Konstantin Zvezdochetov. Mother and Motherland: Equal in Honour! no date (2000s?)

Mother and Motherland: Equal in Honour! (Konstantin Zvezdochetov, no date (2000s?))

This work is indicitive of the creative synthesis taking part in Russia today. Russians are not merely rejecting Communism, rather, they are taking what was good from the Soviet period and combining it with the best of the Tsarist and Old Russian traditions. In short, it is not merely a slavish imitation of American-style “democracy” (which has disappointed many in the West), but, it is a unique construct suited to the particular history, culture, and weltanshauung of Russia. That is to say, it stands in opposition to many of the accepted verities of “modernity”… thank God for that!

Aleksandr Ustinovich. White Guard. undated (1990s?)

White Guard (Aleksandr Ustinovich, undated (1990s?))

The “White Guards” were those who resisted the Reds during the Civil War of 1918-20. All of these objects were connected with the White Army, a subject that is being investigated with great vigour in contemporary Russia. Of course, any talk of such during the Soviet time was strictly verboten, and one could find out what the desert of Kazakhstan or the frozen waste of Norilsk was like first-hand if one was too inquisitive on the matter. Think of an American PC college professor on steroids, that’s what the Reds were like (if all things are equal, when the PC crowd falls, boy-oh-boy, I want to be around for the post-mortem).

In short, Russians are rediscovering their past. This is healthy. This painting is part of that rediscovery.

Andrei Drozdov. A Song of Farewell. 2003

A Song of Farewell (Andrei Drozdov, 2003)

This painting is obviously executed in a consciously naïve manner, as though it were painted by an untutored peasant artist. It is a scene of Cossacks leaving their homes and families to go and fight in World War I. The sun is setting on their world… little do they know that everything shall be turned upside down in a few short years… How many of these men survived the Great War and the Civil War that followed? God alone knows…

Tatiana Bogonina-Vlasova. A Portrait of a Cossack. 1973

A Portrait of a Cossack (Tatiana Bogonina-Vlasova, 1973)

Konstantin Filippov. Cossacks on the March. 1851

Cossacks on the March (Konstantin Filippov, 1851)

Russian Folk Song. Выйду ночью в поле с конём. I Shall Leave for the Field Tonight on My Horse. Peresvet Male Chamber Chorus

A beautiful folk song sung by the Peresvet Male Chamber Chorus. The first 35 seconds feature the soloist singing alone, unaccompanied, then the chorus gradually breaks into full harmony. This video is of a live performance in April 2008 in Podolsk, the soloist is Vladislav Kosaryov. Get a load of those LOW Russian basses! Dreamy…

Boris Kustodiev. Stepan Razin. 1918

Stepan Razin [Boris Kustodiev, 1918]

Stepan Razin is one of the colorful rogues of Russian history. He and and his merry crew of Cossack cut-throats are the Russian equivalent of the jolly buccaneers of the Spanish Main. By the way, Stepan Razin is a Russian figure, and if you hear Galician Uniate claims that he was “Ukrainian”, that is ridiculous. I cannot understand why those people steal from our history. Oh, well… consider the source. 

Images of a Jordanville Easter… KHRISTOS VOSKRESE!

In the realm of photography at least, Nicky and I are still Luddites. We don’t have a digital camera yet (such things DO cost money), so, I had to wait for the film to be developed.

In his Cossack best

The Blessing of the Easter baskets 1. Don’t they all look yummy?

The Blessing of the Easter Baskets 2

An Easter procession in the rain

Fr Luke Murianka censes the faithful, Fr George is behind him to the left

KHRISTOS VOSKRESE!

VOISTINNU VOSKRESE!

What an Easter! Ethiopia meets Russia in Harrisburg PA.

Sasha, you merit a gold star for this one. Of course, Sasha is the beaming Russian fellow togged out in the Cossack ensemble in the photo. In America, many Ethiopians come to our parishes.  God willing, the split between the Ethiopian Church and the rest of Orthodoxy may be mended. They are the bearers of an ancient and venerable tradition.

CHRIST IS RISEN!

INDEED HE IS RISEN!

UPDATE: Sasha just sent me an e-mail saying that these lovely ladies are Eritreans. Yes, they are next door to Ethiopia, but, apparently, they are not quite the same thing. Thanks for the correction, Sasha!

Grisha and Sasha… two of a kind, one in heart, one in soul!

The cossack on the right is my cyber-friend Sasha Ressetar, gentleman, balalaika maestro, and general good fellow, whom you can thank for the lovely Lenten photos. This has been such an addition to my site, it is an illustration of the Russian word sobornost in action. It is often translated “conciliarity”, but, it means so much MORE than that. It is what happens when people join efforts together, labouring as one, instead of working at cross-purposes, and the total is so much more than the sum of the parts.

With such men in our church, I have no misgivings about the future. We shall do well enough, thank you very much, and we shall pass on our proud traditions to yet another generation.

Do remember Sasha’s mom Matushka Theodora in your prayers, she is in pain from an illness.

KEEP IT UP, YOU TWO!