Mikhail Piotrovsky
The decision on the question of Saint Isaac’s Cathedral Russian Orthodox Church shouldn’t have taken so fast, said in an interview with the newspaper “Izvestia” Director of the State Hermitage, President of the Union of museums of Russia Mikhail Piotrovsky.
He stressed that, despite the fact that technically the law is on the side of the Church, to hurry up with the transfer of the Cathedral impossible. “We need to sit down together and calmly address the situation, to understand. If necessary for the Church to St. Isaac’s Cathedral can all visit for free, then it can be solved a different way,” said Piotrovsky.
According to him, Isaac — not just a Church, its purpose goes beyond the religious framework. “It is on a par with Peter and Paul Cathedral, the tomb of our emperors, and the Kazan Cathedral, a monument to the war of 1812. Yes, it’s temples, but it is of particular value as a historic and cultural monuments, because they were not in control of the Synod,” explained the Director of the Hermitage.
Until recently, St. Isaac’s Cathedral was a perfect example of compromise in the relationship of religion and the Museum, he said.
According to Piotrovsky, he hoped to translate the situation into the channel of negotiations and conversations. “It is impossible today to break the society and for this reason” — he stressed.
The authorities of St. Petersburg January 10, agreed to transfer to St. Isaac’s Cathedral to the gratuitous use of the Russian Orthodox Church for 49 years. Governor Georgy Poltavchenko has promised that the Museum function of the building will remain. For the first time the diocese has requested the transfer of Isaac in 2015, but then she was denied.