Orthodox Mission Worldwide

Church of the Archangel Michael in Rakinicë, Kosovo. Replacing an earlier church that was destroyed in 1999, it is a parish of the Diocese of Raska and Prizren under the Serbian Orthodox Church. In the early 2000s the church was secretly rebuilt, but was used for a time as a stable by Albanian agitators. The faithful were threatened to leave the canonical Serbian Orthodox hierarchy and were told they would be allowed to keep their churches if they accepted clergy from Albania, but they refused this offer and persisted in their faith. In 2023 a scandalous event occurred where a false priest from Albania entered the church and served there. Afterwards, the door was locked and chained. A canonical priest came and was able to remove the chains blocking the door, reclaiming this parish for the Church. The photos are from that first service after the parish was reclaimed. The Orthodox faithful suffer persecution in many different parts of the world, and the breakaway region of Kosovo is no exception to this.

Got to visit my friend Fr Rostyslav's church today. Icon of the Royal Martyrs (not my photo) from 2 weeks ago.

Arizona Orthodox Mission Parish Launches Campaign to Fund New Temple SUN CITY, AZ — All Saints of North America (ASONA), a ROCOR mission parish based in Sun City, Arizona, has launched a fundraising campaign to establish a permanent temple, creating a new spiritual home for Orthodox Christians throughout the West Valley. Subscribe for Orthodox News & Analysis Donate to Support Pan-Orthodox Journalism

Greek Orthodox Mission in Salvador, Brazil. Started in 2023, it is a mission of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Buenos Aires under the Ecumenical Patriarchate. The mission is part of a major effort to bring the Orthodox Church to Northeastern Brazil. The Bahia area is notorious for syncretic religion, and the light of Christ is much needed there. While it is hard to find enough clergy to support the numerous missions appearing around Latin America, Fr. Paisios pastors the flock in Salvador and celebrates the liturgy regularly for their spiritual benefit. At first services were held in a private apartment, but now the mission has the use of an outdoor pavilion area that is better suited to accommodating the faithful that attend the mission.

Services begin at mountain village church in Philippines https://orthochristian.com/179406.html Services have begun at the Church of the Prophet Elijah in the mountain village of Magulo, Philippines, following the recent completion of the church’s roof.

Saint Herman of Alaska Saint Herman, born in 1751 near Moscow to a peasant family, became a great ascetic and servant of God, joining the first Orthodox Christian mission to North America. In his youth, he learned from a wise elder in his cell and was miraculously healed of a deadly illness, leaving doctors in awe. After military service, he was tonsured at Valaam monastery and 11 years later was chosen to join a mission to the Russian colony in Alaska. After nine months of dangerous seafaring, Herman and nine other monks arrived at Kodiak and brought thousands of natives to Christ and built a school, a church and a monastery. Defending the natives from vicious exploitation, the monks came under persecution. Herman relocated to the wilderness of Spruce Island where he spent 40 years raising Aleut orphans. He ate very little, wore a heavy iron cross and chains under his clothes, and used a wooden board and two bricks as his blanket and pillow. Cherished by all who knew him, Saint Herman joined Christ in 1836.

St. Herman of Alaska Orthodox Mission in Show Low, AZ. Founded in 2017, it is a mission of the ROCOR Diocese of Western America. The mission started as a plant of the All Saints of North America Church in Sun City. Fr. Michael has been working hard to spread the faith to this distant corner of Arizona, and last year the faithful of the mission were blessed to purchase a plot of land where they can build a future permanent church. The community there values the mission of the church across the world, and their website highlights many countries where mission is delivering the Orthodox faith now, spanning the globe from South America to Malaysia.

Church of St. Andrew the Apostle on the Vuoksa River, Russia, located some two hours north of St. Petersburg. Consecrated in 2000, it is a church of the Diocese of Vyborg under the Moscow Patriarchate. This church is significant because it holds the record for occupying the smallest island with a church in the world. It was originally only accessible by boat, but in the past decade a bridge was built so it can be accessed from the shore of the river. Despite its fairly remote location, its unusual nature has led to it becoming a tourist attraction that draws people from around the world to visit it.