Your Russian woman may or may not be religious. If she is religious, chances are that she will be an Orthodox Christian. Sure, in Russia all other religions are represented. But by far the most common is the Orthodox sect. Obviously you should check with her to verify her preferences. But I suggest you make the effort to locate the nearest Russian Orthodox church. Even if she’s Jewish, the Russian church will provide her with a gateway to community.

In her own language, she’ll be able to locate places to shop, places to eat, organizations, and general support. For her to be able to connect locally with Russian culture will go a long ways in easing her transition to life in America.

You can also locate Russian restaurants, food stores and bakeries where she can connect with community. Just check your phone book or search on Google for your local area. You’ll be amazed at how much Russian “stuff” you’ll find all over America. There are very large Russian communities in many American cities, particularly in New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles.

Locating restaurants, etc. is good, but I still recommend locating a church as the best way to provide her with a high quality, comprehensive transition interface. To help in your search you can check the ROCOR Parish Directory at http://www.orthodox.net/links/rocor.html. Or call the Synod Of Bishops of ROCOR at (212) 534-1601. (”ROCOR” means Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia).

The bottom line here is that the more resources you can make available for her to connect with community, the easier her transition will be for both of you. Try to keep in mind that “you can take a woman out of Russia, but you can’t take Russia out of the woman”.

And speaking of Russian churches, below is a photo I took of St. Michael’s Cathedral/Monastery in Kiev, Ukraine. And yes, that’s real gold covering the domes. If your Russian bride is from Ukraine, you’ll no doubt be in Kiev at some point in time. While there, definitely take the time to visit this incredible work of art.

I’ll have more to write about visiting Ukraine in future posts. Until then, best wishes. Gary

 

kiev-st-michaels-2.jpg