Katholikon

A Katholikon or Catholicon (Greek:Καθολικόν) or Sobor (Slavonic: съборъ) refers to one of three things in the Eastern Orthodox Church:

The name derives from the fact that it is (usually) the largest church where all gather together to celebrate the major feast days of the liturgical year. In Russia, it is common for a katholikon to have a smaller church in the basement which can be more easily heated in the winter. A katholikon may have special architectural features in it, such as a kathedra (episcopal throne), or both an esonarthex (inner-narthex) and exonarthex (outer narthex), used for special services such as the Paschal vigil or a lity.