One of the sights of West Azerbaijan, which passes through a beautiful and winding path in the heart of the mountains, is Saint Thaddeus Cathedral in Iran. This beautiful church, which consists of a combination of white and black marble stones, along with two other churches named “Saint Thaddeus Cathedral” and “Zorzor Church” have registered as the ninth historical monument of Iran in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Today in Hey Persia blog we want to visit a church which is one of the most valuable religious buildings in Christianity. In this regard, we will try to provide you with various information such as the location of Saint Thaddeus Cathedral, the history and architecture of Saint Thaddeus Cathedral, the access route and accommodation, the best time to travel to Saint Thaddeus Cathedral, the names and designations of Saint Thaddeus Cathedral and finally the ceremony that takes place in Saint Thaddeus Cathedral. So stay with us.
How was the Saint Thaddeus Cathedral in Iran built?
Saint Thaddeus Cathedral is the first Christian church in the world, which was on the grave of Thaddeus, one of the apostles very close to Jesus . As you know, the apostles of Christ were 12 disciples and close friends of Jesus who wrote down his words. Thaddeus “Tataeus” went to the south of the Armenian plateau around 40 AD to propagate the Christian religion. At first, the king of Armenia named “Sanatruk I” accepted Christianity, but after a while he repented. The daughter of Sanatruk I converted to Christianity without her father’s knowledge. After some time, his father found out and finally could not dissuade him from his decision. Due to various issues, the king ordered the killing of Tataeus and all his followers, including his daughter.
As a result, all the Christians arrested, tortured and finally killed. It is that the corner of the church is actually the tomb of Saint Thaddeus, who first built a chapel on his grave and then a large church in the 7th century AD. But this is not the only story about this church. Others believe that Saint Thaddeus, when he came to Armenia, built a church for his companions. After he killed by Sanatruk I. He buried in the altar of the church
Introducing the different names of Saint Thaddeus Cathedral in Iran
Another name of the church is “Holy Thaddeus Church” and in Armenian it is also as “Sorp Thaddeusi Vank” and “Holy Tadeus”. It has 2 different meanings in the Azeri language. Its common meaning is black. Therefore, Qara Church means “black church”. The reason for this name also comes from the black stones used in the construction of the church. Of course, Qara does not only mean black, but it also translated as big. In this case, Qara Kila is also as “big church”.
Where is the church?
After you have obtained information about the name of the church and its name, it is time to read about the location of this church. Saint Thaddeus Church or Chaldaran Church is located 7 km from Chaldaran road and is one of the famous places of Mako in West Azerbaijan province. The distance between Saint Thaddeus Cathedra and Chaldaran, the most pasture part of West Azerbaijan, is about 20 kilometers.
Access route to Mako church
There are two routes from Urmia or Tabriz to reach Saint Thaddeus Cathedra, which we will review together in this section:
The first route is the distance from Tabriz to Saint Thaddeus Cathedra
In order to move from Tabriz to Saint Thaddeus Cathedra, you have to travel about 270 km. To travel this route, you will pass through the cities of Marand, Qara Ziauddin and Shot. Saint Thaddeus Cathedra is located in the middle of the route from Shut to Chaldaran and it is 35 km away from Shut.
The second route, the distance from Urmia to Saint Thaddeus Cathedra
In the second route, you will travel a distance of about 275 kilometers from Urmia to Qara Kelisa. In the meantime, you pass through cities such as Selmas, Khoi and Chaldaran. Khoi road to Chaldaran is a side road and it is 100 km away.
Short and comprehensive tips about the architecture of the church in Jolfa
If you are familiar with visual arts and architecture, you will notice the unique techniques and volume of the church. If you pay attention to the cross-section of the church, you will notice that the Thaddeus Church, unlike other churches, does not have a square shape and is in a rectangular shape. Qara Kesila has various unique features that are not only related to the type of volume processing.
The most important feature of this historical work is the decoration of the church walls with Shahnameh stories. In addition, the prominent motifs used in the Thaddeus Church are all very elegant, proportional, and ultimately beautifully and professionally executed, which shows the skill and taste of the artists in that period. If you look more carefully at this building, considering the defensive walls built around it, the main entrance of the church, the presence of 5 watchtowers in the 4 directions of the church in the shape of an arch, we can boldly say that the church’s courtyard was also a fortress. The different parts of the church are:
- tower
- bell tower
- The main church
- input
- warehouse
- Eastern courtyard
- West courtyard
The outer space of Saint Thaddeus Cathedral in Iran
The total area of Tataos Cathedral is to be around 6285 square meters and this church consists of two old “black” parts, which is the eastern part of the building, and the new “white” part of the western part. In addition to this building, it has two domes measuring 24 and 18 meters.
The courtyards of the outer space of Mako church
This ancient church has two courtyards known as the eastern and western courtyards. There are some tombstones outside the church, a beautiful stone basin and designated areas for placing candles on the wall, where people light candles to make their wishes come true. On the outer walls of the church, there are many beautiful and different carvings, such as images of flowers, people, animals, etc.
The interior of Mako church
The interior of the Chaldaran church consists of 47 different rooms for monks, students, religious researchers, writers, guards and a library. In addition, there is a basement and several small spaces such as a dining room, a kitchen, a mill, a crypt for storing food, and a wine cellar. When you enter the interior of the church, you only need to raise your head to notice that not only the appearance of this ancient work is a combination of white and black, but also the upper part of the altar is with both colors. .
How was the restoration of the church in Jolfa?
Tataos Cathedral has attacked and looted over the centuries, or has suffered serious damage due to natural factors such as earthquakes. This church attacked by Genghis Khan and then his successors in 1220 AD. After them, Timur Lang, the wars between Iran and Ottomans, etc. caused serious damage to this building. During the time of Halakukhan, since his mother and one of his wives were Christians, he paid special attention to Christians and took effective measures to restore the church under the supervision of Khwaja Nasiruddin Tusi. After him, around 1319, a strong earthquake occurred in this area and only the black part of the church survived that event.
After these events, the senior bishop “Basdaji Zakaria” took effective measures for the improvement of the Saint Thaddeus Church for 10 years. The last reconstruction of this building was done in 1814 by Abbas Mirza, the crown prince of Fath Ali Shah. It was done and the white part was added to the church and finally the two black and white parts were merged and created a new composition. In the construction of the new section, inspiration was drawn from the “Echmiadzin Cathedral” located in Armenia. This work was finally being implemented, when Abbas Mirza died. Unfortunately, after his death, the restoration of the church remained unfinished.
What is the special ceremony?
“Badarak” is a ceremony held by Christians in Mako church. Since this church is very important and sacred among Armenians, many of them take their children to be baptized in this church. Every year, the Mass is held in early August at the same time as the martyrdom of Tataeus. While visiting the tomb of Tataeus, Armenians pray and perform the sacrifice ceremony. This event lasts for 3 days and starts from Thursday and ends on Saturday.
The climax of the ceremony is on Saturday. In such a way that nearly 25 thousand people participate in this ceremony. The reason that the ceremony was 3 days is that they did not know the exact date of death and they believe that it was one of these 3 days. Participation in this ceremony is free for Christians and countless Armenians from different cities of Tabriz, Urmia, Isfahan, Tehran and even other countries such as Syria, Armenia, Holland, Lebanon, Austria, etc. come to this ceremony.
When is the best time to visit Saint Thaddeus Cathedra in Jolfa?
Since the Chaldaran church is located in a mountainous and cold area, the best time to visit it is during the spring and summer seasons when the weather in the area is warm and pleasant.
How to stay in Saint Thaddeus Cathedral in Iran?
It is not possible to stay in Saint Thaddeus Cathedral in Iran. You can use eco-tourism houses in nearby cities such as Chaldaran, Mako, Jolfa.
Places of interest near the church in Jolfa
Among the places of interest near Saint Thaddeus Cathedra, we can mention the Sandukht tomb, which is located on the highest heights of the northern hills of Saint Thaddeus Cathedra. In addition, “Zakare Church and Tomb” is located 300 meters away from Saint Thaddeus Cathedra, Zar Zar Church is 41.7 km away, “Sheikh Sadr al-Din Tomb” is 32 km away and “Goharnia Great Hall” is located 30.7 km away.
Saint Thaddeus Cathedral in Iran
Traveling is one of the beautiful and memorable categories that most of us like to do at different times. In middle age, people have more free time and can go on more trips. If you are one of those people who like to visit the beautiful, cultural and historical regions of this country, join us on a trip to Saint Thaddeus Cathedra and experience a unique trip. Hey Persia is a travel agency that tries to help middle-aged people with different interests and provide them with desirable and different trips. Based on this, we have decided to have a group trip with a limited number of people in Hey Persia. At Hey Persia Collection, we will do our best to prepare and provide you services suitable for your age and dignity. It is enough to join us once in Iran tours to become our constant companions.
