Faith · Books · Observations
The Iliad begins, quite literally, with a hecatomb, literally "a hundred oxen", offered to the gods before battles and after victories. It is a recurring motif throughout the whole epic. But the truly richest material on the sacrifice of cattle is to be found in the Old Testament.
Architecture · Faith · Art · Observations · Heritage
The monastery, naturally, is a UNESCO monument. Inside and out it is covered entirely, with the exception of the western wall, in paintings of scenes from the Old and New Testaments, the intercession of all the saints and historical subjects. The painting of Suceviţa is not Renaissance art but a
Architecture · Faith · Observations · Heritage · Paris
At last, some good news. Pity it is not ours. Still, the Parisian church of Saint-Eustache is to be restored. For a long time now one of the city's principal churches has been in less than perfect condition, and the announcement of repair and restoration work is
Archive · Faith · Art
A miniature of the Holy Family, dated 1450, shows Saint Joseph preparing a meal for the Virgin and Christ. An angel hallows the scene with the presence of the heavenly world. According to tradition, while living in Egypt with the Virgin Mary and Christ, Joseph earned their keep by working
Faith · Art · Museums
Saint John, led by an angel, sees fire descend from heaven and consume the world
Faith · People
Saint Seraphim of Sarov. No external circumstances, neither war, nor persecution, nor closed churches, can take from the believer what matters most. Easter was celebrated in the camps and in the catacombs, and the closure of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre by the Pharisees will not stand in the
Faith · The East · Society
When you see the desolation of the holy place, know that what the Lord warned of is drawing near. Do not say: this is impossible. It is precisely the impossible that comes to pass in the last times Christ warned his disciples of the coming end of the world shortly
Faith · The East · Heritage · Society
For the first time in the history of Christianity, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is closed indefinitely. The closure was ordered by the Israeli authorities. Holy Week and Easter services in the Church are forbidden, and Sunday masses and divine services have been cancelled. In the coming weeks the
Archive · Faith · Art · Books
And it came to pass after that, in the second year, that Pharaoh dreamed a dream: he seemed to stand upon the bank of the river, by the river. And behold, as it were out of the river came up seven kine, fair to look upon and fat in flesh,
Archive · Faith · Observations
While reading a census of the mid-seventeenth century, I came across an interesting Old Russian name: Korman. You will not find it in the calendar of saints, only in dictionaries; the saintly counterpart of Korman was Korniil or Kornilii
NB! · Architecture · Faith · Art
Wrestlers. Fragment of the decoration of the church at Anzy-le-Duc, department of Saône-et-Loire, and fragment of the decoration of the Cathedral of Saint Demetrius in Vladimir
Faith · Art · Books
John 14:28 These are among the most consoling words in the whole of the New Testament. Christ speaks them to his disciples before the Passion: I go away, and I shall return. The roundel from a Bolognese evangeliary of the late thirteenth or early fourteenth century shows Christ Pantocrator,