I hope you can join me for the St Symeon Food & Culture Fair for a special day of events, presentations, beautiful chorale music, food, exhibits, church tours, and much more. 

I will be giving an introductory presentation on Orthodox Christian Monasticism throughout the day, featuring photographs from over a dozen monasteries in North America from my book project, The North American Thebaid.

When & Where:

• Saturday, April 28, 10am – 4pm • Event Page
• at St Symeon Orthodox Church • Website
• 3101 Clairmont Ave, Birmingham AL 35205 • Map

From the event description:

Tour the new church building, see and learn about the iconographic murals inside the church, hear our internationally acclaimed choir, and shop at our multi-ethnic market and bakery featuring our gift shop as well as four themed stalls that reflect the diverse ethnicities of our baking teams: The Balkan Coffee House, Cafe Europa, The Slavic Tea House, Southern Sweets and Savories.

The food stalls will offer a variety of baked goods and snacks, specialty coffee and tea, Coca Cola products, and original artwork and crafts. Join us a fun coffee break or tea time, and stock up on delicious homemade baked goods from a variety of different culinary traditions! All market stalls will accept cash as well as Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover credit/debit cards (no checks).

We have some great door prizes to give away throughout the event! Our thanks to Alabama Art Supply for a prize package of acrylic paints, canvases, and other art supplies, and to Ancient Faith Publishing authors including Georgia Briggs, author of Icon: A Novel, who will be at the fair signing autographs, for contributing door prizes.

Look for some free prize drawings running on our social media before and during the fair to win $50 gift certificates to The Fishmarket Southside. Our thanks to them as well for these delicious prizes!

April 28 Schedule:

• 10-4: Shop the Melting Pot Marketplace (fellowship hall), Tour the church
• 11am: Presentation of Sacred Music (in the church)
  
• 12pm: Drawing for Door Prizes (Marketplace)
  
• 1pm: “What is Iconography?” Talk and Tour (in the church)
  
• 2pm: Presentation of Sacred Music (in the church)
  
• 3pm: Drawing for Door Prizes (Marketplace)

 

Do you think of St. Symeon as a Russian church? We do have members with Russian heritage, but we also have members from many other places, especially Alabama. Our church architecture reflects our diversity, combining a Russian-style onion dome with a Greek-style central dome. We’re a parish of the Orthodox Church in America, and our services are in English. Learn more about our architecture and our community at #stsymeonfair18!

 

This large mosaic of the Virgin Mary was made in Italy and was gifted to the church by a private donor. Having overlooked Clairmont Avenue from the previous church building for many years, the icon was moved to its current location on the new church building in the summer of 2015. Come see this beloved Birmingham landmark in person at #stsymeonfair18!