one could find this.
A Sunday morning walk through Little Italy or more specifically the area known as Nolita added some visual pleasures to the day. St. Michael's Russian Catholic Church has a building that is relatively unassuming in this great city. The small structure is planted between St. Patrick's Old Cathedral (more on that in a future post.) and the St. Patrick's Youth Center. St. Michael's was originally the Chancery for Old St. Pats.
Walking into St. Michael's and peering through an interior glass window held incredible sights. This Catholic community follows the Russian tradition of the Byzantine Church. Even with 12 plus years of formal Catholic education behind me this was something completely new. I happened upon this sacred place during the Divine Liturgy. The spectacle was tiny but brillant.
This particular Church was established in the 1930's at 266 Mulberry to provide for Russian Catholic immigrants who had fled their homeland. The most striking difference noticed in a my few minutes of spying in was the congregation constantly standing and the iconostasis separating the sancutuary from the rest of the Church.
Very interesting indeed. I will definitely be doing a bit of internet research on the Byzantine Rite.
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