Orthodox churches generally take one of several shapes that have a
particular mystical significance. The most common shape is an oblong or
rectangular shape, imitating the form of a ship. As a ship, under the guidance
of a master helmsman conveys men through the stormy seas to a calm harbor, so
the Church, guided by Christ, carries men unharmed across the stormy seas of
sin and strife to the peaceful haven of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Churches are also frequently built in the form of a Cross to proclaim that we
are saved through faith in the Crucified Christ, for Whom Christians are prepared
to suffer all things. Less frequently churches are built in the shape of a
circle, signifying that the Church of Christ shall exist for all eternity (the circle being one of the symbols
of eternity) or in the shape of an octagon, signifying a star, for the Church,
like a star, guides a man through the darkness of sin which encompasses him.
Because of the difficulties of internal arrangement, however, the latter two
shapes are not often used.
Almost always Orthodox churches are
oriented East — West, with the main entrance of the building at the West end.
This symbolizes the entrance of the worshipper from the darkness of sin (the
West) into the light of Truth (the East). This rule is violated only if the
building had been previously constructed for another purpose, or if services
are conducted in a private home, for example, when the entrance and main
portion have been arranged according to convenience.
On the roof of Orthodox churches are
usually found one or more cupolas (towers with rounded or pointed roofs),
called crests or summits. One cupola signifies Christ, the sole head of the
Christian community; three cupolas symbolize the Most-Holy Trinity; five
cupolas represent Christ and the four Evangelists; seven cupolas symbolize the
Seven Ecumenical Councils which formulated the basic dogmas of the Orthodox
Church, as well as the general use in the Church of the sacred number “seven”;
nine cupolas represent the traditional nine ranks of Angels; and thirteen
cupolas signify Christ and the Twelve Apostles.
A peculiar feature of Russian
Orthodox churches is the presence of onion-shaped domes on top of the cupolas.
In the early history of the Russian Church, especially in Kiev, the first capital, the domes of the churches followed the typical
Byzantine rounded style, but later, especially after the Mongol Period, Russian
churches tended toward the onion domes, which, in many places, became quite
stylized. Historians are not in agreement as to the origin of this particular
style, but some point to the possible influence of Persia on this peculiar
feature of Russian church architecture, while others argue that since this
style was more popular in the far North of Russia, it had a practical
application, in that the shape was particularly suited to shed the large amounts
of snow common in the region.
Every cupola, or where there is
none, the roof, is crowned by a Cross, the instrument of our salvation. The
Cross may take one of many different shapes, generally according to the national
tradition of a particular local Church. In the Russian Church, the
most common form is the so-called three-bar Cross, consisting of the usual
crossbeam, a shorter crossbeam above that and another, slanted, crossbeam
below. Symbolically, the three bars represent, from the top, the signboard on
which was written, in Hebrew, Latin and Greek, Jesus of Nazareth, the King of
the Jews (John 19:19); the main crossbeam, to which the hands of Jesus were
nailed; the lower portion, to which His precious feet were nailed.
The three-bar representation existed
in Christian art from very early times in Byzantium, although
usually without the bottom bar slanted, which is particularly Russian. The
origin of this slanted footboard is not known, but in the symbolism of the Russian Church, the
most common explanation is that it is the pointing upward to Paradise for the Good Thief on
Jesus' right and downward to Hell for the Thief on His left (Luke 23).
Sometimes the bottoms of the Crosses found on Russian churches will be adorned
with a crescent. In 1486, Tsar Ivan IV (the Terrible) conquered the city of
Kazan which had been under the rule of Moslem Tatars, and in remembrance of
this, he decreed that from henceforth the Islamic crescent be placed at the
bottom of the Crosses to signify the victory of the Cross (Christianity) over
the Crescent (Islam).