Church of the Resurrection Byzantine Catholic Monroeville, PA

With the rise in population in the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh during the 1960s, Archbishop Stephen Kocisko recognized the need to create a parish to serve Byzantine Catholics in that geographic area. On September 7, 1969, 120 persons attended a Divine Liturgy at the Number 4 Fire Hall in Monroeville, which would become their home for the next two and one half years. The parish was named “Church of the Resurrection” after the central mystery of Eastern theology. The first pastor was Father Dennis M. Bogda. In February 1970, 4.66 acres of land were purchased on Center Road to build a permanent structure to house the growing congregation. Groundbreaking was March 7, and construction began shortly thereafter. The complex – church, social hall, and apartment for the pastor – was completed in December of 1971. The first Divine Liturgy was celebrated on Christmas Eve.The parishioners settled into parish life with great enthusiasm, a new church building and a huge debt. A stewardship program was introduced by the pastor. A parish council, Ladies Guild of the Theotokos, and a youth organization were formed. Altar servers were trained, and la catechetical program was initiated. Church of the Resurrection was instrumental in piloting the “God With Us” catechetical series. The 70s was a decade of trying to reduce the debt and to build parish life. It was a time of pirohy and noodles in the new kitchen and bazaars in the social hall. The parking lot was completed, and some landscaping was done. On Sunday, September 9, 1979 the parish observed its 10th Anniversary. The celebration included a dedication of the church and the laying of the cornerstone.The 80s brought a more intensified debt reduction plan and purchase of adjacent land, which included a house to be used as a rectory. This purchase brought the total property to approximately seven acres. On September 13, 1987 the Church of the Resurrection joyfully celebrated the burning of its mortgage.

Interior painting and additional icons on the walls beautified the nave of the church before the congregation celebrated its 25th Anniversary on September 13, 1994. By the summer of 1997, a permanent icon screen was completed, and an icon of the Christ Pantocrator recessed into the center of the nave ceiling.

The parish was not long without a mortgage, however, as the early years of the 21st century saw much needed repairs and improvements to the church building and grounds at a considerable expense. A new roof was installed and the heating and air conditioning systems were repaired and updated. Both levels of the large parking lot were repaved and major landscaping was done on the surrounding grounds.

Repairs were not the only thing in mind, however, and attention was turned to appropriate adornment of the interior of the church with new icons in the nave and the sanctuary. Two large chandeliers were hung in the nave in the fashion of Byzantine tradition, and a set of six cast iron bells imported from Russia were purchased. The young children of the parish are enthusiastic about learning to ring the bells melodiously and hasten to do so to announce the beginning of each service as well as other happy occasions.

Currently, ambitious plans are being considered for adding a bell tower to the church building and for making some seriously needed renovations to the rectory.

Parishioners continue to strive to meet their community’s growing needs with a greatly popularized fish fry during the Great Fast (Lent) and an Ethnic Food Festival each June, in addition to other fundraising projects during the year. The tremendous effort put into these projects is duly offered as a prayer for God’s continued blessing on Resurrection Parish.