Commemoration Day of St. John the Archbishop of Shanghai and San Francisco Celebrated at St. Nicholas Church in Shanghai

DECR Communication Service, 03/07/2026

On 2^nd July 2026, the 60^th anniversary of the blessed repose of St. John (Maximovitch), Archbishop of Shanghai and San Francisco, was celebrated by a Russian Orthodox community at the Church of St. Nicholas in Shanghai.

Celebrating the Divine Liturgy on the feast day was Priest Ioann Shchelokov. 2^nd of July also marked the 10^th anniversary of Father Ioann’s priestly ordination.

The building of St. Nicholas Church is provided for divine services by the Shanghai authorities with the approval of the Shanghai Bureau of Religious Affairs. It serves as a sign of friendly relations between the peoples of Russia and China and a practical follow-up to agreements discussed during the 8^th meeting of the Russian-Chinese Group for Contacts and Cooperation in Religious Sphere, held in Beijing.

***

The Church of St. Nicholas in Shanghai was built in 1932–1934 on the initiative of and donations from Russian emigrants. In 1956, it was transferred to the Chinese Autonomous Orthodox Church. The church was closed during the Cultural Revolution and its premises were later repurposed as a warehouse, a restaurant and a book shop. Nowadays, the building is in the custody of the Shanghai Municipality as an architectural heritage site. Since 2010, the Shanghai authorities have been providing the church building for worship to the Orthodox community in Shanghai on important feast days.

Print publication

Commemoration Day of St. John the Archbishop of Shanghai and San Francisco Celebrated at St. Nicholas Church in Shanghai

Patriarch

Department Chairman

Sermons

Patriarch

Department Chairman

Sermons