Yesterday one of my cousins got married. She ended up getting married a Greek Orthodox church and that would make the first time I've ever stepped into an Orthodox church.
The current St. Nicholas church was built in 2003 on land donated by one of the members. It was built to replace the old church that was on Main Street that was completed in 1939. The church had seen incredible growth in that time and could no longer support the congregation.
It is a pretty nice looking church on the outside. It does not look like the Greek Orthodox churches that I am used to seeing though. But it was still pretty cool.
Originally, I wasn't going to bring my camera but when I stepped in the church, I had to go back to the car and get the camera. I figured that this was likely the only time I would step into a Greek Orthodox church, so I needed some pictures.
The Greek Orthodox Church came about from the first apostles of Jesus but it took a different path from the Catholic church when the Roman Empire split in to the East and West Empires.
The Roman Empire split into the Eastern and Western Empire around 300 A.D. The Eastern Roman Empire had its capital in Constantinople and was named after Emperor Constantine who was the first Emperor of the new entity.
The Western Roman Empire fell with the sacking of Rome in 476 A.D. The Eastern Roman Empire which would be later known as the Byzantine Empire would last for roughly another 1000 years.
The Greek Orthodox Church is a part of the larger Eastern Orthodox Religion which was founded around 100 A.D. Which similar to the Catholic Church there are some differences.
At one time, the service would have been said in Greek instead of Latin.
The Orthodox Church doesn't recognize the Pope, nor does it really have a leader of its own.
Instead it has a council of Bishops that end up electing a main Bishop.
One thing I think many of the Orthodox churches have in common is the beautiful artwork.
In this church, the artwork seemed to depict various scenes from the Bible.
I kind of wish I would have taken more pictures of the ceremony itself because they had some traditions that were separate from the Catholic masses I am used to attending.
Anyway, it was pretty neat to see. I think many of the traditions are rooted in early Christian practices.
Like I said, the artwork was pretty cool.
The altar looked pretty cool.
This was a dome at the top of the cieling.
The double eagle seems to be common in Eastern European countries.
The back of the church.
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