#eagle river

I only had an hour in Alaska before I had to be at the airport.

I was told one of the things I needed to do, if I really wanted to experience Alaska, was drive Highway AK 1 North as far as I could.

I also knew from looking at maps prior to my trip that there was an Orthodox community in Eagle River. American Orthodox Christianity, arguably, began in Alaska. Many of the indigenous populations in Alaska think of Orthodox Christianity as their native faith. For that reason, Orthodox communities are more common here then elsewhere in the lower 48.

Because these Orthodox missionaries were exclusively Russian, Alaskan Orthodoxy really reflects the flavor of Russian Orthodoxy more so than the common Byzantium and Antiochian styles found in the lower 48. Also, because Orthodox Christianity tends to try to localize the faith, (except in the English speaking world) the missionaries really worked to try to create churches that would accommodate the indigenous people.

So, I chose to drive North to Eagle River and look at the church there.

These are the photos of the beautiful wooden church. I was unable to talk with anyone, but from the outside, this church looked very much like the outside of St. Innocent Orthodox Cathedral in Anchorage with it's predominant use of wood.

The inside was beautiful too. I just wish I'd taken more pictures - maybe one of the windows and one of the Christmas tree.