Iconostasis and Altar
The altar section is divided into three parts: the center with the Holy Table, the prothesis to the north, and the diakonikon (sacristy) to the south. The high altar apse – a semicircular area containing a large fresco of the Theotokos Oranta – Wider than the Heavens – encloses not only the altar section but also the naos from the east side in a striking manner.
The lowest belt depicts the serving of the Liturgy by Holy Hierarchs. Shown in the center of this composition is a Holy Table upon which lies the small Christ the Lamb, who sacrifices and is Himself sacrificed, who receives and who is distributed. The Holy Hierarchs, led by John Chrysostom and Basil the Great, approach the Lamb from both sides one after the other with unrolled scrolls in their hands upon which the beginnings of prayers and blessings from their liturgical texts are written. The selection of the bishops in the composition is not historical but symbolic, reminding of the unity and consistency of faith, of the fact that all churches of the Christian Orthodox community throughout the ages serve one and the same Liturgy.
