their first-round playoff series two games to one.
Dan Wetzel, Ross Dellenger & SI’s Pat Forde react to the huge performance this weekend by Texas QB Arch Manning, Michigan and Notre Dame's spring games, Jaden Rashada entering the transfer portal, and more
Victor Wembanyama's rookie NBA season is finished. The San Antonio Spurs will sit him in Sunday's regular-season finale. Where does his first season rank among the league's greats?
Trump is entitled to an additional 36 million shares if the company's share price trades above $17.50 "for twenty out of any thirty trading days" over the next three years.
