Kizhi

In the far north-western corner of Russia is the Republic of Karelia. 

In Karelia is a lake, called Lake Onego. 

In the middle of that lake is an island called Kizhi.

On Kizhi is a "pogost",  a settlement or churchyard.

And in that pogost, are two wooden churches and a bell tower.

The church on the left has 22 domes while the one on the right has nine. The smaller church is known as the Church of the Intercession. It is heated and is therefore used as a winter church (October to Easter), whereas the larger church - the Church of the Transfiguration - is not heated and is only used during the summer months. Both churches date back to the 18th C and are built entirely of wood - no nails! Along with the belfry, these structures were built of pine (the main structure), spruce (roof) with aspen covering the domes. This pogost is an UNESCO World Heritage Site with the island and its open air museum of 87 other buildings (including more wooden churches, barns, mills, houses and saunas) brought to the island is a Russian Cultural Heritage Site.

So, apart from the Moscow Metros from last months post, this is one place I would love to see. (yes, I have thing for Russia!)

Sunday Stamps II

Inspired Sunday

grave post #6

 This is St Luke's Anglican Church, the first Anglican Church in Halton County. 
St. Luke's is the oldest church in Burlington. The land on which St. Luke's is built was given to Joseph Brant, the famous Native leader, for his services to British-Canadian forces during the American Revolution. Brant, who had been an Anglican since the age of twenty, gave the land to his daughter, Elizabeth, who in turn donated it for the construction of a church, the first of its kind in the area.

Some of the older headstones in the graveyard are in pretty rough shape, but with some, attempts have been made to keep them upright

there are even a few that have birth dates from the 1700s - a rarity in these parts and exciting to find!

an interesting observation is the lack of a surname on Elizabeth's and Sarah's markers - they are listed as being the "wife of"

it also looks as if the stones for both couples were done by different carvers. note the inconsistency of the upper and lower case in Elizabeth's marker and the different styles of dates for the Chisholms' and the variety of fonts on Sarah's marker

for other grave observations, head over to Taphophile Tragics

diverted

Going out for coffee can turn into quite an adventure. Two weekends ago there was that traffic snarl when the skyway bridge was closed (which turned out to have a tragic story of a woman killed when she jumped out of a moving car).

Last weekend it was a parade along the streets in front of the cafe. After navigating the police car blocked off streets by the cafe, I parked and followed it for a bit, trying to guess what it was in aid of. It looked like some kind of saints parade that ended at the St Mary's Catholic Church.







The incense was a bit overpowering.

















It may have been the heat, or the heavy clothes the participants were wearing, but none of them looked particularly happy to be walking. At one point I saw a queen flanked by two princesses (couldn't quite read the rest of the banner), the queen was too busy texting to wave to the bystanders.

The church was nicely decorated with strings of lights and I meant to go back to get better shots of it when the parade ended and I had finished my coffee, but I forgot.

There was a lot of finery and each group of women had on the same outfits (I guess the men did, too, but it was harder to differentiate) but the shiny, bright evening wear belied a certain insouciance. Maybe it was the heat. Maybe they had been marching for hours already and were just tired. But I found my initial excitement at seeing the little girls wearing garlands and angels wings, and the priests dressed in their robes with mitres and the marching band just vanished into a bit of ennui. (I suppose some Portuguese might have been more appropriate than French, but I don't know any.)

I can't wait to see what diversion this weekend will provide.

Sunday Stills - B&W

This week's theme for Sunday Stills is black and white or sepia. I chose black and white. I've been visiting churches as part of the Doors Open and was quite taken aback at seeing a grand piano prominently placed centre stage... How unusual, I thought.

Hope United Church

But then I visited the Melville United Church... 

it not only had a black grand piano, but also an organ centre stage. Maybe this is a United thing?

Church pews are not usually the most comfortable, but 

the curved pews of the Melville Church 

have a certain attractiveness  

and then, because I love this lamp from the Hope United, a comparison of sepia to b&w

see more of what the other participants chose by going here

SundayStills - religion

The vines have been around this bell tower a very long time, by the looks of them. Actually, most of the chapel is covered in them. (click on photos to embiggen)

The John Bell Memorial Chapel at Appleby College.

It took 7 years to build this Anglican chapel and was finally dedicated in 1929

There are so many beautiful temples, churches and mosques in every style imaginable - from simple, to elegant, to ornate, to ostentacious.

I come from a tradition of the plain church which has made it difficult for me to relate to the grand, excessively ornate style of cathedrals or large churches as a place of worship. The history and architecture may be fascinating and jaw-dropping, but as a place of commune or a spiritual base, for me, some intimacy is lacking within.

Or maybe I just need fewer distractions. Our church had coloured glass panes, which pleased me no end as a child. Until I experienced stained glass gothic windows. Now, there was a distraction.

An example of a modern stained glass window on right

with a more traditional one below it

In 2004, the chapel commissioned the first ever
Inuit designed stained glass window by Kenojuak Ashevak.

for more photo takes on this theme see SundayStills

the bells, the bells ring out

When I was young, there was a church in our neighbourhood that rang the bells (automated) every Sunday. At some point a few years ago, on a visit home, something reminded us of this church and my mother told me that they didn't have the bells anymore as the neighbours complained. Huh?? Complaining? About church bells once a week for about 2 minutes? Probably the same people who complain that 'those annoying birds are singing again and I haven't had my cup of coffee yet. I want them stopped'.

My first day with EM we went into town and saw the church where her son would be married. It was a very old church with a lychgate and ancient, toppling gravestones surrounding three sides in the yard. While we were looking inside, suddenly the bells started ringing - a practice. I had no idea that this was to be a part of the service and was tremendously excited when I realized there were live bellringers up in the tower pulling the cords. That such a tradition still lives on (a 400 year old English one, I've learned) intrigues me no end. Indeed, the bellringers do tours, talks and lessons. There are tutorials and opportunities to learn bell ringing and competitions and visits to other church towers to ring their bells.

Bellringing looks so very complicated, but apparently you do not need strength, as I at first thought, instead you learn control. And I think if I were to be living in England, this would be an undertaking I might enjoy.

standing in awe

Not all the art in Bath involved pigs. I almost didn't visit the Abbey as I'd been there before and it was very crowded on Sunday with tourists and worshippers. By Tuesday however, it was considerably less crowded so I ventured inside to once more admire the stained glass windows and be dazzled by the ceiling of an incredible structure.


And to take in an exhibition of diptycts by an artist named Sue Symons.


Each of the 35 panels includes a passage from the Gospels of St Matthew depicting Jesus' life written out in illuminated calligraphy (inspiration from The Book of Kells) and is accompanied by a panel of fabric and thread needlework depicting the same passage from a personal abstract perspective. In researching this artist I found out that she was inspired to create this as a retirement project while living on Vancouver Island some 12 years ago and took calligraphy lessons specifically for this project. And, the most amazing thing, she is left handed. Being also left handed, I know how difficult calligraphy can be and to see her intricate works of art left me in almost as much awe as seeing the intricate stonework of the mediaeval building.

Jesus Enters Jerusalem Diptyct

If intrigued, have a look at the whole series here