In recent weeks, the clergy and parishioners of Holy Myrrhbearers Church in Mount Crawford, VA, have been overjoyed to witness the beginning of a long-awaited penultimate project in the construction of their temple.

Iconographers have begun adorning the walls of the church. The local media outlet featured the parish, detailing the work being done:

In Orthodoxy, it is necessary to use specialized religious painters because icons aren’t merely beautiful. They’re also functional, said David Morgan, Professor of Religious Studies and Department Chair at Duke University.

"Painting the images in traditional forms is highly valued because they are meant to serve the needs of devotion and worship. The point is not to indulge artistic creativity but to provide images that put the devout in touch with the saints. The saints must be painted according to traditional techniques and in traditional appearances so that they are recognizable," Morgan said.

Because iconographers require specialized training, they are in high demand and often have a backlog of work, so [rector Archpriest Gabriel – ed.] Weller and members of his congregation have been waiting for them to arrive. Completing the work will require the painters, who come from Ohio, to make several trips back and forth to the church, [Fr. Gabriel] said.

[Fr. Gabriel] and church members are excited to see the Biblical scenes come to life through the paintings, he said.

"We wanted to really have an Orthodox-looking church," [Fr. Gabriel] said. "This is what you would see in the Holy Land if you went into an Orthodox Church.

[Fr. Gabriel] said that having this work done "is a blessing that helps us reflect and remember. It kind of helps us transcend time."

[Fr. Gabriel], a convert to Orthodoxy, said that the images help tell a story.

"Even back when I was a Protestant, my Bibles, you know, every 50 or 100 pages would have a color picture in there or something pertaining to that part of Scripture. So you can actually see these things come to life, and it really helps you understand because, back in the days of old, people couldn’t read or write, didn’t have books, so they looked to the iconography to tell them the stories of Christ."

The parish is currently accepting donations to complete the project. For more information please click here.

Article contents courtesy of Lori D’angelo / Daily News-Record