On the Feast of the Holy and Righteous Lazarus, seminarian Deacon Seraphim (William) Joa was ordained to the Holy Priesthood by His Grace The Right Rev. Michael, bishop of the Diocese of New York and New Jersey, Orthodox Church in America. Father Seraphim is in his third year of the Master of Divinity program here at St. Vladimir’s. He and his wife, Matushka Julie, came to the seminary in 2009, from Long Island, New York, where their home parish of Holy Trinity Orthodox Church is located, in the town of East Meadow.
Father Seraphim holds an undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Idaho and a Professional Engineers License; he was a Career Naval Officer in his prior professional life. During his senior year at the seminary, his parish placement has been at Christ the Savior Church, Southbury, Connecticut, where he is being mentored by Archpriest Vladimir Aleandro, rector.
Father Seraphim and his wife, Matushka Julie, are blessed with "one married son, a wonderful daughter-in-law, a granddaughter attending Auburn University, and a grandson who is a high school junior in Alabama."
The entire seminary community wishes Fr. Seraphim and Matushka Julie many blessed years!
See a gallery of photos of Fr. Seraphim's ordination, and the Lazarus Saturday procession with children, taken by Tatiana Hoff, here.
See a gallery of photos of Fr. Seraphim's ordination, and the Lazarus Saturday procession with children, taken by David Lucs, here.
See a gallery of photos of Palm Sunday Vigil, with Fr. Seraphim serving, taken by Tatiana Hoff, here.
Watch videos of Fr. Seraphim's ordination, taken by Marie Rentel: "encircling the altar," here; "the grace of the Holy Spirit," here; and "Axios," here.
This spring our community was blessed by a campus visit from His Grace Nicholas (Ozone), auxiliary bishop for Brooklyn, and assistant to His Eminence Philip, archbishop of New York and metropolitan of All North America, of the Self-Ruled Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of North America (AOCANA), headquartered in Englewood, New Jersey. It was Bishop Nicholas's first time here, and he was visiting in his capacity as the hierarch responsible for overseeing the education of students enrolled in seminaries, and in particular, for overseeing the Ordination Review Board of the Archdiocese.
"We had a wonderful and positive discussion," remarked seminary Dean Archpriest John Behr, "on all sorts of aspects regarding the seminarians and their education, and we look forward to working ever more closely with the Archdiocese."
Likewise, seminary Chancellor and CEO Archpriest Chad Hatfield noted, "I was impressed with his theological insights and great interest in what he saw as the 'unique SVOTS approach to theological education'."
Bishop Nicholas was ordained to the episcopacy in December 2011 by His Beatitude Patriarch Ignatius IV. Read a full biography of Bishop Nicholas here.
The Popular Patristics Series (PPS) published by St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press (SVS Press), has gained the attention of Logos Research Systems, Inc., the largest developer of Bible software in the world. It is a surprising but highly welcome overture for the seminary’s academic press.
PPS provides accurate and annotated translations of the church fathers and other early Christian writings, and Logos typically partners with publishers to produce electronic Bible study resources. In its venture with SVS Press, Logos has decided to link biblical and patristic writings for the benefit of pastors, students, and lay readers. This month the software company introduced a PPS pre-publication package that will allow readers not only to search the digitized texts of early Christian writings but also will allow readers to cross-reference between biblical passages and the sayings of the Fathers.
On its Website, Logos describes this exciting venture: “With the Logos Bible Software edition, you can reap the maximum benefit from the Popular Patristics Series (10 vols.) by getting easier access to the contents of the collection—helping you use these volumes more effectively for scholarly pursuits, sermon preparation, or personal study. Every word from every book is indexed and catalogued to help you search the entire series for a particular verse or topic. For example, you can search the letters written by St. Cyprian for every instance of the word ‘baptism.’”
Priest Benedict Churchill, director of SVS Press, noted, “This is an exciting undertaking by Logos, but we need the help of our PPS readers—especially our alumni—to bring it to fruition. I’m asking our loyal SVS Press fans to ‘nudge’ Logos into the publication phase by pre-ordering a package, thus indicating their interest in this venture.
“If Logos receives indication of high interest in the project, they will proceed to full publication status, which will be a boon not only to our press but also to the thousands of readers who regularly use our PPS titles,” he concluded.
The package, which may be viewed fully here, includes 10 PPS titles: On Social Justice by St. Basil the Great; On the Human Condition by St. Basil the Great; On the Church: Select Treatises by St. Cyprian of Carthage; On the Church: Select Letters by St. Cyprian of Carthage; On the Apostolic Tradition by Hippolytus; On the Christian Sacraments by St. Cyril of Jerusalem; On the Soul and the Resurrection by St. Gregory of Nyssa; On Wealth and Poverty by St. John Chrysostom; On the Lord’s Prayer by Tertullian, Cyprian, and Origen; and On Pascha: with the Fragments of Melito and Material Related to the Quartodecimans by Melito of Sardis. The pre-publication package is selling for $89.95, a savings of 44% off the normal list price.
You can help bring this venture between SVS Press and Logos to fruition! Indicate your interest in the project by ordering a pre-publication package, here.
Orders on the fifth Sunday of Great Lent. Presiding at the Divine Liturgy in our campus chapel of the Three Holy Hierarchs, Bishop Matthias ordained Deacon David Bozeman to the Holy Priesthood, and seminarian Jason Ketz to the Holy Diaconate. Both Fr. David and Dn. Jason are third-year students in the M.Div. program at the seminary, and they are slated to graduate this May.
Father David has held careers in teaching high school English, freelance editing, sales, mortgage banking, and in the music industry as part of the band, "Luxury." He and his wife, Amy, have two children. He and his family are most recently from Kansas City, Missouri, and his pastor, Archpriest Timothy Sawchak of Holy Trinity Church, Gardner, Kansas, was on hand to concelebrate the liturgy and to witness his ordination. During his third year at the seminary, to fulfill his parish placement requirement, Fr. David has been under the mentorship of Archpriest David Vernak, rector of Christ the Savior Church, Paramus, New Jersey.
Deacon Jason grew up in the suburbs of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and remembers vividly serving as an altar boy in St. Mary's Cathedral, his home parish. Before entering the seminary, he actively ministered at the cathedral as a subdeacon, sacristan, and church school teacher. His professional experience includes being a Clinical Lab Specialist and a Quality Manager for a mid-size printing company. This year, he is under the tutelage of Archpriest Alexis Vinogradov at his parish placement at St. Gregory the Theologian Church, Wappingers Falls, New York. With the blessing of Bishop Matthias, he hopes to return to St. Mary's Cathedral and serve as a deacon under Cathedral Dean Archpriest Andrew Morbey. Deacon Jason and his wife, Elizabeth, have three children.
View photos of the ordination, taken by Tatiana Hoff, here.
View photos of the ordinations, taken by Seminarian Michael Soroka, here.
View a video of the ordination of Seminarian Jason Ketz to the Holy Diaconate (PART I), taken by Maria Rentel, here.
View a video of the ordination of Seminarian Jason Ketz to the Holy Diaconate (PART II), taken by Maria Rentel, here.
View a video of the ordination of Deacon David Bozeman to the Holy Priesthood (PART I), taken by Maria Rentel, here.
View a video of the ordination of Deacon David Bozeman to the Holy Priesthood (PART II), taken by Maria Rentel, here.
On April 1, 2012, St. Vladimir's Seminary lost a dear alumnus, great friend, and tremendous supporter, when Deacon John Zarras fell asleep in the Lord. Deacon John, who served most recently as deacon at Christ the Savior Church, Southbury, Connecticut, was a 2006 graduate of our school, having earned his Master of Divinity degree over a several-year period as a late-vocations student. Whenever he visited our campus, his positive attitude and reassuring smile consistently uplifted the spirits of the seminary community.
Besides attending the seminary as a student, Dn. John served our community in several capacities: Board of Trustee member and Corporate Secretary of the Board; Chair of the Advancement Committee of the Board; President of the St. Vladimir’s Seminary Foundation; and committee member for the SVS 2010 Strategic Plan. Deacon John also served in numerous capacities for the Orthodox Church in America, including most recently as a member of the Metropolitan Council, representing the Diocese of New England, and as a member of the newly formed Strategic Planning Committee.
Visitation will be held at Christ the Savior Church, 1070 Roxbury Rd., Southbury, CT, from 5:00 until 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 5. The Panikhida will be celebrated at 7:00 p.m.
Funeral services will be held at the church at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, April 6, followed by internment at Saint John Cemetery, Monroe.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Christ the Savior Orthodox Church, or to the Caring for Carcinoid Foundation at www.bit.ly/cfcf-zarras.
The entire seminary community is in prayer for Deacon John upon his repose, and for his wife, Evangeline, and their family. Memory Eternal!
Last year, St. Vladimir's Seminary announced a new scholarship, available to students pursuing Master of Theology degrees. At that time, the "Dean's Fellowship" was given to four highly select students for the 2011–2012 academic year, covering the full cost of their tuition.
This year, the Dean’s Fellowship already has borne fruit. Seminarian Dn. Evan Freeman, currently enrolled in the Th.M. program, has been offered admission by Yale University to their doctoral program in the History of Art. Deacon Evan, who earned his Master of Divinity degree from St. Vladimir’s in 2009, is eager to begin his studies at Yale, where his research will focus on Byzantine and Medieval Art.
Deacon Evan received grounding in his field through coursework at St. Vladimir’s with Professor Richard Schneider, visiting professor of Hermeneutics and Liturgical Art. One of the very few applicants accepted into Yale's competitive History of Art program this year, Dn. Evan was offered admission based on the strength of his application and his particularly strong background in theological studies at St. Vladimir’s.
Dr. David Wagschal, assistant professor of Church History and Canon Law, directs the seminary’s Th.M. program. He himself graduated from SVOTS in 2002 and completed his Ph.D. in Canon Law under the direction of Fr. Andrew Louth at the University of Durham in 2010.
"Demand is high for an advanced theological degree in Orthodox studies, among both Orthodox and non-Orthodox students,” observed Dr. Wagschal. “Students might enter the Th.M. program either as preparation for doctoral work or as a more specialized research complement to an M.Div. or M.A. degree.
“Unfortunately,” he continued, “either way, financial support for higher education in Orthodox theology is hard to come by, so with this new scholarship we hope to encourage men and women who show significant promise of success in advanced theological studies to take their education that one step further.”
Commenting on his experience in the seminary’s Th.M. program, Dn. Evan said, “This has been an exciting year of intense study for Th.M. students at St. Vladimir’s. During the fall semester, each Th.M. student participated in two seminars: one led by Fr. John Behr on the writings of St. Irenaeus of Lyons, and the other led by Dr. George Parsenios, a visiting professor from Princeton Theological Seminary, on the writings of Ss. John and Paul in dialogue.
“Additionally, each Th.M. student was enrolled in an elective course,” he continued. “One example is the advanced course in Greek poetry, with students reading Psalms from the Septuagint and 'On Pascha' by Melito of Sardis.
“This spring semester,” he went on, “seminars led by Professors Richard Schneider and David Wagschal address topics of Christian hermeneutics and questions of power and polity in Byzantium. And, our elective courses this spring range from the development of liturgy to the study of Christian architecture as icon.
“Finally,” he concluded, “all Th.M. students have been working on researching and writing their theses through the entire year; topics embrace such fields as hermeneutics, canon law, iconology, and liturgical theology.”
To learn more about studying at St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, please visit our Admissions Page.
By the end of this season of Great Lent, our Dean, Chancellor, and Men’s Choir will have visited a total of 13 parishes and deaneries—serving, singing, and presenting homilies, lectures, and retreats, in service of Christ’s Church (and that does not even include the number of presentations given in non-Orthodox venues, such as colleges and universities, which raise the profile of the Orthodox Christian faith). This photo collage depicting their most travels speaks volumes on how St. Vladimir’s Seminary ministers to the church at-large and the wider community.
Chancellor Archpriest Chad Hatfield was retreat leader at St. George Cathedral, Charleston, West Virginia, where alumnus Archpriest Olof H. Scott is Cathedral Dean.
Dean Archpriest John Behr, served as homilist at St. George Greek Orthodox Church, Greenville, South Carolina, where Archpriest Thomas Pistolis is rector; the parish hosted the local Sunday of Orthodoxy gathering.
Dean Archpriest John Behr led a parish retreat at St. John of the Ladder Church, Piedmont, South Carolina, where alumnus Archpriest Marcus Burch is rector; additionally, Fr. John presented a retreat to the Carolinas Deanery clergy of the Orthodox Church in America at that same church.
Chancellor Archpriest Chad Hatfield, with Associate Chancellor for Advancement Ted Bazil, accompanied the Men's Choir to St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Allison Park, Pennsylvania, where Archpriest Michael Senyo is Cathedral Dean; Fr. Chad preached and the Men's Choir, led by Hierodeacon Herman, sang both Vespers and Divine Liturgy. Our SVS Press & Bookstore Marketing Manager, Dn. Gregory Hatrak not only served during Divine Liturgy, but also managed our traveling bookstore.
Chancellor Archpriest Chad Hatfield continued traveling with the Men's Choir from Allison Park Pennsylvania up to Holy Trinity Church, State College, Pennsylvania, to concelebrate Sunday evening Vespers with the rector of the parish, Archpriest John Reeves; to greet His Grace Melchisedek, bishop of Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania; and to deliver a homily at the service.
Dean Archpriest John Behr flew off to Alhambra, California, to deliver a public lecture titled "The Mystery of Death as Theological and Pastoral Challenge" at St. Steven's Serbian Orthodox Cathedral, where alumnus Archpriest Nicholas Ceko is Cathedral Dean. He also delivered the talk, extended in a retreat setting, to the clergy of the Western American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church, after concelebrating Pre-sanctified Liturgy with them; His Grace Maxim, bishop of the Western Diocese, presided [Photo credit: Western American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church in North and South America].
Following his California journey, Dean John Behr landed in Washington, D.C., where he presented a public lecture entitled "The Earth That Suffers: The Struggle to Become Human in the Early Church," at Catholic University of America, where he was welcomed by Professor Philip Rousseau, Andrew W. Mellon Distinguished Professor and Director of the Center for the Study of Early Christianity at the university (pictured with him here); Fr. John also presented a graduate seminar on St. Maximus the Confessor, Ambigua 41.
Chancellor Archpriest Chad Hatfield served and preached St. Jacob of Alaska Orthodox Mission, Montpelier, Vermont, where alumnus Priest Caleb Abetti is rector; last year, Fr. Caleb and his parish, with great courage and determination, dealt with the devastating effects of Hurricane Irene on the towns and people of Vermont.
Chancellor Archpriest Chad Hatfield also gave a lenten retreat (sicty people from six parishes attended) and preached at the Divine Liturgy at Ss. Peter and Paul Orthodox Church, Phoenix, Arizona; additionally, he preached at an evening Missions Vespers sponsored by the Phoenix–Scottsdale Brotherhood.
Still to come are photos from Fr. John Behr's visit to the Cathedral Parish of the Annunciation, Ottawa, Canada; and Fr. Chad's visit to St. John Chrysostom Orthodox Church in Golden, Colorado. View the full versions of Fr. John's 2012 Travel Schedule and Fr. Chad's 2012 Travel Schedule: look for both of them in your area!
As they viewed coins, crosses, bracelets, earrings, statuary, dishware, fragments from Christian temples, and even household floor tiles, the students began to understand how early believers “interpreted” and “reinterpreted” common objects to proclaim their faith in Jesus Christ. Thus, they saw how the pagan statue of the Protective Shepherd began to be viewed instead as Jesus, the Good Shepherd (John 10:11) and how the icon of Christ usurped the place of the emperor’s visage on Byzantine coins. In short, Christian began to “re-read” everyday objects around them in the light of Christ and to re-purpose material objects to exhibit their beliefs.
“St. Vladimir’s Seminary is highly privileged to be in a location so near the great metropolis, where such outstanding special exhibitions are a relatively frequent occurrence,” said Professor Schneider. “This outing allowed our community to have some contact with the ‘real things’ of our Christian material culture, and to understand the way we use that materiality to create powerful expressions of the faith.
“ ‘Understanding’ means ‘grasp,’ and in many ways what we construct and the objects in whose midst we conduct our prayer have a lot to do with molding that grasp—our art tells us what we understand,” he explained.
“Rather than the word ‘transition’ in the title of these exhibits,” he concluded, “I would substitute the word ‘interpretation’ for the first exhibit, and ‘interaction’ for the second. Indeed, the material world is not evil, but is a goodly canvas which we must re-make through using our inventive minds, seeing through ‘the eyes of our heart,’ as it says in Ephesians 1:18, in order to be Orthodox co-creators with God.”
Joining the group for a time was Dr. Helen C. Evans, the Mary and Michael Jaharis Curator of Byzantine Art, Department of Medieval Art and The Cloisters at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. The group was privileged with her presence for a while in the “Byzantium and Islam” exhibit. Also joining the group were several members of the seminary campus community, and Dn. Evan Freeman, an alumnus (’09) currently enrolled in the seminary’s Th.M. program, who has studied under Professor Schneider and who helped guide the group through the exhibits.
St. Vladimir’s remains almost unique among major Orthodox seminaries in having a very full calendar of offerings in Orthodox “iconology,” the field of study grounded in Christ’s Incarnation and referring to the material world turned into theological vision. Besides students enrolled in the seminary degree programs, Professor Schneider's courses attract many people from surrounding areas.
Each year, the seminary offers a basic course—Liturgical Art—which introduces the fundamentals of iconological “visual reading,” that is, how to acquire skills in seeing and interpreting with nuance and depth. Each year also, an advanced iconology course is offered; this spring the topic is “The Iconology of Orthodox Architecture: Designing Buildings and Iconography for Liturgy.” In spring 2013 the advanced course will be “Orthodox Iconology in the Context of General Culture.” In that course students will have the opportunity to evaluate many para-liturgical uses of Orthodox iconography in situations and contexts not limited to church and liturgy: placed in houses (and cars), worn on persons, kept as souvenirs of pilgrimage, even used in conjunction with state and military symbols (Byzantine coinage, for example); and a major topic will be the role(s) the church building plays in the total city-scape.
“As always, students will be encouraged to see Orthodox iconography as a living, creative art-language, which, upon observation, certainly has manifested itself in different ways in different cultures, instead of as a static, fossilized form,” stated Professor Schneider.
View details about Professor Richard Schneider's courses in our 2011–2012 Academic Catalog, here.
View details about the "Transition to Christianity: Art of Late Antiquity, 3rd-7th Century AD" special exhibit at the Onassis Cultural Center NY, running December 7, 2011–May 14, 2012, here.
View details about the "Byzantium and Islam: Age of Transition" exhibit at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, running March 14–July 8, 2012, here.
The St. Vladimir's Seminary community was immersed this past Friday in the poetic splendor of Byzantine psaltic art, as part of an evening in which the Axion Estin Foundation (AEF) honored our school. Chapel services were sung in traditional Byzantine style, and at a reception following, the foundation presented the seminary with a much-needed contribution to its Byzantine music collection. AEF’s mission is to identify opportunities to introduce Byzantine Music content into academic curricula in the United States. St. Vladimir’s began to dialogue with the foundation in 2010, and since that time has taken full advantage of AEF’s generous and helpful offerings.
On Friday, renowned chanter Christos Chalkias led the singing of the "Akathist Hymn." Mr. Chalkias was visiting New York as the featured artist in a program titled “Christos Chalkias Chant and Oud Performance,” which was co-presented by The Metropolitan Museum of Art and AEF, as part of the museum’s “Byzantine and Islam: A Festival for All Ages” exhibition. Presiding priests at the service included seminary faculty members Archpriest Alexander Rentel, Assistant Professor of Canon Law and Byzantine Studies, and Archpriest Harry Pappas, Adjunct Professor of Pastoral Theology; and visiting Priest Nicholas G. Anctil, rector of Holy Trinity Church in New Rochelle, New York, where AEF originated.
At the reception following the service, Mr. Nicholas Kyriakos presented the seminary with 20-volume English-language translation of the “Great Theory of Music,” by Chrysanthos of Madytos (1770–1846). The work contains simplified Byzantine notation and is the most referenced source in Byzantine music education. The volumes were funded by The Rev. Peter N. Kyriakos Endowment Fund and published by AEF (2010); Mr. Nicholas Kyriakos is the son of the late Fr. Peter Kyriakos.
“Our family was proud to support the publication of this work in my father’s memory,” said Mr. Kyriakos. “We hope it will be of great use in the education of your students.”
Archpriest Constantine White ('79 SVOTS) recently received a 20-year service award from Georgetown University in recognition of his years of service as the school’s full-time Orthodox Christian chaplain. His Beatitude, Metropolitan Jonah, primate of the Orthodox Church in America, and Georgetown students and area faithful attended the ceremony.
Originally from the Chicago area, Fr. Constantine received his Bachelor degree from the American University School of International Service in Washington, DC. He holds a Master of Divinity degree from the seminary, and after his graduation, he served as a lay missionary in the Orthodox Church of Japan for four years. For many years, he served as Dean of St. Nicholas Cathedral, the See of the Primate of the Orthodox Church in America. He currently serves as rector of St. Matthew Church in Columbia, Maryland.
Within the field of campus ministry, Fr. Constantine has worked extensively with Orthodox Christian clergy and faithful from different jurisdictions. He and his wife, Nina, are blessed with two children.
To see the full story, or to contact Fr. Constantine on the Georgetown campus, click here.
To read the latest Alumni E-Newsletter, click here.
