thirty-eighth visit: Feb 20th 2011 Ukrainian Catholicism (Orthodoxy)

10:30am sunday
St. John Chrysostom Byzantine Catholic Church
506 Saline St, Pittsburgh PA 15207
greenfield

This church is well worth a gander. And to me, the experience of service, also. Restoration completed in the 1990's renewed quality, but did not touch character, expression of ethnicity. The colors used in the interior iconic paintings are exquisite. Rich. Full. Unapologetically chromatic. I usually need the crackled-surface of old paint in these churches to win me over. Here not so. Fresh is done so well, that I didn't miss antiquity one bit.

Father Schaefer explains that this is the largest iconic screen in the city. I count the number of painted faces that peer down at worshipers: 177. I'd think it's the largest in several cities. Maybe he did say the largest in the US. Could have; I am tired. I do know that he said the Warhol family did not claim this as "their" church despite Andy's baptism here. They did attend for a period of time, however, and Andy is buried in the associated cemetery. I didn't question further; I could tell his mind was on the fact that he needed to start mass.