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The Church of St. Alexander Nevsky in the Old City yielded two photos for James' Weekend Reflections..
Floor tiles are reflected by the special glass protecting the sides of this ancient stone structure.If you look into the glass on top of it, you see this:
Two tiers, up to the ceiling, of paintings, winding all around the sanctuary and then some!.
Some are life-sized depictions of Russian Orthodox saints.
The others are illustrations starting at the Mount of Olives, followed by the Stations of the Cross, and ending with the Resurrection. The famous 19th century artist N. Koshelev painted them.
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I have the feeling that the upside down cross reflects the suddenly topsy turvy inner world of the disciples on this Holy Saturday long ago. Yesterday they had lost their Master, today he was in the grave, and they did not realize that the next day would bring resurrection. They thought they had lost everything.
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The Alexander Nevsky church was built in 1896 over important archaeological discoveries found in 1858, including what is believed to be the Judgment Gate.Christians believe that Jesus passed through this city gate on the way to Calvary.
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For decades this building was decaying because of a lack of money and was not often open.
Now it has been restored and is open all day. But not many pilgrims or tourists seem to know this, and this very special church is mostly empty.
Next time you are in the Holy City, do pay it a visit.
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