St. Raphael of Brooklyn Place Street Co-naming Ceremony
June 6, 2021 marked an historic day in the life of St. Nicholas Cathedral's history. Clergy and elected officials gathered on the corner of State and Bond for the unveiling of the new street sign in honor of our founding priest and first bishop, St. Raphel of Brooklyn. Our block of State street is now "St. Raphael of Brooklyn Place". This was supposed to take place in 2020 when we celebrated our 125th anniversary of St. Raphael's arrival and the 100th anniversary of our State Street location but was delayed because of the pandemic. Thanks to all who helped make today a reality. In addition to His Eminence Metropolitan Joseph's presence today, we had representation from the Russian Orthodox Church, the Greek Orthodox Church, the Orthodox Church in America and several Antiochian Orthodox clergy. Local politicians included United States Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis, State Senator Andrew Gounardes, City Councilman Stephen Levin, Assemblywomen Jo Anne Simon, Mr. John Abi-Habib, the Honorary Counsel General of Lebanon in New Jersey and special guest, the new Ambassador of Syria to the United Nations, His Excellency, Bassam Sabbagh.