February 9, 2011 • Dr. David Wagschal

Our seminary Dean, Archpriest John Behr, with the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid, has announced the creation of a new tuition scholarship. The "Dean's Scholarship" will be awarded to outstanding candidates for the Th.M. degree and will cover the full cost of tuition. Up to five awards will be made per year.

"Over the past few years St. Vladimir's has significantly revamped and reconfigured its Master of Divinity program," remarked Fr. John. "This scholarship represents the first phase in a similar process of developing our new one-year Th.M. program. Demand is high for an advanced theological degree in Orthodox studies, either as preparation for doctoral work or as a more specialized research complement to an M.Div. or M.A. degree. With this new scholarship we hope to encourage some of the outstanding men and women who show significant promise of success in advanced theological studies to pursue a degree at St. Vladimir's Seminary. It is essential for the future of our seminaries, and thus the health of the Church more generally in this country, that opportunity is provided for those who are able to take their education to a higher level."

The number of St. Anthony the Great monastic scholarships and the Malankara Orthodox Syrian scholarships has also been increase2012 academic year. The St. Anthony the Great Scholarship Fund, established in 2010 for entering and returning students, now grants three awards (up to 100% of tuition in grant and work-study) to Eastern Orthodox men and women of the monastic rank of (at least) Rassaphore who demonstrate need, strong academic performance, and promise of significant service to the Church. Priority is given to men who are enrolled in the M.Div. program and preparing for ordination.

The Malankara Orthodox Scholarship Fund, established in 2010 for entering and returning students, now grants six awards (up to 75% of tuition in grant and work-study). It is awarded to men and women of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church who demonstrate need, strong academic performance, and promise of significant service to the Church. Priority is given to men who are enrolled in the M.Div. program and preparing for ordination.

Learn more about scholarships offered at St. Vladimir's.

by Deborah (Malacky) Belonick

Over 1,000 people streamed into the awe-inspiring Church of St. Paul the Apostle in New York City Monday evening to hear the equally sublime St. Matthew Passion, composed by Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev), an episcopal member of the Board of Trustees of St. Vladimir's Seminary and chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations. The performance—the U.S. English-language premiere of the opus—was hosted by the seminary in cooperation with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, and it crowned the four-day visit of His Eminence Hilarion to the metro area.

Maestro Greg Hobbs, who next week will also conduct the Dallas premiere of the work, took command of soloists, string orchestra, and chorus to deliver a stately and majestic performance to an overflowing  crowd. Under his baton, The Salomé Chamber Orchestra; famed soloists soprano Mary Mackenzie, mezzo-soprano Ana Mihanovic, tenor Blake Friedman, and bass Aaron Theno; and The New York Virtuoso Singers prepared by Harold Rosenbaum, magnificently elucidated text and music, creating a highly expressive yet sober symphonic experience for the audience. Protodeacon Vadim Gan, who sang the principal baritone part of “The Evangelist,” anchored their rhapsodic voices and soul-stirring strings to scriptural passages, which he intoned with humble subtlety.

Metropolitan Hilarion studied composition at Moscow Gnessins School of Music and subsequently at the Moscow State Conservatory. His musical compositions include the Divine Liturgy (2006), and All-Night Vigil (2006) for a cappella choir; the Christmas Oratorio for soloists, boys choir, mixed choir, and symphony orchestra (2007); and A Song of the Ascent, a choral symphony on the Psalms (2008).

In 1987 Metropolitan Hilarion was ordained priest, and since 2002 he has been a bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church; he was elevated to the rank of archbishop in 2009. A polyglot and exceptionally gifted, His Eminence has authored more than 600 publications, including twenty books that have been translated into major European languages.

Besides attending the premiere in his honor during his New York City stay, Metropolitan Hilarion also delivered the 28th annual Father Alexander Schmemann Lecture, Saturday, February 5th on our campus, and was honored at a book signing at St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Patriarchal Cathedral, 15 East 97th St., New York, on Sunday, February 6th after Divine Liturgy. Most of the seminary community accompanied our Dean, Archpriest John Behr, and our Chancellor, Archpriest Chad Hatfield, to the cathedral for the Eucharistic service, and several seminary priests concelebrated the liturgy with His Eminence Justinian, archbishop of the Russian Orthodox Church in the USA (Moscow Patriarchate); His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion; and His Beatitude Jonah, primate of the Orthodox Church in America and president of the Board of Trustees of St. Vladimir's Seminary. Also concelebrating at the liturgy was His Grace Melchisedek, bishop of Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania (OCA), who was visiting the seminary for the weekend.

After the Divine Liturgy, at a special reception, Metropolitan Hilarion signed two books that he has published with St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, Christ the Conqueror of Hell: The Descent into Hades from an Orthodox Perspective (2009) and The Orthodox Christianity Set.

by Deborah (Malacky) Belonick

Following the lecture, Metropolitan Hilarion presented the seminary with an exquisite icon of the Theotokos and Christ Child, and then celebrated Great Vespers with the seminary community in Three Hierarchs Chapel.

His Eminence will be visiting the New York Metro area this entire weekend. He will do 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 will be signing 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 The Orthodox Christianity Five-Volume Series.

He also will attend the U.S. English-language premiere of his opus St. Matthew Passion on Monday, February 7th, 7:30 p.m. at The Church of St. Paul the Apostle, on Columbus Avenue between 59th and 60th Streets, New York City. The concert is being hosted by St. Vladimir's Seminary, in cooperation with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York. Tickets are still available online or at the door the evening of the concert, but they are selling out quickly.

January Snowfall 2011 • Seminary Campus • Deborah Belonick

Poet Emily Dickinson made falling snow sound romantic:

It sifts from leaden sieves, it powders all the wood,

It fills with alabaster wool the wrinkles of the road.

It makes an even face of mountain and of plain, —

Unbroken forehead from the east unto the east again.

It reaches to the fence, it wraps it, rail by rail,

'Till it is lost in fleeces; it flings a crystal veil....

But, here at our seminary in Crestwood, we're just wondering if it ever will stop!

This winter 61" inches of snow have fallen on our campus, far exceeding the average annual snowfall of 38" and quickly approaching the record snowfall of 89.5", which "flung a crystal veil" over Westchester County during the winter of 1995–1996.

Nonetheless, the snow has inspired a number of photographers, including our Dean, Fr. John Behr, and our Associate Director of SVS Press, Fr. Benedict Churchill, to snap scenes of wintry wonders. We want to share these beautiful images of "powdered wood" and "alabaster wool" with our readers, and nod to Ms. Dickinson, who understood so well the transformative effects of fallen snow.

Amid the signage at the March for Life rally this year in Washington, D.C.— “Choose Life: Your Mother Did,” “Everyone Deserves a Birthday,” and “I Regret My Abortion”— waved a banner embossed with the  “St. Vladimir’s Seminary” name and logo. Thirty members of our campus community braved the January chill to gather with thousands of pro-lifers on the National Mall to mark the 38th year since the U.S. Supreme Court handed down Roe v. Wade, legalizing abortion.

Our seminary Chancellor, Archpriest Chad Hatfield, accompanied seminarians and their families to the annual March, where they joined other Orthodox Christians, including His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah, primate of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA), who opened the pre-March rally, and Archpriest John Kowalczyk of Jermyn, PA, who delivered the benediction.

“Life is a gift from God and we were in Washington, D.C. to make that witness,” noted Fr. Chad. “This year, I was struck especially by the youthfulness of the participants. Most were young women, and the crowd was around 350,000 people.

“I am also so thankful for the warm hospitality given by St. Nicholas Cathedral to the seminarians and their families, who traveled from both St. Vladimir’s and St. Tikhon’s Seminaries to 'March for Life',” Fr. Chad continued.

Prior to the March, Metropolitan Jonah presided at the celebration of the Divine Liturgy at the OCA’s St. Nicholas Cathedral in the nation’s capital. His sermon, which set the tone for the Orthodox Christian marchers, may be viewed on the OCA web site at www.oca.org.

On March 26, 2011 Metropolitan Jonah will monitor a forum with our campus community, which will examine "beginning of life" issues.

The SVOTS Men’s Choir is adding to their repertoire as they visit parishes of various Orthodox Christian jurisdictions and worship with parishioners of wide-ranging ethnic backgrounds. Hierodeacon Philip (Majkrzak), chapel choir director at the seminary, recently led the choir on a trip to Pennsylvania, and several clips of them in concert are now on YouTube for your viewing, listening, and comment!

"Each choir trip is different," said Father-deacon Philip, "because I don't always have the same singers, and I try to accommodate whatever voices I am blessed to work with. On our recent trip, we sang some new arrangements of familiar music, such as Kievan Chant, and we also employed previously unknown pieces from the Znamenny and Byzantine repertoires."

On Saturday, January 15th, the choir sang Great Vespers at Christ the Saviour Church in Harrisburg, a parish of the Orthodox Church in America. They were warmly welcomed by the Rector, Fr. Stephen Vernak, and the Rector emeritus, Fr. Daniel Ressetar. 

The choir spent Sunday, January 16th at St. John Chrysostom Church in York, where SVOTS Trustee Dr. Nicholas Pandelidis, and his wife, Lisa, acted as hosts. In addition to chanting a Byzantine setting for the Divine Liturgy at this Antiochian parish, where Fr. Peter Pier is the pastor, the choir presented a concert at the church's Open House, drawing in many non-Orthodox visitors.

The next Men’s Choir trip will be to the Greek Orthodox Church of Our Saviour in Rye, New York on March 23rd, for the Presanctified Liturgy at 6:30 p.m. If you are in the Westchester County area, please come to worship during this lenten service and great our seminarians.

Listen to a recap about the extraordinary upcoming weekend with our guest Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev, recently recorded on Ancient Faith Radio! 

Archpriest Chad Hatfield, our chancellor, and Nicholas Reeves, choir director at Holy Trinity Church in East Meadow, NY and producer of the New York City premiere of the St. Matthew Passion, composed by Metropolitan Hilarion speak about:

• 28th Annual Father Alexander Schmemann Memorial Lecture, Saturday, February 5th, 3:30 p.m., St. Vladimir's Seminary
• Hierarchical Divine Liturgy and Book Signing, Sunday, February 6th, 10 a.m., St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Cathedral, 97th Street, New York City
• St. Matthew Passion, Monday, February 7th, 7:30 p.m., The Church of St. Paul the Apostle, 405 West 59^th Street, New York City

“If you’re looking for a parish that reflects a strong commitment to creative outreach and growth, I’ve found a ‘model parish’ in Colorado Springs,” claims Archpriest Chad Hatfield, our chancellor.

He is speaking of Ss. Constantine and Helen, Holy Theophany Orthodox Church, a vibrant community shepherded by Archpriest Anthony Karbo, under the auspices of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA). Fr. Chad immersed himself in the community over the weekend of January 7th–9th, meeting with its large Youth Group, preaching on Sunday morning, visiting with several potential seminarians, and enthusiastically participating in the “Great Outdoor Water Blessing” at the Continental Divide in Monarch Pass.

Most notably, Fr. Chad and the parish’s pastor discussed effective ways to evangelize and to plant Orthodox Christian missions in North America. The Colorado Springs parish has an award-winning coffee shop and bookstore, “Hagia Sophia,” which has introduced dozens of inquirers to the Orthodox Church through specifically Orthodox Christian books and also “classic Christian” works—“An idea,” says Fr. Chad, “that deserves further exploration.”

“Fr. Anthony and I are both keen to see an expanded summer internship developed to expose seminarians to effective ways of evangelizing and planting Orthodox Christian missions,” notes Fr. Chad. “We are taking missiology seriously at St. Vladimir’s Seminary, and I am thankful for Fr. Anthony’s coaching and encouragement on this trip.”

In the spirit of a true missionary, Fr. Chad braved –10° temperatures at the Continental Divide, 13,000 feet above sea level, in order to participate in the blessing of water, associated with the recent Feast of Epiphany. In this instance, the blessing was highly unusual but fitting for the circumstances: ice crosses adorned the outdoor snow crystal altar and the “water” was in the form of snow.

Serving with Fr. Chad and Fr. Anthony at the blessing were Fr. Barnabas Powell (SVOTS Alum ’05) and Fr. John Bethancourt, the father of another SVOTS alumnus, Fr. Daniel Bethancourt.  Following a “time to thaw” over lunch in Salida, Colorado, Fr. Chad was able to make a short visit to Holy Protection Monastery in Lake George, greeting the sisterhood there and Mother Cassiana, the abbess.

Off-Campus Event • Deborah (Malacky) Belonick

In the tradition of the traveling "St. Vladimir's Seminary Octet," which began in 1962, our current "St. Vladimir's Seminary Men's Choir" will take to the road this weekend and visit two parishes in Pennsylvania. The group will be  conducted by Hierodeacon Philip Majkrzak, our Chapel Choir Director, and accompanied by our Chancellor, Archpriest Chad Hatifeld.

On Saturday, January 15 at 6 p.m., the choir will sing Vespers at Christ the Saviour Church (OCA) in Harrisburg. On Sunday, January 16 at 10 a.m., they will sing the Divine Liturgy at St. John Chrysostom Antiochian Orthodox Church in York; they also will present a free concert in the York church at 2 p.m., as part of the parish's Open House.

Books and materials from SVS Press will be available for sale at both venues.

by Deborah (Malacky) Belonick

As we approach the New Year, our seminary community remembers our alumni/ae and trustees who have departed this life in 2010. Memory Eternal!

Most recently, Protojerej-Stavrofor Milan Savich, 90, fell asleep in the Lord on November 27, 2010 in Chicago. He was preceded in death by his devoted wife of 51 years, Protinica Constance (nee Vuckovich) in 2004. He was the loving father of Mileva (also a SVOTS alum), Jovan, Marya, Natalie, and George.

Father Milan was born in Arilje, Serbia to Slavko and Mileva (Ocokoljic) Savich. His mother Mileva was the sister of His Grace Bishop Firmilian (Ocokoljic) of Blessed Memory. Fr. Milan obtained his early education in Arilje, Belgrade, and Kraljevo.

He received his initial theological education at the Serbian Orthodox Seminary in Bitolj, where he was sent by his diocesan bishop, Bishop Nikolaj (Velimirovic), who later was canonized a saint. The Bitolj Seminary was a magnificent center of Orthodox learning at that time. In addition to St. Nikolaj and many other scholars, among the teachers there were then Archimandrite and now St. John (Maksimovic); then Archimandrite and now St. Justin (Popovic); then Hieromonk Vasilije (Kostic), later Bishop Vasilije of Zica; then lay theologian Jovan Velimirovic, later Bishop Jovan of Sabac and Valjevo.

In 1948, Fr. Milan won a scholarship to study at Dorchester College, near Oxford, England. In 1950, he came to the United States, where he completed his education at St. Vladimir’s Seminary and Columbia University in New York.

Also departed to be with the Lord in 2010, were:

Resa Ellison, choir director at St. Mary Cathedral, Minneapolis, MN, +January 3, 2010. 

Archpriest Milorad Milosevich, retired rector of St. Luke Church, McLean, VA, +June 22, 2010.

His Eminence Christopher [Kovacevich], metropolitan of the Midwestern American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church in the United States and Canada, +August 18, 2010

His Grace Tikhon (Stepanov), bishop of Archangelsk and Kholmogory, Russia, +October 19, 2010. 

We also remember His Grace Boris (Geeza), bishop of Chicago and Midwest, on the tenth-year anniversary of his death, December 30, 2000.