Category: Firsts
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The Early History of Orthodoxy in Chicago
In 2011, I gave a talk at Holy Apostles Greek Orthodox Church in Westchester, Illinois, on the early history of Orthodoxy in Chicago. Here’s the text of that lecture, basically unedited since I wrote…
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Cinco de Mayo and the lost Orthodox Missions of Mexico
When I was in my early twenties, a couple of years before I entered the Orthodox Church, I crossed the Atlantic and spent a summer busing across America. I spent a week of the…
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A Greek Monastery in North Carolina in 1931
In 1931, the Greek Archdiocese decided to establish a monastery in North Carolina. On October 10, 1931, a Chicago Greek newspaper, the Saloniki-Greek Press, reported this: The mixed council of the Greek Archdiocese for a…
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Did an Athonite monk visit President Ulysses S. Grant?
In 1869, a priest from Mount Athos paid a visit to the sitting President of the United States, Ulysses S. Grant. The Aug. 18, 1869 issues of both the North American and United States Gazette (published…
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Fire Destroys Historic New York Church
Yesterday — on Pascha, the most joyous and holy day of the year for Orthodox Christians — St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in New York was destroyed by fire. The cathedral was originally an…
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The First Orthodox Christians in the Future United States?
In a month in which we have seen the brutal massacre of peaceful African Americans at prayer in Charleston, South Carolina, it is perhaps timely to tell the remarkable account of the first named…
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Fr Matthew Baker: Florovsky Visits America
Last night, March 1, 2015, the brilliant Orthodox scholar (and priest, husband, and father of six), Fr Matthew Baker, died in a car accident. In remembrance of him, we are republishing a really outstanding article that he wrote for…
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What was the first Orthodox parish in America?
The question, “What was the first Orthodox parish in America?” is surprisingly difficult to answer. A big part of the problem comes from that word, “parish.” What is a parish? When does a collection…
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St Raphael’s Original New York Chapel
St Raphael Hawaweeny arrived in New York City in 1895, and he immediately established a chapel for his growing community of Arab Orthodox Christians. The chapel was located at 77 Washington Street in Manhattan,…
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Remembrances of Archbishop Victor Abo-Assaly
From 1895 until his death in 1915, St. Raphael Hawaweeny was the unquestioned leader of the Arab Orthodox in America. He was technically affiliated with the Russian Archdiocese, although he also had strong ties…