Serbian Orthodox Church

5th Annual Lenten Retreat to New York

With the blessing of His Grace Bishop Irinej, 20 members of St. George Serbian Orthodox Church in North Canton, Ohio, embarked on their 5th annual Lenten retreat to New York.  The program began began on Friday, March 22nd, when the faithful group gathered at the Cloisters Museum in New York City. This museum is a branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and houses art and architecture of medieval Europe.  Woven into the fabric of the building are a number of elements from medieval monasteries that, together, house over 2000 works of art.

President of the Parliament of Georgia visits Serbian Patriarch

His Holiness Irinej, Serbian Patriarch received His Excellency Mr. Irakli Kobakhidze, at the Serbian Patriarchate on 29 March 2019.

The audience was attended by His Excellency Ioseb Nanobashvili, Ambassador of Georgia to Athens and Belgrade, members of the Parliament of Georgia Mr. Goga Gulordava, Zakaria Kurtsnashvili, Mr. Giorgi Totladze, Mr. David Bakradze, Mrs. Tamara Kolbaia, Chief of the Office for international relations; Mrs. Anna Makhashvili, Chief of the Office for Relations with media and information; Mr. Levan Makhashvili, Advisor to the Chairman of the Parliament; and deacon Dr. Aleksandar Prascevic, head of the Office of the Serbian Patriarch.

Sunday of Orthodoxy in Acron

On March 17 th , 2019 the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy, responding to the invitation of His Grace Bishop Irinej of Eastern America, His Eminence, Archbishop Alexander of Dallas and Southern States (OCA) visited the Holy Archangel Michael Church in Akron, Ohio, and celebrated the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great and led in the parish Rite of Orthodoxy.

Concelebrating with His Eminence was His Grace Irinej, Bishop of the Eastern American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Fr Milan Pajic, parish priest, Hieromonk Maxim (Ilic), Spiritual Father of New Marcha Monastery and Protodeacon Milos Zdralic. A multitude of parishioners and faithful from Akron came to pray at the Divine Service, many of whom, upon the conclusion of the first week of Great Lent, communed of Christ’s Holy Mysteries. After the reading of the Holy Gospel, His Grace Bishop Irinej announced the special guest of the Serbian Church – Archbishop Alexander, and asked him to teach all in attendance from the rich font of his garnered wisdom.

Bishop Maxim Visits Orange County Parish

On the second Sunday of Great Lent, March 24, 2019, His Grace Bishop Maxim served the Divine Hierachical Liturgy at the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos Church in Orange County. Concelebrating with His Grace were Fr. Blasko Paraklis and Deacon Vladan Radovanovic.

The parish faithful welcomed their bishop in front of the church and after receiving his blessings proceeded inside  for the Divine Liturgy. The liturgical responses were sung by Choir Istocnik under the direction of Valentina Swearingen and complemented by Bishop Maxim.

Greek National Day celebrated in Belgrade

On the occasion of the Greek National Day, the Day of liberation from Turkish slavery and in memory of the Greek liberation uprising of 1821, doxology service was officiated in the chapel of Saint Simeon the Myrrh-gusher at the Serbian Patriarchate in Belgrade.

The rite of doxology was served by Very Revd. Panagiotis Karatasios, clerk of the Greek Orthodox Church, spiritual father and principal of the monastery of Holy Archangel Gabriel in Zemun; archpriest-stavrophor Milorad Niskić, spiritual father in the same monastery; Revd. Dimitrios Kasapis, a Greek clergyman in Belgrade; protodeacon Stevan Rapajic, principal of the Patriarchate chapel; and Deacon Zdravko Jovanović, Ph.D., Assistant Professor at the Orthodox Theological Faculty, University of Belgrade.

All-Night Vigil by Rachmaninov is performed at the Moscow Church of ‘Joy to All the Afflicted’ Icon of the Mother of God

On March 23, 2019, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations (DECR), celebrated the All-Night Vigil at the Church of ‘Joy to All the Afflicted’ Icon of the Mother of God on Bolshaya Ordynka street, Moscow. Clerics of the church concelebrated.