The Church of Saint Catherine is hard to miss because it’s just north of the main square in Gavalochori. One of the oldest churches in Gavalochori, it has a special connection to the village because it allegedly belonged to the Gavalas family (for whom Gavalochori is named) during Venetian rule in Crete. In fact, until 1700, all of the priests of this church were from the Gavalas family. Ioannis Papamarkaki, who was the priest of the parish of Saint Catherine and who oversaw one of the renovations of this church, is buried in the churchyard; he died in 1901. This church is usually locked, so you won’t be able to see inside unless a service or ceremony is being held in it.
If you are facing the Fronimos (Φρόνιμος) supermarket that is on the main square, about 80 meters (90 yards) to your right, you’ll see the Church of Saint Catherine, a white church with a blue door surrounded by a blue metal fence.
Although the Church of Saint Catherine is closely linked to the village, little is known about it. It dates back to at least 1200 AD because it was reconstructed in 1203 AD when the Venetians ruled Crete.
The next information available about the church is that repairs were made to it in 1835 and again in 1883, when a narthex with a tiled roof was constructed on the west side, and the walls surrounding the church and the churchyard were also repaired.
In 1929, the dome and the south part of the church collapsed during a wedding ceremony, prompting a more major reconstruction of the church in 1932. This time, funding came from a group of women who identified as Old Calendarists or Old Feasters, Eastern Orthodox Christians who separated from mainstream Eastern Orthodox churches when those churches adopted the Gregorian calendar (the Old Calendarists remained committed to the Julian calendar). The Gregorian calendar was introduced in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a replacement for the Julian calendar because the Julian calendar did not correctly reflect the actual time it takes the Earth to circle once around the sun. Consequently, the date of the spring equinox drifted substantially so that the spring equinox was occurring well before its March 21 date. Because the date of Easter is a function of the date of the spring equinox, this mattered. Although Greece now uses the Gregorian calendar for civil matters, it still bases Easter on the Julian calendar. Greek Easter occurs on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the spring solstice.
Additional renovations funded by villagers were completed in 1934, when a new gate was installed, a new wall was built around the church, and the churchyard was repaired. The cistern of the church was made deeper in 1952.
Saint Catherine (Agia Aikaterini, Αγία Αικατερίνη), to whom this church is dedicated, was allegedly from a noble family who lived in the 4th century AD in the Egyptian city of Alexandria; for this reason, she is often called Saint Catherine of Alexandria. She converted to Christianity at the age of 14, shortly before the Roman emperor Maxentius began persecuting Christians. She met with him and rebuked him for his cruelty toward Christians, and in response, he summoned 50 of the best pagan philosophers and orators to debate her, hoping they would refute her Christian beliefs. Saint Catherine, who was highly educated and articulate, won the debate, converting several of them to Christianity in the process. Because she did not lose the debate, Maxentius condemned Saint Catherine to death on a spiked breaking wheel, a form of torture in which a large wooden spiked wheel is run over and mutilates the victim’s body. When Saint Catherine touched the wheel, however, it shattered, so she was then beheaded, dying at the young age of 18. Joan of Arc identified her as one of the saints who appeared to and advised her.
Some scholars and historians say that research has failed to identify Saint Catherine with any historical personage, and some say she has been confused with the Greek philosopher, mathematician, and astronomer Hypatia. Regardless of her historic origins, she is an important saint in the Greek Orthodox Church. She is considered the patron saint of young girls, female students, philosophers, and artisans and mechanics who work with wheels. Her primary symbol is the spiked wheel, which has become known as the Catherine wheel.
Saint Catherine’s name or feast day is November 25 because her remains were found on that day. Religious services are celebrated the evening before and the morning of this day in the church. The evening service begins at about 7:00 and the morning service at about 7:30.
The Church of Saint Catherine is hard to miss because it’s just north of the main square in Gavalochori. One of the oldest churches in Gavalochori, it has a special connection to the village because it allegedly belonged to the Gavalas family (for whom Gavalochori is named) during Venetian rule in Crete. In fact, until 1700, all of the priests of this church were from the Gavalas family. Ioannis Papamarkaki, who was the priest of the parish of Saint Catherine and who oversaw one of the renovations of this church, is buried in the churchyard; he died in 1901. This church is usually locked, so you won’t be able to see inside unless a service or ceremony is being held in it.
If you are facing the Fronimos (Φρόνιμος) supermarket that is on the main square, about 80 meters (90 yards) to your right, you’ll see the Church of Saint Catherine, a white church with a blue door surrounded by a blue metal fence.
Although the Church of Saint Catherine is closely linked to the village, little is known about it. It dates back to at least 1200 AD because it was reconstructed in 1203 AD when the Venetians ruled Crete.
The next information available about the church is that repairs were made to it in 1835 and again in 1883, when a narthex with a tiled roof was constructed on the west side, and the walls surrounding the church and the churchyard were also repaired.
In 1929, the dome and the south part of the church collapsed during a wedding ceremony, prompting a more major reconstruction of the church in 1932. This time, funding came from a group of women who identified as Old Calendarists or Old Feasters, Eastern Orthodox Christians who separated from mainstream Eastern Orthodox churches when those churches adopted the Gregorian calendar (the Old Calendarists remained committed to the Julian calendar). The Gregorian calendar was introduced in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a replacement for the Julian calendar because the Julian calendar did not correctly reflect the actual time it takes the Earth to circle once around the sun. Consequently, the date of the spring equinox drifted substantially so that the spring equinox was occurring well before its March 21 date. Because the date of Easter is a function of the date of the spring equinox, this mattered. Although Greece now uses the Gregorian calendar for civil matters, it still bases Easter on the Julian calendar. Greek Easter occurs on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the spring solstice.
Additional renovations funded by villagers were completed in 1934, when a new gate was installed, a new wall was built around the church, and the churchyard was repaired. The cistern of the church was made deeper in 1952.
Saint Catherine (Agia Aikaterini, Αγία Αικατερίνη), to whom this church is dedicated, was allegedly from a noble family who lived in the 4th century AD in the Egyptian city of Alexandria; for this reason, she is often called Saint Catherine of Alexandria. She converted to Christianity at the age of 14, shortly before the Roman emperor Maxentius began persecuting Christians. She met with him and rebuked him for his cruelty toward Christians, and in response, he summoned 50 of the best pagan philosophers and orators to debate her, hoping they would refute her Christian beliefs. Saint Catherine, who was highly educated and articulate, won the debate, converting several of them to Christianity in the process. Because she did not lose the debate, Maxentius condemned Saint Catherine to death on a spiked breaking wheel, a form of torture in which a large wooden spiked wheel is run over and mutilates the victim’s body. When Saint Catherine touched the wheel, however, it shattered, so she was then beheaded, dying at the young age of 18. Joan of Arc identified her as one of the saints who appeared to and advised her.
Some scholars and historians say that research has failed to identify Saint Catherine with any historical personage, and some say she has been confused with the Greek philosopher, mathematician, and astronomer Hypatia. Regardless of her historic origins, she is an important saint in the Greek Orthodox Church. She is considered the patron saint of young girls, female students, philosophers, and artisans and mechanics who work with wheels. Her primary symbol is the spiked wheel, which has become known as the Catherine wheel.
Saint Catherine’s name or feast day is November 25 because her remains were found on that day. Religious services are celebrated the evening before and the morning of this day in the church. The evening service begins at about 7:00 and the morning service at about 7:30.
