Just beautiful! Sometimes we forget the beauty of the western part of the United States. Butte also has a huge statue called Our Lady of the Rockies. Anyway, check out the iconography in this Church
entire church icons
on the project

Beautiful - I love the opportunity to see a 360 degree panoramic view!

Thanks, Rose.

Many years,

Neil

What glorious frescoes! Wish I could go to Butte, Montana, just to see them.

Fr. Serge

Wow, I would like to have seen the team that worked on the frescoes.

Are those walls built to last? I hope they are. The icons are beautiful.

Hey Terry, amazing isn't it. Dwight, one of our posters sent that. Seems to me the priest is the iconographer. I don't know that he had much help. Then on top of it, I think Dwight said that he has several churches he takes care of.

Let's see if we can get Dwight's attention, so he can tell us more.

It looks like it took hundreds, if not thousands of hours. I am glad that it has been digitally captured like it has.

If you didn't catch it here is the 360 view Neil mentioned.
360

WOW...

I sent an email to Fr. Russell about his work, this was his reply, he sounds like an awesome man of God, with such a heart set on leading Christ's flock. That is the impression I get from Dwight also...


Dear Rose,

Please feel free to publish this info on your forum. (I am not very computer savy. I tried to get on your forum, but I guess I am not even that good with computers)

I would love to speak with anyone about the Orthodox Christian Faith. My forte is doing such things in person. Those things virtual are not real, and are sometimes misleading or a lie.(obviiosly, to the extent that virtual is not real, that is a degree of untruth) For me, life takes place in reality and in person, face to face. That is how we will stand before God.

The work in Montana is going Great! It's Blossoming! It is pretty Fun! A real kick in the pants. Church growth for the past two years has been a little over 20% each year. And it is lining up to be more in 2010.

We have an influx of Catholics, Protestants, Pagan un-baptized, Jews etc..

Butte Montana is the hub. 100 year old parish. The parish has been actively growing the Orthodox Christan Church in Missoula, Dillon, Helena, Kalispel for two years. There are active parishes in Bozeman and Billings.

Thank God, Missoula has just procured a full time Priest.

The Fresco work in Butte was done by a team of 6 Serbians over the course of 3 years. The Fresco/Iconography has been a great witness to the Orthodox Christian Faith. As you mentioned the 360 view is a good upgrade. holytrinitybutte.crg

I do not have (nor desire) an online ministry. I pretty much run full speed just working in the garden where I have been planted, and working with the clay that God has given me.

That's about it. I pretty much try to make the Orthodox Christan Faith available to those who seek it. Not to those who want to argue about it. Priests are called to herd the sheep, not the goats....
In CHRIST !
fr.russell

LOL What a wonderful spirit the man has!

Father Russell is indeed a holy priest. He seems to love his parishioners and they love him. His wife and daughters are generally at least half the choir at services.
The church is a window into heaven. I wish it was open more often. The church is a glory to God and the Orthodox faith of the early serbian miners in Butte.
From my front door I can look east and see Our Lady of the Rockies.

http://www.ourladyoftherockies.com/

Butte is indeed a wonderful place. You could observe 90 people at any of the daily masses held at the butte parishes. You can also tour St Lawrence O Toole Church, perfectly preserved from pre-Vatican II days. St Patricks and St Joseph Churches are also awesomely beautiful.
Everyone with devotion to Our Lady should take a trip to the site of the statue on the mountain. It is a spiritual experience for many. Thousands of Rosaries and Prayer Requests hang inside the statue.
Dwight