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Tag Archives: Holy Trinity Chapel

Eastern-Rite Veneration: “Channels of Divine Grace”

26 Thursday Jan 2017

Posted by Brian in Eastern Byzantine Catholic, Saints

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Tags

Holy Trinity, Holy Trinity Chapel, icons, Pantocrator, veneration

Icons: “Channel of Divine Grace”

our lady of the sign

Our Lady of the Sign. “The Lord will give you a sign. The virgin will be with child and give birth to a son. Is 7:14.  Holy Trinity Chapel.

“What the Gospels explains by means of words, the iconographer shows by means of his works.” Saint Basil the Great

Iconography has been used for centuries as a means of communicating theology with the use of images. Especially in the early days of the church, when many could not read, this was extremely beneficial.

Veneration of icons is a common Byzantine practice, respect being paid not to the painting itself but to the person it represents. Some icons are believed to be the means of obtaining miracles, and people pray in front of them for healing or other assistance.

Icons are considered ‘windows into heaven.’

jesus at HTC

Christ the Teacher icon. O God, we pray that the whole creation will in all things be restored to your Son, the King of the Universe. Holy Trinity Chapel.

An image, says St. Thomas Aquinas, connotes three simultaneous qualities: likeness to prototype, derivation from it, and similarity of species with it. Likeness alone is not enough … The underlying idea of the icon is the manifestation of the hidden.

Metropolitan Seraphim explains the role of the icon in prayer this way:

“If you stand before the Redeemer’s icon or that of the Mother of God, stand as if you were before the Lord Jesus Christ Himself or before the Blessed Virgin Mary. Keep your intelligence without any representation, for there is a great difference between standing before the Lord in His very presence and representing Him to the imagination.

In the latter case, attention is not given to prayer directly, but is held by traditional impressions which only skim the surface of our consciousness.”

eucharist st paul and JesusThe Eucharist icon. Jesus with St. Paul. Holy Trinity Chapel.

st. peter and jesus HTCEucharist icon. Jesus with St. Peter. Holy Trinity Chapel.

#SaintPeter with Jesus; “But who do you say that I am?” Peter said “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Pantocrator HTC

The Pantocrator, Christ blessing his people with New Testament in left hand. Holy Trinity Chapel.

original Old Trinity

The original Holy Trinity icon written by Russian iconographer Andrei Rublev (b.1360), also called The Hospitality of Abraham and Sarah. One of the most recognizable icons in the world.

The three angels portrayed are sharing together at the table. When a circle is superimposed over the icon, Rublev portrays each figure as equal, no one is more important than the other.

rublev Holy Trinity immaculate conception

“The Holy Trinity” mosaic icon.  Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral of Immaculate Conception in Philadelphia PA. Photo credit: Cathedral of Immaculate Conception

The persons of the Holy Trinity: the Holy Spirit is on the right, the Son in the middle, and the Father on the left.

MACRINA BASILS SISTER htc
Macrina the Younger sister of St. Basil. Holy Trinity Chapel.

In the Life of Macrina, by  St. Gregory of Nyssa, Macrina says “Lord, from your sacrifice, true life begins when present life finishes.” – #MacrinatheYounger

The icon, then, is not only an aesthetical entity. It is the result of the faith and prayer of the Church. It is the life of the Church lived in Christ.

A saving truth is not communicated by the word alone but by the fact of awakening vital forces of life, through the presentation of beauty. Because God loved us, He turned to us a visible face, a human face, in Christ. He turned to us the face of the absolute beauty which is not different from the fullness of God and the fullness of being. The icon carries with it the love of this beauty, and the beauty of this love.

– from Byzantine Daily Worship by Archbishop Joseph Raya & Baron José de Vinck, Alleluia Press, Allendale, NJ. Adapted for use by Father J. Michael Venditti. Eparchy of Passaic NJ.

pantocrator 1

Pantocrator, “Ruler of All” Christ blessing his people located on ceiling of the Holy Trinity Chapel in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania.

“Christ,” says St. Paul, “is the icon of the invisible God” (Col. 2:7).

The icon, therefore, is not a picture. The icon is not a painted representation meant to teach. The icon is a grace and a life. It is a life that penetrates and purifies and elevates. From the icon emanates a virtue that inspires the faithful with hope and gives him consolation.

St. John of Damascus calls it a “channel of divine grace”. In another sense, one can say the icon’s relationship to the faithful is similar, though certainly not equal to, that of Holy Scripture. It may be for this reason that, in the vocabulary of the Byzantine Tradition, an icon is not “painted” but “written.”

– Eparchy of Passaic (NJ)

“Old Testament Trinity” Three angels with Abraham and Sarah. Holy Trinity Chapel.

“Old Testament Trinity” icon is based on Genesis 18:1-15. The story is commonly known as the hospitality of Abraham. When Abraham talks to them, they respond as one (“they said”), the one God in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

cappadocian-fathers

 

 

 

 

Cappadocian Fathers: Basil “the man of action”, Gregory of Nazianzus “the orator” and Gregory of Nyssa “the thinker”.

top of dome pantocrator

The Pantocrator icon written on ceiling of the Cathedral of Immaculate Conception.

The Transfiguration of our Lord, celebrated August 6

Transfiguration Icon. Here You were transfigured in glory on Mount Tabor, O Christ; You showed Your disciples Your glory.

Icons are “channel of divine grace,”as  St. John of Damascus calls it, next to the scripture, an almost sacramental character.

 

Basil’s Family at the Basilian Spirituality Center

16 Monday Jun 2014

Posted by Brian in Parish Shrines, Saints

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Tags

Basilian Spirituality Center, Holy Trinity Chapel, Sisters of the Order of St. Basil the Great, St. Basil

outside view of chapel
Basilian Spirituality Center.

Located in Fox Chase Manor, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia, the Basilian Spirituality Center is part of the Eastern Byzantine Ukrainian Catholic Church, under the umbrella of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia.

basil mary macrina mother gregory
The Basilian Family at the Basilian Spirituality Center.

Icons play a significant role in the Eastern Byzantine rite.

The “Basilian Family” icon, located on a wall within the retreat center is especially core to the Sisters of the Order of St. Basil the Great. Central in the Basilian Family is Mary, her arms outstretched and the name of her Son, “IXC”, radiating from her body. In Eastern Byzantine rite this is called The Theotokos, Mary Mother of God. Macrina The Elder is to the right of Mary, to whom St. Basil attributed much of his spiritual formation. She is dressed in green, the symbol of the Holy Spirit, a woman of spiritual gifts and the wisdom of God. To the right of Macrina the Elder is St. Gregory of Nyssa, brother of St. Basil, holding the gospels as a symbol of his preaching abilities and is dressed in the ecclesiastical garb of a Bishop. To the left of The Theotokos is Macrina the Younger, Basil’s sister, in monastic garb as a foundress of the community of Neocaesarea and next to her is St. Basil also dressed as a Bishop carrying the gospel.

song of songs
Song of Songs poem.

Inscribed above the wall of the Basilan Family, is the love poem from Song of Songs v8:6-7
“Set me as a seal on your heart, for love is as strong as death, its flames are flames of fire, many waters cannot quench love.”

overall holy trinity chapel
Holy Trinity Chapel. The Solemnity of the Holy Trinity was celebrated here on June 15th.

The Byzantine rite is one of several Eastern rites recognized in full communion with the Bishop of Rome; Pope Francis. Its origin can be traced to the ancient city of Byzantium (modern-day Istanbul), renamed Constantinople when the emperor Constantine relocated his capital city there from Rome in A.D. 330.

mother and childe 2
The Theotokos.

On the rear wall of the Holy Trinity Chapel, the Chapel of the Sisters of the Order of Saint Basil the Great, is the “Theotokos” icon, meaning “God Bearer” or ‘Mother of God’. Mary is the Theotokos, the one who gave birth to God. This was the Council of Ephesus (in 431) and the Council of Nicea’s definition of Mary since Jesus was true God and true Man, so Mary could be called “Mother of God”. It appeared in the Archbasilicas of Rome, built by Constantine in one of the first churches ever built.

jesus icon
Jesus at the Garden of Gethsemane

The Eastern Ukrainian Byzantine Church has 5.5 million followers. Typically the sanctuary is separated from the congregation by an iconostasis, a screen covered with icons. Leavened bread is used for the consecration of the body of Christ in the liturgy (not called the “Mass” in Eastern rites), which is either the liturgy of St. John Chrysostom or that of St. Basil the Great. Communion is received under both kinds and administered by the priest using a spoon to the faithful.

icon looking up in HTC
The Pantocrator.

Located on the ceiling in the nave of the Chapel is the Pantocrator Icon, “Ruler of All”, Christ blessing his people. The Pantocrator is present in most Eastern Byzantine churches along with the Theotokos described earlier.

holy trinity chapel

Byzantine Catholics operate under a different code of canon law. They also celebrate a somewhat different liturgical year with some unique feasts and saints. Latin-rite Catholics can attend a Byzantine liturgy to fulfill their obligation to attend Mass.

two at tomb
Two at the Tomb icon.

easter eggs
Pysanky eggs photo on display at the Basilian Spirituality Center.

sign Basilian Spirituality Center
Entrance to the Basilian Spirituality Center complex.

IconTracing
Creating an icon.

Each year an icon presentation and icon writing workshops are held at the Basilian Spirituality Center in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. This year (2014), famed iconographer Rev. Damian Higgins conducted the icon workshop. Rev Damien is from the Holy Transfiguration Monastery also known as Mt. Tabor Monastery in Redwood Valley, California.

Andrej Rublev
One of the all time famous icons every created, “The Holy Trinity” by Russian iconographer Andrei Rublev (1360-1370).

three crosses
Symbolism in the three spires on Holy Trinity Sunday.

“A tree is known by its fruit; a man by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; he who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love.”
St. Basil the Great

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The Cover Art

Jan Van Eyck, “The Adoration of the Lamb” 1432 from the Ghent Alterpiece. Detail: The red altar where the lamb stands reads, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world” and “Jesus the way, the truth, and the life”, both quotes from Gospel of John. In this image and in the book of Revelation the Lamb is Jesus. Directly around the Lamb on the altar are angels who are carrying the instruments in the Passion scenes, like the cross and crown of thorns.

gichontree

There's beauty in sacred spaces; from the stories they tell in architecture, stained glass windows and icons; to the rituals and liturgy that arises our soul. Inside a shrine, the angels and saints praise God with us. I hope to relay the message for the kingdom, power and glory of God, now and forever.

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