Joining His Beatitude in celebrating the liturgy was The Rt. Rev. Dr. Alexander [Golitzin], newly ordained Bishop of Toledo and the Bulgarian Diocese (OCA). Bishop Alexander also delivered the Commencement Address to the Class of 2012 at the afternoon graduation ceremony (read that story, here).
The newly ordained Fr. Timothy had been ordained to the Holy Diaconate in May 2011. During this past year at St. Vladimir's, as he completed his Master of Divinity degree, he also was a Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) intern at St. John's Hospital in Yonkers, New York. Now that Fr. Timothy has graduated from the seminary, he will be moving to Columbia, South Carolina, along with his wife, Matushka Tamara, and their four children. There, he will pursue a 12-month CPE residency at Palmetto Health, a regional health care facility. He also will be attached to Holy Apostles Orthodox Church, where The Very Rev. Thomas Moore is rector.
At the beginning of the Divine Liturgy, The Very Rev. Dr. Alexander Rentel, assistant professor of Canon Law and Byzantine Studies and a member of the Commission on Canons and Statutes for the OCA, was awarded the palitza, a priestly vestment, in recognition of his special contributions to the seminary as a faculty member and to the Orthodox Church as an expert in canon law.
At the end of the Divine Liturgy, The Very Rev. Steven Belonick, past Alumni Director and most recently Campus Chaplain at the seminary, and now rector of Holy Ghost Russian Orthodox Church in Bridgeport, was presented with a carved wooden cross by the Chair of the Alumni Board Gregory Abdalah, in recognition of his service to the alumni of St. Vladimir's over the years.
View a gallery of photos of the Divine Liturgy and ordination, here.
[Photos: D. Belonick and G. Hatrak]
Check back: gallery of photos by Leanne Parrott coming soon!
Check back: a video clip of the ordination coming soon!
