Iconoclasm has not been an issue for many centuries. Icons are no longer destroyed like they used to be in the 8^th and early 9^th centuries. However, we could say that, in a sense, there is a permanent struggle against God’s image in every heart going on all the time. You see, human beings were created in God’s image, and the sin works inside our hearts to besmirch or destroy this image.

If you look at the history of art, the roots of our civilization lie in the antiquity. This art was human-centered, that is, man was in the center of all fine arts. The ancients instinctively, intuitively felt that there was a wonderful secret in every person, and tried to find out what it was. If you look at Greek or Egyptian art, it always focuses on images of people. Although these people had been created in the image of God, they still had sin dwelling in their hearts, which is why the art of icon painting could not appear at that time.

Since the time when Christ, the God-man, came to this world, we can see on an icon not just a human being, but a deified human being. It is like a bridge: on the one side, there is God who became human, and on the other side, there is a human who becomes God.

Thus, we encounter the real person, the true beauty of Christ, on an icon. The Christian civilization centers not just on the man but on the God-man.

Unfortunately, the contemporary world brings a sinful, damaged, and distorted human being back to the spotlight again. In this sense, the struggle against the icon is going on even today. We have to understand that every person, every Christian is also an icon painter in a certain sense. One needn’t be a professional icon painter but if you live with God, an icon is being painted in your soul. Perhaps, you are not the only person who should be able to see this icon: other people also need to be able to see it — to see something special in our words and actions, to see Christ through everything we do or say. Sadly, we often fail to be an example, an image of Christ.

One day, I was invited to give a lecture about the icon for non-religious people. It was in the Museum of Fine Arts. The guide urged me, «Please, Father, tell people more about miracles, they would love to hear about miracles». I thought to myself, «Of course, we all know that miracles happen after people pray in front of some icons. The Lord makes miracles, seeing their faith and hearing their prayers. However, there is one more miracle –– the creation of the icon. Who paints an icon? Just a person, who is weak and has his own issues and tackles his own difficulties. Even so, the Lord works this amazing wonder through this person. And this is a real miracle! It is quiet — not accompanied by thunder or lightning — but it truly is a miracle — this beauty — and it is near, it is in our daily lives. This miracle happens not because that person is very talented but thanks to the prayers of the entire Church».

I heard a priest say that the quality of an icon depends on how people pray. If we come to Tretyakov Gallery and look at the 14^th-15^th century icons, we will see how people could pray at those times, how spiritually advanced they were. The power of their prayer found its reflection in the art of icon painting. But if we look at contemporary icons, we will regrettably have to admit that our prayers are weaker than they used to be in the past. We must remember that, in fact, it is the prayer that the kind of images that modern icon painters create depends on. I say so because I have something to do with it in some way.

Father Sergious, Head of the Icon Painting Studio of St. Elisabeth Convent

Brace yourself for a battle

There is a chapter in the Gospel where the Lord says that hard times will come and there will be a lot of suffering for the entire Universe. However, just below we read his words about the resurrection of the dead coupled with promises that he that endures to the end shall feel the joy of the eternal life with God. Temporary afflictions frighten us — but they foreshadow eternal delight, too. The tribulation and anguish that we consciously and voluntarily endure here give us a key to understanding God's Providence about us. If we suffer because of our sins, we only get what we deserve. But if we suffer for the sake of Christ and humble ourselves down, we will be blessed.

We are constantly talking about humility, about something we don't have but we would like to have — something that we ask from God when we come to him. This is something that can help us to navigate through all the sorrows, all the snares, all the cobwebs of sin that has wrapped the world, and open the door into the Kingdom of Heaven for us. This is something that the Lord wants to teach us: this renewal of a person, his return to his original image and likeness.

The Lord gives us strength; He sacrifices himself for us; He gives us a chance to start a new life every day. We wake up every day hoping to «remain unscathed by sin». Certainly, we do not always succeed but we do our best, and we combat the sin at least for some time — in the beginning of the day. Even if sin defeats us, if it crucifies us, we will eventually do away with it, if we keep looking up at God, if we trust him and remain close to him.

God's mercy outweighs all our sins but this does not mean that we may go on sinning as long as we want to. It means that we should not be depressed when sins prevail over us, when they throw us down into the mud. We must rise up, purify ourselves, and keep going where God sends us and doing what He tells us to do. This is, perhaps, what St Tikhon of Zadonsk called 'a Christian's way' — going from a downfall to a downfall, and rising up again every time. We should not lie down for a long time; we should not be depressed; we should struggle with our sins to the best of our abilities.

St Tikhon of Zadonsk

How we finish this race depends on God, of course, but it also depends on our will. If the Lord sees that we attempt to turn to him — not even taking a step towards him, but simply looking at him and asking for his help with hope — He will accept our last breath. On his deathbed, St John Chrysostom exclaimed, «Glory be to God for everything!» Let us thank the Lord for his gifts.

Father Valery

Priest Sergius: Because we are still in the beginning of our ascetic practice, and our prayer is still weak and imperfect, this «spiritual sieve» has big holes. It does protect us from some things, but the majority of them manage to get through, wounding our souls and hearts with the devil's arrows. Praise the Lord that we have the Sacrament of Repentance, which cleanses us. The Lord removes all dirt and stains. You feel relieved, pacified, and excited.

This is how, by teaching ourselves to pray, by saying prayers and making prostrations, by this practice of abstinence, we enter the Holy Forty Days of Lent. May God help us to go on with this gradual and proper attitude, so that we could start this period in the right way? They say that if you start something properly, if the beginning is good, then, as a rule, you will manage to accomplish everything successfully with God's help. On the contrary, if the beginning is poor, it sets the tune for the entire period. That is why it is so important to enter into this period with contrition, with a desire to improve our lives, a desire of chastity, holiness, a desire to be with Christ and hate sin and all its manifestations — everything related to it. We must push all this aside, like a deadly poison. We will not take poison because we know that it is deadly.

Similarly, the sin is a spiritual poison that does not make us happy. The world deceives us, making us believe that it somehow contains pleasure and satisfaction, or a meaning of life. Having tried this worldly pleasure and entertainment, very soon you understand that this is a fake. The packaging is nice but there is bitter poison inside. That is why a person clings to God and the Church even more. God nurtures our souls with his grace — the source of all goodness for us; this is our life that begins here but develops into the eternal life. One has the opportunity to experience heaven even here; in a certain sense, a person can taste the bliss of living in the Heavenly Kingdom before it is revealed to every soul that followed Christ and was loyal to the Church during this life.

Sermon after the All-Night Vigil on March 5, 2016

Our road to God goes through our neighbor, i.e., a human being. Holy Apostle John the Theologian tells us not to fool ourselves, thinking that we are already close enough to God. If you reject a person whom you meet in the course of your life, that is, if you deplore him or turn him down in a different way, you have not yet come close enough to God because you have not taken on his image and semblance. We can learn from this that we should learn to accept every person we meet; we should ask God and do our best to treat everyone we meet equally.

Naturally, our sins prevent us from doing so. They distort our behavior and make it egoistic; it turns us into people who live according to the Old Testament, so to say — an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, you do good to me — and I do good in return, you wrong me, and I will in turn do harm to you. We must abandon all this old stuff. The Lord and His Holy Church are of great help in this respect.

Sermon after the Liturgy on March 6, 2016

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Priest Valery: The enemy finds in our souls the strings he may pull, the weaknesses he may use to direct our actions, thoughts, and words. We lose our connection to God when we immerse into our desires, weaknesses, and deliberations. If we weigh the time when we abide in God and when we are left without him, the result will be to our own disfavor. That is, we do not pay to him even half of the attention that He deserves — for He sacrifices everything for us. It is so painful to see this happen, and it is so great that there are moments when we come to God, when we see ourselves before him, and have the opportunity to exclaim like the prodigal son, «I do not deserve to be called your son, accept me as a slave». Everything changes. The Lord rewards us again with the ring, the power, and the white robe. He restores our filial rights.

These moments must be the most precious ones. Even though they do not occupy the majority of our time, they are undoubtedly the way and — hopefully — the gift that the Lord gives us to let us into his family, promising that He will never lose us. «Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out» (John 6:37), He says.

May this pain of leaving God lead us to confession more often, so that we could remember the One who loves us and respond to his love, learn to suffer for its sake, that is, patiently bear some inconveniences, albeit minor ones rather than a cross — they are something we can bear. It should be more than mere words, more than mere outward actions: it must be our participation in his life, in his death, and his resurrection.

The Lent is the time for repentance and reconsideration. I am convinced that, although we might not notice it, something happens inside our souls, the Lord changes us every time. Even though we do not change from the outside, even though our actions do not show the signs of change neither in our everyday lives, nor during feasts, I still think that the Lord invisibly changes something inside us, and it will help us at a certain point — even if it is our last moment — to thank him for everything.

Sermon before the Confession in the Boarding Home for Children with Special Needs on March 4, 2016

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We are in for a period when we have the chance to do good. The Lord gives us the opportunity to change our lives again and again. As long as we seize it and trust him, as long as we open our hearts to the best of our abilities, He fills them with his presence. It makes our burden less heavy; following the commandments is no longer hard work: we are happy to accomplish them, although not without pain...

Easter will come after this period of struggle and restraint, no matter how long it is. If we remember this, we won't be depressed, we won't be annoyed and desperate. Easter will come no matter what. Likewise, we will encounter God no matter what. We simply have to ask him to be able to meet him not with fear of punishment but will the joy of the triumph of the goodness over evil.

Sermon after the Liturgy on March 6, 2016

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Priest George: The same people who had been meeting Christ, singing praises to God as He entered Jerusalem, soon enough turned their backs on Christ and rejected him, because the news of love, the appeal that the Lord had brought to this world, was hard for them to understand, were frightening for them. He demanded such love and such alacrity that spills over the limits of death.

For instance, Hieromartyr Polycarp of Smyrna had to choose between being alive — preserving his life, continuing his existence in this world by rejecting Christ — and remaining faithful to him till the end, until his death. As Christians, we cannot help being inspired by his example, because both he and we, the disciples of Christ, cannot think of a life without God, without Christ who gives us salvation. It is in Jesus that we receive life — the real Life with the capital L.

Being in communion with him through the Sacrament of Eucharist, partaking of him, we receive a promise, a foundation of the eternal life. Our entire life here on earth must also be the Liturgy in the literal meaning of this word — the «common cause». The cause of salvation is common for the entire Church and is a calling of every Christian; it is the field of work for every one of us. Our struggle against the sin will be a way to participate in the sacrifice of Christ on the cross because He will help us to push this pernicious condition out of our hearts with his grace and his presence.

We have to add our efforts mentioned in the today's Epistle, where the Apostle encourages us to avoid doing evil (i.e. the damnation, the illness of our soul that, as St Macarius the Great writes about it, had alienated our ancestors from God one day), to our desire and our openness to him. We should take part in doing things that foster not only our spiritual advancement and salvation, but also the salvation of everyone around us, the salvation of the entire Church. This is because all are invited to the Kingdom of Heaven.

Sermon after a Liturgy on March 7, 2016

The Great Lent is a season of spiritual spring, spiritual recollections, renewal of our spiritual life, and the time for us to defeat the sins that dwell inside us. This is the most favorable time of repentance. It is by spiritual synergy, by joining efforts with each other and God, that we will be able to reach the Heavenly Kingdom that awaits us, and praise Christ who rose from the dead and granted us the eternal life, while we are still here, according to the traditions established by the Church.

Sermon after a Liturgy on March 9, 2016

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Archpriest Sergius: The ascetic practice of the Lent does not just boil down to absence of food but is first of all marked by a change in worship. The Lent implies changing not just our bodily diet but our spiritual diet, too: I mean the food for the soul that we consume here in the church during worship.

The Prayer of St Ephraim the Syrian is, of course, a must for us: it is like a healing balm for our souls. If we cannot make it to church services on weekdays, we recite this prayer at home in front of the icons, with piety and prostrations, asking the Lord to take our passions away and to grant to us the spirit of chastity, humility, patience, and love.

We are inspired by the saints whom we continue to commemorate during the services according to the Lenten Triodion. God gave all saints the courage to fight and not to be afraid because He was with them. We need not be afraid of beginning the Lent because we are with God, too. If a person is with God, neither turmoil, nor absence of something delicious will feel detrimental to him. The Lenten worship and all saints will help us during this Great Lent: the saints will pray for the Lord to strengthen us and allow us to spend this time to the advantage of the salvation of our souls.

Sermon after the All-Night Vigil on March 9, 2016

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Archpriest Andrew: Sometimes we take a wrong route and find ourselves in an impasse, not knowing how to go on living, what to do, what the meaning and the value of our life is. This is because we lose our connection with God, our loyalty to him, and give in to depression, misunderstanding, self-pity. We do not only exist in this gloomy condition ourselves: we may even infect people around us. This is a huge responsibility: With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the forward thou wilt shew thyself forward (Ps. 18: 26). With the depressed, you will possibly die — because for them, everything is bad, they keep grudging, complaining, and being resentful all the time — not being happy, not willing to be happy because they are mad at everyone and everything, because their life did not live up to their expectations, their lives are so difficult when someone might be having an easier fate, someone might achieve all things with ease and possess a greater wealth… A depressed person suffers at seeing that, you know. Why do you suffer and what for? This kind of self-pity leads an individual to spiritual paralysis. Obviously, we need to fight it.

Love… Our encounter with love depends on our faith, our trust in God, our internal efforts, our willingness to step over our own I's, our own selves that stink, to be able to take a step forward and say, I'm rising up, I have been resurrected, risen from the dead by the Lord like Saint Lazarus. He led me out of my grave and said, «Lazarus, get out of thy grave!» Therefore, it is not a Christian position to stink and keep lying in that tomb and hiding from all the problems we have to solve and be responsible for.

The sin that dwells inside us makes us inert; it freezes us up, it impedes our reasoning, making us sheer fools. Certainly, we have to stand our turf and think for ourselves about our own souls and the souls of the people we bear responsibility for, and in general, about all people whom the Lord will send to meet us during our lifetime. How important it is to support someone, to understand and accept him! One needs to have peace inside one's soul; otherwise, this will not be possible. This is why I would like to wish you all peace.

The season is coming when sun starts to shine brighter and brighter every day. During the winter, it used to be dusk now but today, the sun is still shining — the day becomes longer. Of course, spiritual spring is also coming to bring us the most important event in every Christian's life — the Easter. Let us struggle for the sake of this joy, this light, this life that we have received from God and that we have to return to him, i.e., to enter this new life that Christ has brought to us in the today's world.

As the Great Lent goes by, there is little time left until the bright day of Holy Easter. It is about time we started getting ready for the greatest feast of the year: even the Lent itself is meant to help us with spiritual preparation for it. People usually exchange gifts on the most memorable and joyful days. The day of the Holy Easter isn’t an exception. Today, just a couple of weeks before this glorious feast, here are 5 Easter gift ideas that are certain to make your special ones happy and some interesting facts along the way:

1. An icon of the Resurrection of Christ.

It wasn't until the 19^th century that people started referring to this Byzantine icon of the Resurrection of Christ as "The Descent into Hell." The composition of this icon is based on the Apostolic Creed and depicts the Resurrection of Christ and the salvation of humankind. Jesus Christ is shown standing above the demolished gates of hell (sometimes icon painters portray the defeated devil under His feet, too). We see the keys, locks, and hinges of the gates of hell in the abyss. The Lord's mighty hand pulls Adam out of the abyss. He also holds a cross – a symbol of God's triumph over death - in his other hand. More icons here.

2. An album of Orthodox Easter chants

Easter hymns and chants are solemn and melodious. Recordings of monastic choirs will make a perfect gift and keep lifting up your mood for a long time.

Some of the recordings include Holy Pascha. The Monastic Choir of St Elisabeth Convent Chants of the Great Lent and the Holy Pascha. Choir of

SS Peter and Paul Cathedral, Minsk.

3. Easter-Themed Ceramic Products

The bright and colorful drawings on the products made in our ceramic workshop won’t leave children and adults indifferent. This gift will remind you of the bright Feast of Feasts and a warm memory of the person who gave it to you. you can preview all of our easter ceramics here.

4. Easter Eggs.

This standing egg is decorated with an icon of the Resurrection of Christ, the Easter troparion in Church Slavonic, and lavish decorative patterns.

Traditionally, an egg was perceived as a coffin where life originates, or as death and resurrection. According to tradition, when St Mary Magdalene went to the Roman Emperor Tiberius, she was expected to bring him a present, so she handed him an egg, saying, "Christ is Risen!" The emperor did not believe her and replied that it was equally impossible for a white egg to become brown and for Jesus to rise from the dead. Hardly had he finished speaking when the egg changed its color to red. This tradition of giving red eggs as gifts continues even up to the present day. The eggs could be made of chocolate or wood, glass, ceramics, etc. Order one today!

St Mary Magdalene

5. Festive Stained Glass Gift.

Bright and colorful stained glass items will make a wonderful gift. Children's drawings, simple and sincere, inspired many of these items. When you buy something from our Catalog, you contribute to the social and charitable ministry of St Elisabeth Convent and support the good works of the sisters by helping the disabled and the less fortunate. Click here to browse all handmade glass items.

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Ministry Update: Photo Blog of the Church of St.John of Shanghai and San Francisco in Minsk, Belarus

Quick Facts: Events of The Great and Holy Week

"Pascha" or "Easter" or Both? from MYSTAGOGY RESOURCE CENTER

Every Christian is an Icon Painter

Excerpts from Sermons: "Easter is coming no matter what!"

5 Easter Gift Ideas and a Few Interesting Facts

St Mary Magdalene

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Search This Blog

featured Slider

Ministry Update: Photo Blog of the Church of St.John of Shanghai and San Francisco in Minsk, Belarus

Quick Facts: Events of The Great and Holy Week

"Pascha" or "Easter" or Both? from MYSTAGOGY RESOURCE CENTER

Every Christian is an Icon Painter

Excerpts from Sermons: "Easter is coming no matter what!"

5 Easter Gift Ideas and a Few Interesting Facts

St Mary Magdalene

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