Рожество Христово

It is now December 25th! Christ is born!


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The Whole Story

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Source: The website of the Church of the Holy Ascension, Oregon, USA. Light editing. The Orthodox Church Until The Middle of the 17th Century: The baptism of Russia in 988 by the Equal-to-the-Apostle saint Price Vladimir was the single most important event in our nation’s history. The quest for the True Faith of Christ had already been present in the soul of the Russian people. Princess Olga, the grandmother of Vladimir, had already received the Holy Baptism and, according to the chronicles, “had lead many to the Faith”. Ever since the times of Saint Vladimir, the Russian Orthodox Church had grown and prospered during more than 600 years, while remaining united and in peace.The efforts of the enemies of the Church, who on numerous occasions attempted to subjugate the Russian Church or to break it up, did never succeed: the harrowing yoke of the Tatar invaders which lasted over 200 years never succeeded in destroying or even corrupting Russian Orthodoxy. On many occasions Roman P...
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A Collection of Christ Pantocrator Icons

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I've recently been finding many icons of Christ Pantocrator, as well as other depictions, so I thought I'd share my favorites. This icon is more realistic. It's possible that it was a commission by an Old Believer merchant in the 19th century, which tended to be slightly more realistic. The coloring here is beautiful. Christ is slightly red-tinted here, which might be due to the camera. The gilding is astonishing here, and the fabric details of Christ's robe are ornate and precise. This icon probably cost quite a lot in its time. This is the Savior of Smolensk icon. The amount of light communicated here is unique, but the origin of this icon is curious. We can see that Christ uses the two-fingered sign of the cross, but St. Varlaam on the right is using a Greek style prayer rope, not a lestovka. Once again, this is probably a commission for an Old Believer in a Nikonian workshop. The academic influence is clear; observe the clouds and the intricate sha...
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An Old Believer Copper Cast Icon

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Today, we will look at an icon style and an icon characteristic of pre-Nikonian Russia and the Old Believers. The copper cast icon. These icons were forbidden by the Nikonian Church, but not for their composition, but rather their medium - the Nikonians believed wood carvings and copper casting came from paganism in pre-Christian Russia. Above: Orthodox Christians show Nikonians the ancient traditions This is, of course, untrue. Carvings and castings are Orthodox, and originate in Ancient Judaism. In Kings, it is stated about the Temple: And he carved thereon cherubims and palm trees and open flowers: and covered them with gold fitted upon the carved work. Additionally, the holy Stoglav Council states that during the Mystery of Baptism, a cast crucifix should be immersed in the baptismal font. So let's look at this icon itself. Those depicted In the center is the Theotokos, holding Christ. He is blessing the viewer with a two-fingered sign of the cross. ...
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