The highly anticipated Faith Seeking Understanding: The Theological Witness of Fr. Matthew Baker is now available from Saint Vladimir’s Seminary (SVS) Press. The book offers a collection of the essays, letters, interviews, and correspondence of Fr. Matthew Baker (1977-2015), exploring the works of Fr. Georges Florovsky and the writings of the Church Fathers.
Second-year seminarian Nicholas Fine joined the ranks of the Holy Diaconate on Sunday, September 12, 2021. Deacon Nicholas, a seminarian of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America (AOCANA) was ordained by the hand of His Eminence, Metropolitan Joseph at St Mary Antiochian Orthodox Church in Brooklyn.
Sponsoring Dn. Nicholas were St. Vladimir's Seminary President Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield and Dn. Nicholas' fellow Antiochian seminarian Rev. Thomas Miller. Several other seminarians from St. Vladimir's were present at the Divine Liturgy and ordination.
May God grant many years to the newly ordained Dn. Nicholas Fine and his family! AXIOS!
With faith in Christ and hope in the resurrection, we share news of the repose of Deacon Michael Bishop, who fell asleep in the Lord suddenly on September 19.
Deacon Michael had served at Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) in Baltimore, MD since his ordination to the diaconate there in 2007. He was also a member of the Bishop's Council of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA. Deacon Michael was awarded the dignity of wearing the double orarion in 2018.
The Rev. Dn. Michael graduated from St. Vladimir's Seminary with a Master of Divinity degree in 1992. He also held a bachelor's degree in sociology from Merrimack College, North Andover, MA.
His is remembered for his kindness, warmth, and love for serving the Holy Church.
May the memory of Dn. Michael be eternal!
Saint Vladimir's Seminary is partnering with the Orthodox Christian Leadership Initiative once again for the 5th Annual National Orthodox Advanced Leadership Conference. We are delighted to bring together emerging and seasoned leaders—clergy and laity, men and women, younger and older—for important conversations as we share in the life and work of the Church. Let’s make this an enriching experience, encouraging one another in Christ!
The event may be attended IN PERSON or ONLINE. Click below to register, view the conference schedule, and learn more.
The Orthodox Christian Leadership Initiative exists to nurture and empower Orthodox Christian servant leadership. It is a national initiative to increase generosity, servant leadership, and social outreach by clergy and laity of all jurisdictions working together nationally, regionally, and locally.
Originating from the Orthodox Vision Foundation and its annual Orthodox Advanced Leadership Conferences beginning in 2017, the Orthodox Christian Leadership Initiative was established as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in October, 2018.
Representative of many jurisdictions and vocational backgrounds, the Board of Directors is committed to supporting leadership development in service to God and neighbor. We affirm what our youngest board member states, "Just as Orthodoxy takes practice and work, cultivating and inspiring leadership in the Church should be an ongoing exercise."
Members of the renowned Tronos Psaltic Group from the Romanian Orthodox Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest performed Byzantine chant live from St. Vladimir’s Seminary on Wednesday, September 15, 2021. The concert at Three Hierarchs Chapel also included performances by the Seminary's Byzantine choir and sextet.
"We were enveloped in prayer through your incredible, incredible way of presenting the Byzantine tradition," Seminary President Fr. Chad Hatfield said as he addressed the members of Tronos following their performance. He also praised the seminarians who performed during the evening, speaking of how proud their performance makes the Seminary community.
The Seminary's Byzantine Choir was led by Seminarian Dn. Nicholas Fine, and Dr. Harrison Russin, assistant professor of liturgical music, conducted the sextet.
Watch a replay of the concert below.
The concert at St. Vladimir’s was part of a series of performances by Tronos throughout the United States in the month of September, at the invitation of His Eminence, Metropolitan Nicolae of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas.
Tronos Psaltic Group is among the most well-known Byzantine choirs in Romania. Tronos was created in 1997 at the initiative of Archdeacon Mihail Bucă, the protopsaltis of Bucharest’s Patriarchal Cathedral of Saints Constantine and Helena. The name “Tronos” was given to the group in 2007 by His Beatitude, Patriarch Daniel. Over its more than twenty-year history, the choir has recorded several albums and performed Byzantine sacred music at venues throughout the world.
Members of the renowned Tronos Psaltic Group from the Romanian Orthodox Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest will offer a special performance of Byzantine chant live from St. Vladimir’s Seminary! The concert—free to attend online—takes place on Wednesday, September 15, 2021, at 7 p.m. EDT.
The concert at St. Vladimir’s is part of a series of performances by Tronos throughout the United States in the month of September, at the invitation of His Eminence, Metropolitan Nicolae of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas.
Tronos Psaltic Group is among the most well-known Byzantine choirs in Romania. Tronos was created in 1997 at the initiative of Archdeacon Mihail Bucă, the protopsaltis of Bucharest’s Patriarchal Cathedral of Saints Constantine and Helena. The name “Tronos” was given to the group in 2007 by His Beatitude, Patriarch Daniel. Over its more than twenty-year history, the choir has recorded several albums and performed Byzantine sacred music at venues throughout the world.
Giving thanks to God, the St. Vladimir's Seminary community is celebrating the ordination of Dr. Vitaly Permiakov, the Seminary's ecclesiarch and assistant professor of liturgical theology, to the rank of deacon in the Orthodox Church. The Rev. Dn. Vitaly was ordained through the hand of His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon at Three Hierarchs Chapel on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, September 14, 2021.
Dn. Vitaly joined St. Vladimir's as a full-time faculty member in August 2020, following an extensive search for a gifted scholar to fill the liturgical theology professorship, a historically prominent position at the Seminary. Already in his short tenure at the Seminary, he has become an integral part of the Seminary's academic and spiritual life, also taking on the role of ecclesiarch at Three Hierarchs Chapel and co-editing the new-look St. Vladimir's Theological Quarterly.
Dn. Vitaly Permiakov was born to a Russian family in Riga, Latvia, and relocated to the United States in 1999 after completing his undergraduate studies at the Latvian Academy of Culture in Riga. He went on to earn a masters degree in humanities from the University of Texas at Dallas, then entered St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary with the blessing of late Archbishop Dmitri (Royster) of Dallas (OCA) (d. 2011). After finishing seminary, Dn. Permiakov enrolled in a doctoral program in Liturgical Studies at the University of Notre Dame, where in 2012 he defended his dissertation on the history and origins of the Byzantine rite for the consecration of churches.
Dn. Permiakov taught at Holy Trinity Orthodox Seminary (Jordanville, NY) from 2011 to 2020 before joining St. Vladimir's Seminary as assistant professor of liturgical theology.
He was tonsured to the ecclesiastical rank of reader in 2002 and ordained subdeacon on the Feast of Annunciation in 2021; both took place also at three Hierarchs Chapel.
May God grant the Rev. Dn. Vitaly many years! AXIOS!
His Eminence, Metropolitan Joseph of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America (AOCANA) has appointed The Right Rev. Archimandrite Jeremy Davis as His Eminence's new hierarchical assistant. Father Jeremy, an alumnus of St. Vladimir's Seminary, began his new position September 1, 2021, and will assist the metropolitan with archdiocesan administration and overseeing its offices in Englewood, NJ.
Father Jeremy succeeds another St. Vladimir's alumnus as hierarchical assistant, Rev. Nicholas Belcher, a current member of Seminary faculty. His Eminence thanked Fr. Nicholas for his years of diligent service upon announcing Fr. Jeremy's new appointment.
Achimandrite Jeremy was born in Iowa in 1976 and raised in Wichita, KS. He and his family were active members of Evangelical Protestant churches. During his high school years, he felt a calling to Christian ministry and subsequently enrolled as a religion major at Friends University in Wichita. In his final year of college, Fr. Jeremy attended Divine Liturgy at St. George Orthodox Cathedral in Wichita at the suggestion of a friend. Though he knew next to nothing about Orthodoxy, he was left in wordless wonder by the experience of its rich theology and genuine spirituality, as they came to life in the piety and love of this parish community. After a period of catechism he was chrismated on Holy Saturday in 1998. Father Jeremy enrolled at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in 2001 and graduated as class valedictorian with a Master of Divinity degree in 2004.
Archimandrite Jeremy was ordained deacon by His Grace, Bishop Basil at St. George Cathedral on January 1, 2006. He worked fulltime at the Cathedral until being ordained priest there (also by Bishop Basil) on July 16, 2006, at which time he was reassigned to St. Elijah Church in Oklahoma City. On March 13, 2016 Fr. Jeremy was assigned as pastor of Holy Ascension Church in Norman, OK. On March 19, 2017, he was elevated to the rank of Archimandrite by His Grace, Bishop Basil. Father Jeremy is a tonsured monk, belonging to the Monastic Brotherhood of St. Silouan the Athonite within the Diocese of Wichita.
May God grant The Right Rev. Archimandrite Jeremy many years!
Hurricane Ida brought torrential rain Wednesday evening to the New York metropolitan area on the heels of a tornado warning and fierce winds, and the deluge that followed caused severe flooding unlike anything in recent memory.
The campus of St. Vladimir's Seminary wasn't spared the storm's wrath. The waterfall on the north side overflowed into the front lawn, ripping up pavement, trees, the community garden, the rock wall, and the fence. Troublesome Creek lived up to its name—both bridges over the Creek were uprooted and carried downstream. Meyendorff Hall sustained some roof damage, and flood waters also damaged a professor's home on campus. A flood-damaged transformer later caused power outages in most of the buildings on campus and had to be repaired.
In the wake of Hurricane Ida, the Seminary faces steep costs to repair all the damage. Yet, thanks be to God, no one was injured.
Clean up will take a while, and if you are able, please make a gift to the Seminary to help support the work to repair our beloved and beautiful campus. Every gift makes a difference, no matter what the size.
The new Workbook Companion to SVS Press’s Building an Orthodox Marriage should prove invaluable for couples preparing for marriage and those who provide premarital counseling.
Building an Orthodox Marriage: A Workbook Companion, by Gregory J. Abdalah, serves as a helpful supplement to Building an Orthodox Marriage: A Practical Commentary on the Eastern Orthodox Marriage Rite, authored by Bishop John (Abdalah) and Nicholas G. Mamey. The Workbook enables pastors and couples to get more out of Building an Orthodox Marriage, and helps them see more clearly how to apply the theological principles and teachings of the Church in the particular circumstances of their own lives.
