With faith in Christ and hope in the resurrection, we share news of the repose of St. Vladimir’s Seminary Trustee Emeritus Mitchell Zunich. Zunich, 93, died on the Feast of Holy Pascha, Sunday, April 19, at his home at St. Mary of the Woods Assisted Living in Avon, OH.

Zunich was born May 10, 1926 in Lorain, OH. He served with the US Army during World War II in the 357th Regiment of the 90th Infantry Division. During his service, he participated in the battles of Rhineland and Central Europe and received the European-African-Middle-Eastern Theater Ribbon with two Bronze Stars, a Good Conduct Medal, a WWII Victory Medal and an Occupation Medal for Germany. His division was awarded the Bronze Star and participated in the liberation of Flossenburg Concentration Camp. Zunich attended the Ohio State University where he earned a bachelor of science in accounting. He founded Mitchell Zunich & Co. Certified Public Accountants, retiring in 2001. He was active in the community, having served as an officer, president, and board member of many organizations including the Lorain Rotary Club, Lorain Salvation Army, Lorain Metropolitan Housing Authority, the City Bank Co., Lorain Family YMCA, Clearview School Board, and St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary. In the 1990s, Mitchell and his wife, Violet, helped establish a scholarship for Serbian Orthodox seminarians at St. Vladimir’s so that no young Serbian Orthodox men would be turned away from becoming priests. Zunich was a member of St. George Serbian Orthodox Church in Lorain, the Serbian National Federation, the Ohio Society of CPAs, and the AICPA.

"Mitch was honored to be on the Seminary’s Board of Trustees," said fellow St. Vladimir's Trustee Emeritus Brian Gerich. "He served many years as one of the four Serbian trustees along with [Trustee Emeritus] Alex Machaskee, Leon Lysaght, and myself.

"During our 1990’s Capital Campaign, I asked Mitch to join with me in establishing endowments for scholarships for Serbian Orthodox students studying to become priests. He immediately accepted, and he and his beloved wife Violet added to their endowment regularly. Mitch was pleased to know that as students graduated they were debt free as they prepared for a lifetime of serving our Lord."

"I remember Mitch as a quiet, decisive, compassionate gentleman who was a staunch supporter of our Orthodox Christian faith and a great contributor of time, talent, and treasure to St. Vladimir's Seminary," added Alex Machaskee. "He was a founding contributor to Monastery Marcha in Richfield Ohio, a decorated veteran of World War II, and a highly esteemed civic leader."

Mitchell Zunich is survived by his sons, Mitch Zunich of Cleveland and Rob (Eva) Zunich of Avon Lake; grandchildren, Neven, Dane, Rada, and Mila Zunich; and sister, Sophie Tyrin of Chicago. Zunich was preceded in death by his wife of 58 years, Violet M. Zunich (née Kobac) on Sept 7, 2014; infant son, Nick Zunich, in 1959; parents, Nikola & Stanka Zunich (née Kunic); brothers, Demeter, George, Nick, and Mike Zunich; and sisters, Mildred Stamatis, Dorothy Kovan, Nellie Raynovich, and Mary Zunich.

Due to restrictions on social gatherings during the COVID-19 pandemic, private family funeral services will be held. Hieromonk Nektarije Tesanovic of St. George Serbian Orthodox Church will preside with burial to follow in Elmwood Cemetery in Lorain. Memorial contributions may be made to St. George Serbian Orthodox Church, 3355 Grove Ave, Lorain, OH, 44055 or St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary, 575 Scarsdale Rd, Yonkers, NY, 10707. Arrangements are under the direction of Gluvna-Shimo-Hromada Funeral Chapel, 3224 Broadway Ave, Lorain. Online condolences may be made at www.gluvna.net. 

May the memory of Mitchell Zunich be eternal!

-- 

(The photo and some information in this article have been reprinted from The Morning Journal.)

This year’s Summer Music Institute at St. Vladimir’s Seminary brought together more than sixty people from Orthodox parishes across North America. From June 22–27 participants of all musical levels and experience studied and worshipped alongside noted liturgical music experts and instructors including Fr. Stephen Meholick, Alexander Lingas, Vladimir Morosan, Photini Downie Robinson, Juliana Woodill, and Alice Hughes.

“What an amazing community of musicians we had in attendance this year,”  said Hughes, who was one of the Institute’s chief organizers this year together with Dn. Harrison Basil Russin, Zachariah Mandell, Alexander Lingas, and Peter Bouteneff. “It was a joy to observe the camaraderie and supportiveness of the participants, who had various levels of experience and training, working together to grow and learn, to rehearse and then to render with beauty and prayer the services this week.”

The 2026 Summer Music Institute, an event of the Seminary’s Institute of Sacred Arts (ISA), offered training in musicianship, vocal technique, conducting, and—new for this year—advanced studies in the history of Orthodox liturgical music. The three keynote lectures delivered throughout the week explored the planting, cultivation, and flourishing of Orthodox music in North America and highlighted musicians such as Boris Ledkovsky, Michael Gelsinger, Tikey Zes, Michael Hilko, and others.

“If we continue with God’s help and guidance to build on the foundation that has been laid by our Orthodox musical forefathers here in America,” proposed Vladimir Morosan during his keynote lecture, “we will be contributing to that essential event of transforming this land, our nations of North America, in ways that the Puritans, first settlers, and founding fathers would never have imagined. May it be God’s will!”

Each day Institute participants also convened in the Seminary’s Three Hierarchs Chapel for services, serving as the choir during Matins, Vespers, Divine Liturgy, and a special Panikhida for all departed Church musicians. During the Panikhida Fr. Alexander Rentel recited an extensive list of names which parishes from around North America submitted for remembrance. Two of the daily services (Great Vespers on Tuesday and Saturday Matins) were sung by a Byzantine Schola led by Photini Downie Robinson, Alexander Lingas, and Eleftherios Chasanidis. Dr. Chasanidis is protopsaltis of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity. 

The Summer Music Institute concluded on June 27 with a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy presided over by His Grace Bishop Benedict of Hartford and New England.

“What draws me back each year is the continued training as well as the camaraderie,” shared Alta Xenia Morris, who has been to multiple Summer Music Institutes including this year’s. “Spending time together with Church musicians who are serving their parishes in the same way that I'm serving my parish truly makes my heart sing. Being able to learn from those who have more experience than I or to help those who are struggling in ways that maybe I’ve struggled before, learning together, laughing together, brainstorming, problem solving—that time spent together always leaves me ready to return to my parish with renewed energy and purpose.”

Next year’s Summer Music Institute is set for the week of June 21, 2027. More details will be announced in the coming months.

ABOUT THE SUMMER MUSIC INSTITUTE

The Summer Music Institute has a storied history at St. Vladimir’s Seminary. In recent years the Institute has drawn hundreds of Orthodox church musicians from North America and abroad to St. Vladimir's Seminary to hone their vocal, conducting, and compositional skills. Past themes have included Orthodox liturgical music written by American composers, pan-Orthodox hymnody, and practical skill- and resource-building for parish musicians.

ABOUT THE INSTITUTE OF SACRED ARTS

The Institute of Sacred Arts (ISA) at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary explores the intersection of human creativity and holiness. With a theology that is holistic, and a liturgy that unites multiple artistic disciplines and all the human senses, the Orthodox Christian tradition is ripe for the exploration and celebration of the sacred arts. Since its founding in 1938, St. Vladimir’s Seminary has fostered the study of icons, music and liturgy. The ISA serves to extend the seminary’s mission in exploring the mutual relationship between theology and the arts by: contributing to the work of people and institutions that practice and reflect on the sacred arts; engaging people and institutions of all backgrounds with Orthodox artistic tradition; inspiring wider public interest in spirituality and the arts. Learn more at www.instituteofsacredarts.com.

PHOTO GALLERY: Scenes from the Summer Music Institute

With the help of generous supporters of the Seminary, St. Vladimir’s Seminary (SVS) Press is closer to publishing St. John of Damascus’ masterwork, The Fount of Knowledge. It will be the third of the new Popular Patristics Series: Longer Works. Longer Works is an extension of the classic SVS Press series designed to publish major, full-length patristic texts that are too long for the traditional Popular Patristics Series format. 

What makes The Fount of Knowledge so significant, and why is SVS Press working on a new translation to bring to readers? Press Director Dr. Daniel Stauffer offers his thoughts.
 

 Give & Help Publish The Fount of Knowledge
 

Could you offer a brief biographical sketch about St. John of Damascus—his early life and formation, his path in ministry?

John of Damascus was born in Damascus several decades after it was conquered by the Muslims in the mid-seventh century. Coming from an elite family, he served in the court of the Umayyad caliphate. Eventually, probably due to increasing hostility towards Christians from the Muslim rulers, he abandoned his civil-service career to become a monk at the Monastery of St. Sabas near Jerusalem, where he lived the rest of his life. Here he gave orations in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre—for which he received the name Χρυσορρόας, or “flowing with gold”—and composed a great deal of liturgical poetry that is still used by the Orthodox Church today. (For instance, the text of Matins used during the midnight Paschal Service every year is attributed to St. John.) 

St. John is considered one of the greatest of the early Church fathers of the East during the first millenium. Why is he so significant, and what is the reason for his enduring appeal?

St. John of Damascus is important because he acts as a synthesis of much of the preceding patristic tradition. He also has a significantly easier and more straight-forward style than many other patristic authors, which makes him more accessible to a broader audience. He is also of great interest as the first of the great Christian authors to interact with Islam, and this gives his work significance for understanding the new world emerging in the Near East in the seventh and eighth centuries.

Tell us a bit about the translation process and the translator of this work, and why the Press prioritized a new version of St. John's magnum opus when other versions already exist.

There is only one prior translation of The Fount of Knowledge, done in the 1950s and published by Catholic University of America (CUA) Press. This translation is, unfortunately, somewhat outdated and inaccurate in places, and it was done based on an imperfect version of the original Greek text. Now that we have a much-improved version of the Greek text (the editor, Bonifatius Kotter, dedicated basically his entire life to producing immaculate versions of all of St. John’s prose works), SVS Press thought it was time for a new translation. The translator for this project, Norman Russell, is one of the foremost living translators of Byzantine theological texts. 

Who do you believe will benefit from this book? Are portions of it accessible to lay readers?

On the Orthodox Faith, which is the third part of The Fount of Knowledge, was published by SVS Press in 2022, and it immediately became one of our most popular books. That being said, SVS Press always intended to publish the first two parts of The Fount of Knowledge as well, although Norman Russell only finished the translation of these earlier parts after On the Orthodox Faith had been out for several years. Presenting the entire work in a single volume will provide readers with the most comprehensive view possible of John of Damascus’ approach to the Christian faith. 

This book is the third in the Popular Patristics Series: Longer Works, a new subseries recently launched by SVS Press. Can you tell us a little more about the Longer Works?

SVS Press is very excited for its new Popular Patristics Series: Longer Works. St. Gregory Palamas’ Triads was the first volume in this subseries, and it has been a huge hit with our readers, and the second volume, Hymns of Divine Eros by St. Symeon the New Theologian, is currently being printed. A great thing about Longer Works is it allows us to publish a whole range of patristic works that could never have fit into the smaller volumes of the Popular Patristics Series. The higher prices of these books also allow us to produce a higher quality physical product (hard cover, sewn binding, etc.) that will last through decades of reading and rereading by our customers.

Would you like to help make this important work available to the public in a fresh English translation, and for the first time printed with the Greek text on the facing page? Become a partner with SVS Press and invest in this exciting project. Click here to learn how.

Master iconographer Dr. George Kordis was back at St. Vladimir’s Seminary in June, leading workshops and offering demonstrations to students.

The Seminary’s Institute of Sacred Arts (ISA) has been collaborating with Dr. Kordis and his Writing the Light school of iconography for several years. He was ISA’s inaugural Artist in Residence in the spring of 2022 and has trained students on campus nearly every summer since then. 

This year, he offered a five-day icon painting intensive in the Byzantine system both for beginners and more advanced, from June 15–19. The Seminary welcomed to campus both independent students and others participating in Writing the Light’s certificate program.

During this visit to the Seminary Dr. Kordis completed two icons: one of St. Demetrius and one of The Purification of Isaiah. 

(Photo: Coastlands Photography)

(Photo: Coastlands Photography)

ABOUT DR GEORGE KORDIS
Eminent iconographer George Kordis has the rare distinction for a practicing artist of a complete academic training in theology, with advanced theological degrees from Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Boston and the University of Athens, where he was assistant professor in iconography (theory and practice). His training as a painter preceded and motivated his move into theology: During the 1980s he worked with the Cypriot master iconographer, Fr. Symeon Symeou, and also studied painting at The School of Fine Arts at The Museum of Boston from 1987–89; and even while obtaining his doctorate (Athens) in 1991 he continued his studies in painting and engraving under Fotis Mastichiadis. Dr. Kordis has been a visiting professor teaching icon painting courses at Yale University, the University of South Carolina, the University of Bucharest/Department of Orthodox Theology, and Ukraine Pedagogical University, Odessa, while continuing to create major church programs of iconography—including several in the US (see Holy Trinity in Columbia, SC and, recently, Holy Trinity in Pittsburgh and panel icons, which have been seen in numerous prominent exhibitions at Yale University and elsewhere). Kordis is also a prolific author with wide-ranging interests: theory and practice of Orthodox iconography, Fayum mummy portraits, Theophan the Cretan, Andrei Rublev, Fotis Kontoglou, Greek folk art, and many other topics.

Read his full CV and explore his expansive work.

PHOTO GALLERY: Scenes from Writing the Light Workshops

Attend the 2026 Summer Music Institute

We are excited to announce the return of St. Vladimir’s Seminary’s Summer Music Institute, to be held on campus from June 23–27, 2026, with pre-institute intensive June 22–23.

This year’s Institute will celebrate and explore the planting, cultivation, and flourishing of Orthodox musical traditions in North America, and the musicians who laid the groundwork for the English language liturgical singing of today. Teachers and experts including Alexander Lingas, Vladimir Morosan, Photini Downie Robinson, Juliana Woodill, and Alice Hughes will lead courses of study on vocal technique and choral conducting, as well as advanced seminars on Orthodox music. Come worship, build skills, and enjoy fellowship together!

Learn More & Register to Attend

About the Institute of Sacred Arts

The Institute of Sacred Arts (ISA) at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary explores the intersection of human creativity and holiness. With a theology that is holistic, and a liturgy that unites multiple artistic disciplines and all the human senses, the Orthodox Christian tradition is ripe for the exploration and celebration of the sacred arts. Since its founding in 1938, St. Vladimir’s Seminary has fostered the study of icons, music and liturgy. The ISA serves to extend the seminary’s mission in exploring the mutual relationship between theology and the arts by: contributing to the work of people and institutions that practice and reflect on the sacred arts; engaging people and institutions of all backgrounds with Orthodox artistic tradition; inspiring wider public interest in spirituality and the arts. Learn more at www.instituteofsacredarts.com.

Ten years removed from “The Holy and Great Council,” how should the large pan-Orthodox council, convened by the Ecumenical Patriarch and held in 2016 on the island of Crete, be remembered? What lessons have we learned? What can we see more clearly now, in retrospect?

The Council of Crete’s legacy was the subject of the Orthodox Theological Society of America (OTSA)’s Annual Meeting (June 11-13) and the Florovsky Lecture for 2026, hosted on the campus of St. Vladimir’s Seminary. His Grace Bishop Maxim (Vasiljević), who was present at the council in 2016, delivered a magnificent lecture.

“I can tell you that from the very first session, the experience was unlike anything I had anticipated. …” His Grace remarked. 

He went on to express what he believed the council was and was not, but emphasized any evaluation of its significance must be measured against a proper understanding of conciliarity.

“Synodality in the deepest patristic sense is a theological reality before it is an institutional one. It relates to Pentecost, to the Eucharist, to the gathering of the dispersed children of God into one body. From this perspective, the Council of Crete was not diminished by the absence of four Churches or by procedural imperfections,” said Bishop Maxim. “What made it a council was the daily Eucharist, the genuine theological encounter, the charismatic atmosphere which I can testify to personally. The grace of the Holy Spirit was palpably present in the hall, and bishops who had never met once one another discovered that they shared not merely an administrative communion but a living faith.”

The entirety of Bishop Maxim’s lecture and the discussion that followed are posted to the Seminary’s YouTube channel. Bishop Maxim has also written about his experience in Crete in the book Diary of the Council: Reflections from the Holy and Great Council (Sebastian Press, 2016).

Bishop Maxim was originally one of four panelists, all of whom were present at the council, set to present at this year’s Florovsky Lecture. Due to unforeseen circumstances, however, the other speakers, Very Rev. Protopresbyter Dr. Nicolas Kazarian, Dr. Elizabeth Prodromou, and Very Rev. Dr. Alexander Rentel, were unable to participate as planned. OTSA organizers hope to bring them all back for a virtual event in the coming months to continue the discussion.

OTSA’s 2026 Annual Meeting at St. Vladimir’s Seminary included several Seminary alumni and faculty members among others, including His Grace Bishop Irinej (Dobrijevic), OTSA’s President Very Rev. Dr. John Jillions, its Vice President Very Rev. Dr. Bogdan Bucur, OTSA Treasurer Very Rev. Dr. Peter Baktis, Dr. Peter Bouteneff, and Seminary Dean Dr. Ionuț-Alexandru Tudorie.

“[OTSA] was originally an association that put together the two faculties of two seminaries in North America: Holy Cross from Boston and St. Vladimir’s from New York. …” Dr. Tudorie noted. He pointed to the 2026 gathering at St. Vladimir’s Seminary as an opportunity to renew and strengthen those ties. “I am very happy that this was possible and I'm looking forward to more,” he added.

For more information about OTSA, visit the organization’s website at otsamerica.net.

With faith in Christ and hope in the resurrection, we share news of the repose of Hieromonk Alexis (Lisenko), an alumnus of St. Vladimir’s Seminary. Fr. Alexis, who is remembered as a kind, gentle, and gifted priest, fell asleep in the Lord on Friday, June 12.

Hieromonk Alexis was born in Paris, France, on March 31, 1947, to a Russian mother and a Ukrainian Father. At the age of four his parents immigrated to the US, first to San Francisco, CA, and then to Berkeley, CA. After graduating from high school in 1964 he went on to study at the University of California-Berkeley, receiving a degree in Sociology in 1968. He then studied and taught Russian at the US Defense Language Institute in Monterey, CA. He graduated from St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in 1978.

He was ordained at Holy Trinity Cathedral in San Francisco, CA, in 1979 and was assigned as a priest in Santa Rosa, CA. In 1980 Fr. Alexis was assigned to Holy Virgin Mary Cathedral in Los Angeles, CA, where he served for the next fifteen years. From 1995 on, he served parishes in Desloge, MO; Wheaton, IL; and San Diego, CA. Eventually he was tonsured as a priest-monk in Manton, CA, at St. John of Shanghai Orthodox Monastery. In 2019 he moved back to the Chicago area to be closer to family and to receive much needed medical care. 

Fr. Alexis was widely read. He loved history, literature, and poetry. He was an accomplished pianist. He spoke Russian, Ukrainian, French, and English fluently. He was an excellent translator and worked for many years with St. Vladimir’s Seminary (SVS) Press, translating works from Russian into English. He assisted the OCA’s Department of History and Archives on many projects. His most famous work was the 2014 monumental two-volume translation from Russian into English of My Life’s Journey: The Memoirs of Metropolitan Evlogy (SVS Press). This was the fruit of many years of work. At the time of his death, Fr. Alexis was working on translating into English the diary of His Beatitude Metropolitan Leonty (Turkevich). 

Fr. Alexis was humble, gentle, soft spoken, and loved the liturgical cycle of the Church, serving all the services up until the last week of his death with the Archpriest Paul Jannakos at Saint Luke Orthodox Church in Palos Hill, IL.

He is survived by his family, two sons Daniel and Timothy, a daughter-in-law Remy, grandchildren Christian, Isabella, and Sofia.

Funeral services for Fr. Alexis will be held at St. Luke Church, Palos Hill, IL.

Thursday, June 18
6pm: Funeral for a Monastic

Friday, June 19
9:30am: Divine Liturgy

May the memory of Hieromonk Alexis be eternal!

Article and photo adapted and republished from OCA.org.

*UPDATE: Due to a funeral on campus June 12, the Florovsky Lecture has been moved to Saturday, June 13, at 11am. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. 

“The Council of Crete (2016) after Ten Years”

Ten years removed from what had been called “The Holy and Great Council”—the large, pan-Orthodox council convened by the Ecumenical Patriarch and held in 2016 on the island of Crete—the significance of the council is still being examined and debated.

The Council of Crete’s legacy is the subject of the Orthodox Theological Society of America (OTSA)’s Florovsky Lecture for 2026, which will be hosted on the campus of St. Vladimir’s Seminary on Saturday, June 13. The lecture will be delivered by His Grace Bishop Maxim (Vasiljević), who was present at the council in 2016. 

*Unfortunately, due to the change in date mentioned above, the other planned keynote speakers, Very Rev. Protopresbyter Dr. Nicolas Kazarian, Very Rev. Dr. Alexander Rentel, and Dr. Elizabeth Prodromou, are no longer able to participate. OTSA is tentatively planning a future event to feature them.

The Florovsky Lecture is open to the public and free to attend in person or online. A reception will follow.

Register to Attend

The Lecture is part of OTSA’s 2026 Annual Meeting being held at St. Vladimir’s Seminary from June 11–13. The sessions of the annual meeting are generally open to the public, unless the meeting planners decide to close a particular session. The business meeting of the society is for members only. For more information, please visit the OTSA website.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

His Grace Bishop Maxim (Vasiljević) of Los Angeles and Western America earned his doctorate in dogmatics and patristics from the University of Athens in 1999. He completed post-doctoral work in Byzantine History and Theology at the Sorbonne in Paris and enrolled in painting classes at the French Academy of Fine Arts. He teaches at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Boston. He is also an accomplished painter with exhibitions and iconography classes worldwide. His notable works include, among others, History, Truth, Holiness (2011), Theology as a Surprise (2018), Wonder as the Beginning of Faith (2022), Saved by Beauty: Dostoevsky and America (2022), Illumination and Surprise (2024), and Nicaea 325: A Council for History and Eternity—Conciliarity from Nicaea to the Modern Church (2025).

Protopresbyter Nicolas Kazarian, Ph.D., serves as the Ecumenical Officer and Director of the Department of Inter-Orthodox, Ecumenical, and Interfaith Relations for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. He also teaches Ecumenical Relations at Hellenic College-Holy Cross. He is a member of the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches as well as co-moderator of Religions for Peace USA, and he serves as the parish priest of St. Eleftherios Greek Orthodox Church in Manhattan.

Elizabeth H. Prodromou, Ph.D., is Professor of the Practice in the International Studies Program at Boston College and a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center. A current member of the Global Academic Council of the International Religious Freedom Secretariat, she served on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom and as a member of the U.S. Secretary of State’s Religion and Foreign Policy Working Group. Her academic and policy research concentrates on the intersection of geopolitics, religion, and human rights, with particular focus on the linkages between religious pluralism and democracy. An internationally recognized expert on global Orthodox Christianity and on the geopolitics of the Eastern Mediterranean; she was a delegate consultant of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to the Holy and Great Council at Crete in 2016.

Archpriest Alexander Rentel, S.E.O.D., is Fr. Alexander Schmemann Assistant Professor of Liturgical Theology and Canon Law at St. Vladimir's Seminary and rector of the Seminary’s Three Hierarchs Chapel. He has taught at St. Vladimir's Seminary since 2002. From 2019 until 2025 he also served as Chancellor of the Orthodox Church in America. He was an External Correspondent for the Press Team of the Ecumenical Patriarch at the Holy and Great Council in Chania, Crete, June 2016.

Since the beginning of the spring semester through the end of the academic year, nine new priests and five new deacons have been added to St Vladimir’s Seminary’s student body and alumni fellowship. Another four were elevated in rank. 

Together with ordinations from the fall and summer, 28 seminarians and alumni have been ordained to holy orders since the end of the previous academic year.

We keep them all in prayer as they continue in their ministries!

HOLY PRIESTHOOD

Priest Richard Okello (M.Div. ’25) 

Jurisdiction: Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria (Holy Diocese of Gulu and Northern Uganda)
Holy Priesthood: Ordained 28 December 2025 at the Holy Temple of St. Nicholas, Akonyibedo, Gulu City, Uganda.
Current Ministry: Missionary Priest in Uganda

(Photo courtesy of Fr. Justin Mathews)

Priest Jarrod Huffman, M.Div. ’26

Jurisdiction: Orthodox Church in America
Holy Priesthood: Ordained 6 Jan 2026 at Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral, Chicago, IL
Current Ministry: Assigned to St. Andrew Orthodox Church, Maple Heights, OH

Priest Habib (Caleb) McGee, (M.Div. ’24)

Jurisdiction: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
Holy Priesthood: Ordained 2 Feb 2026 at St. George Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church, Houston, TX
Current Ministry: Assists His Eminence Metropolitan Saba at the Archdiocese Headquarters in Englewood, NJ

(Photo: Holy Cross Orthodox Church) 

Priest Sergio Hector Lopez (M.Div. ’26) 

Jurisdiction: Orthodox Church in America
Holy Priesthood: Ordained 5 February 2026 at Holy Cross Orthodox Church in Kernersville, NC
Current Ministry: Assistant Priest at Holy Cross Orthodox Church, Kernersville, NC
 

(Photo: Granger Krajca/Antiochian.org) 

Priest Christopher Abdelahad, (M.A. ’24)

Jurisdiction: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
Holy Priesthood: Ordained 7 March 2026 at St. Elias Antiochian Orthodox Church, Austin, TX
Current Ministry: Assistant Priest at Saint Anthony the Great Antiochian Church, Spring, TX

(Photo: Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America )

Priest Ferenc Féhérvári (M.Div. ’26)

Jurisdiction: Orthodox Church in America, Romanian Orthodox Episcopate
Holy Priesthood:  Ordained 8 March 2026 at at the Holy Forty Martyrs of Sebaste Orthodox Church in Aurora, Ontario, Canada
Current Ministry: Assigned to Saint Anne Orthodox Church, Pomona, CA

Priest Bogdan Popescu (Completed Non-Degree Track) 

Jurisdiction: Orthodox Church in America, Bulgarian Diocese
Holy Priesthood:  Ordained 8 March 2026 at Three Hierarchs Chapel, St. Vladimir’s Seminary, Yonkers, NY
Current Ministry: Priest-in-Charge at St. John the Baptist Church, Los Angeles, CA

Priest Daniel Werner (M.Div. ’26) 

Jurisdiction: Orthodox Church in America
Holy Priesthood: Ordained 25 March 2026 at Three Hierarchs Chapel, St. Vladimir’s Seminary, Yonkers, NY
Current Ministry: Assistant Priest at St. Anne Orthodox Church, Oak Ridge, TN.

Photo: Antiochian.org 

Priest Gregory Abdalah, (M.Div. ‘08, D.Min. ‘18)

Jurisdiction: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
Holy Priesthood: Ordained 31 May 2026 at St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church, Phoenix, AZ 
Current Ministry: Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology, SVOTS D.Min. program; Pastor of St. John of Damascus Church, Dedham, MA

HOLY DIACONATE

(Photo: Sumod Jacob Video & Photography)

Deacon Subin Shaji (M.Div. ’22)

Jurisdiction: Malankara Archdiocese of the Syriac Orthodox Church in North America
Holy Diaconate: Ordained 3 January 2026 at St. Peter's Syriac Orthodox Cathedral, Philadelphia, PA

Deacon Ibrahim Aldaiob, (M.A. ’27)

Jurisdiction: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
Holy Diaconate: Ordained 15 Feb 2026 at Virgin Mary Antiochian Orthodox Church, Yonkers, NY
Current Ministry: Continuing studies at St. Vladimir’s Seminary

Deacon Benjamin Franks (M.Div. ’27)

Jurisdiction: Orthodox Church in America
Holy Diaconate: Ordained 25 March 2026 at Three Hierarchs Chapel, St. Vladimir’s Seminary, Yonkers, NY
Current Ministry: Continuing studies at St. Vladimir’s Seminary

Deacon Moses (Darius) Sabau, (M.A. ’27)

Jurisdiction: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
Holy Diaconate: Ordained 9 April 2026 at St. Anthony Orthodox Church, Bergenfield, NJ
Current Ministry: Continuing studies at St. Vladimir’s Seminary

Deacon Thomas (Ryan) Thomas (M.Div. ’24) 

Jurisdiction: Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, Northeast American Diocese
Holy Diaconate: Ordained 23 May 2026 at St. Ephrem Chapel, Stafford, TX
Current Ministry: Youth Minister for MOSC parishes in the Atlanta, GA, area

ELEVATIONS

Archimandrite Nicholas Belcher (M.Div. ‘05)

Jurisdiction: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
Elevation: Elevated to the dignity of archimandrite 9 May 2026 at St. George Orthodox Church, Little Falls, NJ
Current Ministry: Instructor in Antiochian Liturgics at St. Vladimir’s Seminary; Pastor of St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church in Little Falls, NJ; Chair of Antiochian Archdiocese’s Department of Youth & Young Adult Ministries

(Photo: Antiochian.org/Larry Vest)

Archpriest Lucas Rice (M.Div. ’11)

Jurisdiction: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
Elevation: Elevated to the dignity of archpriest 4 January 2026 at St. Michael Orthodox Church, Louisville, KY
Current Ministry: Pastor of St. Michael Orthodox Church, Louisville, KY
 

(Photo: Antiochian.org/Niveen Taamneh)

Archpriest Nabil Fino (Student, ’02–’03)

Jurisdiction: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
Elevation: Elevated to the dignity of archpriest 4 January 2026 at St. James Antiochian Orthodox Church, Loveland, OH
Current Ministry: Pastor of St. James Orthodox Church, Loveland, OH
 

(Photo: Antiochian.org/Stephen Harris and Daisy Vasu)

Archpriest John Ballard (M.Div. ’10)

Jurisdiction: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
Elevation: Elevated to the dignity of archpriest 17 January 2026 at St. Anthony the Great Orthodox Christian Church, Spring, TX
Current Ministry: Pastor of Holy Transfiguration Mission, Houston, TX

If you know of an alumnus who received Holy Orders, an elevation, or monastic tonsure since January 1, 2026, and isn’t listed here, please let us know by sending details and a photo to media@svots.edu.

With faith in Christ and hope in the resurrection, we share news of the repose of Barbara Drillock. Barbara fell asleep in the Lord in the early morning of June 9, 2026, at the age of 86.

Barbara was a beloved member of the St. Vladimir’s Seminary community. She faithfully served the Seminary for decades as a staff member, alongside her husband David Drillock, Emeritus Professor of Liturgical Music at the Seminary and longtime Chair of the OCA’s Department of Liturgical Music and Translations. 

Barbara (Gorodovich) Drillock was born October 15, 1939, in Flushing, NY, to Rita (Timoshuk) and Anthony Gorodovich. A proud New Yorker through and through, Barbara loved growing up in Queens and working in the city, and those roots stayed with her all her life. As a young woman, she worked in the payroll department at Equitable Life supporting senior leadership. After Barbara married her husband David in 1962, she was asked by Prof. Sergius Verhovskoy, the Provost at St. Vladimir’s Seminary, to leave her job in Manhattan and come work alongside David at the Seminary. Without hesitation she agreed, never looked back, and devoted the rest of her career to serving the Church. For forty-two years she served as receptionist, in accounts receivable, as kitchen manager, and as organizer of special events. 

Her devotion to the Seminary was exemplified in small ways every day, often unnoticed and unrecognized—whether it was multiple trips every week to Costco to save the Seminary money on groceries, cleaning areas as if they were her own home, or quietly making sure every student, guest, and visiting clergyman left the Seminary’s table well fed. She never hesitated to help, and she watched over the community with fierce devotion, care, and love.

“Barbara was a much loved, modest, energetic, and important member of the Seminary staff for decades,” recalled her longtime colleague on staff Ted Bazil. “She shared with her beloved husband Dave and her wonderful children total commitment to the operation and growth of the school. Barbara's unselfish, often unseen, dedication to all facets of work at St. Vladimir's Seminary serves as a profound example of Christian humility and sacrifice to generations of trustees, faculty, staff, students, and community members. We pray that God will reward this remarkable woman with the gift of peace in His Kingdom.”

In grateful recognition of many years of dedicated service to the ministry of theological education at St. Vladimir’s Seminary and with gratitude for their untiring commitment to the life and mission of the Orthodox Church in America, Barbara and David received archpastoral gratitude and invoking of God’s Blessings from the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America on March 17, 2004. 

In retirement Barbara and David relocated to Virginia and were faithful members of the Dormition of the Theotokos Orthodox Church in Norfolk for more than twenty years. They recently returned to New York to be closer to family.

Guided always by her deep faith, Barbara loved God, the Church, and her family. She cherished every moment with her husband, her children, and her grandchildren. She was so proud of the many “olive shoots around their table,” and she thanked God for the blessing of seeing all her children’s children.

Together, she and David treasured their small extended family in Queens, Pennsylvania, and Virginia Beach, and over the years their hearts embraced a wider one—the countless classmates, students, professors, staff, and their families who studied and worked at the Seminary, and who are a second family to them and their children. 

Barbara is survived by her husband of sixty-three years, David Drillock; her son Gregory (Laurie); her daughter Daria Loposky (Fr. Stephen); her daughter Kyra Kirtyan (Steve); and her son Andrew (Victoria). She also leaves behind sixteen grandchildren: Gregory, Jack, Samuel, Ryan, Joshua, Lauren, Stephen, Nicholas, Megan, Anna, Erin, Preston, Alexander, Carter, Lincoln, and Savannah. She was preceded in death by her parents, her granddaughter Kathryn, and her brother-in-law Serge.

Barbara’s visitation and funeral will be held at St. Vladimir’s Seminary’s Three Hierarchs Chapel, followed by her interment at St. Tikhon's Monastery in South Canaan, PA. The schedule is as follows:

Friday, June 12

3pm–6:30pm: Visitation in the Seminary Chapel

7pm: Funeral Service

*At 6pm, there will be a choir rehearsal for the funeral.

Saturday, June 13

9am: Memorial Divine Liturgy followed immediately by the Litê of the Panikhida

Following the liturgy, the body will be taken to St. Tikhon's Monastery for interment.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks donations be made in Barbara’s memory to St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary.

*Any clergy who wish to concelebrate the funeral on Friday or the Divine Liturgy on Saturday should contact Fr. Alexander Rentel at arentel@svots.edu.

May Barbara’s memory be eternal!