Throughout my art history class, my students have recently been studying Byzantine art, some of them even electing to write research papers on it. Art is best studied by experience rather than mere fact memorization, so I wanted to take them to a place where they could do just that. Seeing as Eastern Orthodox Christians understand Byzantine art better than almost anyone else, I decided a trip to Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Cathedral would be fitting.
There, we met Father Michael, the priest and pastor of the church. Father Michael follows in a line of priests and bishops whose ordinations can be traced all the way back to the twelve apostles and Jesus Himself. The priest was gracious enough to welcome us into the stunning house of worship, give us a tour, and give a thorough explanation of both the art and its theological significance. I’m proud to say that our students not only deepened their understanding of art in a meaningful way today but also their knowledge of God and how the Church expresses worship in various ways.
– CPT Harrison Burnette (Instructor)
