Painter of spiritual installation guided by the hand of God
Jan. 23—SAINT CLAIR — Guided by God's hand, a Schuylkill County painter has embarked on a painstaking project of refinishing the sacred iconostasis at St. Mary's Orthodox Church.
"In God's house," Richard Jobrey said, "you want to do the best job you can do with the gifts with which God blessed you."
Jobrey, 70, who started painting the iconostasis on Monday, estimates it will take a week or so to finish the intricate job of painting the white background around gold-tinted images of Jesus, the church's patron saint Mary and the apostles.
Jobrey is only painting the egg shell white background. The extensive gold leaf trim is in good condition, he said.
A resident of Palo Alto, Jobrey has deep roots in Saint Clair.
His grandfather, Vasily Jobrey, emigrated from Austria and settled in Saint Clair, where he worked in the mines. His father, Michael Jobrey, who grew up in Saint Clair, also worked in the mines.
Michael Jobrey, as a side job, started doing wallpapering and painting. Right out of Pottsville High School in 1970, Richard followed in his father's footsteps.
"It's intricate work," he said of painting the iconostasis. "You just have to take your time and use artists' brushes."
In the Orthodox faith, the iconostasis is a wall, or screen, of icons that separates the worshippers from the sanctuary.
"It's a bridge from the earthly to the holiness of the sanctuary," said Gregory Sagan, an ordained reader at St. Mary's.
A graduate of St. Tikhon's Seminary in Wayne County, Sagan explained the origin and religious symbolism reflected in the iconostasis.
As a whole, the iconostasis tells the origin of Christianity in images, or paintings.
The bottom level has three doors, two on either side are devoted to the apostles Peter and Paul. The double door in the center, the holy or royal door, is the gateway to the sanctuary.
On the lower of three levels, or tiers, is a panel devoted to the church's patron, Mary.
The second tier has panels depicting the Nativity, Christ's resurrection and ascension into Heaven.
The Last Supper is depicted in a panel at the center of the third tier. Christ enthroned, flanked by the biblical prophets and martyrs, reigns over the entire assemblage.
"The story of Christianity is woven into the icons," said Sagan, 51, a banker. "It's explained visually."
With a congregation of 21, St. Mary's is the smallest congregation in the Frackville Deanery, part of the Diocese of Eastern Pennsylvania of the Orthodox Church in America.
At the same time, St. Mary's is perhaps the oldest Orthodox parish in Schuylkill County. Its roots date to 1890, according to a story in the Pottsville Republican on May 25, 1940.
The parish. Sagan said, has undergone a recent spurt of growth. In the last year, seven new members have joined.
"I think people are searching for a more traditional Christianity," he said. "People are looking for a place of refuge, something to challenge them to make themselves better people."
St. Mary's is in the process of installing a painting, The Communion of the Apostles, on the rear wall of the sanctuary.
Uncut Mountain Supply, a Michigan company, is making a digital print on canvas for the sanctuary wall. Sagan hopes to have it installed by Easter.
St. Mary's does not have a full-time pastor, but the Divine Liturgy is celebrated by the Rev. Vjekoslav Jovicic of Holy Ascension Orthodox Church in Frackville.
For information on church services and activities, visit stmaryssaintclair.com or the church's Facebook page.
Contact the writer: rdevlin@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6007
