St. Tikhon's Orthodox Theological Seminary

06/14/2026

On Wednesday, June 10, 2026, His Beatitude Archbishop Stefan, Primate of the Macedonian Orthodox Church – Ohrid Archbishopric, welcomed His Eminence Archbishop Michael, Archbishop of New…

06/08/2026

📣 It is with great pleasure that St. Tikhon's Seminary announces the appointment of Justin Smith as the Seminary's new Assistant Professor of Church History / Historical Theology. Professor Smith will take up his position at the Seminary on 1 July 2026.

Our Seminary warmly welcomes Professor Smith to the St. Tikhon's community, and wishes him the very best in his appointment to our faculty!

Read the full press release on our website 👉 https://bit.ly/NewProfessorJustinSmith

06/08/2026

Photo credit: Serbian Orthodox Church Diocese of Eastern AmericaOn Wednesday, June 3, 2026, His Eminence Archbishop Michael of New York and the Diocese of New York and New Jersey…

06/02/2026

📣 Spring 2026 issue now available online! The Tikhonaire: The Many Faces of Vocation

The latest issue of The Tikhonaire explores the many ways Orthodox priests and ministers are called to serve Christ and His Church.

Featured articles include Rev. Dn. Timothy Heinbokel’s introduction to St. Tikhon’s Chicago M.Div. Program, reflections on flourishing parish life by V. Rev. Andreas Blom, and Rev. Gregory Fedorchak’s account of mission parish life and disaster recovery. Readers will also encounter stories about prison ministry, hospital chaplaincy, seminary life, recent ordinations, and the growing work of St. Tikhon’s Seminary.

Read the spring 2026 issue here 👉 https://stots.edu/tikhonaire

06/01/2026

🎥 Watch Now! His Eminence, Archbishop Makarios of Kenya and Exarch of Eastern Africa, offers a powerful message to the Class of 2026 in this year’s commencement address at St. Tikhon’s Seminary.

Though unable to attend in person due to international travel restrictions, Archbishop Makarios provided a timely pre-recorded address, calling graduates to faithfulness, humility, love, and evangelical zeal in service to Christ and His Church.

Read the full written address here 👉
https://bit.ly/2026CommencementAddress



https://youtu.be/pR_0piH0vBw?si=iEEj2atpwUuB8PQZ

His Eminence, Archbishop Makarios of Kenya and Exarch of Eastern Af...

05/29/2026

✨ Glory to God! This past weekend, his Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, presided over the 84th Annual Commencement Exercises at St. Tikhon’s Orthodox Theological Seminary.

On the evening of May 22, and as a part of the St. Tikhon’s Monastery Memorial Day Pilgrimage, the faithful gathered to receive the wonderworking Hawaiian Iveron Icon. Later that evening, students and members of the seminary community gathered in the Archangel Michael Convocation Hall for a commencement address delivered by His Eminence, Archbishop Makarios of Kenya from the Patriarchate of Alexandria. Archbishop Makarios was unable to attend in person due to international travel restrictions, but provided a moving and timely message to graduates on the need for faithfulness, community, love, and evangelical zeal as they conclude their formal education and begin a life of service in ministry to the Church of Christ. Metropolitan Tikhon complemented this with a powerful reminder of the prayerful life cultivated in their time here at St. Tikhon’s amidst the synergy of seminary and monastery life.

On Saturday afternoon, our Blessed Hierarchs, faculty, and trustees, convened to recognize the graduating cohort. The Class of 2026 produced two co-valedictorians, Priest Seraphim Crossman and Priest John Stiff, with the valedictory address delivered by the latter, which included a powerful reminder of the various pathways to ministry and the shared bond of men entering the Holy Priesthood and future leadership roles in the Church.

Alumni Association President, Archpriest Nikolai Breckenridge, then presented the Alumnus of the Year Award to Mitred Archpriest Basil Stoyka (Lorain, OH) in recognition of his enduring ministry and loving years of pastoral care to the communities he has served. The Alumni President observed that Archpriest Basil’s ministry is so widely beloved and recognized that many assumed he must have already received the honor years prior - an assumption honorably corrected at this year’s exercises.

The Class of 2026 voted to select David Getz, Assistant to the Dean, as this year’s recipient of the Father Alexander Atty Service Award, bestowed annually in recognition of exemplary sacrificial love within the St. Tikhon’s Seminary community. The award and commemorative icon were warmly presented to David by his long-time beloved friend, co-valedictorian Priest Seraphim Crossman.

At last, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, and His Eminence, Archbishop Michael, conferred a total of fourteen Master of Divinity degrees, twelve Certificates in Diaconal Formation, and ten Certificates in Clinical Pastoral Education. Seven graduates, Priest Evan Ashmore, Reader Joshua Brown, Priest Seraphim Crossman, Priest John Jovel, Subdeacon Kuriakose Kurian, Christopher Mescher, Priest Pedro Sarsama, and Deacon Eugene Schreder, were awarded Honors for their theses and senior projects.

05/27/2026

✨ Axios! Axios! Axios! Fr. John Kowalczyk, St. Tikhon’s Seminary's Director of Vocations and Spiritual Formation and former Chancellor of the Diocese of Philadelphia and Eastern Pennsylvania, was awarded the right to wear the miter during the Memorial Day Pilgrimage at St. Tikhon’s this past weekend.

This distinguished honor, bestowed by His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon, recognizes Father John’s many years of faithful priestly ministry and devoted service to the Church. We also extend our heartfelt congratulations to his wife, Matushka Kathy, as we celebrate this joyful occasion. Many years!

05/21/2026

Axios and many years to our beloved Academic Dean, Fr. Paul Witek!

05/21/2026

Wishing all a blessed feast of the Ascension of our Lord!