When one thinks of Greece, one almost immediately conjures up images of ancient and classical ruins, as well as countless archaeological sites. Greece, however, was also host to another magnificent culture; that of Byzantium. The most visible evidence of that culture is to be seen in the grand, domed churches and small, pretty chapels that punctuate the landscape of Greece.

The Byzantine Empire lasted from 330AD until 1453. It was founded in 330AD when Constantine, the Roman Emperor, was converted to Christianity and moved his capital from Rome to present day Istanbul. He named the city, then, as Constantinople, in honour of himself.

The history of Byzantium in characterised by a tremendous struggle for survival. From the seventh century the empire had to contend with the encroachment of Islam from the east. In the west it had to contend with the Slavs and Bulgars; and from the eleventh century onwards, the Normans, Franks and Venetians attacked the empire.

Finally, in 1453, the last Byzantine emperor attempted unsuccessfully to defend the city of Constantinople from the invading Ottoman Turks. At that stage Constantinople was all that remained of the empire. The emperor appealed for help, but despite his pleas Western Christianity failed to send aid and, after a siege of 53 days, the defences were breached. The fall of Constantinople marked the end of Byzantium.

Its legacy, however, is, as mentioned earlier, to be found in its having given Orthodox Christianity to the world. It also left a rich legacy of art and architecture. Art and Architecture - until the 15th century was firmly focused on the interpretation and celebration of Christianity. Constantine wished to create "heaven on earth" in the empire, and most of the architecture, and initially all of the artistic endeavour, was undertaken to the Glory of God. Building and artistic programmes were geared to devotional exercises such as beautiful churches which were decorated with magnificent frescoes and icons.

In Greece, the greatest repository of the Byzantine artistic and cultural inheritance has been the Orthodox Church; especially the monasteries, and, in particular, the monasteries on Mount Athos.

The Byzantine Legacy merits attention, and a cultural visit to Greece should include a visit to some of the magnificent Byzantine sites and other places of interest such as Monemvasia, Mistras and Mount Athos. A highlight of any visit to a church, chapel or, especially a monastery, will be to view some of the magnificient icons which adorn the interior walls as well as the sanctuary screen (iconostasis).

ORTHODOXY

Christianity in Eastern Europe (Greece) goes back to 330 AD when the Roman emperor, Constantine, moved his capital to Constantinople. It has continued to play a very important part in the lives of the Greeks up to the present day. During the hundreds of years when the Turks ruled the country, only their church provided the Greeks with a sense of unity and national identity. The music, art, literature, and oral history that survived the occupation were conserved by the churches and the monasteries. Greece is the only country in the world that is still officially Orthodox. The Orthodox faith, the third largest branch of Christianity, has about 150 million followers, including the 10 million in Greece and many more Greeks outside the country. Orthodoxy is often described as being close to Protestantism in feeling, but very close to Roman Catholicism - from which it split - in doctrine. The date usually assigned to the split between the eastern and western branches of the church is 1054, when the Pope excommunicated the Patriarch of Constantinople, and the Patriarch, in turn, excommunicated the Pope.

In liturgy and outlook the Orthodox Church is most similar to the primitive Christian church, and in many ways it has remained remarkably unchanged over the centuries. Because Orthodoxy has so often existed under rulers of alien faiths - Arabs, Turks, Mongols - surviving churches became centres of conservatism, fighting to preserve the older faith, rather than permitting it to change and evolve. Among the things that the Orthodox share with the Roman Catholics are a belief in both church tradition and Scripture as the source of revelation, the seven sacraments instituted by Christ, the doctrine of the Trinity formulated by the first seven General Councils before 800, and devotion to the Virgin Mary and to the Saints.

The Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox Church eventually parted company on account of two crucial differences in doctrine. The Pope held that he was infallible and had powers of jurisdiction over all the Church, East and West; while the Greek church held that in matters of faith, a council representing all the bishops must make decisions (although the Pope was considered to have the right to the most honourable seat at such a council). The second great doctrinal difficulty concerned the ancient Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, which was repeated in all Christian churches. The original wording stated that the Holy Spirit proceeds "from the Father"; and the Orthodox Church still recites it this way. The Western Church, however, added the word filioque, thus saying that the Spirit proceeded "from the Father and the son." This insertion became a bone of contention that still persists to this day.

There were other, less inflammatory, differences between the two branches of the church; the East allowed priests to marry; the West did not. The rules of fasting varied between the East and West, and the Eastern Church used leavened bread in the Eucharist, while in the West, unleavened bread was used.

ICONS

These beautiful sacred images play a central part in the Orthodox religion. The interior of every Orthodox Church is magnificently adorned with icons, and in most Orthodox homes some of the paintings of Holy figures may be found present. These beautiful and highly stylised pictures are not (as is often thought) objects of idolatrous worship, but are the instrument by means of which Holy persons may be venerated. (ie. to display reverence for). In no instance are they, themselves, an object of worship. This accounts for why there is no tradition of naturalistic realism in their execution. The depiction of each personage is governed by strict conventions. Through the material icon one is directed beyond; to a transcendental glory. The icons painted on the interior walls of churches throughout Greece are an early form of animation. They are the "book" explaining the Orthodox faith for those unable to read - a written image.

Icons are not only revered in church; virtually every Orthodox home contains an icon stand (iconostasis) containing various icons deemed to have importance to the family. They may represent certain saints for whom family members are named. Almost all personal names in Greece are shared in common with a saint, and instead of birthdays, saints' days are celebrated. In times of need a person may beseech these saints for help. Perhaps the single most widely revered saint in Greece is that of the Virgin Mary on the island of Tinos. It said to have been painted by St. Luke, and to have miracle-working powers. No visit to Greece is complete without visiting the churches and monasteries to view the magnificent icons on display there.

Maria and Acoris Andipa are the most well-known icon dealers in the UK. They are exceedingly knowledgeable, helpful, interesting and friendly folk. Do pay them a visit.

THE BRITISH MUSEUM HAS SOME GOOD ICONS ON DISPLAY IN ITS BYZANTINE SECTION. WORTH A VISIT.

MOUNT ATHOS Mount Athos is a peninsula in northern Greece jutting out into the Aegean from Halkidiki. For over a thousand years it has existed as the principal centre of monasticism fro the Orthodox Church. It functions as an autonomous republic within the state of Greece. It is 56 kilometres long and about 8 kilometres wide. Since the Byzantine era it has been a pan-orthodox, multi-national centre with monasteries, today - for Greeks, Russians, Bulgarians, Romanians and Serbs. To this day it remains a portion of continental Europe devoted entirely to monastic life and nothing else. Currently, the Holy Mountain, as it is known, has a total population of approximately 2000 monks, the majority of which follow the cenobitic tradition whereby monks come together into communities for living, working and worshipping. Others follow the eremitical tradition and live as hermits, either in small groups or entirely on their own. Between them, the monks inhabit a variety of different establishments.

First and foremost are the so-called ruling monasteries whose number is fixed by charter at twenty. They follow a rigid hierarchy of precedence beginning with the oldest, the Great Lavra. Each is self-governing coenobium. Of the twenty ruling monasteries seventeen are Greek, one Serbian, one Russian and one Bulgarian. Between them they rule the mountain.In addition to the ruling monastries there are a fair number of smaller settlements, each which has to function as a dependency of one of the principal monasteries.

Male visitors (in effect, pilgrims) are able to visit Mount Athos. Daily number, through are strictly limited. For Orthodox, the number is 100, for non-Orthodox, 10.

There is a tradition that Athos was visited by the Vigin Mary and because of this, the mountain is dedicated to the Glory of the Mother of God. It is for this reason that all other women are excluded from it.

A firm belief that is shared by the vast majority of pilgrims and certainly all of the inhabitants of Mount Athos is that the mountain is actually holy ground.

The source of information for this acticle was obtained from the handbook "A Pilgram's Guide to Mount Athos" published by the society of the Friends of Mount Athos .

For more information about the Friends of Mount Athos, and details of memberships, please write to:

The Hon. Secretary
Friends of Mount Athos
Ironstone Farmhouse
Milton
Banbury
OX15 4HH