Fr. Deacon Andrei Psarev (Ph.D. Cand.), Holy Trinity Seminary's Assistant Professor of Russian History and Canon Law, traveled to Moscow again in October to share his academic research to local churches and conferences in the region.

The annual St. Herman’s Youth Conference began on Saturday, December 23, at Holy Dormition “New Divievo” Convent in Nanuet, NY, with a molieben, followed by a greeting from Archbishop Gabriel of Montreal and Canada.  His Eminence called attention to the two major commemorations in 2017: (1) the tenth anniversary of the reunification of the Russian Orthodox Church, and (2) the 100th anniversary of the restoration of the Patriarchate in Russia and the subsequent election of St. Tikhon (Bellavin) as the first Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia after more than 200 years.

Born in 1929 in Hilar (Manchuria), Archpriest Alvian Smirensky reposed in the Lord last Sunday, December 10, 2017. Amazingly, Fr. Alvian was joined in his departure by his Matushka Helen.

Schema-Archdeacon Ambrose, who graduated from Holy Trinity Seminary in 1982 and fell-asleep-in-the-Lord in San Francisco on Sunday, November 26, was buried in the Monastery cemetery on Friday, December 1.

Holy Trinity Orthodox Seminary has not only preserved the spirit of Russian Orthodoxy but has been optimizing its ability to offer "Traditional Orthodoxy for the 21st Century" unapologetically and effectively to a world that so desperately needs it. Therefore, on this Giving Tuesday (11/28/ 2017), we ask for your generous assistance as we continue to provide rigorous training for the future leaders of the Church and to improve the quality of that education.

In the early hours of the morning of Sunday November 13/26, on the day of commemoration of our Father among the Saints John Chrysostom Archbishop of Constantinople, after an enduring and trying illness the long-standing cleric of the Diocesan Cathedral in honor of Her Icon “Joy of All Who Sorrow,” Schema-Archdeacon Ambrose (Taratuchin) reposed in the Lord.

November 18, 2017 marked the 100-year anniversary of St. Tikhon's elevation to Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia. Thus we remember the saint whose meekness and humility earned him the love and devotion of all. On that day 100 years ago, St. Tikhon (Bellavin) quoted the scroll eaten by the Prophet Ezekiel, on which was written "lamentations, mourning, and woe" (2:10).

Some Orthodox Christians today are trying to re-institute the ancient Church order of “deaconess,” despite the uneven history of that female office in the Church, as well as that of the male diaconate.

Deacon Andrei Psarev’s public lecture in Seminary Hall on Thursday, November 9, 2017, titled “The Inter-Council Presence: The Patriarch of Moscow's ‘Think Tank,’” generated vigorous discussion on a wide range of questions.  

On Wednesday, November 08, 2017, at 5:30 EST, Mitred Archpriest Wsewolod Drobot (HTOS 1965) reposed in the Lord. Fr. Wsewolod was the retired rector of the Nativity of the Mother of God parish in Albany, NY, and presided as the new church building was completed.  Fr. Wsewolod was born on April 1, 1930 in Zaporozhiye, Ukraine.  He was a clergyman for 57 years from the time of his ordination to the diaconate.  He was a graduate of Holy Trinity Orthodox Seminary and lived in a house near the monastery with his family.  Predeceased by his matushka Nadezhda in 2015, Fr. Wsewolod is survived by their seven children and seven grandchildren.  May God grant Fr. Wsewolod the Heavenly Kingdom!

The Inter-Council Presence (ICP) is a permanent consulting body whose members have been appointed by the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church in Moscow to draft and discuss position papers on diverse aspects of theology and praxis. Conventional wisdom suggests that Orthodox Christians in the "First World" have little to learn about the organization of Church life from the Orthodox in Russia. Explaining the history, structure, and significance of ICP, Fr. Andrei challenges the triumphalist myth of the superiority of the Orthodox in the Wwest over their Russian counterparts. 

Holy Trinity Orthodox Seminary is pleased to announce the appointment of a new Director of Development.  Rev. Deacon Michael Pavuk will officially begin his service to the Seminary on November 1, 2017.  The Director of Development is in charge of the overall fundraising plan and coordinates all aspects of fundraising, particularly major gifts and planned giving, and public relations efforts at HTOS.

The Myrrh-Streaming Hawaiian Iveron Icon will be visiting Holy Trinity Monastery from the night of October 25th until October 30th, 2017. The icon's arrival accompanies the clergy conference of the Eastern-American diocese. The greeting of the icon will take place at 5:00pm on the Wednesday night of the 25th, just prior to the hierarchical All-Night Vigil at 7:00pm. The icon will also be in the main chapel for Thursday morning's hierarchical Divine Liturgy at 9:00am as well as Friday morning's 6:00am Divine Liturgy. At 9:00am that morning, the icon will be brought to St. Elizabeth Skete down the road from the monastery for a moleben with akathist service. On Saturday the 28th, there will be a pannikhida for Br. Jose at the cemetery at 3:30pm, and then a hierarchical All-Night Vigil in the main chapel at 7:00pm. The next morning, the hierarchical Liturgy will begin at 9:00am. A final pannikhida will be held for Br. Jose that afternoon at 3:00pm, and the icon will stay at the monastery for one last liturgy the next morning at 6:00am before its scheduled departure at 11:00am of the 30th of October, 2017.

Some Orthodox Christians today are trying to re-institute the ancient Church order of “deaconesses,” despite the uneven history of that female office in the Church, as well as that of the male diaconate. Protodeacon Patrick Mitchell surveys the Church’s early experience of both male and female “deacons” and concludes that they were never the same order, that the female order was inherently problematic for the Church because it appeared to elevate women over men, and that the “ordination” of women as deaconesses made less and less sense as the Church’s understanding of holy orders evolved. That explains why much of the Orthodox Church never had deaconesses, and why even those segments of the Church in antiquity and in the Byzantine era where they did serve eventually abandoned the order.

On Monday, October 9, at 5pm in the Seminary Hall, a film on the life and struggles of Archimandrite Antonine Kapustin will be shown.  Archimandrite Antonine is largely responsible for acquiring the properties held now by the Russian Mission in the Holy Land. The film is in Russian.

Traditionally, the Seminary’s academic year has commenced with the Divine Liturgy, followed by a molebin and a talk (beseda) by the HTOS Rector, currently V. Rev. Archimandrite Luke (Murianka).  This year, building upon our legacy, HTOS’ new dean, the V. Rev. Archpriest Alexander Webster, organized a more robust and definite beginning to the academic year with a convocation in Holy Trinity's mode of celebration. Thus, on the first day of classes, the entire Seminary administration, a number of faculty, and all students gathered in the Seminary Hall for presentations and fellowship.

Holy Trinity Seminary graduate, Nathan Williams (HTOS 2005), was ordained to the priesthood on September 10, 2017, the feast day of St. Alexander Nevsky Church in Richmond, Maine.

In the 91^st year of his life, Subdeacon Evgenii Iosifovich Klar reposed in the Lord, surrounded by his family, at home in Vancouver, British Columbia, where he lived with his wife, Lidia Mikhailovna, after retiring from Holy Trinity Orthodox Seminary in 2005.

With God's grace, this year's Summer Youth Program has been the most successful yet, having grown to accommodate 20 pious Orthodox high schoolers. For three weeks, these young men participated in the rigorous Church life of the monastery, attended daily lectures and spiritual reflections, and engaged in recreational activities around the monastery and in the nearby communities. After this intensive regimen, everyone inevitably comes out transformed.

The Rector, the Board of Trustees, and the Faculty of Holy Trinity Orthodox Seminary are glad to announce that the Commencement Exercises for the HTOS Class of 2017 will take place on Sunday, May 28, 2017. The celebrations will begin with the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at 9 a.m., presided by His Grace, Bishop Irenei.

On May 3, 2017, at a regular session of the Synod of Bishops, V. Rev. Archpriest Alexander Webster was confirmed by the Synod as dean of Holy Trinity Orthodox Seminary, having been nominated by the Board of Trustees of HTOS. 

On March 11, 2017 Assistant Professor of Canon Law and Russian Church History, Deacon Andrei Psarev concelebrated at the All-Night Vigil with Archpriest Nikolai Balashov, rector of the Church of the the Renewal of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ in Jerusalem  (in the Briusov Pereulok) in Moscow, in the church’s main side chapel, and at the Divine Liturgy on the following day.  This was followed by a talk in the parish house on Pivotal Points in History of the Russian Church Outside Russia accompanied by infographics.  Fr. Nikolai, formerly secretary of the Commission on the Restoration of Unity in the Russian Church, added to the talk with living recollections of the process of restoring relations, of which he was a direct participant.  This was already the third appearance by Deacon Andrei before the hospitable parish family of the Voskresenie Slovushchego Church na Uspenskom vrazhke over the past year.

The planned alumni reunion from May 2-4 will l be postponed on account of the time and resources applied to the accreditation effort.  HTOS, in conjuction with Alumni President Mitered Archpriest Stefan Pavlenko, is considering dates in early October.  This would allow alumni to become acquainted with HTOS' newly-appointed dean of the Seminary.

Details are forthcoming.

In January 2017, two Holy Trinity Seminary Professors, Deacon Andrei Psarev and Dr. Elena Nelson, were in Moscow, giving presentations and engaging in professional development. 

At Holy Trinity Seminary, we realize the necessity of travel beyond a classroom. Therefore, in the summer of 2015,students of Byzantine History went to Istanbul in the summer of 2015, and this spring, they joined students of Liturgical Theology to explore Byzantine liturgical art in the Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City.