View the Gala photo gallery (Photos: G. Hatrak)

A recent gala hosted at the Estonian House on 34th Street in New York launched a project that promises to bring one of the most famed living Estonians in the world—composer Arvo Pärt— to Manhattan for an unprecedented concert–lecture series. The series will specifically explore the spiritual roots of Pärt’s music and will center on a concert at Carnegie Hall on May 31, 2014, with the composer and his wife, Nora, in attendance. The landmark performance will feature the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir and the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra, under the baton of Tõnu Kaljuste.

The gala, held on December 13th, glittered with personalities who hold Pärt as a National Treasure, including host Sten Schwede, Estonian consul general, and chair H.E. Marina Kaljurand, Estonian ambassador to the U.S. They were there to support The Arvo Pärt Project at St. Vladimir’s Seminary, a unique collaboration between the composer and a small theological graduate school nestled in the Crestwood suburb of Yonkers, NY.it creates a space for self-reflection…Pärt’s compositions gather a reverent public who, in all the diversity of their backgrounds, share a common desire to fill their hurried lives with stillness instead of distraction.” As if to illustrate his point, Reeves introduced the musicians chosen for the festivities: pianist Lembit Beecher and cellist Karen Ouzounian, who performed two exquisite Pärt works, Fratres and Spiegel im Spiegel, to a rapt audience.

Representatives of the seminary’s board of trustees, faculty, staff, and student body joined music professionals and members of the Estonian American community in the celebratory night, including members of the Estonian diplomatic corps and board members of the Estonian American National Council. Three executive staff from the Henry Luce Foundation, including President Michael Gilligan, attended as well; the foundation had awarded the project an important planning grant in May 2012.

In his toast to the project, seminary Chancellor and CEO The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield recalled for those gathered that the seminary’s former and beloved dean, The Very Rev. Dr. Alexander Schmemann, had been born in Estonia. He further noted that the seminary would be awarding Pärt an honorary doctoral degree when he visits New York in 2014.

LINKS

• Arvo Pärt website
• Henry Luce Foundation Award for project
• CDs and DVDs Donated to St. Vladimir's Seminary Library
• Public evening course on Arvo Pärt

View Oca.org's photo gallery of the service (Photos: Roman Ostash)

Memory Eternal! On Sunday at St. Nicholas Antiochian Orthodox Cathedral of Brooklyn, New York, a Trisagion Service was offered for His Beatitude Patriarch Ignatius IV (Hazim) of Antioch and All the East. His Beatitude reposed in the Lord on December 5, 2012, after suffering a stroke. His Eminence, Metropolitan Philip, Seminary Vice-President presided over the memorial at which he hosted numerous hierarchs and dignitaries for the service, including clergy from Oriental and Catholic communions. 

In addition to Metropolitan Philip, others from SVOTS served the Trisagion: the Seminary's President, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, primate of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA), The Very Rev. Dr. John Behr, dean, and The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield, chancellor and CEO. Alumni and faculty members also served the Liturgy preceding the memorial service, including The Very Rev. Thomas Zain, Cathedral Dean and former lecturer in Liturgical Music,  Fr. Adrian Budica (SVOTS '10), and Fr. Charles Baz (SVOTS '00), lecturer in Liturgical Music.

Reflecting upon the service, Fr. Chad noted, "The visual image as the Trisagion prayers were offered clearly reflected the close bond between the Seminary and the Antiochian Archdiocese." In addition to clergy serving at the Trisagion, others associated with SVOTS also attended the historic memorial, including Board of Trustees member and former Executive Chair Mrs. Anne Glynn Mackoul, Director of Admissions and Alumni Relations Pdn. Joseph Matusiak, and five current seminarians: Scott Miller, Joshua Burnett, Jabra Tannous, George Katrib and Alejandro Rodea.

Several diplomatic dignitaries attended: Ambassador of Lebanon Mr. Antoine Chedid, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary and the Permanent Representative of the Syrian Arab Republic to the United Nations H.E. Bashar Ja'afari, Ph.D., and Majdi Ramadan, the Counsel General of Lebanon in New York.

"On the heels of this occasion," noted Fr. Chad Hatfield, "the Lebanon Daily Star reported that during a meeting of eighteen bishops at the Monastery of Our Lady of Balamand, Patriarch John Yaziji had been elected as successor to Patriarch Ignatius IV. Axios, and many years, to the newly elected Patriarch John!"

LINKS

• St. Vladimir's Seminary tribute to Patriarch Ignatius
• Antiochian Archdiocese tribute page
• Oca.org photo gallery of Trisagion Service

In October of this year, nearly thirty seminarians from an evangelism class at St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers (Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York), visited SVOTS for Vespers, a refectory dinner, and a lecture by The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield, chancellor/CEO. In a reciprocal goodwill gesture, the new rector of St. Joseph's, The Rev.Msgr. Peter Vaccari, invited the SVOTS faculty to a dinner with the St. Joseph's faculty on December 10.

"Our divisions are a luxury we can no longer afford," stressed Fr. Chad at his October lecture to the gathered assembly of Orthodox and Catholic seminarians. "East and West alike are called to obey the Gospel mandate to evangelize," he emphasized, even as the culture shifts from a post–Christian mode to (in some cases) an aggressively anti–Christian mode.

St. Joseph's Seminary was founded in 1891 to serve the needs of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York for clergy. Its forty–acre campus is just minutes from St. Vladimir's; in recent months, the two institutions have enjoyed a warm and cordial relationship. Recently, several greater New York Catholic seminaries merged to create one larger seminary, and St. Joseph's is currently educating over 100 candidates for Roman Catholic orders.

"There's an attitude of openness, a improving relationship we're enjoying with the Archdiocese of New York," noted Fr. Chad. "Starting with the encouragement and cooperation of Fr. Richard Baker, pastor of St. Malachy's Chapel where we staged our spring Orient concert, a renewed vision of cooperative ventures has taken shape." Fr. Chad also referenced the February 7, 2011 SVOTS presentation of the U.S. English-language premiere of St. Matthew's Passion. Composed by Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department of External Church Relations and an episcopal member of SVOTS' Board of Trustees, the performance was hosted by The Church of St. Paul the Apostle in New York City. Most recently,  His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan, archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, visited the SVOTS campus on November 29 and attended Vespers during the first visit of His Beatitude The Most Blessed Tikhon as Primate of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA).

Notably, this first joint St. Vladimir's-St. Joseph's faculty dinner engendered discussion of other ways the two schools can support one another in the future, explained Chancellor Hatfield. "One of the most exciting future projects that came forth from the dinner," he noted, "is the proposal to co-sponsor an Advent concert in 2013 centered on the hymns to the Mother of God, East and West, as part of St. Vladimir's 75th anniversary celebrations." This would involve musicians from both schools, he added. 

Voices From St. Vladimir's Seminary podcast features a talk by Ian Jones titled "Gender, Economics, and Abortion in the Asian and American contexts." A graduate of St. Vladimir's Seminary and a doctoral candidate at Fordham University, Mr. Jones presented a free, public lecture on Friday, December 7th, in the Metropolitan Philip Auditorium of the John G. Rangos Family Building.

Sponsored by the pro–life, student–led group, the St. Ambrose Society, the evening began with a screening of the documentary "It's a Girl," a sobering film about the plight of female babies and children and the practice of sex–selection abortion. The address by Mr. Jones followed, and then those attending processed what they'd seen and heard via lively breakout discussion groups.

Symbolic bouquets of roses graced the Metropolitan Philip Auditorium; each rose represented two million missing girls aborted because of their gender. Rough estimates calculate that at least 200 million girls have died or gone missing due to being victims of sex-selective abortions. All who attended the lecture and screening were urged to take a few roses home as a reminder to pray for the many and numerous victims of abortion.

Listen to Ian Jones' podcast address and visit the St. Ambrose Society Facebook page.

St. Vladimir's Alumnus The Very Rev. Michael Mihalick ('75), fell asleep in the Lord peacefully at home on the morning of Monday, December 10, 2012, at the age of 63. For many years, Fr. Michael had fought a valiant battle against progressive multiple sclerosis.

Father Michael was born in Johnstown, PA, on December 1, 1949, the son of the late George and Ann (Hudak) Mihalick. After graduation from Duquesne University, he attended and graduated from St. Vladimir's Seminary in 1975. After a pilgrimage to the relics of St. Herman of Alaska, he remained in Alaska and was a beloved teacher at St. Herman's Theological Seminary, Kodiak, AK.

On September 10, 1978, he married the former Janet Maksimoff. He was ordained to the diaconate and priesthood respectively on September 29 and November 5 of the same year, after which he was assigned rector of St. Michael Church, Irvona, PA and Saint Mary Church, Madera, PA. In 1983 he was assigned to Holy Transfiguration Church, Pearl River, NY. In December 1984, he was reassigned to Saint Andrew's Church, Dix Hills, NY, which he faithfully served until his retirement on July 1, 2001.

Father Michael was a lover of prayer, solitude and contemplation. An avid reader, he enjoyed spending time in nature, and appreciated both secular art and church beautification. He also encouraged outreach to the poor and needy.

Father Michael was preceded in death by his parents and brother, G. Gregory Mihalick. A devoted husband and father, he is survived by his wife, Mtka. Janet, and daughter Alexandra (Benjamin) Gajewski. He is also survived by his sisters, Maryanne (Joseph) Manganello, and Tricia Euen and brother David (Kathleen) Mihalick. He is also survived by an aunt, two uncles, numerous cousins, nieces and nephews.

Visitation will begin at 4:00 p.m. at the Harris Funeral Home, 500 Cherry Lane, Johnstown, PA on Thursday, December 13. A parastas will be sung at 6:00 p.m. Additional visitation will be held at Holy Transfiguration Monastery, 321 Monastery Lane, Ellwood City, PA on Friday, December 14, beginning at 4:00 p.m., with the singing of a parastas at 7:00 p.m. The Funeral Service for a Priest will be celebrated at 10:00 a.m. at the monastery church on Saturday, December 15, followed by interment in the monastery cemetery.

Father Michael's family requests that donations in his memory be made to the Holy Transfiguration Monastery Building Fund or to help the needy in some way. Online condolences may be posted to the Harris Funeral Home's Condolence Book.

May Father Michael's memory be eternal! 

O who loves Nicholas the Saintly,
O who serves Nicholas the Saintly.
Him will Nicholas receive,
and give help in time of need.
Holy Father Nicholas!

With the singing of this traditional St. Nicholas hymn, the children of the Three Hierarchs Chapel's Sunday community welcomed special guest St. Nicholas for his annual visit to St. Vladimir's Seminary. As is customary, the identity of the good saint was camouflaged by his abundant white beard, but astute children perceived he bore a striking resemblance to The Rev. Dr. David Mezynski, associate dean for Student Affairs. During the celebration, grown ups and kids alike also enjoyed a potluck meal and a time of carol singing.

(Photos: Leanne Parrott Photography)

His Grace Mathews Mar Barnabas, the former metropolitan of the Northeast American Diocese of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, fell asleep in the Lord at four in the afternoon on Saturday, December 8, 2012 (EST) in the Pushpagiri Hospital in Kerala, India.  Since 1993, Metropolitan Mar Barnabas has been the spiritual guide and shepherd for over 10,000 Indian Orthodox Christians in the United States, including many students.

"His Grace was very influential in the growth of the Malankara Orthodox Church in America, and in the lives of many Malankara Orthodox seminarians and alumni of St. Vladimir's Seminary," noted Mariam Ceena Varghese, SVOTS lecturer in Malayalam.

On January 18, 2008, His Grace visited the seminary campus as a participant in the SVOTS "Hierarch in Residence" program: each semester, one bishop is invited to the seminary to spend a day with the students and faculty, enabling him to interact with the students and pass on the lessons he has learned as a hierarch.

"Only in God, do we find unconditional love, in its fullness and reality," His Grace told the students in his address. "God wants every one of us to grow to perfection in unconditional love, as we men and women are created in the image and likeness of God."

"Many of us remember with great fondness the lecture that Metropolitan Barnabas gave to the community," recalled The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield, chancellor/CEO. "Titled 'Unconditional Love,' this was clearly his pastoral model, and part of the legacy that he leaves to all of us."

His Grace Mathews Mar Barnabas was born as a twin on August 9, 1924, and acquired the childhood nickname "Mathukutty." While still a young boy, Mathukutty decided become a monk; under the guidance of his grandfather and uncle, who were both priests, he began to visit monasteries during school vacations. Additionally, His Grace's mother, a pious woman who loved the poor, made a deep impression on her son.

While His Grace first studied science, earning an undergraduate degree in biology at Madras Christian College and a Master of Science in botany at Osmania University, he later studied theology with the guidance of his uncle, The Rev. Fr. K. P. Paulose. In 1949 he joined the Orthodox Theological Seminary as a special student, studying Syriac for two years, and eventually earned his B. D. degree from the Serampore University in Calcutta.

His Holiness Catholicos Baselios Geevarghese II ordained him as a deacon in 1943 at his home parish, St. Thomas Cheriapally, Thuruthipaly, Vengola. In 1951 Metropolitan Augen Mar Thimotheos (His Holiness Catholicos Baselios Augen I), ordained His Grace to the holy priesthood. Twenty-seven years later, on May 15, 1978, H.H. (His Holiness) Baselios Mar Thoma Mathews I consecrated him as bishop at Pazhanji Church, with the ecclesiastical title Mathews Mar Barnabas, appointing him as an assistant bishop of the Ankamali and Kottayam Dioceses. In 1982 he was appointed as the metropolitan of the newly formed Idikki Diocese. 

In 1992, His Grace Mathews Mar Barnabas was appointed to be the Metropolitan of the American Diocese of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church. His Grace served in this capacity for about 18 years, then continued as the Metropolitan of the Northeast Diocese of America when the growing diocese was divided into the Northeast and Southwest American dioceses for the convenience of administration in 2009. His Grace continued to serve until his retirement on January 18, 2011, and in May of the same year, he returned to India to spent the rest of his earthly life in his home country. 

His Grace loved to teach. As a deacon, he was a teacher at Kurppumpady M.G. M. High School in 1947, and at the MD Seminary High School, Kottayam, until his ordination to the priesthood. He also lectured in the Orthodox Theological Seminary at Kottayam for five years. During this period (1967-1972) he was the resident faculty member at the seminary and full-time warden. He also cherished the years when he served as a chaplain in the Kolenchery Medical Mission Hospital from 1972-1978.

"Dearly beloved," wrote Metropolitan His Grace Zachariah Mar Nicholovos, "we mourn a great loss for the Church....May his example of love, prayer, and charity forever be practiced in our Christian lives." (Read the official diocese announcement of His Grace's repose.)

Read about His Grace's visit with the Hierarch in Residence program

Read His Grace's biography

Thursday, December 13, 2012, the Feast of St. Herman of Alaska, marks the 29th anniversary of the repose of Protopresbyter Alexander Schmemann, dean of Saint Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary (SVOTS) from 1962 until his death in 1983. On Monday evening the community at SVOTS will observe the milestone with a panikhida, as they remember his remarkable life and contributions, both to the Seminary and to the development of Orthodoxy in America.

"This evening," noted The Very Rev. John Behr, the current dean of SVOTS, "we will serve a panikhida for Protopresbyter Alexander Schmemann, who more than almost anyone else in the past century helped shaped Orthodoxy in America. This week, in a very particular way, as the weather turns colder and life around us begins to die, with these two figures—St. Herman and Fr. Alexander—we celebrate our own 'Winter Pascha,' knowing that through their work and prayers, Orthodoxy will continue to flourish in these lands."

Born in 1921 in Estonia to a family of Russian emigres, Fr. Schmemann spent his youth in France, completing theological studies at the Orthodox Theological Institute of St. Sergius in Paris, the center of Russian Orthodox scholarship during the period of upheaval caused by the Russian Revolution of 1917. Ordained to the priesthood in 1946, the young clergyman first taught Church History at St. Sergius Institute until 1951, when he was invited to join the faculty of St. Vladimir's Seminary. On July 5, 1959, Fr. Schmemann completed his doctoral studies, earning his degree from the Orthodox Theological Institute of St. Sergius with the dissertation "Tserkovny Ustav: Opyt Vvedeniia v Liturgicheskoe Bogoslovie" (The Church's Ordo: Introduction to Liturgical Theology). Subsequently, other institutions awarded him honorary degrees: Butler University, General Theological Seminary, Lafayette College, Iona College, and Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology.

In addition to teaching at St. Vladimir's, Fr. Alexander served as adjunct professor at Columbia University, New York University, Union Seminary, and General Theological Seminary in New York, and traveled as a popular guest lecturer throughout the U.S. and Europe. He also represented the Orthodox Church in the ecumenical movement, holding positions in the Youth Department, and the Commission on Faith and Order of the World Council of Churches. Always cognizant of his roots, he ministered to Russians behind the "Iron Curtain" by broadcasting sermons in Russian through Radio Liberty, which gained him an audience across the Soviet Union.

Father Alexander published over a dozen books, most of which are still in print. For the Life of the World, one of his most widely read titles, has been translated into numerous languages and remains one of the most lucid explanations in print, of how the liturgical experience of the Orthodox Church informs the whole of human existence. Father Schmemann loved the liturgy and the worship of the Church, completing a major study on the Eucharist only weeks before his death.

The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield, SVOTS chancellor/CEO, recalled Fr. Alexander's pithy sayings. "He is often quoted by others," noted Fr. Chad. "One of my personal favorites attributed to Fr. Alexander is his comment that 'at St. Vladimir's, we change in order to remain the same.' This is especially important to remember, as the current administration makes changes demanded of us today, in order to keep SVOTS a premier Orthodox seminary." 

May Fr. Alexander's memory be eternal!

Read the history of St. Vladimir's Seminary

Order the Fr. Alexander classic, For the Life of the World

His Beatitude Patriarch Ignatius IV (Hazim) of Antioch and All the East, fell asleep in the Lord at St. George Orthodox Hospital in Beirut, Lebanon, after suffering a stroke. Immediately following the Patriarch's repose, His Beatitude The Most Blessed Tikhon, primate of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA), sent condolences to the Holy Synod of the Patriarchate of Antioch, assuring them of the prayers of the members of the Holy Synod of Bishops and the clergy and faithful of the OCA.

On October 21, 2012, during his recent visit to the United States, the Patriarch presided over Matins and Liturgy at St. Nicholas Cathedral in Brooklyn, New York. Several Antiochian seminarians from St. Vladimir's Seminary participated in the service with His Beatitude. Wrote third-year student Richard Ajalat after the event, "It was a blessing to sense how our spiritual 'father of fathers' loves and cares for his children in North America." On the evening of December 5, the community of St. Vladimir's Seminary gathered in Three Hierarchs Chapel and prayed a panikhida service for His Beatitude.

Patriarch Ignatius began life in the village of Mhardey near Hama in Syria in 1920. His family nurtured him in the Orthodox faith, and after finishing school in Hama, the young Mr. Hazim moved to Beirut in 1936 to study literature. While in Beirut, he started his journey of service to the Church by serving as an acolyte. In 1945, His Beatitude graduated from the American University of Beirut, and from 1949 to 1953 he studied at the St. Sergius Theological Institute in Paris. Returning  to Lebanon, he was ordained hieromonk, and also became one of the founders of the influential Orthodox Youth Movement in Lebanon and Syria. During this chapter of his life, His Beatitude also collaborated with other Orthodox clergy and laity to organize "Syndesmos," a worldwide community of Orthodox youth.

In 1961, His Beatitude became the Bishop of Palmyra and Patriarchal Vicar, and in the following year, he moved to the monastery of Balamand, where he served as superior and as dean of the Balamand Orthodox Theological Seminary. In 1970, the future Patriarch was appointed Metropolitan of Latakia (Laodicea). Later in that same decade on July 2, 1979, he was elected primate of the Church of Antioch, and was enthroned as world Orthodoxy's third-ranking hierarch (after Constantinople and Alexandria) the following week, on July 8.

As a scholar, Patriarch Ignatius published a series of theological books as well as numerous articles. In 1985, he published a book with SVS Press titled The Resurrection and Modern Man, on the centrality and promise of the Resurrection. He wrote, "It is up to us whether the New Creation remains hidden and meaningless, or whether it deifies man and transfigures the world. Such is our responsibility in the quest for authentic renewal." At St. Vladimir's Commencement Exercises in May of that same year, the Seminary's Board of Trustees conferred an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree on His Beatitude. Other degrees were awarded by the Sorbonne and Saint-Petersburg (1981) and Minsk (2003) Theological Academies.

Anne Glynn Mackoul, former executive chair of the seminary's board of trustees and a representative of His Beatitude and the patriarchate of Antioch to the World Council of Churches, recalled Patriarch Ignatius. "His Beatitude was a religious leader whose steadfast loving faith and humility inspired generations of Christians. His faith was formed in the rich soil of the east where the continuous presence of Christians from the time of Christ provides a compelling image to Christians worldwide. He worked urgently to maintain the presence of Christians in Syria and Lebanon, throughout the Middle East and in Palestine integrated peacefully in their diverse communities. He was committed to ecumenical and inter–faith dialogue, reflecting the particular witness of the patriarchate of Antioch living for centuries as neighbors face to face with Islam, and side by side with other Christian churches. Such a presence, as His Beatitude has written, is informed by the witness of a church that 'is sharing fully the suffering of our peoples, in patience but also in courage, a church that does not maintain itself in a survivalist conservatism and in an ethnic and linguistic particularism, a church dispersed like salt, seeking its identity in its vocation'."

"His Beatitude inspired and encouraged humanitarian outreach from the patriarchate to all in need. His passing is a tremendous loss for the Church and for the world," she concluded. Concurred Seminary Dean The Very Rev. Dr. John Behr, "We are deeply saddened by this immense loss, and are praying for His Beatitude and the church of Antioch."

Added The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield, chancellor/CEO, "His Patriarchal 'watch' has been on some of the most tumultuous times both ecclesiastically and in the civil realm of the Middle East. He will be remembered as one who kept things stable through these difficult times and his voice will be deeply missed. May he rest in peace and rise in glory."

Visit the Antiochian Archdiocese Memorial page. 

Listen to Ancient Faith Radio's interview about the Patriarch's life and repose, featuring The Very Rev. Thomas Zain, lecturer of Liturgics at St. Vladimir's Seminary, and dean of St. Nicholas Antiochian Orthodox Cathedral in Brooklyn, NY.

Order His Beatitude's book, The Resurrection and Modern Man.

The Orthodox Christian Fellowship (OCF) and the Orthodox Church in America's (OCA) Department of Youth, Young Adult, and Campus Ministry, co–sponsored a free and public forum in the Bashir Auditorium at St. Vladimir's Seminary, on Tuesday, November 27. Titled "Campus Ministry Night," the evening featured presentations by OCF Executive Director Jennifer Nahas, Regional OCF chaplain for New York and New Jersey The Rev. John Diamantis, and the Chair of the Department of Youth, Young Adult, and Campus Ministry, Andrew Boyd (Class of '12).

Presenters focused on practical skills and useable resources needed for campus and young adult ministry. Jennifer Nahas of OCF outlined the challenges for this generation of youth: college kids will not have what their parents had economically, today's college degree does not equal job security, it is now taking an average of six years to obtain a college degree, and the current moral climate makes it very difficult for Orthodox Christian young people to survive spiritually.

Father John Diamantis then shared ideas for establishing OCF chapters and campus–based ministries. "We are now identifying Orthodox students by soliciting names from parishes of who their college students are, and are developing a data base for that," he explained.

Finally, Andrew Boyd presented several specific resources available from the OCA, and shared strategies for incorporating young adults into the parish community. The evening concluded with a time of discussion and fellowship.