During the week of Sunday, December 3, 2017, St. Vladimir’s Seminary joins in a momentous celebration: the 100th anniversary of the enthronement of Metropolitan Tikhon as Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus , which occurred exactly on December 3, 1917. Metropolitan Tikhon’s remarkable legacy included not only his extremely difficult...
Memory Eternal! Archpriest Alvian Smirensky, 88, and his wife, Matushka Helen [Kefeli] Smirensky, 84, fell asleep in the Lord in adjoining beds at Albany Medical Center within hours of one another on Sunday morning, December 10, 2017. Father Alvian received his diploma from St. Vladimir's Seminary in June 1957. His...
[img_assist|nid=25746|title=|desc=Matushka Mary and Father Paul Shafran, at the celebratory 70th anniversary banquet in their honor (photo: Matushka Sandy Kopestonsky) |link=none|align=right|width=250|height=251]28 December 2017 • St. Vladimir Orthodox Church, Trenton, NJ Our seminary’s oldest living alumnus, the Very Reverend Paul Shafran (Class of 1945), was honored on Saturday, October 28, 2017, along with his gracious wife, Matushka Mary, in celebration of the 70 th anniversary of Fr. Paul’s ordination to the Holy Priesthood, the couple’s 70 th wedding anniversary, and their faithful service to the Church. Although the celebratory event for the Shafrans was held in October, the actual anniversary date of Fr. Paul’s ordination is December 28, and their wedding anniversary date is November 27.
His Grace, Bishop Mark [Forsberg], former Bishop of Boston, fell asleep in the Lord on Monday, January 8, 2018. Bishop Mark was consecrated to the episcopacy on November 10, 1979. He served the Orthodox Church in America’s Albanian Archdiocese, succeeding His Grace, Bishop Stephen [Lasko], and the Diocese of New...
Archpriest John Behr, the Father Georges Florovsky Distinguished Professor of Patristics at St. Vladimir’s Seminary, has published a new critical edition and translation of Origen’s On First Principles , together with a lengthy introduction, which is sure to become a significant new resource in the fields of dogmatic theology, church...
During Fall Semester 2017, four new priests had been added to the ranks of our Student Body and Alumni fellowship, as well as one new deacon. Additionally, one of our alumni, Fr. Basil Doroszkiewicz, was ordained to the episcopacy, and another alumnus, Fr. Nathan Preston, received the monastic tonsure. (...
Decades ago, masterpieces from the Orthodox musical tradition by composers such as Tchaikovsky and Bortniansky used to be sung regularly by average church choirs in both Russia and America. However, as choir membership in America dwindled in many parishes, the ability to sing challenging repertoire likewise diminished. Works from the past became mere museum pieces, and new works being created by gifted church musicians remained beyond the reach of many parish choirs. Both traditional and fresh compositions are often now heard only either in concert or on recordings.
“Iota” is the smallest letter in the Greek alphabet—immortalized as such in the Gospel of Matthew, 5:18. IOTA also is the acronym for a newly formed body, the International Orthodox Theological Association, a network of over 150 members so far. The inaugural meeting of IOTA will take place in Iaşi...
By Seminarian Fr. John Valadez Every year, St Ambrose Society, a pro-life student interest group at St. Vladimir’s Seminary, makes a pilgrimage to Washington, D.C., in order to raise awareness for the protection of the unborn at the March for Life. This year, St. Vladimir’s contingent included more than a...