Tag: primary sources

The first biography of St. Innocent, part 2

Editor's note: Last week, we presented the first part of the first biography of St. Innocent, written by the Episcopalian clergyman Charles R. Hale. What follows is Part 2, which details the introduction of Orthodoxy to Alaska and the priestly ministry of Fr. John Veniaminoff, the future St. Innocent. Tomorrow,...

The first biography of St. Innocent, part 1

Editor's note: The first biography of St. Innocent of Alaska was not written by an Orthodox author, but by an Episcopalian, Charles R. Hale, in 1877 (a year before St. Innocent's death). Hale (1837-1900) was an Episcopal priest (and later a bishop) who had great affection for the Orthodox Church....

Prayers for the President

Attend an American Orthodox parish today, of any jurisdiciton, and you're likely to hear prayers offered for the President of the United States (and, in some parishes, for the other branches of government as well). The first evidence I've been able to find of such prayers is from the journal...

The Historical Reality of Greek Orthodoxy in America

Last week, I was privileged to speak at the Greek Archdiocese Clergy-Laity Congress in Atlanta. I gave the same talk on two days, July 5 and 6. Below, we've published the text of my lecture. A couple of things, up front: first, I didn't include footnotes, because this was just...

A church in New York in 1850?

The first Orthodox place of worship in New York was founded in 1870, when the Russian Church established an embassy chapel under the care of Fr. Nicholas Bjerring. As we've discussed before, the idea of a New York chapel originated in 1866, and its purpose was primarily to further relations...

Video: Bp. Basil (Essey) on the Episcopal Assembly

The Antiochian Archdiocese website has just published video of His Grace, Bishop Basil (Essey) of Wichita, Secretary of the Episcopal Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Hierarchs of North and Central America, reflecting on that body. The video was recorded on June 17, 2010, at his diocesan Parish Life Conference. It's of...

St. Tikhon: address to a newly-married couple

Editor's note: The following homily, by St. Tikhon, was published in the March 1902 English supplement to the Russian Orthodox American Messenger, the official periodical of the Russian Diocese. From the reference to St. Macarios the Great, we can date this homily rather precisely. The feast of St. Macarios is...

The Russian Diocese in the <i>San Francisco Call</i>, 1900

Editor's note: On April 22, 1900, the San Francisco Call published a full-page spread on Orthodoxy in America. The author, Sarah Comstock, visited San Francisco's Holy Trinity Cathedral and interviewed the cathedral dean, Fr. Sebastian Dabovich. The resulting article (below) was accompanied by several photos, some of which I have reproduced...

Editorial: The New Americanism, Orthodox History and Unity in America

In the closing years of the 19th century, a number of Roman Catholic leaders in America were accused of a heresy called Americanism, and Pope Leo XIII wrote an apostolic letter specifically denouncing elements of this teaching, Testem Benevolentiae Nostrae. Americanism was essentially the emphasis on American political values over...

Protestant brides and Greek grooms in DC, 1906

Regular readers of this website have no doubt noticed that I am really interested in early American converts to Orthodoxy. There weren't too many, but the handfuls of people who did join the Church in the late 19th and early 20th century almost always present fascinating stories. The most notable...