The House of God. Great in its dignity and holiness, its dome is crowned with a cross. Two thousand years ago our Lord Jesus Christ, through His suffering on the Cross, opened the path to the heavenly kingdom, the same path that each of us must follow today. The cross on the church is sometimes shown standing on top of a half moon, its ends formed like the points of an anchor. The Cross is the anchor which, in the midst of the sea of life’s sudden storms, in times of sadness and misfortune, is the symbol of our trust and hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Next to the church, or sometimes on top of it, we find a special tower. This is the bell tower where the church bells are kept. The bells are rung when it is time to call people to the church for prayer. This ringing is called blagovest in Russian. The Church Tings the bells to call the faithful to services and to announce the most joyful parts. They are also rung to announce the arrival of a bishop or patriarch to the church. When we hear the bells we cross ourselves and say a short prayer; “Remember me, ОLord, in Thy Kingdom.”