Zion Cathedral is one of the main Orthodox churches in Tbilisi and throughout Georgia. Before the construction of the monumental Tsminda Sameba Temple in Tbilisi, it was the main cathedral of Tbilisi. The main cathedral of the Georgian Orthodox Church remains Sveti Tskhoveli in Mtskheta. Zion Cathedral is located in the center of the Old City of Tbilisi near the embankment of the Kura River.
Zion Cathedral was founded one of the first, after the transfer of the capital to Tbilisi. Its construction in the 6th century was started by Guram I, the heir of King Vakhtang I Gorgasal. Residential quarters of the Old Town of Tbilisi began to settle down and develop around the Zion Cathedral. For several centuries, Tbilisi has experienced invasions of enemies more than once. Because of this, the two main temples of Tbilisi were often destroyed. However, if the Metekhi Temple (founded in the 5th century) has survived to this day unchanged since the 13th century, then the Zion Cathedral has experienced much more destruction.
The first Zion Cathedral, founded in the 6th century, was completely destroyed by the Arabs. It was rebuilt in 1112 by the Georgian king David the Builder. The tomb of King David can be seen in the Gelati Monastery in Kutaisi. In 1226, the Zion Cathedral was partially destroyed during the invasion of the Khorezm Shah Jalal-ad-Din Manguberdi, and then the invasion was repeated in 1236.
In 1522, the Zion Cathedral was damaged during the invasion of the Persian Shah Ismail I, in 1668 a strong earthquake occurred in Tbilisi. In 1795, Tbilisi experienced the most destructive invasion of the Iranian Khan Aga-Mukhamed Khan. During all these invasions and earthquakes, Zion Cathedral was partially destroyed.
The restoration of the cathedral was made in 1817, when Georgia, according to the St. George`s Convention, was already part of the Russian Empire. In 1812, a bell tower was built on a hill next to the cathedral in the classical Russian architectural style, not typical for Georgian churches. In 1980 the Georgian authorities reconstructed the cathedral and restored the appearance of the ancient cathedral of Tbilisi.
The Cross of Saint Nina in the Zion Cathedral
For several centuries, the Zion Cathedral remained the cathedral of Tbilisi. His altar was consecrated in honor of the Assumption of the Virgin. The main relic of the Georgian Orthodox Church is kept in the Zion Cathedral: the Cross of St. Nina.
Saint Nina was born in 280 in Cappadocia (now Turkey). Her father Zabulon was a relative of the Great Martyr George, and her mother Susanna was a sister of Patriarch Juvenal of Jerusalem. From the age of 12, Nina was in Jerusalem, where she converted to Christianity. There she learned that the Seamless Robe of Jesus was in Iberia, then a pagan country.
Once, in a dream, the Holy Virgin appeared to Nina. She handed her a cross made from a grape tree and told her to go to Iberia. When Nina awoke, she saw a cross in her hands. It is now kept in the Zion Cathedral in Tbilisi. Patriarch Juvenal blessed her for Apostolic service, and Nina went to Iberia.
Coming to Mtskheta in 319, Nina first lived in thehouse of the Royal gardener. Nina was able to cure his wife of infertility, and she was the first to convert to Christianity. While living in the gardener`s house, she had dream that near the cedar in the Royal garden there is a Seamless Robe of Jesus. Nina cured the disease and Queen Nana, who also converted to Christianity. Many people began to come to her for help. King Mirian III remained a pagan and wanted to kill Nina, but one day while hunting, he was caught in a severe thunderstorm and was blinded by a flash of lightning. Nina was able to cure him of his blindness, and then king Mirian also decided to be baptized.
In 326, king Mirian asked the Roman Emperor Constantine and Queen Helena to send a Bishop from Constantinople to baptize Georgians in the waters of the Kura. Christianity was declared the state religion of Georgia. It became the second country after Armenia to adopt Christianity at the state level. In the Roman Empire itself, this only happened in 380.
