The House of Our Father
$61.00
At our monastery, the first foundations of the new church of Saint Sophrony were laid many years ago, when the holy Elder surrendered perfectly to the will of God, which brought him to this remote land.
As for a newborn child, the beginning of life is marked by weeping, so too the beginning of the life of our Monastery was founded by Saint Sophrony ‘with many tears, and groanings from the depths, and with blood and sweat’. With martyric self-denial, the Elder remained absolutely faithful to the will of God all his life, and, in the end, he laid down the holy tabernacle of his body within his Monastery as a sanctified firstfruit that ‘leaveneth the whole lump’31 Cor. 5:6; Gal. 5:9..
God’s blessing upon the new church of our Monastery is a treasure that encourages us to follow the path of our saints. At the same time, however, it is a fearful forewarning and a responsibility to remain watchful, lest ‘love wax cold’4Matt. 24:12. in our heart and we lose this treasure, since the blessing of God only abides where it is received with thanksgiving.
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This book presents and shares the journey of the creation of the round chapel: how it came to be, first in thought and dreams, and then in plans and reality. As Saint Sophrony’s mind was always very creative, he had many ideas about how to create a space for the celebration of the Liturgy. In 1992, he made a plan to build a round chapel and supervised the construction of a model which specified all the various dimensions as well as the exact location. Whilst at the time it was not possible to fulfil the project, its realisation came thirty years later. Initially, Saint Sophrony had wanted to dedicate the chapel to the Holy Trinity; but when he himself was numbered amongst the saints, it was decided to change the plan and name the chapel after our founding Father.
Contents
Prologue by Archimandrite Peter
A Short Guide for this Book
TEXTS
Pre-history
Letter from Saint Sophrony to his sister Maria
The Divine Liturgy by Archimandrite Zacharias
The Temple Not Made with Hands: The Union of the Heart of Man with the Spirit of God by Archimandrite Peter
THE COMPLETED CHAPEL
The Iconographic Program
Colour Plates
CONSTRUCTIVE ASPECTS
An Odyssey of Techniques
Colour Plates
BUILDING WORK
Colour Plates
Aerial photography
Book Sample
Available in 2 Languages
English
Greek
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Philip Seddon (verified owner) –
Stupendous Work of Art and Prayer
The House of Our Father is a simply stupendous work of art and prayer in itself. Profound Theological and Iconographic Texts by Archimandrite Peter, Sister Gabriela and Archimandrite Zacharias alone constitute inspired and moving meditations on the Being of the Church (building and people), and repay repeated reading; the photographic material – the ‘Colour Plates,’ the ‘Iconographic Program’ (sic), the ‘Odyssey of Techniques’ and the multiple complications and construction of everything, is simply awe-inspiring to read and pore over, both in detail and scope. The faces – the faces! – in close-up are astonishing, powerful, personal, overwhelming, humbling – not least those of the Seraphim.
I was also touched to discover (p. 17) that, of the two major inspirations for St Sophrony’s circular church, the first, the Round Church in Cambridge, was where I worshipped and heard Scripture expounded as an undergraduate; and secondly, the Rotunda in Thessaloniki was right next to the hostel when my wife Debbie and I stayed on our first visit there in 2010.
And I learnt a new word: ‘Cosmatesque,’ as in ‘the Cosmatesque Floor’ (the word derives from the Cosmati family of the 12th-13th centuries in Italy), the stunning central marbled floor area of decorative geometric inlay stonework, with its circles and squares, ‘wheels within wheels’ (as it seems) and triangles and lozenges, in an astonishing range of coloured marble. That is the one area where I would have loved more detail, not only because of the clearly intended complexity of the design (all emerging from the inspired mind of St Sophrony), but because I learnt from one of the builders that most of the stonework had been collected by Sisters scouring London scrapyards and carrying everything back in vans, ready to turn scraps into beauty! (Perhaps a small separate booklet could tell that story?! …)
Anthi –
I purchased this book as a gift, so I cannot comment on the content since it is already wrapped. However, I am confident in its quality, having seen other books like it. What truly impressed me was the quick and superb delivery. I needed it before a certain date for our trip, as it was a gift we were taking with us, and it arrived within just a day. The packaging was excellent, and the gift wrapping was beautifully done.
A big thank you to all the fathers and sisters who contributed to this. Thank you so much! May we have your prayers and blessings.
Fr. John Reves (verified owner) –
Having visited the Church of St. Sophrony as it was nearing completion this spring, we are deeply grateful for this magnificent book which is, as all the books the monastery publishes a beautiful book. The photos and text are magnificent and lend itself as a source of prayerful contemplation of the rich details of iconography contained in this truly marvelous church. Also the narrative of the history of the conception and construction of the church contained in themes text is deeply edifying. Such books are indeed inspiring and help raise the mind to prayer. This book is itself a true work of art!
The Revd Douglas Dales (verified owner) –
This is an excellent book in every way. It is beautifully produced with lavish high quality illustrations. The two opening homilies set out perfectly the theology of Christian worship that the church is designed to embody & enable. The account of how the work proceeded & the technical challenges encountered is disarmingly frank & very fascinating. This book is a full & unique record of how the spiritual hope & vision of St Sophrony has been realised: in this remarkable building, but also in the vitality of the monastic community that has enabled it to come into being for the benefit of countless pilgrims & worshippers. This is certainly one of the most significant Christian buildings of recent times.
Gabriela (verified owner) –
Very good book, the new church of Saint Sophrony as described in this book is such a beauty, a dream come true, love the details of the icons with very good explanations.
“For us, who are not yet in the new heavenly Jerusalem, the created temple becomes a saving ark, a gate of heaven, and a place where the glory of God is made manifest.” (page 41)
“Saint Sophrony desired a round church so that a long continuous wall could be painted, representing the history of man’s salvation. The only practical instruction he gave regarding the iconography was: ‘The Last Supper should be painted on a straight wall behind the altar.’ His aim in creating a church for the celebration of the Liturgy was to place the Last Supper in a prominent position, bringing the faithful into the very heart of the Eucharist and making them partakers of the unique historic and eternal Event.” (page 73)
Andreas Pryce –
A lovely book. The first part tells the story of the new Church of Saint Sophrony, and the second part has lots of beautiful photos including the frescoes. Very pleased to receive this book and it was very well packed so arrived in perfect condition.
Stavros Seraphim –
“Beauty will save the world.” Fyodor Dostoevsky
Miss M L Cooper (verified owner) –
A wonderful, very interesting visit, one I shall remember for many years to come.
The book is wonderful, very interesting and very lovely photos. It will be treasured for many years to come.
Erin Maria (verified owner) –
This book is stunning and sublime in its grandeur and beauty. The nobility of spirit revealed in our Orthodox Christian traditions are beautifully encompassed within the pages and words of this book.
Virva Suvitie (verified owner) –
Wonderful book and Monastery!