Site #5 – St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine

 

 St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine - Saint Augustine, FL

Site Visit #5- February 18, 2021- Lavinia Lenssen

The 

Overview of Site: 

    On February 25, 2021, our learning community visited the St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine, a hidden treasure on 41 Saint George Street. I think that this undiscovered beauty is not witnessed as much by tourists, who are entrenched in the circles of gift shops and restaurants in this pedestrian area. But, the St. Photios Shrine is the first National Greek Orthodox Shrine in America, an incredible fun fact! In the face of tragedy, Greek survivors of the New Smyrna colony inhibited the place known as the Avero House. 

According to a visitor brochure:

 " The St. Photios Shrine is a private, sacred, and educational vista where Americans of Greek ancestry may come to be refreshed in the wisdom and warmth of their cultural heritage."

Source Link: Click here for more information!

Artifact #1: 

Caption:  I took two images of my first artifact from the shrine, one from up close and the other from afar. This gold-plated box inside the shrine was gifted by the Three Hierarchs Greek Orthodox Church in Brooklyn, NY, and made by Archbishop Iakovos. This gift was a celebration of St. Photios National Shrine's completion of construction. The shrine was completed in 1982, at the time it was the only Greek National Shrine in the United States. It is fascinating to know how unique our little city is. If that was not fascinating enough, the gold box, known as a reliquary, contains inside the bone fragments from 18 saints and has been certified by Vatican City, making the national shrine holy. 

Information Source Link: For more info about the artifact of the reliquary, click here!

Artifact #2:

Caption: The image above shows a mosaic underneath the area for offerings within the shrine. The offering is the lighting of a candle. The lighting of the candle tradition began in 1982 when the national shrine was completed, to serve as a dedication to this masterpiece of design and artistry. Candles are lit in the memory of our "Protoporoi". In Greek, that means our immediate ancestors, whether that be our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. For the Greeks who celebrate this shrine, this means their ancestors who came to Saint Augustine to create a better life for themselves when they fled from the New Smyrna colony.

Exterior Photo #1:

Caption: This exterior photo reveals the front of the St. Photios National Shrine on 41 Saint George Street. This shrine in Casa Avero, the original house was built in 1749, and it was restored in 1979, with the shrine complete just a couple of years later. This location is dedicated to the Greeks who took refuge in Saint Augustine in the year 1768. The Avero House was their place of worship, I cannot imagine hundreds of people crammed into that small of a space! It's incredible that this colony constitutes the first permanent Greek population in the United States, all starting in Florida. 

When the house was built, Saint Augustine was considered to be a colony of Spain, during the First Spanish colonial period. After the original Avero family lived on this property for almost a hundred years from 1712-1804, with the exception of a twenty-year period in between when the British took over. Saint Augustine has been in the hands of several different countries, truly unique. 

Exterior Photo #2: 

Caption: The image above shows a remarkable and secluded outdoor courtyard area at the entrance of the St. Photios National Shrine.

In-Conversation Image #1:

Image Source Link: To visit the website where this image came from, click here!

Brief Statement: The photo above was taken by a member of the Three Hierarchs Greek Orthodox Church, it is an interior image of the remarkable place of worship. I chose this image like the one in conversation with our site because this church contributed to making the construction of the St. Photios National Shrine possible, they gifted the site the gold-plated reliquary that stands today, containing the bone fragments of 18 saints. 

In-Conversation Image #2:

Image Source Link: For more information on where this image came from, click here!

Brief Statement: The second image in conversation with the St.Photios National Shrine in Saint Augustine is the image on the cover of LIFE magazine, with Greek Archbishop Iakovos wearing the headpiece, standing next to Martin Luther King Jr., where he marched with him in Selma as well. He is famous for putting the Greek Orthodox faith on the map in the United States. According to journalist Anastasios Papapostolou with Greek Reporter in 2017, Archbishop Iakovos is the "first Greek Archbishop in 350 years to confer with the current pope himself." Archbishop Iakovos was the one who presented the St. Photios National Shrine in Saint Augustine with the reliquary upon the completion of their construction in 1982. 

Passage/Concept ENG202:

 "The Surrounded" by D'Arcy McNickle most relates to our fifth site visit. Both the work of literature we studied in class and the national shrine carry religious symbolism. The book's conclusion represents how Archilde is left as a victim of conspiracy, just as Jesus Christ was left. The protagonist is similar to Christ in the way that they were both rejected by their own communities. Jesus' final sacrifice was by giving his life as a "man" as an atonement for all of our sins. In a similar way, Archilde is sacrificed by his own. 

The Greek Orthodox religion as a whole generally shares some similar beliefs with other Christian denominations, in agreement that God revealed himself to man through Jesus Christ- that he was crucified and resurrected. While the traditions and lifestyle of Greek Orthodox churches differ from the others, I just wanted to touch on the concept of religious symbolism in The Surrounded in ENG202 that relates to the site visit that we came across as a class. 

 

Creative Component:

    My fifth creative component for this site visit is a sonnet about my newfound understanding of the Greek National Shrine. In my middle school years, I loved reading the Percy Jackson book series and Heroes of Olympus. When I thought about Greek culture, all that came to mind were these mythological stories and novels that I cherished as a kid. But after my research and after visiting a Greek Orthodox shrine, I don't only think about mythology when I think about Greek history, I also think about the colony that sought peace in Saint Augustine.

Now, I Think

Lavinia Lenssen

When I thought Greek, I thought mythology,

of Hades, Poseidon, Hera, & Zeus,

not the Messiah's genealogy.

rather than Dionysus' grape juice. 

But here, I came upon this hidden gem, 

concealed amongst the shops and restaurants

A shrine to the one born in Bethlehem. 

Wouldn't a work of art be something to flaunt?

Now, when I think Greek, I think mosaics

many a tile for the Orthodox

These colorful, these beautiful relics

of eighteen saints, all kept in a gold box.

Now, I think of all our "protoporoi", 

who forged a new life, may we all enjoy.