On Sunday, May 7, 2006, the seminary community cried out “Axios” as the dean, Deacon John H. Erickson was ordained to the Holy Priesthood by His Beatitude Metropolitan Herman of the Orthodox Church in America. For Fr John this was a completion of a path that began many years ago, starting in 1964 when he was received into the Orthodox Church in the St Vladimir’s Seminary chapel. This was followed by 33 years of teaching canon law and church history at the seminary where he also served as Academic Dean and now as Dean and CEO.

At the Divine Liturgy, Dean Emeritus, Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko, gave a powerful sermon where he reminded everyone to pay attention to the moment during the ordination when the candidate will stand in the middle of the church with a cloth covering his head. “This is the cloth which normally covers the gifts for communion, including the lamb.” Fr Tom went on to draw parallels with our Lord’s sacrifice, as the “lamb led to the slaughter,” between the bread used for communion and with the candidate led to ordination. He pointed out that when we look at the candidate for ordination who offers himself to God we are reminded that we must all be offering ourselves to God as part of the royal preisthood in which we enter into at our baptism. 

Later that day, Fr Thomas Hopko, as the Master of Ceremonies at a banquet for the seminary community, including hierarchs, alumni, professors, staff, benefactors, and students, set the tone for the evening, “The occasion of our dean’s ordination gives us a chance to gather and think about the work of the seminary: its past, its present and its future.”

It was a special blessing that along with Metropolitan Herman, His Eminence Metropolitan Philip of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese shared words of appreciation for the achievements of St Vladimir’s Seminary.  His Eminence began by saying, “I am delighted to share the joy of this evening and I bring greetings from so many clergy who have benefited from this seminary.” He concluded his speech by presenting Fr John with a beautiful pectoral cross, and as he handed it to him proclaimed, “Axios, my friend.”

The newly ordained Fr John expressed great gratitude for all those who helped him get to this point and for the spiritual encouragement he has received through out his life at the seminary. With great optimism Fr John spoke about the future of the Church and the next generation who are looking for what Orthodoxy in America has to offer, “I see young people today carrying the spirit of St Vladimir’s, which is a devotion to truth that is never limited to parochialism or nationalism, into the world.”

Archbishop Demetrios, Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in America, sent a letter of congratulations where he assured Fr John of his fervent prayers on the day of his ordination and for the work of the seminary. Fr. Alexander Abramov of St. Nicholas Cathedral in New York represented the Moscow Patriarchate. Professor Alexander Dvorkin (SVS '83) brought greetings from St. Tikhon’s Orthodox University in Moscow.  A letter of congratulations was also read from His Eminence Metropolitan Laurus and the brotherhood of Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville, NY of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia.

Many years to the newly-ordained Priest John, his wife Helen, and their family.  Axios!

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