On March 20, 2011, our dean, Fr. John Behr, and our assistant professor of Canon Law, Fr. Alexander Rentel, attended the ordination of Archmandrite Elpidophoros (Lambriniadis), to his episcopal position as Metropolitan of Proussa (now known as “Bursa”), in Istanbul, Turkey. His Eminence’s consecration to the episcopacy was held at the Patriarchal Cathedral of St. George. In June 2010

During their visit, Frs. John and Alexander met with and received the blessing of the His All-Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew, who received the degree of Doctor of Divinity honoris causa from St. Vladimir’s in 1997, and they presented him with an icon of the Holy and Great Prince Vladimir. They were also able to greet His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations, who attended the ordination, along with a number of representatives from other local churches.

Both dean and professor reflected upon their exceptional visit. Fr. Alexander— whose doctoral work had examined the patriarchal liturgy of Constantinople in the fourteenth century—commented upon how wonderful it had been to experience first hand the same “taste of heaven” that the emissaries of the Holy Prince Vladimir had found in the patriarchal services in the 10th century.

 Fr. John reflected on the catholicity of Orthodoxy that he had observed: “It is very important,” he noted, “that Orthodoxy not only be local, but also one, holy, catholic, and apostolic. It is this particular synthesis of local and catholic, particular and universal, that we strive to represent here at St. Vladimir’s Seminary. It was wonderful to have attended the event, and to see such Orthodoxy in action.”

During his recent visit to the Greater Chicago area, our Dean, Archpriest John Behr, focused on theological controversies, old and new. He consistently challenged his varied audiences to find personal identity, communal unity, and spiritual growth in and through Christ alone, drawing on themes associated with the Church's Feast of the Triumph of Orthodoxy, which highlighted the weekend.

On Saturday, March 12, Fr. John offered a public presentation on the meaning of icons at St. Joseph Church, Wheaton, Illinois, where Fr. John Matusiak is rector. The following morning, he preached at the Divine  Liturgy and afterward met informally with area college students and young adults.

On Sunday evening, he was the guest homilist for the "Triumph of Orthodoxy" Vespers, held at St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church, Cicero, Illinois, where Fr. Nicholas Dahdal is rector. The evening was hosted by the Orthodox Christian Clergy Association of Great Chicago (OCCA). In his homily, Fr. John spoke about the  ecclesial disunity among Orthodox Christians in North America and challenged the congregation to be "in a very concrete and material way—one."

"Only if we realize that our identity does not lie in whatever identities we create in this world or have foisted upon us by the circumstances of our birth, education, and society, but rather that our identity lies hidden with Christ in God, then, and only then, can we actually begin to find and manifest our unity together, here and now, as the one body of Christ," he stated. "This, it is clear, is our challenge today, our own 'Christological controversy'—how to be his body in an organized manner, as every body must be—and it is as every bit as momentous as the controversies of old. To accomplish this requires that we accompany Christ to his Passion,that we—just like the prophets in their suffering, and like the martyrs in theirs—become images, icons, of Christ. This and nothing else is our task: that we conform ourselves to Christ."

On Monday, March 14, Fr. John concluded his visit by acting as retreat master for the OCCA's annual clergy retreat at New Gracanica Serbian Orthodox Monastery, Third Lake, Illinois. He spoke on three topics: “Through the Cross,” “For This We Were Created,” and “Glorify God in Your Body.”

The seminary community turned out in force for the 41st Annual Pan-Orthodox Vespers, sponsored by the Westchester Orthodox Clergy Fellowship and hosted by the Virgin Mary Antiochian Church in Yonkers. The service drew Orthodox Christians countywide to mark what is typically known in the Church's calendar as the "Sunday of Orthodoxy" or the "Triumph of Orthodoxy," a feast that memorializes the final defeat of iconoclasm and the restoration of icons in the Church, which occurred on the first Sunday of Great Lent in AD 843.

The seminary Men's Choir sang portions of the service, under the direction of Hierodeacon Philip Majkrzak. Seminary clergy Fr. Alexander Rentel, assistant professor of Canon Law, and Fr. Steven Belonick, chaplain, along with seminarians Frs. Photius Avant, Jason Blais, Lucas Rice, and Michael Sakran, concelebrated the service with priests and deacons from four other area Orthodox churches. Fr. Paul Nadim Tarazi, Adjunct Professor of Old Testament at St. Vladimir's, delivered the homily. Several seminarians, some with family members, also attended.

Triumph over sin, rather than triumphalism, marked the spirit of service. Reminding the congregation that the commemoration was "not a time to boast or to pontificate," but rather a time "to adhere to the faith of Scriptures," Fr. Paul in his homily especially focused on the duty of Christians to give alms and to extend mercy to the needy. "This is an opportune time," he said, "to imitate the Father of mercy, and to perform acts of mercy, first to the household of faith, and then to all."

After the service, Fr. Dimitri Darwich, rector of the parish, and his parishioners, extended a warm Middle Eastern welcome to visitors, by inviting them to a reception in the church hall.

“Like many new students,” says Adam Horstman, “I came to seminary desiring to learn about my faith, but even more, to learn how to put that faith into practice. Recognizing the significance of caring for the ones Jesus loves as well as the importance of preparing seminary students for a life of ministering to others, St. Vladimir’s Seminary provides a Prison Ministry Field Experience for first-year students in the Master of Divinity program. Thus, I was able to enter into the world of those who spend their days behind bars.”

The Prison Ministry Field Experience began as a glimmer in the mind of SVOTS Trustee Eric Namee about 18 months ago. It blossomed into a collaborative venture that included St Vladimir's administration, faculty, staff, trustees, the Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry (OCPM), particularly Chaplain Patrick Tutella, and The Rev. Nicholas J. Solak, a SVOTS alumnus (M.Div. ’02 and D.Min. ‘08) and current rector of Holy Trinity Church in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.

This past fall, sixteen incoming seminarians, along with one second-year seminarian—under the supervision of Frs. Nicholas and Chaplain Patrick—visited The Westchester County Department of Correction's Penitentiary Division, which houses males sentenced to prison terms of one year or less. The students went to the facility for six visits (plus an extensive orientation) and met in seminar on the seminary campus for six follow-up sessions. Prison visits were in the format of Bible studies; Fr. Nicholas led and modeled the first study, and seminarians led subsequent studies and small group discussions.

The fieldwork, according to seminarian Horstman, was life altering. “The prisons hunger for the Church to invite them to the table, for He came to call not the righteous, but sinners,” he reflected. “Spending time with prisoners joined their stories to ours. We bear these men in our hearts and lives. It is with great sadness but also much hope that we conclude our prison ministry experience. I hope that this great gift hides itself in our hearts until we leave this place to put our faith into action. I hope that we, in the words of Fr. Paul, a chaplain at the prison, ‘become the face of love.’ ”

Fr. Nicholas noted the importance of the field experience, saying, “Prison ministry is a part of parish life today. Our parishes are located in close proximity to prisons and jails—and some of these correctional institutions are large facilities with large inmate populations. They are in need of prison ministries. Additionally, our parishioners work in correctional settings or have family, friends, and neighbors experiencing some form of correctional supervision. It is important our seminarians receive a strong introduction to prison ministry so they can feel confident when they enter their pastoral ministry.” 

Fr. Nicholas had ten years of professional experience working in corrections prior to enrolling at St. Vladimir’s in September 1999: five years as a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Specialist for the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections and five years as a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Specialist for the Federal Bureau of Prisons. “But, mostly my experience in corrections has been coupled with parish ministry—I’m nine years now in parish life,” he explained.

“My correctional training was strongly influenced by Stanton Samenow, whose work Inside the Criminal Mind (1984) hugely influenced the Correctional Industry in the ‘80s and ‘90s,” he continued. “I used that resource with the seminarians, and we also talked about the similarities and differences between doing bible studies in parish and prison settings. Further, we discussed some core pastoral counseling skills: active listening, disarming, and empathy.”

By Deborah (Malacky) Belonick

During the first Memorial Divine Liturgy of Great Lent, third-year seminarian Dn. John Culbreath-Frazier was ordained to the Holy Priesthood by His Grace Bishop Seraphim (Sigrist) in Three Hierarchs Chapel. The eucharist celebration drew together not only the campus community and family and friends but also people and places representing important threads in the lives of both Fr. John and his wife, Mandy, and Bishop Seraphim.

Co-celebrating at the liturgy was Fr. William Mills of the Nativity of the Holy Virgin Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, the place where Fr. John was received into the Orthodox faith and the place where he and his wife were married. Also co-celebrating were Fr. Alexis Vinogradov, rector of St. Gregory the Theologian Orthodox Church, Wappingers Falls, New York, and Fr. Michael Plekon, who is attached to that same parish. Fr. John, with Matushka Mandy, attends St. Gregory's each Sunday, as a parish intern. Fr. Alexis, who gave the homily during the liturgy, expressed his gratitude and joy at having the couple as part of his parish community for this academic year.

His Grace Seraphim, former bishop of Sendai, Japan and seminary alumnus ('67), who met and got to know the Culbreath-Fraziers at St. Gregory's Church as well, offered prudent words to the couple following the liturgy. He spoke about two dimensions of the priesthood—poverty and service—but outside of their usual secular connotations.

Poverty, he noted, suggests something beyond material lack. "With reference to the priesthood," said His Grace, "it implies a person without a specific vocation, a person whose only vocation is to offer the world the ministry of Christ. Just as in the Book of Acts, when Peter looked at the begger and said, 'Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give to you,' so the priest brings to the world what it chooses to forget, and he reminds the world of what it dare not hope for. As a priest, you will represent healing and wholeness in life."

Speaking about service, Bishop Seraphim observed that the secular mind linked service to servility. "But Christian service," he said, "implies a freely given heart—to be with others and to share with them; to learn as well as to teach. This type of service, imitating the Lord who said, 'My yoke is easy and my burden is light,' enables the Church to be the Church."

Bishop Seraphim's words about poverty and service were especially cogent: first, because Fr. John and Mat. Mandy had met and been drawn together through their life in the Church and mutual interest in community service; and, more broadly, because His Grace informed those gathered for liturgy about the devastation to his former diocese, Sendai, Japan, just the prior day, due to a massive earthquake and ensuing tsunami. "Sendai is a poorer region of Japan," the retired bishop said, "and the faithful there will need our help to rebuild churches that were destroyed by this natural disaster."

In light of Bishop Seraphim's words, Fr. Alexander Rentel, chapel ecclesiarch, asked that a special collection be taken to benefit the Orthodox faithful and all those suffering in Sendai—a fitting conclusion for a eucharistic celebration and an ordination rite that embraces the virtues of poverty and service.

From March 2-9, 2011, Professors Peter Bouteneff and Paul Meyendorff traveled to Aghia Napa, Cyprus, to participate in an Inter-Orthodox Consultation hosted by the Orthodox Archbishopric of Cyprus. The consultation, sponsored by the World Council of Churches (WCC), was convened to prepare a common Orthodox response to a Faith an Order statement on "The Nature and Mission of the Church."

Nearly forty Eastern and Oriental Orthodox representatives from across the entire globe, including hierarchs, clergy, and scholars, attended the meeting. Professors Bouteneff and Meyendorff each presented papers, and Dr. Bouteneff was the primary drafter of the Orthodox response.  The final text of the response will soon be posted on the website of the World Council of Churches: www.oikoumene.org.

"The fact that two representatives from St. Vladimir's Seminary were invited testifies to the important role of the seminary in both the Orthodox and ecumenical worlds," noted Dr. Meyendorff.

Also attending the meeting were two SVOTS alumni: Dr. Tamara Grdzelidze, who serves as Program Executive of the WCC Commission on Faith and Order in Geneva, Switzerland; and Dr. Antonios Kireopoulos, Associate General Secretary of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA, responsible for Faith and Order and Interfaith relations.

St. Vladimir’s Seminary is pleased to welcome two new staff members: Matushka Robin Freeman, Annual Gifts Officer; and Matthew Garklavs, Assistant Librarian. Matushka Robin replaces as Annual Gifts Officer, Fr. Jason Foster, now attached as priest to Bossier City Mission Orthodox Church in Louisiana.

Matushka Robin Freeman graduated in 2006 from Gordon College with a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance. She and her husband, Dn. Evan Freeman, moved to St. Vladimir’s Seminary later that year in order for Dn. Evan to work on a Master of Divinity degree. While at the seminary, Mat. Robin worked in the Advancement Office, and also worked with the chapel choirs as an assistant conductor. After Dn. Evan graduated from the seminary in 2009, the Freemans relocated to Bloomington, Indiana, in order for Mat. Robin to complete a Master of Music in Choral Conducting at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. Dn. Evan was ordained to the diaconate in July 2010 by His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah, and the Freemans have been serving in their local parish, All Saints Antiochian Orthodox Church. Mat. Robin anticipates graduating from her program in May 2011, after which she and her husband will relocate to St. Vladimir’s Seminary, where Mat. Robin will her begin work as the Annual Gifts Officer.

“My husband and I are thrilled to be returning to St. Vladimir’s Seminary, a place that was extremely influential in our formation as Orthodox Christians,” said Mat. Robin. “In particular, I am looking forward to getting to know the seminary’s many faithful stewards on a more personal level, to the glory of Jesus Christ and the edification of one another. I am honored to be a small part in furthering the vital work of St. Vladimir’s Seminary.”

Matthew Garklavs is a 2007 graduate of Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, from which he holds a Bachelor of Arts degree, with a concentration in Russian and Eurasian Studies. During his collegiate career, he was given the Bard Publications Prize, in recognition of writing, editing, or design achievement in the preparation of a Bard publication, in 2007; and the Lindsay Watton III Memorial Essay Award, based on an essay that demonstrated excellence and dedication in the field of Russian and Eurasian studies, in 2006. Also in 2006, he studied Russian Language and Culture during his year abroad, at Smolny College, St. Petersburg, Russia. In 2010, he earned his Master of Science in Library and Information Sciences, with an Archives Management Concentration, from Simmons College, Boston, Massachusetts. In 2009, he was awarded the Dolores M. Sayles '29LS Endowed Scholarship, based on academic achievements.

Mr. Garklavs noted his early association with the seminary, saying, “As the son of an Orthodox priest, who grew up in the New York area, I was introduced to St. Vladimir's Seminary at a young age. My father often took me along as his sidekick whenever he had business in Crestwood. Of course, to a kid, these excursions were not always exciting. But in hindsight I realize what an impact they made on me. Visiting St. Vladimir’s broadened my outlook on Orthodox Christianity and informed my initial impressions of higher learning. These experiences inspired me to take my studies more seriously and helped me to appreciate how Orthodoxy is present in contemporary life.

“Assuming the position of Assistant Librarian at St. Vladimir’s Seminary is an opportunity for me to put into practice what I have learned,” he continued. “After six years of studying in academic institutions and training in various libraries, I finally feel ready to make a contribution."

Last year, our Dean and Chancellor traveled extensively—to local parishes and international colloquia—delivering the Good News of the faith and spreading the news about our seminary, its programs and progress. Archpriest John Behr, dean, logged 44,449 in land and air miles, while foreign and domestic miles traversed by Archpriest Chad Hatfield, chancellor, totaled 59,416.

As Great Lent approached this year, Frs. John and Chad renewed their eagerness to reach out to communities near and far by presenting pre-Lenten retreats, as preludes to several other retreats being offered by St. Vladimir's Seminary faculty during the Great Fast.

In January, Fr. Chad acted as retreat master at a gathering for Alaskan clergy wives in the Village of Napaskiak, hosted by the village priest, Fr. Vasily Fisher. The retreat theme was "Mary, Mysteries, Mission, and Matushki." Fr. Chad, who is the former Dean of St. Herman Seminary in Kodiak, wasted no time in adding to his travelogue by employing local transportation: dogsled.

Closer to home in the Big Apple, Fr. John delivered a retreat at the historic Cathedral of the Holy Virgin Protection, at the invitation of Fr. Christopher Calin, dean of the cathedral. On the Sunday of the Eve of Great Lent, commemorating the "Casting Out of Adam and Eve from Paradise," Fr. John spoke on the topic "The Lenten Journey to the Cross," with a special emphasis on Melito of Sardis' treatise On Pascha, a second-century work.

March 13, 2011 • Off-campus Event

This year's homilist for the Triumph of Orthodoxy Vespers service, sponsored by the Westchester County Orthodox Clergy Fellowship, is St. Vladimir's Seminary's Professor of Old Testament, The Very Rev. Dr. Paul Nadim Tarazi.

The service, which marks the 41st annual gathering for this occasion, will be celebrated at 6 p.m. at the Virgin Mary Antiochian Orthodox Church, 236 Grandview Blvd., Yonkers, NY. Our seminary Men's Choir will sing portions of the service.

Are you contemplating ministry or a deeper study of the Orthodox faith? Are you a recent or soon-to-be college grad discerning what your next step is? Or, maybe you are going through a "Quarter-life Crisis" and need a push in the right direction? No matter what life-altering questions you may be dealing with, please consider spending your Spring Break at St. Vladimir's Seminary.

"Come and see what life is like here, and where St. Vlad's might fit into your future plans," encourages PDn. Joseph Matusiak, the seminary's Director of Alumni and Recruitment.

When you visit us during your Spring Break you will have an opportunity to attend classes, worship in the chapel, tour the campus and its resources, engage faculty members and get to know current students. Detailed information on the seminary's various degree programs, financial aid, and admissions process also will be provided to you. There is no cost to visiting potential students, other than their transportation costs.