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Kiev Sophia
The St. Sophia’s Cathedral in Kiev is an important monument to the increasing influence of Orthodox Christianity, as well as the flourishing of Ukrainian artistic expression, under the reign of Grand Prince Yaroslav the Wise of Kievan Rus. This…
Pope John Paul II's Visit to Poland
In 1979, Pope John Paul II visited Poland and was greeted by massive crowds of Poles demanding to worship God. These crowds, in part for want of religious freedom, later contributed to the Solidarity movement that overturned the Communist government…
1863 Polish Uprising
In 1863, many Poles rose up against the Russian government. One of the motivating factors was the religious difference: that Roman Catholic Poland was displeased with the control exerted by the Russian Orthodox Church. But when the uprising was…
False Dmitrii I (Lzhedmitrii)
The figure of False Dmitrii I is, possibly, among the greatest mysteries of Russian history. His story is inherently related to the history of Russian-Polish struggle. False Dmitrii I, a pretender, who claimed to be the son of Ivan IV the Terrible,…
Orthodox Church Politics
In 1811, the Russian Orthodox Church takes over the Georgian Orthodox Church at the direction of Russian officials. Previously, the common Orthodox religion of Georgia and Russia had served as part of the means of bringing the two closer together.
IKEA Moscow
A fascinating illustration, the clearly photoshopped image here depicts the iconic “IKEA” logo in the Cyrillic alphabet (as it is used in Russia) supporting the spires and domes of the famous Saint Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow. It is important to note…
Our Lady of Kazan
Our Lady of Kazan is a Russian icon that was found in the burnt ruins of the city of Kazan in 1579. Mary, the mother of God in Christian tradition, appeared three times to a small child, providing instructions on where to look for the icon. Over the…
Dormition Cathedral
Construction on Moscow’s Cathedral of the Dormition began in 1326, the same year that the metropolitanate of Kiev and All Rus’ made its way to Moscow ("History of the Cathedral"). The relics of Metropolitan Peter, one of the metropolitans canonized…
St. Vladimir
Vladimir I, born in 956, was a grand prince of Kiev, and was to become Kievan Rus’ first Christian ruler (“Vladimir I”). Vladimir was great-grandson to St. Olga, a princess considered to be one of the first converts to Christianity in Russia. Before…
Our Lady of Fatima
In 1917 in Fatima, Portugal, accompanying a miracle that was seen by 50,000 people, three young children, including Lucia de Jesus Santos, saw several apparitions of the Virgin Mary. One of the messages was a vivid vision of hell. Another of her…
Paul in Damascus
The Apostle Paul preaching in the synagogue of Damascus. Paul was a Jewish rabbi and persecutor of Christians until he became a Christian. While before this point all of the Christians were of Jewish background, God sent Paul to preach the Gospel to…
Cathedral in Moscow
The Roman Catholic Cathedral in Moscow. The Catholic Church is not interested in "poaching" the Orthodox faithful in Russia from their Orthodox congregations, but rather in preaching the Gospel to unbelievers in Russia. Despite bouts of intense…