Iconography - Sts. Constantine & Helen Greek Orthodox Church

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Iconostasis
The Iconostasis crafted out of Botticino marble separates the Nave from the Holy Altar. It is a permanent partition and also serves as the frame supporting the mosaic icons. The Royal Gate with its symbolic representations is for the use of the priest, and the two side doors with the guardian figures of the archangels Michael and Gabriel, are for the deacons and altar boys.

Click on an area of the Iconostasis to see detail.

In the Old Testament, the temple veil separated the Holy of Holies from the main section of the temple. Only the clergy may enter and exit through the Royal Doors , and only at specified times during the Divine Services. It is through these gates that the Heavenly King enters in the form of the elements that will be consecrated into the body and blood of Christ. It is through these gates that Holy Communion is administered to the faithful. The wheat and the vine are depicted on the Royal Doors. The wheat symbolizes Jesus, the bread of life, and the vine symbolizes the words of Jesus who said. "I am the vine, you are the branches". To the right of the Royal Doors is the icon of Jesus Christ followed by the icon of St. John the Baptist. To the left is the icon of the Virgin Mary, the mother of God followed by the icon of Saints Constantine and Helen, the saints for which this particular church was named. The icons of Archangels Michael and Gabriel are depicted on the side doors. To the right of Archangel Michael are the icons of St. Katherine and St. Theodore. To the left of Archangel Gabriel are the icons of Saints Peter and Paul and St. George.

	Palm Sunday commemorattes the entry of Christ on a donkey into Jerusalem, just before the Jewish Passover, which he came to observe with his disciples. The story is told in the Matin Gospel for the day (Matthew 21:1-17). As Jesus entered the city, the people met him with shouts of joy and spread palm branches before him as he rode through the city. They greeted him as a King, come to set the people of Israel free from bondage. The Palm branches they used were an ancient symbol of victory; today they symbolize Christ's triumph over death.

	The Crucifixion (on the left as we face the Altar). The forms and colors do not impart the frigid breath of death, but the sweet hope of immortality. Christ is depicted as standing on the Cross, not hanging on it. His body is of flesh, but flesh of another nature, flesh whose nature has been changed through the grace of the Holy Spirit. The expression on His face is full of heavenly tranquility; the affliction which has befallen Him full of gentleness and forgiveness, exempt from agonized contractions on the face. It is the suffering redeemer. He, Who has undone the pangs of death, Who has granted the peace of the life to come. This crucified body is not that of just anyone, but is the very body of the God-Man Himself.

	The Resurrection (on the right as you face the Altar). Christ resurrected from the dead by trampling upon death and destroying the kingdom of death. According to the teachings of the Orthodox Church, Christ descended to Hades during his three day burial, and opened the gates bringing salvation to the righteous people of the Old Testament. In the icon of the resurrection, we see Christ the Lord stepping upon the gates of Hades and pulling Adam and Eave out of the grave. They represent the sinful mankind to whom salvation and bodily resurrection will come through the resurrected Christ.

	Ascension Thursday falls on the fortieth day after Easter. After His Resurrrection, the Lord appeared many times to several of His followers, preaching to them, and teaching them concerning Himself. Each of the eleven gospel selections read on successive Sunday mornings during the Orthodox Service of Morning Prayer has as its subject one of the appearances of the risen Loard to his Disciples. After forty days had passed, Christ took leave of His followers in the manner described in the Apostle (Acts 1:1-12) and Gospel (Luke 24:36-53), appointed to be read on the Feast of the Ascension. Then He returned to His Father, leaving His Disciples and Apostles to await the coming of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost.

On the west side wall of the Church, is the icon Hospitality of Abraham. Three angels sit at a table and are waited upon by Abraham and Sarah. The scene is based on the passage from Genesis 18:1 in which the Lord is reported to have appeared before Abraham in the grove of Mamre, in the form of three men. On the table are radishes, bread, and the head of the lamb prepared by Abraham. The table is a type of altar, with the vessels of the Eucharist upon it. St. Cyril of Alexandria imagined this story to be the revelation of the Trinity to man in the embodiment of the three angelic messengers. To the left is the icon of Moses holding the Tablets of the Law, (the ten commandments). To the right is the icon of Jesus in the Temple teaching the crowds.

The Holy Altar or Sanctuary, is the most important area of the Orthodox Church. The Divine Services are conducted, and the bloodless sacrifice of the Lord's Body and Blood is offered inside the Holy Altar. Only those who are ordained are permitted to enter the Altar.

The Holy Table. The main part of the Altar is the Holy Table, which represents the Throne of God in Heaven. The Holy Table also represents Golgotha and the tomb of Christ. During the first 300 years of Christianity, when worship was conducted in underground catacombs, the early Christians celebrated the Liturgy over the graves of the martyrs. From this early Christian custom has come the practice of placing holy relics of saints in the Holy Altar at the time of consecration. This symbolizes that the Church was founded upon the blood of martyrs. In our Church, Saints Constantine and Helen. The face on the front of the Holy Table depicts the Last Supper (mosaic inlaid in marble).

The Bishop's Throne is used by the Bishop or Archbishop during worship services. The Bishop, considered to be the authority of the Church, and the representative of Christ, is symbolically present in every worship service by the icon of Christ, the High Priest, depicted on the throne.

The Pulpit. From the Pulpit, the priest or deacon reads the Holy Gospel during the Divine Liturgy, and the Word of God is preached by the clergy. Depicted here, usually, are the icons of Christ, St. Paul, or the four Evangelists.

The Baptismal Font. The Greek Orthodox are baptized by immersion. The triple immersion, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, also symbolizes the three days our Lord spent in the tomb. St Paul says: " We were buried therefore with Him (Christ) by baptism unto death so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. " The baptized person rises out of the water as a new person, cleansed from sin. Through Baptism, the Original Sin and all other sins committed before the time of Baptism are washed away; the person is united to the Body of Christ (the Church), which opens the door of salvation and eternal life to him. The Godparent speaks on behalf of the infant, during the Sacrament of Baptism by confessing the Faith.

Epitaphios (not shown). More correctly called Kouvouklion, it represents the Tomb of our Lord. It is taken around the church in a solemn procession on Good Friday.

The Stained Glass Windows
The Stained Glass Windows are based on early Byzantine symbols and monograms used for centuries in Orthodox religious artwork, complementing both the elaborate mosaic iconography and the relative simplicity of the church.

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