Orthodox History

An Early English Life of St Herman of Alaska

The article that follows is, as far as I know, the first English-language life of St Herman of Alaska. It originally appeared under the title “Herman — Russian Missionary to America,” in a publication called The Constructive Quarterly 7:1 (March 1919). The author, Vera Johnston, was the Russian-born wife of an Englishman,...

How Many Orthodox Christians Are in America?

A quick bit of self-promotion: In January, I'll be teaching a live, 4-week course on American Orthodox History for the Orthodox Studies Institute at Saint Constantine College. I hope many of you can join me -- you can learn more and register for the course by clicking here. Lately,...

New Class: American Orthodox History

Hey everyone - I've been writing and talking about American Orthodox history for a long time. We started OrthodoxHistory.org way back in 2009, and earlier this year I published my first book, Lost Histories, on the early years of Orthodoxy in America. Today I'm excited to announce that I'll be teaching...

An 11th Century Challenge to Papal Supremacy

The belief that the Pope of Rome has immediate and universal jurisdiction has been officially part of the Roman Catholic tradition since at least the eleventh century with the proclamations issued in Dictatus Papae. In the the Roman Catholic Church’s current code of law, the 1983 Code of Canon Law...

How Did Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem Respond to the Council of Florence?

Most Orthodox accounts, at least in English, of why the Union of Florence was rejected center on St Mark of Ephesus’ singular stand against the council, and the rallying of the laity of Constantinople against the union. Equally important, however, is the response of Orthodoxy outside the Byzantine Empire and...

Father Alex and the Mother Church

This is the third in a series of articles based on my interviews with Fr Alex Karloutsos. You can read the first two articles here: The Father Alex Karloutsos Origin Story Karloutsos and the Rise of Bartholomew The last article ended with the election of Patriarch Bartholomew and Fr Karloutsos’s...

Philip Ludwell III and Slavery

Philip Ludwell III is the first known convert to Eastern Orthodox Christianity in the Americas. He was a prominent figure in pre-revolutionary Virginia and a relative by blood or marriage of many great early figures in American history from George Washington to Richard Henry Lee of the great Lee family...

Karloutsos and the Rise of Bartholomew

Earlier this year, I conducted a series of interviews with Fr Alex Karloutsos, and last week, I published my first article based on those interviews, chronicling his rise from relative obscurity to the highest echelons of power in America. Today, I will continue this series based on Fr Karloutsos’s memories,...

The Father Alex Karloutsos Origin Story

Father Alex Karloutsos may be the most influential Orthodox priest in modern history. He has spent time in every Oval Office going back to Jimmy Carter, culminating in a Presidential Medal of Freedom from Joe Biden. His connections are extraordinary – the presidents, of course, and every patriarch you can...

Romania vs Moscow, 1940

Today, relations between the patriarchates of Moscow and Romania are tense: both lay claim to jurisdiction in the Republic of Moldova, which makes up about two-thirds of the historic region known as Bessarabia. The other third of Bessarabia is now in Ukraine, Budjak (Izmail and Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi). In the Republic of...