Much like the Church’s rites, iconography presents a unique and powerful avenue for depicting and expressing the spiritual and divine components of religious experience through physical means. The simple admiration of the artistic forms and expression of icons is therefore itself a formative experience. In learning to read an icon, one gleans a deeper and more nuanced understanding of the meaning and significance which icons portray, especially because icons are not merely artistic depictions...

In the Christian understanding, the concept of joy is thoroughly rooted in the message of the Gospel, and its significance is elevated in...

Since its earliest years, Christians have suffered nearly constant persecution — socially, financially, and physically — due to their...