Elevation of the Holy Cross Church

Elevation of the Holy Cross Church is the main church of the complex. The construction of the church began in 2000 under the initiative of Fr. Archil Mindiashvili with active participation of the parish of St. Peter and Paul Church.

Divine services have actively been celebrated in the church since 2003 and the consecration took place in 2006 by Metropolitan Theodore (Chuadze) of Akhaltsikhe and Tao-Klarjeti. Since 2003 the head priest of the church has been Archpriest Theodore Gignadze.

Architecturally, the Elevation of the Cross Church follows a cross-domed plan. within, every detail related to the service, similar to the interior of other churches of the complex,  is meticulously attended to, ensuring that services are conducted with utmost order and without hindrance. Special care is taken in the beautification of the altar. The color of the garments varies in accordance with the church calendar: the altar table cover is purple on ordinary days, white on holidays, and violet during Lent. The dominant color of the interior itself is purple. Chalice, Discos, and the Gospel book have been specifically crafted for the Elevation of the Holy Cross Church as well as for all other churches in the complex.

All the icons in the church were specially written by icon painter Lasha Darbuashvili, ensuring uniformity in colors and styles. Special kiots with inscribed names have been purposefully designed for the icons.

Christ Pantocrator

It is worth noting that in the main church of the complex, worshippers have the opportunity to commemorate one of the prominent examples of Christian cultural heritage, the unique mosaic of the Christ Pantocrator. After the original mosaic of Christ Pantocrator was covered in the Hagia Sophia church, the idea of creating its copy in the Elevation of the Holy Cross Church complex was conceived by the parish.

The uniqueness of the work is that the replica is an exact copy of the original, meticulously recreated, taking into account the damaged parts. The Pantocrator was unveiled to the parish on March 21, 2021, on the Feast of Orthodoxy.