Trevor, discreetly photographing the church in Lofou, Cyprus.
Nobody seemed to notice or care that he was wearing shorts.
Photo by Angela Lansbury. A photographer might be asked or might volunteer to give some money to the church. The faithful might light a candle.
Church, Lofou, Cyprus
Church, Lofou, Cyprus. Photo by Angela Lansbury
I had visited churches in Greece so I thought I knew a bit about what to expect in Cyprus. In Greece I had learned, notably, do not walk behind the altar! Because that area is reserved for the priests.
Protestant churches are simple, with plain crosses.
Roman Catholic churches feature statues of Jesus, Madonna, and saints, and paintings of saints, and crosses with Jesus on the cross.
(And confession boxes.
And baptismal fonts - a big at least baby sized bowl on a plinth by the entrance. The Baptist church in Harrow in England has a deep square area where you can step down when it is filled with water. A bit like the Jewish mikvah for bathing women head to toe in running water after menstruation.)
Greek orthodox churches feature paintings of the saints. Each holy building has a relic of the saint - it could be as small as half a fingernail.
Sometimes trees or statues are hung with paper and symbols. The paper has prayers. The symbols are symbolic parts of the donor's or well-wisher's family member's body - parts which are sick and need healing.
The Little Church in Lofou
We left Limassol for a rustic hotel in the mountaintop village of Lofou where we arrived just before twilight, time for a walk before dinner on our one night stay.
From our bedroom we heard the call to prayer echoing around the hillside village and across the valley. I was worried that we would be woken at night. I was woken by cathedral bells on the hour in some European cities. On my honeymoon in Morocco, at the grand hotel Mamounia in Marrakesh. I was woken by the dawn call to prayer. I thought it was a fire alarm announcement and called hotel reception to find out what the call meant.
I was thinking of this as we walked off down the empty streets past massive carved wooden doors and wooden shutters. Later over dinner I was to learn that the abandoned village had been restored by out host who had set up his guesthouse and attracted others to open a couple of shops, restaurants and guest houses.
We did a long circuit down to the church.
I was impressed by the carved wood armrests for those who stand around the walls throughout the service.
The sound from the church was so loud within the church that I retreated outside, fearing damage to my hearing. However, all's well that ends well. After the service, by dinner time, all was quiet. I was glad that my night was totally peaceful.
Our next stop was the Rodon hotel in little Agron. It was our base for hikes in different directions each day.
Trip From Troodos to Panagia Asinou Church, in the Nicosia District
My friends on my hiking tour, based in the Troodos mountains, at the Rodon hotel, whose name means Rose, did a hike which starts near the church.
The name of the church is Panagia Asinou.
Panagia is Greek for Virgin, meaning the virgin Mary, mother of Jesus. Asinou is the name of a village.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_Saint_Lazarus,_Larnaca
It is near the village of Nikitari.
The so-called church is actually a chapel belonging to a distant monastery. The building looks small and built of rustic stone from the outside.
By the front door you can read about the interior if it is closed. Hang around. We arrived at 11 am and it seemed to be closed. We walked around the outside and sat on a bench and ate sandwiches. The janitor arrived and unlocked, without telling us what was going on, or if there was an entry fee.
We stared in amazement at the interior. Every wall and niche was covered with paintings of crowd scenes. Birth of Jesus, crucifixion, resurrection of Jesus, or Lazarus, his mother, Mary, asleep or dead. Some gruesome tortures representing hell - I was sorry I had seen them.
Suddenly a coach party arrived with a French speaking guide arrived. She explained something about one of the many figures in paintings being Saint George with the red cross behind his head. How much more had I missed! I sighed. I wished I had had a guide book, in English.
The hikers returned, parked their cars nearby, stopped for a quick look. The German tourists were busy reading their guidebooks.
The chapel's priest arrived. The inside is a UNESCO world heritage site. The French speaking coach party left. I and a non hiking friend went to sit outside. The priest locked up. No sign about opening hours.
The attractive restaurant building opposite, across the road, was closed.
Our group walked around the corner to another huge restaurant
Forviotissa Restaurant
Forviotissa is the name of a plant, the milkweed family,
The man in charge of the restaurant proudly said the restaurant name makes the restaurant sound healthy and natural and rustic.
The front reception room is a large rustic shop and amusing with lots of food and drink and knick knacks on sale.
The huge back room had long tables for groups.
Nothing to remark on about the food, but pleasant enough. The delightful decor outshone the menu. I remember the decor. I have forgotten the menu. I thought the food and drink on sale was more unusual.The bottles of drink on sale looked interesting.
Time to travel on.
All around Cyprus you will find Greek Orthodox churches, Russian Orthodox churches, Roman Catholic churches, Anglican, Maronite, mosques, and a synagogue in Larnaka.
The Church of St Lazarus, Larnaka
In Larnaka we walked into the Church of St Lazarus. He was a long time friend of Jesus and was the brother of Mary and Martha, and was, according to the gospel of St John in the New Testament, supposedly raised from the dead by Jesus. After being in the tomb for four days.
Lazarus left for Cyprus (like many modern visitors from Israel), heading for a place where he was welcomed. From the age of 30 to 60 he was their bishop.
Lazarus rose up in the hierarchy of Christianity in the 1st century AD. The Christians later parted company from the Judaism of the day. ( According to one political view, Jesus was the 'King of the Jews' trying to rouse rebellion to get independence from Rome, and therefore was hunted and persecuted by the Romans).
Lazarus went into exile, or you might see him as a missionary, because he became a bigwig in the early church in Larnaka, its first Bishop. (The council of Jerusalem was discussing subjects such as circumcision, baptism, kosher food, for Jews who were active followers of Jesus, as well as what to do and demand when converting gentiles. Romans in entirety adopted Christianity only two hundred years later, under Constantine in 313 AD.)
Church of St Lazarus, Larnaka
The famous story of Lazarus, being resurrected from the dead by Jesus - didn't happen here.
However, but Lazarus did die here, eventually, for the second time, and was buried here. You can start by walking along the shady cloisters around the outside of the cathedral whilst waiting for the interior to open.
.jpg)
The tomb of Lazarus, Larnaka.
Yes, we don't have the body of Jesus but we have Lazarus. Er, not quite all of him. At first sight, nothing at all. You can go down into the crypt and see empty niches where Lazarus was supposedly buried before being moved. He was taken to a Turkish church in Turkey. Removed by Crusaders. Lost.
Another theory says that later a Turkish Christian brought a small relic of Lazarus back to Cyprus, to establish this church in Larnaka.
Then, in recent time, parts of an ancient body were found buried in the church in Larnaka in Cyprus, either kept behind deliberately, or left behind accidentally. Lazarus travelled more after death than he did during his lifetime.
The Larnac building was at one time a mosque, at another time a Roman Catholic church.
Not much to see, or read, but a must do.
Another tomb of Lazarus is in the West Bank.
Larnaka has an important airport, which grew after the capital of Nicosia was split between the Greek Cypriots and Turkish occupied
Nicosia and Northern Cyprus.
Mosque & Mausoleum
We flew in and out from Paphos on the west coast with RyanAir. As we drove out of Larnake on our way back to Paphos, to catch our flight home, we drove past the white salt lake and stopped at the mosque which is the burial site of an important member of Mohammed's extended family.
You see the dome of the mosque as you drive around the salt lake, which is extensive, on both sides of the road (near the airport), depending on weather and time of day, appearing either all or partly white.
The complex is called Hala Sultan Tekke. The word tekke means nunnery.
The small mosque.
An adjoining area where you can peer through a lattice at a large tomb covered in green embroidered cloth. Plus two more similar, smaller tombs.
Not a lot to see and read. But very peaceful, with arches and shadows.
Dress appropriately. Be prepared to remove shoes indoors. When I was there, one member of a visiting coach tour, I think it was the group leader, got into a heated exchange with the guard.
No fee was charged.
See my other post on the magnificent, massive, new and blue and gold, modern Russian Orthodox church. I thought the Russians were all anti-religion since Communism. Apparently not.
Useful Websites
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_museums_in_Cyprus
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mosques_in_Cyprus
Church Building Sections
The Chapel
Lazarus In Cyprus
Lazarus in the West Bank
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomb_of_Lazarus
Muslim Mausoleum & Mosque
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hala_Sultan_Tekke
Jewish
(Museum planned in Larnaka.)
No comments:
Post a Comment