St Paul's footsteps European Cultural Route

Churches

St Paul's Cathedral, London


St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London. As the seat of the Bishop of London, the cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It sits on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grade I listed building.


Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. The present structure, dating from the late 17th century, was designed in the English Baroque style by Sir Christopher Wren. Its construction, completed in Wren's lifetime, was part of a major rebuilding programme in the City after the Great Fire of London. The earlier Gothic cathedral (Old St Paul's Cathedral), largely destroyed in the Great Fire, was a central focus for medieval and early modern London, including Paul's walk and St Paul's Churchyard being the site of St Paul's Cross.


The cathedral is one of the most famous and most recognisable sights of London. Its dome, framed by the spires of Wren's City churches, has dominated the skyline for over 300 years. At 365 feet (111 m) high, it was the tallest building in London from 1710 to 1963. The dome remains among the highest in the world.


The cathedral is a working church with hourly prayer and daily services. The tourist entry fee at the door is £20 for adults (August 2020, cheaper online), but no charge is made to worshippers attending advertised services.

St Paul's Aglican Church, Athens


St. Paul’s Anglican Church is at 27, Philellinon Street & Amalias Avenue, near Syntagma Square in the centre of Athens. St. Paul’s Anglican Church Athens, the earliest foreign church in the Greek capital.


Consecrated on Palm Sunday in 1843 by the Rt. Rev. George Tomlinson, Bishop of Gibraltar, St. Paul’s has been a steady focus ever since of worship, pastoral care and cultural activities for the English-speaking residents of Athens, as well as for visitors journeying through the city. For the Anglican Church, it is both a joy and a privilege to have a presence in a land that has such prominence in the New Testament. It gives us great delight if you are able share this privilege with us as a resident, as a visitor or as a pilgrim.


Every year, St. Paul’s organises a tapestry of cultural events, where music is predominant. The church building’s excellent acoustics and the beautiful tone of its organ provide the ideal combination for a series of spring concerts. Recitals of early music are also held in the autumn, among others by the Ex Silentio ensemble and the Brussels Virtuosi Orchestra. These are complemented by a ‘sing-along’ of Handel’s Messiah at the approach of Christmas, where everybody can add their voice and rejoice.


St. Paul's Church is the proud owner of a pipe organ made by the reputed organ makers William Hill & Sons at the turn of the 20th century. Installed in 1901 to mark Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in 1897, it plays a central role in our services, as well as being a rare outlet in Greece for the corpus of music associated with the organ.


A number of free events are held annually in St. Paul’s, offering the opportunity to mingle with like-minded people, fellow English-speakers and interesting ‘outsiders’. Some are regular, such as the ‘sing-along’ of Handel’s Messiah or the children’s Easter Egg hunt, while others relate to important events, like the commemoration of the Great War’s centenary.


PAUL THE APOSTLE
Greek Παύλος; c. 5 - c. 67, originally known as Saul of Tarsus