On Saturday morning, May 18, His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon, primate of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA), and His Grace Nicholas (Ozone), auxiliary bishop for Brooklyn, Self-Ruled Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of North America (AOCANA), concelebrated at a 9:00 a.m. Divine Liturgy, in which second-year seminarian and Commencement Salutatorian Nicholas Roth was ordained to the Holy Diaconate.

Kodiak and Fairbanks, Alaska...Denver, Colorado...Orlando and Jacksonville, Florida...Cincinnati, Ohio...Worcester, MA...Charleston, South Carolina. By the end of this season of Great Lent, Chancellor/CEO The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield and The Very Rev. Dr. John Behr, dean of St. Vladimir's Seminary, will have visited parishes on both coasts and many points in between, serving and presenting homilies, lectures, and retreats, in service of Christ's Church.

On March 25 after the conclusion of services for the Feast of the Annunciation, the seminary’s pro life ministry, the St. Ambrose Society, hosted author, physician and philosopher Dr. Jeffrey Bishop in the Metropolitan Philip Auditorium for his talk, “On the Corpse and the Chaplain: How Medicine is Destroying Pastoral Care.”

During the first week of Lent, The Very Rev. Dr. John Behr, dean of St. Vladimir’s, and The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield, chancellor, hosted a distinguished campus visitor, His Grace Bishop Suriel of the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Melbourne and Affiliated Regions. In a productive meeting, the three explored possible collaboration between their respective institutions in both hemispheres.

By plane, auto and boat, a St. Vladimir’s Seminary (SVOTS) delegation of three journeyed from New York to several destinations in Kodiak, Alaska, during the seminary’s week of spring break. On their first full day in Alaska, The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield, SVOTS chancellor/CEO and the former dean of St. Herman Seminary, third-year student The Rev. James Parnell, and second-year student Sdn. Nicholas Roth, presented a workshop for seminarians at sister institution St. Herman's Theological Seminary.

On the Sunday of Meatfare of the Last Judgment, His Eminence The Most Rev. Benjamin, archbishop of San Francisco and the West, Orthodox Church in America (OCA), ordained seminarian Deacon Andre Paez to the Holy Priesthood. Father Andre is in his third year of the Master of Divinity program at St. Vladimir's. During this special weekend, Fr. Andre and his wife Matushka Samantha hosted friends and family on Saturday for the baptism of their infant daughter Mariel, also presided over by His Eminence.

On Friday, February 22, basketball teams and fans from St. Vladimir's and St. Tikhon's seminaries traveled to the gym at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church to compete in their annual face off.

In his first visit to campus since his Enthronement, His Beatitude the Most Blessed Tikhon, archbishop of Washington and metropolitan of All America and Canada presided over the Divine Liturgy for the Feast of The Meeting of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the Temple. The seminary’s Dean The Very Rev. Dr. John Behr and the Chancellor/CEO The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield greeted His Beatitude at the doors of the seminary Chapel at the start of the festal Liturgy, which marked the end of the Nativity/Theophany liturgical cycle.

On January 18, an Academic Convocation and the Fr. Alexander Schmemann Lecture were held in the Metropolitan Philip Auditorium at SVOTS. The Board of Trustees and faculty awarded an honorary doctorate to the speaker, Princeton historian Dr. Peter Brown, prior to the lecture.

Three hierarchs presided over the Divine Liturgy at the Three Hierarchs Chapel on the day of the patronal feast, including Bishop John, His Grace The Right Rev. Bishop Nicholas, auxiliary bishop of Brooklyn for the Antiochian Archdiocese, and His Grace The Right Rev. Maxim, bishop of the Western Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church in North and South America (SOC), an episcopal member of the SVOTS Board of Trustees.

On Saturday, December 29, 2012, The Very Rev. Paul Shafran (SVOTS ’1945) celebrated his 65th anniversary of ordination to the Holy Priesthood by presiding at the Divine Liturgy in Three Hierarchs Chapel at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Seminary, his alma mater, surrounded by family, friends, and fellow clergy.

At the Seminary's annual open house, approximately 1000 people enjoyed the international food tent, Irish dancing, icons of saints from the British Isles, workshops and keynote addresses, with the theme: "Inklings of Glory: Godward Journeys with Lewis and Tolkien."

Nearly thirty seminarians from an evangelism class at St. Joseph's Seminary, Dunwoodie, NY (Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York), joined the SVOTS community for the service of Vespers. The neighboring seminarians are studying under the guidance of St. Joseph's Rector, the Reverend Monsignor Peter Vaccari. The visitors enjoyed the service, dinner, and a talk by SVOTS Chancellor/CEO, The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield.

Ann Zinzel funeral at Three Hierarchs' Chapel

Orientation photos, August 25 & 26, 2012

Intense liturgical training was the focus of this 4-day program held Sunday, June 10–Wednesday, June 13, 2012 on St. Vladimir's Seminary's campus, for deacons and lay diaconal candidates. Practical liturgical training was supported by the celebration of a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy and other services. Intensive workshops provided participants with the skills needed to serve effectively in the Orthodox Church as an attentive server, deacon, or priest. This practicum, offered for the sixth consecutive summer, was held in conjunction with the Orthodox Church in America's Diaconal Vocations Program (DVP.

From May 31-June 7, 2012, a mission team from the seminary community, led by Chancellor/CEO Archpriest Chad Hatfield, visited Guatemala to lend much-needed hands to Hogar Rafael Ayau Orphanage. The team assisted in moving the orphanage from "Zone 1," a crime-ridden and dangerous area of Guatemala City, to Hogar San Miquel, a new orphanage in the mountains outside of Guatemala City. This first-ever mission team organized from St. Vladimir's Seminary consisted of Claudia Bazil, Mary Roth, Ian Jones, Seminarian Subdn. Scott Miller, Dn. Andre Paez, Fr. David Wooten, and Archpriest Chad Hatfield. (Photos: Ian Jones)

Twenty-two graduates from St. Vladimir’s Seminary received their diplomas at Commencement Exercises held on Saturday, May 19, 2012: 2 Masters of Theology, 16 Masters of Divinity, and 4 Masters of Arts degrees were conferred. Graduates represented a broad range of ecclesial jurisdictions and included both Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Christians; twelve of the 22 graduates already had been ordained to Holy Orders. Metropolitan Jonah, who is President of the Seminary and Chair of the Board of Trustees, opened the Commencement Exercises. Class Valedictorian this year was The Rev. Gerasim [Eliel]. Second-year seminarian Harrison Basil Russin was Salutatorian. The “Saint Basil Award for Academic Achievement” was presented to The Rev. Dn. Jason Ketz, who also graduated magna cum laude. Also present at the Commencement Exercises were visiting hierarchs The Most Rev. Tikhon, archbishop of Philadelphia and Eastern Pennsylvania; The Rt. Rev. Michael, bishop of New York and New York and New Jersey; and His Eminence Mor Titus Yeldho, archbishop and patriarchal vicar of the Malankara Archdiocese of the Syrian Orthodox Church in North America. (Photos: Leanne Parrott)

At a dinner following the service of Vespers on Thursday, May 3rd, the seminary community bid farewell to Archpriest Steven J. Belonick, who served most recently as Campus Chaplain at St. Vladimir’s. Father Steven, who was employed at the seminary from 2000–2011, was assigned as rector of Holy Ghost Russian Orthodox Church in Bridgeport, Connecticut on March 3, 2012.

During his tenure at the seminary, Fr. Steven held several positions besides his most recent one, including: Director of Recruitment, Public Relations Officer, Alumni Director, and Dean of Students. He is a 1977 graduate of St. Vladimir’s and holds a Master of Divinity degree from the school. (Photos: Leanne Parrott)

In a multi-media program that interwove luminous icons, sacred texts, and a rich a cappella sound, the St. Vladimir's Seminary Chorale performed "ORIENT: Sacred Song and Image" at the famous St. Malachy's,"The Actors' Chapel," in the heart of Manhattan, at 239 West 49th Street, New York City on May 7, 2012 (photos by Vadim Arslanov, visiting photographer from the Orthodox Church in America's Representation Church of the Great Martyr Catherine in Moscow.

These photos of the Holy Week and Paschal services held in our seminary chapel in 2012 were taken by Dn. Gregory Hatrak (Holy Thursday night, that is, Holy Friday Matins); and Amy Bozeman (Paschal Nocturnes, Matins, and Divine Liturgy).

The Right Reverend Matthias, bishop of Chicago and the Midwest, Orthodox Church in America, ordained Dn.David Bozeman to the Holy Priesthood and seminarian Jason Ketz to the Holy Diaconate on April 1, 2012 in Three Hierarchs Chapel. Photos by Seminarian Michael Soroka.

On the Feast of the Holy and Righteous Lazarus, April 7, 2012, 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. (Photos: Tatiana Hoff)

On the Feast of the Holy and Righteous Lazarus, April 7, 2012, 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. (Photos: David Lucs)

Led by our Chancellor/CEO The Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield, about 15 members of our SVOTS community traveled to Washington D.C. to participate in the annual U.S. March for Life, in peaceable protest of Roe v. Wade, the decision that legalized the practice of abortion in the U.S.

Our annual open house, Orthodox Education Day, in 2011 with the theme "For God and Country," was captured by photographer Kim Piotrowski. On that day, October 1st, our school honored service men and women, and especially Orthodox Christian military chaplains.

From June 19-23, 2011, the 5th Annual Diaconal Liturgical Practicum was hosted on our campus, and led, as customary, by Archdeacon Kirill Sokolov and Fr. Sergius Halvorsen. Participants were addressed by His Grace Tikhon, who Chairs the Board of Theological Education Department, which establishes, maintains, and oversees the general standards and curriculum for the education and formation of clergy in the Orthodox Church in America, and also oversees the general standards and curriculum for the Church's Late Vocations Programs; and also by our Dean, Archpriest John Behr, and our Chancellor, Archpriest Chad Hatfield. Photos: Deborah (Malacky) Belonick

HOME > RESOURCES > MISSIOLOGY AND EVANGELISM WORKSHOP TO BE HELD AT ST. VLADIMIR'S ORTHODOX THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY Share

Missiology and Evangelism Workshop to be Held at St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary
5/6/2011

St. Vladimir's Seminary hosted a Missiology and Evangelism Workshop from 06/07/2011 to 06/08/2011. This workshop focused on outreach to people of African heritage and Spanish-speaking cultures in the U.S. and Canada. Presenters were Fr. Moses Berry, President of the Brotherhood of St. Moses the Black and pastor of the Theotokos "Unexpected Joy" Orthodox Church in Ashgrove, Missouri and Fr. Antonio Perdomo, pastor of St. George Othodox Church, Hidalgo County, Texas, and creator of several Spanish-speaking outreach resources and ministries.

On May 21, 2011, our seminary celebrated Commencement Ceremonies, with Professor David Drillock acting as this year's Commencement Speaker. Seminarian Michael John Soroka was Valedictorian, and Dn. David Wooten was Salutatorian. The “Saint Basil Award for Academic Achievement” was presented to both Andrew Smith and Monk Kilian (Sprecher). Photo Gallery by Robert Lisak. To order high resolution photos, contact Mr. Lisak: robert@robertlisak.com.

On May 21, 2011, the same day as the Commencement of the Class of 2011, graduating senior Aaron Oliver was ordained to the Holy Diaconate in Three Hierarchs Chapel, by His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah, primate of the Orthodox Church in America. (Photos: Dn. Gregory Hatrak)

On May 14, 2011, at St. Sergius Chapel in Syosset, NY, His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah, primate of the Orthodox Church in America, ordained Seminarian David Wooten to the Holy Diaconate. Photos by Alexis Liberovsky, archivist of the OCA, and Protodeacon Joseph Matusiak, Director of Alumni and Recruitment at SVOTS.

The seminary community celebrates Holy Week with great solemnity and Pascha with great joy. Photos in this gallery were taken by Tatiana and Jeffrey Hoff.

On May 18, 2011, at Three Hierarchs Chapel, St. Vladimir's Seminary, Yonkers, NY, His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah, primate of the Orthodox Church in America, ordained Seminarian Timothy Yates to the Holy Diaconate. Photos by Deborah (Malacky) Belonick.

On Lazarus Saturday afternoon, a select Children's Choir, under the direction of Danielle Miller and assisted by seminarians Ashley Lear and Harrison Russin, performed a Spring Concert in the Metropolitan Philip Auditorium. His Grace, The Right Rev. Michael, bishop of New York and New Jersey, attended. Photos: Tatiana Hoff.

On Lazarus Saturday, April 16, 2011, His Grace The Right Rev. Michael, bishop of New York and New Jersey, of the Orthodox Church in America, ordained to the diaconate William Seraphim Joa, a second-year student in the M.Div. degree program at St. Vladimir's. Photos: Tatiana Hoff

March 6, 2011: On the Sunday on the Eve of Great Lent, commemorating the Casting out of Adam and Eve from Paradise, our Dean, Archpriest John Behr delivered a retreat at the Cathedral of the Holy Virgin Protection, on the topic "The Journey to Pascha," with special emphasis on Melito of Sardis' treatise "On Pascha."

On March 12, 2011, Dn. John Culbreath-Frazier, 3rd-year seminarian, was ordained to the Holy Priesthood by His Grace, The Right Rev. Seraphim (Sigrist), formerly Bishop of Sendai and East Japan. Photos: Deborah (Malacky) Belonick

On Sunday, March 14, 2011, the seminary community participated in the 41st annual Triumph of Orthodoxy Vespers service, sponsored by the Westchester Orthodox Clergy Fellowship, and hosted at the Virgin Mary Antiochian Orthodox Church, Yonkers, NY. Photos: Deborah Belonick

From February 26-28, 2011, the Orthodox Inter-Seminary Movement (OISM), held its Spring 2011 at St. Vladimir's Seminary. Students from seven seminaries were represented, and a new OISM Board was elected.

Academic Convocation 28 February 2011 & Reappointment of Dean and Chancellor of St. Vladimir's Seminary announced. Photos: Dn. Gregory Hatrak

Annually, the administration hosts a Super Bowl party for the campus community. During Super Bowl XLV's game between the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers, fans in our community came out in full fanatic apparel to cheer on their teams.

Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev), chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Affairs, was honored at a book signing at St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Patriarchal Cathedral, 15 East 97th St., New York, NY, on Sunday after Divine Liturgy, 10 a.m., February 6th. He signed two of the books he published with St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, "Christ the Conqueror of Hell: The Descent into Hades from an Orthodox Perspective," (2009) and "Orthodox Christianity: Volume I: The History and Canonical Structure of the Orthodox Church" (2011). Photos: Tatiana Hoff

January 15-16, 2011, the Men's Choir traveled to Christ the Saviour Church in Harrisburg, PA (OCA) and to St. John Chrysostom Church in York, PA (Antiochian).

Between January 7th-9th, 2011, Fr. Chad visited Denver and Colorado Springs,particularly Ss. Constantine & Helen Church, Colorado Springs, CO, rector V. Rev. Anthony Karbo. Photos: Eric Jewett

Blessing of the koi pond next to Three Hierarchs Chapel, the seminary's place of worship. Photos: Helen Mules

Photos of the Winter Talent Show 2010 by Tatiana Hoff and Fr. Jason Foster

Annual St. Nicholas visit to Church School children of our campus community.

Installation of the new mosaic for Three Hierarchs Chapel. Photos: Deborah Belonick

Photos of seminary community on Halloween

Photos by Vera Hubiak's cousin Kim Piotrowski (kipi@mindspring.com)

Photos of Orientation Week August 21-29, 2010

Commencement 2010 photos by Robert Lisak

Vespers and Molieben for installation of Dean Archpriest John Behr and Chancellor Archpriest Chad Hatfield on September 13th-14th 2007. All photos by Robert Lisak.

Annual Labor Day campus picnic

Seminarian ordinations during summer 2010