The iconography of the life of St. Pahomie from Sucevița Monastery, analyzed at the Bose Orthodox Spirituality Conferencetranslated

The iconography of the life of St. Pahomius the Great from the Sucevița Monastery was analyzed on Thursday at the International Orthodox Spirituality Conference in Bose, Italy, in a presentation given by Arch. Chrysostom Rădășanu.

The study carried out by the teaching staff at the Faculty of Orthodox Theology "St. Dumitru Stăniloae" in Iasi starts from the special character of the exterior painting of the monastery church. The Archimandrite shows that the representation of Saint Pachomius is common in the churches of Orthodox monasteries.

"However, at the Sucevița Monastery, the cycle of the saint's life is considerably more developed, occupying a substantial part of the northern exterior wall of the large church, immediately next to the main entrance," explained the father.

The paper analyzes the relationship between this iconography and the other large compositions on the northern wall, including the scenes of the Creation and Fall of Man and the Staircase of St. John the Ladder.

According to the study, the iconography of Saint Pachomius "seems deliberately placed as a theological bridge between the two visual narratives already mentioned: the warning of the Fall and the possibility of the ascent."

A sure guide Archim. Chrysostom Rădășanu has...