The Rev. Fr. Anastasios Kousoulas, Presbyter at the church since June 1997, said the congregation has worked hard at maintaining the 1950s-era church, as well as adding Greek Orthodox icons and traditional touches.

Last Saturday, 16 years in the waiting, members finally raised a Byzantine-style cross atop their spiritual home.

"Traditionally, Orthodox churches have crosses on the top of their domes -- the highest point of the church -- and face east," Kousoulas said. "We are doing the best we can with what we have to work with."

The reference to facing east when praying, Kousoulas noted, comes from a quote from St. Matthew, that as "lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man."

There have been discussions about building a dome where Saints Peter & Paul's bell tower sits, but the cost has been prohibitive. Nothing, however, could have taken that away from last Saturday's special occasion.

"As a priest, to have a cross atop your church, it's a significant thing," Kousoulas said.

Kousoulas and Nick Carras, a founding church member, said a number of things fell into place, allowing the church to move forward with the addition of the cross.

For example, another church member, Dimitrios Frantzis, is a structural engineer, Carras said, and Frantzis knew an architect who was willing to donate his services. Savvas P. Savopoulos, president of American Iron Works, in Hyattsville, donated the cost of constructing the cross, Kousoulas said. ----

The church had budgeted $5,000 for the project at one point -- in the end all the labor was volunteered and nearly all costs provided free of charge.

Steve Kontos, of Kontos Construction, with the help of church members Frantzis, Curtis Keith and Steve Paleos, rented a crane and lifted the 8-foot-tall, several-hundred-pound cross atop the church on a snowy Saturday.

With volunteers preparing Athenian chicken fundraising dinners all weekend at the church, a good number of the 200-family congregation witnessed the raising of the aluminum, gold-baked, Byzantine cross.

"It was cold, maybe 20 degrees, the wind was blowing and by the end, it was snowing," Kontos said. "But we managed to get it done."

Carras said eventually the church plans to add lighting atop the church to illuminate the cross at night.

Kousoulas said, "The cross, as the morning sun hits the gold, will be a beautiful reminder to people commuting to work on Fairview Avenue that we are a Christian church.

"The cross is a symbol of Christ and a reminder of God's love," Kousoulas continued. "Orthodox Church members wear crosses on ourselves, and they are all over our homes as well. Now, we have one on our church as we should."