Dome Fresco Underway in Santa Rosa, CA

It is a rare treat to see the work of Fr. Patrick Doolan in progress. A renowned iconographer trained by Leonid Ouspensky, Fr. Patrick is a master of true fresco. For a number of years, he and his assistant, Fr. Moses, have worked to fresco St. Seraphim of Sarov Orthodox Church in Santa Rosa, CA…

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Bell Ringing in Scripture and Liturgy, from BLAGOVEST BELLS

Dear Readers, We have had a request for articles on liturgical bell ringing, so I am pleased to offer this excellent piece prepared by Mark Galperin and John Burnett of BLAGOVEST BELLS: Dear Brothers and Sisters: Church bell ringing is an intrinsic and permanent part of the Orthodox liturgical and musical tradition. It is deeply rooted…

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Recent Design Work for Orthodox New Mexico

It has been my great joy this summer to devote some of my attention to Orthodox Christianity in New Mexico. Northern New Mexico has a strikingly different history and cultural context than the rest of the United States. It began as a colony of New Spain, an Imperial establishment at the absolute edge of the…

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The Dog-Headed Icon of St-Christopher (pt.2): Encountering Saint-Christopher

This is post 2 of 2 in the series “The Dog Headed Icon of St-Christopher” Jonathan Pageau traces the pattern of meaning in Dog-headed representations of St-Christopher and how they relate to our experience of the world. Understanding The Dog-Headed Icon of St-Christopher The Dog-Headed Icon of St-Christopher (pt.2): Encountering Saint-Christopher In my last article…

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Notes from the psalterion, updated and annotated — part V, in which bricks and mortar concerns are considered

This is post 5 of 6 in the series “Notes from The Psalterion” Richard Barrett gives us practical advice for the discipline of liturgical music in a local parish context. Notes from the psalterion, updated and annotated – Part I, First Principles Notes from the psalterion, updated and annotated – Part II, Getting Started Notes…

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A Byzantine Church in Wood for South Carolina

For the past year, I have been working to design a substantial new church building for the OCA parish of St. John of the Ladder in Greenville, South Carolina. The parish has acquired an attractive wooded property and wishes to relocate completely. They will need a temple for 250 people and also a parish hall.…

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A Painted Wooden Chalice Set

Historically in the Orthodox world, it must have been very common for chalice sets to be made of wood. Particularly in Russia, village churches would not have been able to afford vessels of fine metal, and essentially everything in an Old Russian village was made of wood. Little survives of the simple ecclesiastical furnishings and…

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The Patriarch Tikhon Choir – Their Sound Hath Gone Forth

For Immediate Release The Patriarch Tikhon Choir, a unique choral ensemble made up of professional singers from Russia and North America, under the direction of renowned Moscow conductor Vladimir Gorbik, will perform their premiere concert series of Orthodox sacred choral works entitled “Their Sound Hath Gone Forth,” Monday, September 16, 2013, at St. Malachy’s –…

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