[arerrurrY]

I do not know how grace can be measured. And having been in Orthodox churches all over the place, from churches in the post-communist era, which were so empty and destroyed, to churches which are so beautifully decorated in other places, I have experienced all the range of beautiful emotions that only a church can give. I never ever felt that there was no grace in a church... but if there are instances where grace can not be felt then we should look into ourselves. I think what happens is twofold. The church as a place being/feeling holy because of the presence of the Holy Spirit (the presence of angels, saints, relics, the sacraments and prayers said there), and of course the church as a place where the people attract the grace of God with their manner of life and worship. At the end of the world grace will leave the churches because of the people, and the elected will be hiding and worshiping in caves and mountains. Therefore if we feel a lack of grace now we must introspect because it is us who with our lives can collect angels around us, or God forbid can collect the evil ones. However I still do not believe that some Orthodox churches today lack grace, since God knows we are all sinners and He still provides in His infinite mercy. However I have read from a Russian Mother who said during communism that God took the grace from Russia as a land, but that He will give it back to Russia. And I think that even when we read such sayings still we can't imagne this grace retrival in an absolute manner, because if we read lives of people and saints who suffered during communism we can clearly see the grace God bestowed to these holy people and how the grace enveloped those around them and improved their spiritual situation. I (not that my opinion matters much) still beleive that even in the middle of a satanic chaos, God is still there waiting for His children to seek Him, like in the story of Abraham when he lived still in the pagan land of his ancestors and while going out to purchase an animal for sacrificing it to the idols as ordered by his father, Abraham started thinking about the possibility of these idols being just idols and in this moment God was there and spoke to him and told him to leave his home and follow Him.