Categoria: Church in Antarctica

Thanks to the efforts of the staff actually on Petrel Base (WAP ARG-17) , the small Chapel of “Santo Cura Brochero” has  been equiped with electricity.

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The Chapel which was previously not equipped with a power line, is named after Jose Gabriel del Rosario Brochero (16 March 1840 – 26 January 1914), a Catholic priest who suffered leprosy throughout his life. He is known for his extensive work with the poor and the sick. He became affectionately known as “the Gaucho priest” and the “cowboy priest”.
He was beatified on 14 September 2013 after a healing was recognized as a miracle attributed to him. Cardinal Angelo Amato, on the behalf of Pope Francis, presided over the beatification.

Another miracle under investigation was approved in 2016 and a date for canonization was approved in a gathering of cardinals on 15 March 2016. 

Jose Gabriel del Rosario Brochero  was canonized as a Saint on 16 October 2016.

A celebration held at Argentinean Base San Martín (WAP ARG-Ø8) on the day of the Immaculate Conception,  gathered the Base personnel to pray in front of the niche with the image of the Immaculate Virgin Mary.

It is beautiful to see how, even in Antarctica, the desire for prayer is felt, as well as the importance of  the Immaculate Virgin protection is not forgotten … these are experiences that touch the heart.
WAP joins the ceremony of that particular day and wish everyone down there a safe season in the magic white Antarctic to be enjoyed
Keep up the good work guys!

The Kerguelen archipelago, closer to Antarctica than to any other inhabited land, is located in what was called the “Roaring Forties belt”. With this name the sailors at the time of sailing ships and geographical explorations called the ocean area which runs almost continuously around the globe between the latitudes of forty and fifty degrees of the southern hemisphere; the name gives a good idea of the navigation conditions of the waters. Also known as the Desolation Islands, the Kerguelen archipelago consists of 300 islands, islets, and reefs which lie between 48° to 50° South and 68° to 70° East, covering an area of 7,215 km² (2,786 mi²) .

The main Island is Grande Terre.  Port aux Français  located on the Grande Terre Island (675 km²  or 2,577 sq mi) is the main center and  is the site of a scientific base (WAP FRA-Ø4) .

The most incredible building in “Port aux Français” is certainly the chapel of Notre Dame des Vents (Our Lady of the Winds), built in the 1950s: the southernmost French place of worship on the planet. A few tens of meters halfway between the chapel and the sea, there is a famous statue of the Our Lady and Child.

During the year, the chapel sometimes hosts an officiant who celebrates mass in the Catholic rite. A pleasant glimmer of spirituality in such a remote place, almost another planet, which has always been seen only as a piece of land to be exploited.

 The statue of the Virgin and Child is located between the Chapel of Notre Dame des Vents (Our Lady of the Winds) and the Gulf of Morbihan

Year 1956. The first Chapel at McMurdo Station was built in 1956 by pious U.S. Navy Seabees.  On May 6,1956, the Chapel was consecrated to Our Lady of the Snows and the bell consecrated to Saint Dismas, the good thief.(see Our Lady of the Snow … Old memories by Patrick McCormick, a proud Antarctic veteran – W.A.P. (waponline.it).

At the beginning, it was also known as Chapel of St. Dismas (see the life od St. Dismas at the bottom of this page) after the good thief. Originally there were neither plans nor materials requisitioned to build a chapel, so, they “found” extra materials and built it on their own time. Father Ron O’Gorman of the Christchurch Diocese traveled on an icebreaker and was the first New Zealand priest to celebrate Mass in Antarctica, Dec. 25, 1957.

In preparation for Antarctic research to be conducted during the International Geophysical Year (1957-1958), U.S. Naval Construction Battalion personnel (Seabees) began building McMurdo Station during the 1955-1956 austral summer. The original plans for the station did not include a chapel; instead, religious services were to be held in the station mess hall.

However, according Admiral George Dufek, who commanded Deep Freeze I, “As the construction of the buildings at McMurdo progressed a mysterious pile of lumber, planks, nails, Quonset hut sections, and assorted materials began to accumulate on a knoll overlooking the camp.” Just few years later the Chapel was renamend as Chapel of the Snow (aka Blue Chapel .  Picture aside show how the Chapel was in 1963 and Blue Chapel 1968.

The Chaplain, Father John C. Condit, and volunteers from the construction battalion gradually gathered enough materials to build what was to become the first church ever erected in Antarctica. All of the work was done by volunteers after their daily duties were finished. Admiral Dufek also observed that “The men, after a hard day’s work, would drift over to the church site. Before the main camp was finished a tidy neat church with a steeple was to stand on a ridge overlooking the camp. Later it even had a bell, procured from a small gasoline tanker.” When the Chapel was completed, Father Condit had the world’s most southern parish.

The Chapel of the Snows at McMurdo Station was destroyed by fire on 22 August 1978. No one was injured, but the chapel and almost all its contents were a total loss. For 22 years this simple building provided a place of worship for personnel not only at McMurdo Station (WAP USA-22) but also from nearby Scott Base (WAP NZL-Ø1). 

Year 1979. On Easter Sunday 1979, the second Chapel or the Temporary Chapel was dedicated.
Here some details: A refurbishing of McMurdo Station was planned by the National Science Foundation, and a new chapel was included in the design. To replace the burned Chapel, volunteers converted a quonset Hut near the station’s main building. While they worked to complete this temporary Chapel, the Chalet served as the site for the community’s religious services. However, this building, which normally houses NSF and contractor offices, could not accommodate both Sunday morning services and daily administrative activities during the summer season.

The Temporary chapel built by the community was left abandoned until it too, suffered a fiery demise during a condition 1 storm on 18 May 1991. It caught fire and was totally destroyed. 

Year 1989. The third chapel was designed to replace the previous temporary one in use as such after the 1978 fire until. The new building was dedicated in 1989.
Although the original chapel and the temporary building were built entirely by volunteers, the new building was constructed as part of the National Science Foundation’s plan to refurbish the McMurdo Station. The 2,016-square-foot wood structure contains office space, a central worship area that normally seats 63, and McMurdo’s only organ. Materials to complete the building were salvaged from older structures that were ripped down during the several-year rebuilding of the station.

McMurdo Station once again has a permanent place of worship. To commemorate this occasion, approximately 80 people gathered on Sunday, 29 January 1989 to dedicate the new Chapel of the Snows, which is the third chapel to be raised at the station.

The current Capel, the Chapel of the Snows, is the third in the history of McMurdo. It is the southernmost house of worship in the world.

See also: Churches in Antarctica (oceanwide-expeditions.com)

The Life of Saint Dismas
We don’t know much about the life of Dismas. Most of it is the subject of legend. A popular medieval legend surrounding Dismas’ life is:

While the Holy Family was fleeing to Egypt, they stopped to spend the night in a cave. Living in the cave was a family with a son about the same age as Jesus. Sadly, the infant had leprosy, which was a painful and contagious disease. Mary told the mother of the child to bathe him in the water she had just used to wash our Savior. The mother did as Mary instructed and instantly cured the child. The two boys grew up and learned the trade of their fathers. Jesus preached and went about His ministry. While the other became a thief, like his father. The two men met again on Calvary. One of the thieves, traditionally called Gestas, mocked Jesus claiming if He really was the Son of God he could save Himself and them as well.

But Dismas rebuked him saying that they were thieves and received their punishment justly but Jesus was falsely accused. Then turning to Jesus he apologized and asked, ” Lord, please remember me when you go into your kingdom.” Jesus replied, “Today you will be with Me in Paradise.”
Dismas died around 33 in the year of Our Lord.
Saint Dismas’ Feast Day is March 25 and he is the patron of prisoners (especially condemned) and repentant thieves.

Renovation work continues on the infrastructure of the Petrel Joint Antarctic Base (WAP ARG-17) within the framework of its reopening as a permanent Station, during the 2022/23 Summer Antarctic Campaign.

The main advances in the building recovery, are focused on the reconditioning of the rooms and the extension of the sewage network of the main house. While the total restoration of the hangar, includes the reinforcement of the electrical network.

The complete repair of the road to the Main Power Plant, the demolition of the old power plant and the bases of disused communication towers, are part of this second phase of development together with the renovation of the landing strips and the disposal of waste. antarctics

For the construction of the maritime pier, personnel from the Naval Hydrography Service are carrying out bathymetry studies on Dundee Island.

Also,  Petrel Base has already inaugurated its new small Chapel named “Santo Cura Brochero”.

Jose Gabriel del Rosario Brochero (16 March 1840 – 26 January 1914) was a Catholic priest who suffered leprosy throughout his life. He is known for his extensive work with the poor and the sick.. He became affectionately known as “the Gaucho priest” and the “cowboy priest”.
He was beatified on 14 September 2013 after a healing was recognized as a miracle attributed to him. Cardinal Angelo Amato, on the behalf of Pope Francis, presided over the beatification. Another miracle under investigation was approved in 2016 and a date for canonization was approved in a gathering of cardinals on 15 March 2016. Jose Gabriel del Rosario Brochero  he was canonized as a saint on 16 October 2016.
More info at: Argentina reactivates Petrel base in Antarctica | Polarjournal

The Ministry of Defense advances with the reconstruction work of the Petrel Base | Argentina.gob.ar

Dr. Carlos Court Lucero,  Retired Radiologist, Medical Lieutenant of the Argentine Navy Reserve
Member of the 4th crew at the Corbeta Uruguay Scientific Station on Morrell-Thule Island,  South Sandwich Islands did help to find a recent picture of the new Chapel, which will be pubblished  on the Church in Antarctica section here at WAP website.
TNX Dr. Carlos

Recently, WAP  got a mail from one of our readers: Dr. Carlos Court Lucero Retired Radiologist, Medical Lieutenant of the Argentine Navy Reserve, Member of the 4th crew at the Corbeta Uruguay Scientific Station on Thule Island,  South Sandwich Islands

Carlos,  reports  to  have been to the Scientific Station of Corbeta Uruguay (Estación Científica Corbeta Uruguay), among the  IV Dotation Winter 1981.
The Association Amigos de Villa del Parque (Buenos Aires-Argentina) made a donation of a replica of the Virgin of Lujan “with gaucha figure”, work of the sculptor Dra. Mary Luz Luna, to be enthroned in the Antarctic Base of Corbeta Uruguay. 

This happened in the southern summer 1980/1981. Our Lady of Lujan,  was located in the Principal House so that  she could have been seen daily by the believing staff.

While thanking Dr. Carlos for his kindmess, we are happy to put another interesting piece of information on the pages of the history of worship and spirituality in Antarctica.
TNX Dr. Carlos Court Lucero

Just briefly about  Corbeta Uruguay Station (WAP ARG-22) on the South Sandwich Islands
in January 1955 the icebreaker ARA ‘General San Martín’ built the Esquivel Refuge (WAP ARG-26) on Morrel Island, which was the first housing facility in the entire archipelago and at that time,  the plan to install a Base nearby did arise. Infact, In the summer of 1976/77 the “Corbeta Uruguay Research Station” was installed 350 meters east of the Esquivel Refuge, and the following summer it was transformed into a permanent base with a crew of ten people, being the first and only presence of this type in that archipelago. We must also recall that, as reported in several documents,  in the summer of 1982/83 the Base Corbeta Uruguay  was dynamited by the British. 

A post from Stefania Dimofte  on FB, bring us to the oldest Church in Antarctica,  and more precisely,  in the Sub Antarctic South Georgia Island.

“The Whalers’ Church” is a typical Norwegian timber church. It was commissioned, and largely financed, by Carl Anton Larsen and designed by his son inlaw , architect. The Church was prefabricated in Strømmen, Norway, and erected by the Station workers in their spare time. The two bells in the steeple rung out on 1913’ Christmas Eve. On the following day, Solveig Jacobsen, granddaughter of CA Larsen, was baptised by the pastor Kristen Løken.

December 2013 did mark the centenary of the opening of the Whalers’ Church at Grytviken Station (WAP GBR-29). A special commemorative service took place on Christmas Day 2013, with a congregation including members of Oyas Venner (Norway’s Friends of South Georgia) who arrived on the cruise ship Fram as part of a voyage to celebrate the Church’s anniversary.

On Dec. 26 2020, Stefania wrote: «Christmas in Whalers Church in Grytviken, South Georgia, the oldest church in Antarctica which was consecrated on Christmas Day 1913. As in old days we sang carols and we remembered those who once lived here. We remembered Sir Ernest Shackleton whose funeral took place here….»

Merry Christmas to all my friends who share the same love and interest for the White continent and its explorers!» ended up Stefania

December 8, Feast of the Immaculate Conception.
Gianfranco Santovito, actually at MZS (WAP ITA-Ø1) sent  Happy Feast of the Immaculate Conception to all the Antarctics.

Gianfranco wrote: There is no church at MZS (Mario Zucchelli Station), but there is no lack of moments in which religious faith can be shared. Last night, to celebrate the Immaculate Conception, some of us went to a small “sanctuary” that has been set  on the hill behind the Base for years,  to recite an Hail Mary and an Our Father.

TNX Gianfranco Santovito and Daniele Guidi

Like a letter left in the fireplace for Santa Claus, the Archibishop of Montevideo, Cardinal Daniel Sturla (picture aside) espresses the desire that Uruguay, likewise other Latin America’s nations and the world, could have its own Catholic Chapel in Antarctica.

The existence of  a letter was revealed by the weekly  “Busqueda Magazine” and was allegedly written in september 2015 to General Claudio Romano who then chaired  the Governing Council of the Antarctic Institute of Uruguay.

The letter, begins by referring to an unspecified requested, that came to the Archibishop from some people linked to the Uruguayan Antarctic Base Artigas .

Artigas (WAP URY-Ø1), is a small scientific research Station founded in 1995, on the Icy Continent. Right here, the Archibishop of Montevideo would like a “Chapel intended for prayer and personal reflection” to be erecterd.

Artigas is a Base active all year round, with an allocation of 8 people in winter and 70 in summer. «We think that for our compatriots, who spend a season there , the presence of a Chapel and a place suitable for the image of our Patroness can only be of benefit» writes the Archibishop of Montevideo, Cardinal  Daniel Sturla.

For years at Artigas Base there has been an image of the Virgen de los Treinta  y tres Partroness  of Uruguay. «This avocation of the Mother of Jesus is linked to our homeland history» observed Monsignor Sturla.

«National Indipendence was proclaimed at the foot of the original image . Many patriots venerate Her and General Don Manuel Oribe, as a vote of Her, after a shipwreck, placed the golden crown on Her head with which She is honoured. Other nations present in Antarctica also have their own Chapel»

But the partiotic strings, such as religious ones and those od nationals prestige, do not seem to have mobilized the Uruguayan authorities in charge  of Antarctica, if.  until a little less than a year, after the request  was fornulated, it has not yet received an answer!

The weekly “Busqueda”, consulted in order the Deputy Minister of Defense, Jorge Menéndez, who declared that he was not aware of the petition of the head of the Uruguayan Church: «It may be that, the Antartic Institute itself considered that it was not relevant toforward it»,  he commented evasively.

Even the first recipent of the letter, Gen. Claudio Romano does not remember exactly what happend with the request. The Antarctic Institute receives many project and several of them “are not discarted”,   he justified himself, but no attention is paid if those who presented them “do not insist on showing interest”.

Also laconic was the head of the Army, Real Admiral Leonardo Alonso, who stated that although he does not oppose the idea, he does not see the need of another Chapel when nearby there is already a Catholic one belonging to Chile and another Ortodox  belonging to Russia.

«Furthermore, a Chapel means a priest and a priest would not be of much use outside the exercise of his ministry» commented the respondents between the lines.

«Two extra pairs of hands that help with daily tasks are welcome but if the priest who arrives were a person who does nothing, it would be an extra worry, an headache for the few who are there».

«In the nearby Russian Base, there are two Orthodox priests; one a carpenter, the other a plumber» points out Busqueda.

Translated from: https://www.papaboys.org/una-cappella-in-antartide-per-luruguay/

Christchurch in the Southern Island of New Zealand is an outpost, an ideal location to jump down South, in Antarctica. WAP wish to recall that in 2011, a 6,3 magnitude earthquake struck Christchurch. The quake caused considerable destruction, and the Christ Church Cathedral suffered major damage to its facade, western porch, and adjacent walls. Its 118-foot tower and 88-foot spire also collapsed.

It took 40 years to build the Christ Church Cathedral; the cornerstone was laid in 1864 and construction completed in 1904. The building has served as a historic place of heritage, a sacred place of worship, and a civic place of gathering. With its demise, the cathedral signified a broken city.

10 years after quacke Christ Church Cathedral finally rising.
Read more at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/22/healing-the-heart-of-the-city-the-battle-to-restore-christchurchs-cathedral

Christchurch, New Zealand is an Antarctic Gateway City, one of only five in the world.

The role of the Christchurch Antarctic Office is to co-ordinate the opportunities presented by Christchurch’s Antarctic Gateway status and to explore our historic and modern connections with the icy continent.

As Sir Edmund Hillary noted: «Much of the history of Antarctic exploration has flowed through Christchurch, starting over 100 years ago with the “Heroic Era” explorations of Captain Robert Falcon Scott and Sir Ernest Shackleton, who both used Christchurch as a base camp for their Antarctic expeditions».

Actually, around 100 direct flights a year leave from Christchurch airport, carrying more than 5,500 passengers and 1,400 tons of cargo, including fresh food.

Nobody owns Antarctica. The Antarctic Treaty was signed on 1 December 1959 by 12 countries (now 49 nations) designating the Continent as a natural resource devoted to peace and science.

Pilots of the Argentine Air Force have a great devotion to Our Lady of Loreto, She is their patroness! Not only in Italy but the worldwide devotion of the aeronauts is something that involves the world of pilots and flight-related personnel.
Here is a testimony told by Jorge Canova, pilot of the Argentine Air Force who is sharing the image of Nuestra Señora de Loreto  enthroned at Matienzo Base during the 1970/71 Antarctic campaign.

This is the Image of Our Lady of Loreto, Patroness of the Argentine Air Force, which we had enthroned at our beloved Matienzo Base (WAP ARG-Ø1) in Antarctica. This celestial being was a witness to our efforts, our problems and the alternatives of our life in those places surrounded by ice.

Her holy imagine engraved on medals screwed on the boards of our planes accompanied us on our flights as a crew member who did not appear in the passengers’ list, but left in our hearts the evidence of his permanent presence and protection in the Antarctic skies.

Fifty years ago we had to experience two dramatic circumstances during a landing at the Petrel Naval Air Force Detachment and a take-off at the Marambio Base where our lives were in danger.

In the quiet of my home, I look back remembering those moments where four people were protagonists flying the P-03, saving our lives by the Grace of Heaven.

TNX Jorge Canova

How far and wide does Don Bosco go? Certainly up to the more than 130 countries on the five continents where the Salesians are present today. What if you wanted to go even further?
Well, if we were to go to Antarctica, we’d also find a small image of Don Bosco there too. This photo was taken 15,073 kilometers from Spain as Don Bosco is present as patron of the military contingent that accompanies environmental researchers on the Antarctic Continent.

The Spanish Antarctic Station Gabriel de Castilla (latitude 62º 55’ S and longitude 60º 37’ W) WAP ESP-Ø2 is located on Deception Island, in the archipelago of the Southern Shetlands . The station is managed by the operations Bureau of the Army General Staff, which organises and directs the operation of the Station. During the the refuge “Gabriel de Castilla” was set on Deception Island, during the Spanish Antarctic campaign of 1988 and being officially inaugurated in 1989 as a military refuge to support research and topographical surveys.

Since its installation, this refuge has been managed by the Army, in close collaboration with the UTM-CSIC. In 1998 the refuge was classified as an Antarctic Station, and in 1999 as a ICTS. Since then it has undergone various periods of remodelling, the most important in the year 2009. This station is designed to carry out singular, cutting-edge scientific activities, and its results are valuable for polar research. Due to its singular nature, it is at the disposal of the national and international scientific communities, hosting studies concerning volcano monitoring, astrobiology, geology, and ecology.

According to the Spanish Military Association (AME), he is the patron saint of the Specialist Corps of the Ground Army and of the fundamental specialties of this corp: Electronics and Telecommunications, Maintenance and Assembly of Equipment, Electricity, IT, Automotive, Aircraft Maintenance, Maintenance of Weapons and Materials, Maintenance of Vehicles, Electronic and Telecommunication Maintenance, Welding, Electricity and Assembly of Equipment.

How did this initiative come about?

The first seminar on the Corps of Specialists was held at the Navacerrada Residence (Madrid) on 27 and 28 November, 1998. Among other things, the convenience and the need to have a specific Patron who could serve as an element of unity and generator of the spirit of the Corps was demonstrated; hence, for the elections, the existing traditions were reviewed and, taking care to preserve the ones with which the majority of the staff members of the Corps of Specialists identified, most having been students of the Professional Institutes, centers that very often venerated St John Bosco, On January 24, 2000, in a communication from the Army Chief of Staff,  St. John Bosco was officially designated as Patron of the Specialist Corps of the Ground Army, after his approval in the corresponding act, issued by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, and sanctioned by Msgr. José Manuel Estepa Llaurens, then Military Ordinary of Spain.

Every year the Specialists of the Ground Army celebrate Don Bosco on February 1^st.

Source: https://www.infoans.org/sezioni/notizie/item/9561-spagna-don-bosco-in-antartide-patrono-del-corpo-degli-specialisti-dell-esercito-di-terra

The news reporting the build of an “Ice Chapel” outside St. Albert The Great Parish on Michigan Tech’s campus,  (see picture aside) reminds us the Ice chapel carved into the ice at the Argentine Base of Belgrano II (WAP ARG-Ø6) in Antarctica!

HOUGHTON, Mich. – On Saturday afternoon, at least 40 people gathered in a student-made ice chapel outside St. Albert The Great Parish on Michigan Tech’s campus. Every person was required to wear a mask during services.

«This is the 6th consecutive year ice masses were held with 200-250 total people attending overall». Father Ben Hasse says holding prayers in the outdoor venue is something special.

«Every year, we’ll see guests and visitors from the area» Hasse said. «Often, students will bring their parents, and we get to meet their parents. Students will bring their friends. It’s been a great opportunity to welcome people, to meet them, and to pray with them.”

Hasse looks forward to having more people at ice mass during the next winter carnival and also hopes for new architectural additions to the chapel.

Thanks and credit to: https://www.uppermichiganssource.com/2021/02/07/michigan-tech-holds-annual-ice-mass-2/

Antarctica– The Chapel of  “Nuestra Señora de las Nieves” (Our Lady of the Snows) is the southernmost place of worship in the world, 800 miles from the South Pole. It serves as a permanent Catholic church for those that reside on Belgrano II (WAP ARG-Ø6) throughout the year.  Although it’s located in Antarctica, it falls under the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bahía Blanca in Buenos Aires,   Argentina with Guillermo José Garlatti as their Archbishop.

In 1959, the first Belgrano Base (WAP ARG-Ø5) was built by the Argentinians and included a chapel. However, the ice that the base was built on was unstable forcing them to relocate. Despite Antarctica being covered almost 98% by ice, they found ice-free land close to the original to construct a new base. Nearby the newly built Belgrano II  Base,  a system of tunnels and caves was dug out of ice that eventually included the new chapel that remains today in permanent ice. (see picture aside)

Argentina has four churches on the Icy Continent;.

Chapel of Our Lady of the Snows – Belgrano II Base, Bertrab Nunatak, built 1979
San Francisco de Asis Chapel – Esperanza Base, Hope Bay, built 1976
Chapel of Santisima Virgen de Lujan – Marambio Base, Marambio Island, built 1996
Chapel of Santa María Reina de la Paz – Villa Las Estrellas, King George Island

Hope Point, 54° 17′ South,  36° 29′ 15″ West,  is a rocky bluff,  20 meters (70 ft) high, which forms the north side of the entrance to King Edward Cove.

Hope Point (South Georgia) is the site of a monument erected by Sir Ernest Shackleton’s men, the memorial cairn and cross at the end of King Edward Point, beyond the British Base (WAP GBR-24),  face the Cove since 1922.

The cairn and cross in memory of Sir Ernest Shackleton  at King Edward Point was erected by the crew of the Quest Expedition on their return from the South. They were unable to attend Shackleton’s funeral as they had set off on the expedition thinking the body was bound for England.

Photo: The Wilkins Collection (c) Ohio State University

British Antarctic Survey research Station “M” King Edward Point (WAP GBR-24) is located on Hope Point, the cove’s northernmost headland. Abandoned whaling station Grytviken (WAP GBR-29) is located on the cove’s western shore.

Remembering the 200^th  Anniversary of the discovery of Antarctica, an Italian newspaper has re-proposed what has been in the mind of a group of Italian radio amateurs since 2003; a chapel at the Italian MZS Station in Antarctica.

It’s an idea that comes from the heart, an idea that we have illustrated and explained in meetings, in several schools, to politicians, radio and TV, to bishops, cardinals and no less than 3 Popes in the last 13 years.

We did try to involve the Italian Ministry for Education, University and Research (MIUR) and PNRA, Programma Nazionale di Ricerche in Antartide (Italy)  as well, but nothing. The most important Italian magazines, newspapers, social networks  has talked about this proposal which has been shared worldwide.   It  has also been taken up by some international magazines but to date, it has remained at the level of a good idea!

We do not lose heart and once again we are happy and proud to share the page that an important local newspaper from northern Italy has recently dedicated to “our” idea of creating a corner of spirituality at the Italian MZS base at Terra Nova Bay in Antarctica.

Thanks to François F8DVD, we can show today an envelope  with a rare  Chapel of the Snow “cachet” from McMurdo Station (WAP USA-22)

Philatelists and collectors already know the common terms of the hobby, but refreshing the memory is never a waste of time!

Chachet

In philately, a cachet is a printed or stamped design or inscription, other than a cancellation or pre-printed postage, on an envelope, postcard, or postal card to commemorate a postal or philatelic event. There are official and private (independent of postal authorities) cachets.

 Cover:

A philatelic cover is an envelope prepared with a stamp(s) and address and sent through the mail delivery system for the purpose of creating a collectible item.

Antarctic theme stamps and cachets forming a lovely collection. Antarctic covers of Antarctic Bases and Polar ships  has normally a lovely cachet and many are signed by the ship masters or Base commanders and franked with a diverse selection of worldwide stamps. Covers cancelled on ship or at Antarctic base are always  precious items for collectors.

Postmark

Postmark is an official mark stamped on a letter or other postal package, giving the place, date, and time of posting, and serving to cancel the postage stamp.

On April 16, 1996, a solemn ceremony was held at Marambio Base (WAP ARG-21), where the Military (Castrense) Bishop of the Argentine Republic in Solemn Pontifical, proceeded to bless and inaugurate the Oratory of the Base, placed under the dedication of the Blessed Virgin of Luján

In this chapel on October 23, 2014, a wooden chest with a glass lid was uncovered.  It  contains a rosary and the skullcap used by Pope Francis, along with a parchment framed with the blessing of the Holy Father to the Antarctic.

All of this,  was brought from the Vatican, when the President of the Marambio Foundation had an audience with His Holiness in May 2014; act carried out at the Marambio Base, which is recorded in an act signed by the authorities present.

More information, copy of the documents and photographs, at: www.marambio.aq/oratoriomarambio.html

and now … Happy Easter to all the followers of WAP, the unique website dedicated to Antarctica for Hams and chasers, students and keen of the Icy Continent.

Happy Easter and … stay home !

A small  Czech chapel has been placed on Febr. 21, 2019 at 62°14,784′ South, 58°58,891′ West  in Antarctica during an expedition to the ECO Nelson Base in the South Shetlands on the Nelson Island as already reported on Nov. 22-2019 (http://www.waponline.it/new-chapel-at-eco-nelson-station-wap-cze-o1/).
Eco Nelson Base (WAP CZE-Ø1), will be renamed in the future. Actually it is under the protection of Ministry of Foreign Affairs,  owned and administered by the Czech Antarctic Foundation.

The Chapel  -as told WAP by its builder Prof. Ladislav Janíček– was born from an initiative of himself (Prof. Ladislav Janíček in the pic above) with  the support of his “Antarctic” colleagues and friends, in particular Dušan Jamný, a Chairman of the Governing Board and actually a Founder of the Czech Antarctic Foundation, as a sort of thanks giving.

The building process of the Chapel,  from the beginning till its final placement, was supported by many friends but, at least shortly I would like to mention Dušan Jamný, Zdeněk Musil (picture below) and Pavel Kapler, who helped a lot on site to find the appropriate safe place and work on it. The assembling of the chapel body was done by Michal Janeček and the interior statues inside are by Tomáš Medek, Jiří Pec and Milan Houser.

-There is an hidden content in a capsule put inside the Chapel:  ethos and message, was designed and made by myself-  said  Ladislav Janíček -as my personal thanks giving-.

The time capsule contains:
– St. Wenceslaus choral and Agnus Dei Choral: both compositions are documented by the notes and recording. I wrote them and recorded with the support of Vox Iuvenalis choir (40 voices)
– St. Agnes Ode and St. Ludmila Ode, which I wrote to celebrate
– Graduale – celebrating values of the brotherhood of people in the community and all those who wants to open their hearts for peace and good as well as for others
– Two other my orchestral compositions: St. Wenceslaus Ode and St. Ladislaus Ode

The Chapel is though devoted to the Czech saints who are part of our history: St. Wenceslaus, St. Ludmila and St. Agnes of Bohemia. They come from the royal house of Přemysl, which ruled in the Czech lands from the beginnings of the Bohemia till 1306. St. Wenceslaus is one the first Czech saints and he was a duke of Bohemia assassinated in year 928. St. Ludmila was grandmother of St. Wenceslaus. She was a spouse of the first baptised duke of Bohemia of the Premysl house, Bořivoj I. She was assassinated in 921. Agnes of Bohemia was sister of the king Wenceslaus I and after her resignation on becoming a spouse of the Roman emperor she became a prioress of convent and played an important role for the Czech kingdom after the death of Přemysl Otakar II in 1278 at the battle on the Moravian Field, when the Czech lands were occupied and plundered; his successor, later king Wenceslaus II, was imprisoned. She died in 1281; was canonized in 1989 and became a symbol of the liberation.
Czech Antarctic  Foundation was established to support the Czech Antarctic research, but also to promote the Antartic research worldwide.

It means the base is available also for everyone who might be interested to stay there and conduct research activities. The Czech Antarctic Foundation also plans to upgrade the base infrastructure and build a more sophisticated station and its necessary infrastructure.

In an interview for WAP,  Prof. Ladislav Janíček , explains that Dr. Dušan Jamný is the engine of the Foundation activities and also a director of Czechoslovak Ocean Shipping, which provide a complex logistic support of the Czech Antarctic program including the transport. The honorary president of the Foundation is Pavel Prošek, the founder of the first Czech scientific Station in Antarctica, the Johann Gregor Mendel Base  (WAP CZE-NEW pic aside)  on James Ross Island, managed by Masaryk University.
TNX Prof. Ladislav Janíček

For the anniversary of the canonization of St. Agnes of Bohemia and thanks to the Czeck polar explorers,  a  small chapel in honor of the Saints Wenceslaus I, Agnes of Bohemia  and Ludmilla has been set in Antarctica!

In February 2019, at 62°14.784 ‘South and 58°58.891´West, a small chapel  was placed by members of the expedition to the South Shetland Islands at the site of the renewed Czech Eco Nelson Base (WAP CZE-Ø1). The author of the idea is Doc. Ing. Bursar Ladislav Janíček, (Ph.D., MBA, LL.M.) of  Masaryk University in Brno, Czeck Republic

Inside the chapel there is a sculpture of  “Crucifixion” and a statue of “St. Wenceslas” by Milan Houser, Tomáš Medek and Jiří Pec.

See a short video at: https://www.facebook.com/udalostibrno/videos/503038240293289/ 

Actually, there are two stations owned by Czech Republic in Antarctica: one is the Johan Gregor Mendel Station (WAP CZE-NEW), ran by the Czech Antarctic Program and  Eco Nelson Base (WAP CZE-Ø1).
TNX Fabricio Tavares and Gita OM5MF

Eco Nelson was a private station, which is rather unique. Established a long time before the Czech Antarctic law was adopted; after years of negotiations the Masaryk University (as a host of the Czech National Antarctic Program),  managed to take control over this site on Nelson Island.

Read more about  Eco Nelson at:  https://www.radio.cz/en/section/in-focus/czech-scientists-establish-new-polar-base-on-nelson-island

The structure of the chapel is made of steel and is used for Catholic worship by the various Argentine staff members at the station (as well as visitors). The chapel has a bell tower and a cross. In the chapel there is a replica of the Virgin of Luján solemnly moved from her sanctuary in Buenos Aires before its inauguration.

It was blessed and inaugurated on April 15, 1996 by Norberto Eugenio Martina, a military bishop of Argentina, on whom the Argentine Antarctic chaplain depends. Currently the chapel at Orcadas Base (WAP ARG-15) is the southernmost Catholic temple in Argentina, and one of the southernmost on the planet.

The first Holy Mass of the Catholic Church,  celebrated in Antarctica,  was officiated by Jesuit Felipe Lérida on February 20^th , 1946 right here in the at  Stella Maris chapel at the  Orcadas del Sud Observatory.  An  8-meter cross was erected and on that occasion, and a communication by telegraph., was set to tsend a message to  the Pope Pio XII in Rome.
More infos about the Argentine Chapels in Antarctica can be seen at:
https://es.aleteia.org/2015/07/31/conoce-las-capillas-catolicas-de-la-antartida/

The “Capilla Cristo Caminante”, is located up in the hill behind San Martin Station (WAP ARG-Ø8). The pics aside show the closest shots of the Chapel of which, so far we do not have better visualizing.

San Martin Base was inaugurated on March 21, 1951 by then Colonel Hernán Pujato, being at that time the first Argentine continental scientific Base and southernmost establishment in the world. From that moment on, the Base’s weather station provided indispensable records and forecasts for navigation in the waters adjacent to the Antarctic Peninsula.

As of March 21, 1976 with new facilities it was called San Martín General Army Base until in the 1990s its name was modified to San Martin Antarctic Base or San Martín Base.

Cristo Caminante Catholic Chapel in comprised in the Base facilities, as well as  the Main house, Auxiliary house, Laboratory, Radio Shack, Electric power plant, Automotive park, Automotive workshop, Nursing, Carpentry and Miscellaneous deposits.

Father Pablo Daniel, Caballero Karanik who did visit the Chapel  in the fifth summer campaign to addresses spiritual assistance and responding to the request of the Bishop for the Armed Forces and Federal Security Forces. (Obispado Castrense de Argentina), Mons. Santiago Olivera said:

“I could be at the San Martín Base, and  I was in the Cristo Caminante Chapel, a Holy place where in the last 10 years there wasn’t  a Chaplain, to make a prayer for the incoming seasonal Team ”

The Our Lady of the Snows shrine is one of the many memorials atop hills along McMurdo Sound to men who lost their lives in Antarctica; this one is farther up the trail from Hut Point. The Shrine is dedicated to Richard T. Williams, US Navy – Seabees, who lost his life at McMurdo Sound on January 6, 1956 during initial construction of McMurdo Station.

Seabee Construction Driver third class, USN, Richard T. Williams died when the D-8 bulldozer he was driving, broke through the ice and sank; his body was never recovered.

He was hauling cargo along a track from the ice edge east toward Cape Evans, when his tractor crashed through the ice into 100 fathoms of water about two miles west of Cape Royds. Plans at the time called for a land airstrip to be built between Cape Evans and Cape Royds to support future exploration and the construction of South Pole Station. Heavy ice prevented the convoy from getting close to Ross Island, prompting the need for a long and hazardous traverse. (Immediately after the accident, this project was abandoned, and aircraft facilities were developed on the ice at what would become the Williams Air Operating Facility).

The following year the Our Lady of the Snows Shrine was erected on Hut Point in memory of Williams. At the original dedication on 6 January 1957; chaplain Father Condit is playing the organ, which had been carried up the hill to the site. During the ceremony, David Grisez, a friend of Williams, played “Taps”. The monument has been repaired and restored more than once…most recently in 1995-96 the statue was refurbished and repainted by Carmelite nuns in Christchurch. It was returned during that season, along with a new plaque furnished by the CEC/Seabee Historical

For many years the statue had faced McMurdo Station, but after the rededication she was turned around to face north out over McMurdo Sound toward where Williams was lost.

Thanks and credit to: https://www.southpolestation.com/trivia/igy/willy.html

TNX Pat McCormick (Antarctic Veteran)

Archbishop Sturla would like a chapel at Artigas Base, but the military authorities do not seem inclined to grant the request!

The cardinal of Montevideo, Rev. Daniel Sturla expressed the desire that Uruguay, like other nations of Latin America and other Countries of the world, have its own Catholic chapel in Antarctica.
The existence of a letter was revealed by the weekly Busqueda magazine  and was written in September 2015 to General Claudio Romano, who then presided over the Governing Council of the Antarctic Institute of Uruguay. The cardinal’s letter, awarded in September of that year with this title by Pope Francis, begins by referring to request that came from people linked to the Artigas Base of Uruguayan Antarctica.

Artigas Base is a small scientific research station founded in 1985 in the white continent. It is precisely here that, the Archbishop of Montevideo would like to have a “chapel dedicated to prayer and personal reflection” erected.

The base is active all year with an allocation of 8 people in winter and 70 in summer. -We think that for our compatriots who spend a season there-  writes the archbishop of Montevideo, -the presence of a chapel and a place suitable for the image of our Patroness can only be beneficial-.

In Artigas Base operates a meteorological station that forms part of the worldwide network. For years in the Base,  there has been an image of the Virgen de los Treinta y Tres (Our Lady of  the Thirty-Three), Patroness of Uruguay. -This call of the Mother of Jesus is linked to our homeland history- observes Monsignor Sturla .

National independence was proclaimed at the foot of the original image. Many patriots worship her and General Don Manuel Oribe, as a vote after a shipwreck, placed the golden crown with which he was honored on her head. Other nations present in Antarctica also have their chapels”.

Here below, an interesting video that tells the history which we would like to share with the Antarctic chasers:

Our Lady of the Thirty Three may not be very well known, because She has little history. In 1825, the 36 centimeter statue was brought to what is now Florida City, Uruguay by 33 orientals. In 1857, one of them, Manuel Oribe, gave her a small golden crown. In 1962, Bishop Humberto Tonna crowned it solemnly, and soon afterwards, Bl. Pope John XXIII declared it Patroness of Uruguay.  In 1988, during Bl. Pope John Paul II‘s visit to Uruguay, he consecrated it.

April 16^th, marks the anniversary of the blessing and inauguration of the oratory of the Chapel at  Base Marambio.

On April 16, 1996, a solemn ceremony was held at Marambio Base (WAP ARG-21), where the Military Bishop of the Argentine Republic at the Solemn Pontifical, proceeded to bless and inaugurate the Oratory of the Base, place under the invocation of the Blessed Virgin of Luján .

In this chapel on October 23, 2014, a wooden chest with a glass lid was discovered, containing a rosary and the skullcap that Pope Francis used, along with a parchment framed with the blessing of the Holy Father to the Antarctic, all this brought from the Vatican, when the President of the Marambio Foundation had an audience with His Holiness in the month of May 2014; act performed at Marambio Base, which is recorded in a document signed by the authorities present.

More information, copy of the minutes and photographs at: www.marambio.aq/oratoriomarambio.html

Coming across a social network, I found an interesting page, set by someone set foot in Antarctica and left a tangible sign of what they did!
Here below is a piece of the a long and distinct period of history with a particular feature or characteristic; WAP have to be grateful to Mr. Patrick McCormick a veteran who spent a period of his youth in Antarctica and we are so happy to relive such great memories!

Patrick (pic aside) wrote: I wintered at McMurdo in 1956 and had a hand in building the “Our Lady of the Snows” Chapel. The following is an excerpt from my memoir describing its origin. The attached photo was taken in late December 1956. “There was one building that wasn’t exactly in the original plan.
The Chaplain, LT Father John Condit, universally known as Father John was a free spirited and very persuasive soul began to accumulate and stockpile “scrap” building material at end of the street near the base of Observation Hill. It was only a matter of time until he began recruiting, practically under threat of court martial, “volunteers” on their off time to put this “scrap” together to form a small Quonset Hut. Work began in mid February with some work, much to the chagrin of Mr. Canham, done on Navy time, but it was well into winter before completion. We had no plans, but with “Seabee Ingenuity” and “Can Do” spirit it turned into a chapel complete with altar, confessional, storage closet, steeple and belfry. After the port tanker ships had reached their winter berths, a bell from one of them somehow made its way up the hill to its place in the belfry. On May 6,1956, the Chapel was consecrated to Our Lady of the Snows and the bell consecrated to Saint Dismas, the good thief.”

This is a genuine story and today, after more than 60 years, it revive here as a great example for everyone, certainly a source of pride made relive!

Patrick’s daughter, Maureen McCormick, add an unpublished piece of his father’s story: -My father, Patrick McCormick, whose birthday is today, did not mention that he was the first person baptized as a Catholic in that chapel, at age 18, and , therefore, the first person baptized in Antarctica (most likely!)! –

Well at this point,  it takes me a bit of emotion and I just close the story with the comment came from Patrick:  – I am more than happy to share those memories with anyone who will listen to an old man ramble-

TNX Patrick and Maureen McCormick … and Happy Birthday to this great old man rabble!

WikipediA , the free Encyclopedia says: The majority of Catholic Antarctic sites exist due to the Argentine and Chilean presence on the Continent. The Worldwide Antarctic Program proposes building a Catholic chapel at MZS, Terra Nova Bay, Antarctica; while the first

Catholic chapel (named after Saint Francis of Assisi) was built in 1976 at the Argentine Esperanza Base. The southernmost Christian chapel (in fact, the southernmost place of worship of any religion) lies at the Argentine Belgrano II Base at Coats Land. It is a permanent Catholic chapel made entirely of ice.  (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Antarctica) Once again WAP is proud to be quoted on WikipediA!

The white Chapel of the Snows, a 64-seat house of worship with a pretty, penguin-motif stained-glass window and an organ, is the third Chapel raised at McMurdo Station in Antarctica (the first two were destroyed by fire). The Erebus Chalice, which first traveled to Antarctica with Ross in 1841, may be the oldest Antarctic relic on the continent.

Now, thanks to Francois F8DVD who found and Old postcard (dated 1964)  and shared it; the front side of that card (pic above), shows the original chapel as it was at the time.

TNX F8DVD

A year later November, 1965 articles on Antarctic journal  document the history of this structure. The church has been replaced after the 1978 fire that destroyed it. Read more of the history of this church at: https://www.southpolestation.com/trivia/history/chapel.html

Daniele Karlicek (pic aside), of the Department of Mathematics and Geosciences at the University of Trieste (Italy), did  winter over a couple of times at the Italian-French Base “Concordia-Dome C” (WAP MNB-Ø3)  in Antarctica, involved in a paleoclimatic research campaign as part of the research activities carried out at the Isotopic Geochemistry Laboratory of the University of Trieste.

While he was working on the Antarctic Plateau, Daniele Karlicek left a comment about WAP proposal of buiding a chapel at the Italian Base MZS in Antarctica. –Beautiful initiative, the one of building a Church in Antarctica!- he wrote,  and add: –I did it myself, by reproducing with ice, the Dome Church of my town (Muggia, in the Province of Trieste) at Base Concordia “Dome C” during my overwintering stay- .

Now Daniele has informed WAP that, time ago, an Australian Organization which has probably seen the “ice Church” published somewhere, did ask him to set a video on this matter.

We are glad to share it through, up here at WAP website

Thanks Daniele, you did great… it was a nice way to say a prayer,

Lord will be certainly grateful of your job!

In the Argentinean Base Belgrano II (WAP ARG-Ø6), in the Land of Coats, there is a cave carved in the ice. It is the most southern place of religious worship on the planet, only 800 miles from the South Pole. The Catholic Chapel of “Our Lady of the Snows” serves the base throughout the year. Unlike the other temples that appear in this entrance, the Chapel of  Our Lady of the Snows is dug in the ice instead of being a building to use.

The chapel is accessed through a system of tunnels in the subsoil, built to facilitate the movement of the resident personnel and scientists that works at  Belgrano II Research Station (WAP ARG-Ø6).

Pedro Sarli LU1JHF, sent a link where (in spanish language) you can read the history of Base Belgrano I since the fist inauguration on 18 January 1955 and see lots of pics of this fantastic ice carved chapel.  After an activity of 25 years, the old base General Belgrano (WAP ARG-Ø5) was inactivated. In order to continue the scientific programs and maintain the Argentine presence in the area, on February 5, 1979, the Belgrano II Base was founded as a replacement.
Click on the link below and enjoy the history:

CAPILLA ANTÁRTICA (BASE BELGRANO II) SECTOR ARGENTINO DEL ANTÁRTICO ⛪HOGAR DE LA IGLESIA CATÓLICA EN EL EXTREMO MÁS AUSTRAL DEL MUNDO. HISTORIA LA BASE BELGRANO II.

Pic here above shows the inside view of the ice carved Chapel; belows its the entrance!

TNX LU1JHF

As our readers know, WAP is collecting information and pictures to document what important is, for the people in Antarctica, to have a place to pray Lord, an holy place to free one’s spirit and thank Lord for his magnificence.

In the year 2003, WAP did propose to the italian authorities build a little Church at the Italian Base “Mario Zucchelli Station” at Terra Nova Bay… our proposal is still alive waiting the wall of bureaucracy to fall down!

On one of the thirteen Argentine Research Stations in Antarctica, Esperanza Base (WAP ARG-Ø4), we find the Chapel of San Francisco de Asís. The Esperanza base is inhabited all year round by civilians and is considered by the Argentines, as the southernmost city of the country, although it is only a small village. Besides the church, the base also has a school, a museum, a bar, a casino and a hospital with permanent maternity service and where enough Argentines have  come to the world.

As a curiosity, to say that the first human born in the Antarctic continent, Emilio Marcos Palma, (born 7 January 1978) is an Argentine man known for being the  first documented  person born on the Icy Continent . Emilio Marcos Palma was baptized in the Chapel of San Francisco de Asís.

see also: http://www.waponline.it/11122008/

In addition to the Base Esperanza chapel, there are other Argentine Antarctic chapels permanently located in the operational bases. We’ll see them all  shortly … follow us and enjoy Antarctica as much as we do!

Humans have left their mark on the once virgin continent, Antarctica. In the research bases we can find a number of services that many less isolated places do not have. School, Post office, Hospital, bowling alley or ATM are some of the services we can find in the Icy Continent,  and among all these buildings, Churches could not miss.

Christianity was first established in Antarctica by Captain Aeneas Mackintosh who erected a cross on Wind Vane Hill in 1916. The first religious service was conducted in Antarctica in 1947 by William Menster with about 2,000 people from different Christian denominations in attendance. Research and whaling stations were erected in the large area of Antarctica in the early 1900s. Since then, several scientists are attending the area especially during summer while a few people stay over during winter. The extended stay in the region can be stressful and challenging for researchers. The Jesuit geophysicists have contributed to the growth of religion in the continent through Antarctica mission work. The religion in Antarctica dates back to the discovery of the continent in 18^th century. However, Christianity was the first religious practice in the continent.

Antarctica has several places of worship, and has a growing demand for religious services and worship spaces in its territory. Despite the saying “below 40 degrees south there is no law; below 50 degrees south there is no God”,  the exploration of the continent was closely related to religious activities and had numerous religious (for example, Jesuit geophysicists). Some of the first religious buildings are protected as historical monuments.

Shortly,  WAP will start to publish history and picture of the Catholic Chapels that have been built in most of the  Argentine Research Stations in Antarctica, even if the articles previously published  on the old WAP website have been recovered by Floyd Larck KK3Q are already available through http://www.waponline.it/articles/church-archives/.

Thanks to Marambio Foundation (http://www.marambio.aq/), thanks to Juan Manuel LU4CJM, Roberto LU3CQ, Horacio LU4DXU for providing descriptions and pics,.

The Chapel of the Snows, a non-denominational place of worship at NSF’s McMurdo Station, Antarctica, overlooks McMurdo Sound and the Royal Society mountain range.

The current chapel, dedicated in 1989, features stained glass related to the Antarctic Continent; the Erebus Chalice, a William IV silver gilt chalice carried aboard HMS Erebus by Sir James Clark Ross on his Antarctic voyage during the period 1839-43; and memorabilia from the U.S. Navy‘s involvement in Operation Deep Freeze, the precursor to the NSF-managed U.S. Antarctic Program.

The chapel’s altar comes from St. Saviour’s Chapel in Lyttelton, New Zealand, where Robert Falcon Scott worshiped prior to embarking on his Terra Nova Expedition.

Source: Office of Polar Programs – National Science Foundation

Image; Andrea Dixon, NSF

The full story of the Chapel of the Snows at  (WAP USA-22) can be found at:

http://www.southpolestation.com/trivia/history/chapel.html

Members of the Antarctic Uruguayan ARTIGAS Base (WAP URY-Ø1), journalists and other guests visited the Trinity Church in Russia’s Bellinsghausen Polar Station (WAP RUS-Ø1) on King George Island, Antarctica, during the first week of December 2015. The priest explained to guest how the church was built as well as delivered a speech about the Orthodox and Christian churches in the twenty-first century. (see a video by cicking the gif aside) 

The head of the largest of the world’s Eastern Orthodox churches, Patriarch Kirill, has become the first Orthodox leader to visit Antarctica.

A week after meeting Pope Francis to smooth over centuries of tensions with the Roman Catholic Church, the Russian Orthodox Church’s Patriarch Kirill has reached out to another historically non-Orthodox congregation: penguins.

The Patriarch, who heads the largest of the world’s various eastern Orthodox churches, arrived at Russia’s Bellingshausen research station on King George Island, just off the coast of Antarctica, on Febr. 18, 2016.

(see a video by cicking the gif aside)

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and all Russia prayed at the Trinity Church at the Russian Antarctic Station Bellingshausen on the island of Waterloo (aka King George Island). -You are here on the top of the planet … When I sanctified the water in Antarctica today, I thought about the whole globe below us, and prayed for God’s creation. Praying  in this temple for relatives and all  who works here in Antarctica, for their Countries and the whole world– said the Patriarch.

He took a walk with penguins on the island’s rocky shore before delivering a service for scientists at the Station’s Holy Trinity Church, the southernmost Russian Orthodox chapel on the planet.(see another video by cicking the gif aside)

«Ubi sunt duo vel tres congregati in nomine meo, ibi sum in medio eorum» (Matthew’s Gospel Mt 18,20)

In the last century, the Pontiffs have crossed the boundaries and the Oceans to bring the blessing of God to all peoples, but none have thought of going to Antarctica, a place at the end of the world as Pope Francis says to come from !  Perhaps this possibility could be a goal to him … if he wants it.

The blessing of a vast Earth larger  than Europe, occupied by hundreds of scientific Stations and thousands of people engaged in research, needs the blessing of a Church witnessing to those latitudes the love of God and of the Blessed Mother, His Most Holy Mother.

The above message has been delivered by WAP, 4 years ago,  to Pope Francis, after having sent the same one  to Pope Benedict XVI few years before. That was given among the  WAP proposal to build a Catholic Churh at the Italian Mario Zucchelli Station following the idea launched in the year 2004.

When does Italy break the fear and do something like that?

“When we send polar explorers to the South Pole we don’t ask about their confession, but every person can have a wish to be alone, to pray. Why don’t we build a church?” said  Director of the National Ukrainian Antarctic Scientific Center,  Valery Litvinov .

The St. Volodymyr Chapel, named after Vladimir the Great, is a Ukrainian Orthodox chapel located in the Ukrainian Antarctic Station of Vernadsky Research Base. It is not the first Orthodox church on the ice continent: Russian carpenters built a 15-meter Orthodox church from Siberian cedar in 2004 that is dedicated to the Holy Trinity.

“When you pray there you get unspeakable impressions. It is zero altitude, but you have such a feeling that the church almost flies above Earth,” said Archbishop Augustine of Lvov and Galicia who did consecrate the Ukrainian chapel.

The chapel is small but its work is excellent. It has been  sent to Antarctica while a new group of polar explorers was there. The building and installation of the chapel has been paid by philanthropists. The church is located on Galindez Island at the site of the Ukrainian  research Base. It was built in 2011 and it’s the latest addition to the base buildings.

A wonderful virtual tour, including outside and inside views of St. Volodymyr Chapel,  is available by clicking the gif here aside

The Orthodox presence in Antarctica arises as parts of various expeditions from major Orthodox Christian Nations to the continent as there is not permanent population in Antarctica.

St. Ivan Rilski Chapel at St Kliment Ohridski Station (Livingston Island in the South Shetlands) is the first Eastern Ortodox edifice in Antarctica, the southernmost Eastern Orthodox building of worship in the world

The chapel, was named after patron of the Bulgarians, St.Ivan Ritski. It was built in the year 2003 with the assistance of the Bulgarian Antarctic scientific team.

The foundation stones of the chapel were laid down on December 9, 2001, at that time, the base employs a total of between 12 and 15 people, geologists, biologists, doctors, meteorologists, botanists and others .

A Spanish ship transported the parts that were used to build the chapel and it was completed on 2003. The chapel features include  a bell, a cross, and icons of St. Ivan Rilski, and Jesus Christ the Bridegroom.

The Christian chapel is located on the Livingston Island’s Bulgarian Base of St. Kliment Ohridski.

Recently (year 2012) a new building (see picture aside) was erected on a small slope; it gives the impression to protect the Base from above.