“Panagia Eleousa”

“Panagia Eleousa” (Blessed Virgin Mary the Merciful) is the central church of the village and liturgies take place in it quite often. It is located at the east end of the village in the midst of traditional houses. It is of the Byzantine style with a dome, stone-made, and relatively large for a community like that of Kato Lefkara, having the comfort of accommodating around 120 faithful. Externally it has a large and comfortable yard, which is slated. The church’s external wall is 120 centimeters thick. Internally the church is whitewashed. We will not come across any hagiographies but its woodcut icon-screen is unique in its kind, bearing carvings with representations of angels and lions. It is worth noting that above the icon-screen there are another two rows of icons, the so-called “dodekaorto” (twelve-pieces), depicting the most important moments of the Lord’s life such as the “Palm-bearer”, the “Ascension”, the “Resurrection”, and the “Raising of Lazarus”. The Psalters are new, made out of wood but of a modern, more recent design. About 25 years ago the church went through maintenance, the floor of the church’s interior was paved with new slates and the surrounding walls were scraped. As they were digging the floor so as to extract the old slates, they found earthenware jars at a depth of one meter below the earth’s surface. They were placed there so as to reverberate the sound of one’s voice. Furthermore, when they scraped the walls, again they found some small jars placed inside the walls. One arrives at the conclusion that in this way they achieved the reverberation of the Priest’s voice during Mass.

The icon dedicated to “Panagia Eleousa” is very old and it is kept at the church’s icon-screen. It celebrates in a festive manner on the 21st of November, Her Holy Icon being carried about in procession and many faithful from the surrounding region gathering in order to kneel before the Blessed Virgin and attend Mass.

Country Church of Archangel Michael in Kato Lefkara

The country church of Archangel Michael (12th century) is a moderate-sized church where the See of Kition and Lefkara was seated in previous times (during the era of Turkish domination). Back then it used to have cells and it functioned as the area hosting the Bishop. It is built in the Byzantine style with a dome at the south end of the village and in the midst of the community’s fields. It is not very large. Stone-made on the outside, being covered with painting of saints inside, it lacks a steeple and only the monastery bell (triangle) is present. On the right wall there is a hagiography of the Holy Veronica, a bit further the ones of the Baptism, Saint Neofytos, Saint Nikolaos, Archangel Michael, Saint Dimitrios, Saint George, and -in the large dome –the “Theotis tou Kyriou” (the Lord’s Judgment). The church’s icon-screen was old and has been renovated. The little church is small and plain. The icon dedicated to Archangel Michael is very old and it is kept in a special icon stand there in the country church. A liturgy takes place in it twice a year, on the 8th of November, which is Archangel Michael’s day, and on the 13th of July, the day when Archangels Gabriel and Michael are celebrated.

Country Church of “Agios Timotheos” in Kato Lefkara

”Agios Timotheos” (Saint Timothy) is a 15th century structure. The country church is located at the west end of the village, close to the community’s school. It is a small, stone-made country church of the Byzantine style with a dome, which barely can host 100 faithful. Inside it has an arch, which is in the area where the faithful pray. There are hagiographies but with the passage of time they have been distorted. The icon-screen is quite old and it has gone through maintenance in the past 20 years. The icon dedicated to Saint Timothy is very old and it is kept in the church of “Panagia Eleousa”. A liturgy takes place in it once a year during the Saint’s day on the 22nd of January, his Holy icon being transferred there so as to be carried about in procession. The country church does not have a steeple and the faithful are summoned only through the use of a monastery bell (triangle).

The Little Church of “Agia Marina” in Kato Lefkara

“Agia Marina” (Saint Marina) was constructed around the 18th century. It is a small church made of stone externally and located at the village’s center. Its structure is of the Byzantine style, simple and flat in its interior, though with hagiographies. Its steeple is tall and arched and it summons the faithful whenever a liturgy will take place. It has been recently renovated –around 1998. Outside the church there are guests’ houses, which formerly hosted the teachers that came from the surrounding regions so as to teach the children in the community’s school. The dedicated icon is split in two pieces (it was made that way) and it is placed upon a special, arch-shaped kneeling desk on the wall and that is where it is kept. A liturgy takes place in it twice a year, once on Saint Marina’s day on the 17th of July and on Easter Monday or Tuesday.

Country Church of “Agios Georgios” in Kato Lefkara

The small country church of Saint George is located east of the village of Kato Lefkara, on top of a hill. It is a small and plain country church that is externally made of stone. It does not have a steeple but only a monastery bell (triangle). Its interior is whitewashed and humble. It has a simple, woodcut icon-screen and a few seats for the faithful. The icon dedicated to Saint George is kept there in the country church -on a special kneeling desk that is adjacent to the wall -and it is quite old. A liturgy takes place in it once a year, during the Saint’s day on the 23rd of April.