The folks who are seeking to share the Gospel in Russia certainly have their work cut out for them. The mission statement for that region (Central & Eastern Europe) is: "Hope for every heart... a church-planting movement for every people group." And hope is certainly what these folks need. Their expressionless faceless and distant looks speak of tremendous sadness and a lifelong fear and suspicion.
The Kremlin. When a Russian woman was asked why all the "intellectuals" who wanted revolution fled Russia in the 1920s instead of embracing the communist ideology they said they wanted, she replied, "What we wanted was revolution. What we got was terror." What a sad history.
St. Basil's cathedral and night. Beautiful!
This Orthodox cathedral, Church of Christ the Redeemer, was destroyed by the communists and actually turned into a community swimming pool. When religious freedom was restored to Russia money was collected to restore the cathedral to its original beauty.
A typical street in Moscow.
Uzbekistani pottery. I brought Janet back a plate. Each piece is hand-painted and so detalied.
Apparently Moscow and Russia are known for bears. These poor souls are kept just outside a major tourist market for cheap, silly pictures. I guess it's sort of a Russia Gatlinburg... pose with the bear. It's just plain tragic. I DID NOT pay for this picture!
Riding the METRO. You might imagine that I, along with my other American co-workers, stuck out a lot. Americans are pretty loud and border on obnoxious. Those of you who have ever traveled with me know that's a pretty accurate description of how I tackle the countries I travel to.
