Alaska Orthodox Bishop makes first visits to Aleutians and Pribilofs kyuk.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kyuk.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
As ship traffic increased in Alaska, so did the installation of lighthouses in the early 20th century. And there wasn’t a more remote outpost than the one situated 80 miles northeast of Dutch Harbor.
The local Russian Orthodox community celebrated Slavi, or Russian Christmas, over the weekend, which follows the Julian calendar and takes place Jan. 7. It was the first time the church held in-person Christmas services since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Unalaska’s Church of the Holy Ascension is one of the oldest churches in Alaska, and arguably the oldest Russian Orthodox church in the state. On Russian Orthodox Christmas, congregants stood at the front of the church, spinning large, colorfully decorated stars in clockwise circles, while the choir sang traditional songs in Russian, Unangam Tunuu, English and the Eastern Orthodox Church’s liturgical language, Slavonic.