Abp. Michael Visits Parish, Enrolls 10 Catechumens in Historic Weekend

A photo of the parish of St. John the Theologian taken during the visit of His Eminence Abp. Michael. Photo: Diocese of New York and New Jersey

SHIRLEY, NY — The parish of St. John the Theologian in Shirley, N.Y., recently received an archpastoral visit from His Eminence Abp. Michael of the Orthodox Church in America's (OCA) Diocese of New York and New Jersey.

The visit, which took place the weekend of Sept. 27-28, saw Vespers attended by nearly 40 individuals who were then able to hear a talk by Abp. Michael on the canonization of St. Olga of Alaska. A reception in the parish hall also provided time for a Q&A with His Eminence.

For the Divine Liturgy on Sunday morning, the diocese reported the largest attendance seen at the parish in decades with more than 80 present. His Eminence conducted the Rite of Reception of Catechumens during the Liturgy, enrolling 10 people – eight adults, one teenager, and one child. The catechumenate is under the direction of Fr. Jonathan Ivanoff, well-known from The Transfigured Life podcast, and parish catechist Robert Sirico.

In a statement to UOJ-USA, Fr. Jonathan said that his parish has received roughly 15 new converts to Orthodoxy over the past three years. Now, there are 10 people enrolled as catechumens with roughly just as many right behind them that are being prepared for enrollment in the weeks and months ahead.

"We have Hispanics, Blacks, Pentecostals, atheists, people coming from just about every kind of background," Fr. Jonathan said. "I've never seen anything like this in my 32 years of priesthood, nor any time before that."

Fr. Jonathan and Abp. Michael pictured with the recently enrolled catechumens. Photo: Diocese of New York and New Jersey

After the service, a luncheon was prepared by the parish Sisterhood of St. Xenia of Petersburg, and Abp. Michael was able to spend quality time with new members of the community, including those who are still inquiring. 

The diocese also noted that the Liturgy saw the largest contingent of Hispanics attending the service in parish history, along with the fact that roughly half of the newly enrolled catechumens are Hispanic. Due to this, an effort has been made to incorporate Spanish into the service. Some of those in attendance "welcomed hearing Spanish in the liturgy and expressed a desire to return and learn more about the Orthodox faith."

"There seems to be similar things driving them to Orthodoxy," Fr. Jonathan said of the inquirers, "not the least among these is a search for the 'Ancient Faith' or 'Early Church.' In other words, what happened to the Church the Apostles left behind, and, more importantly, am I in it?"

Previously, UOJ reported that Fr. Justin Mathews, priest at Holy Trinity Orthodox Church of the OCA in Overland Park, Kan., has been named the recipient of the Marion and John Kreamer Award for Social Entrepreneurship given by the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC). 

Read also