“Until Christ Comes again..." A Living Tradition, A Growing Legacy

The Timeless Appeal of St. Tikhon’s Seminary...

How does a seminary last for 85 years? Does it happen by accident? Is it held together with metanias, super glue, and a bit of luck? Is it sustained by a secret vault of imperial gold? Does some kindly old monk in a stone-walled cell write parchment paper tuition checks with a pot of ink and a quill pen? Well—by prayer and fasting, yes—but the seminary continues BECAUSE OF GOD’S GRACE THROUGH YOUR GENEROSITY.

Let’s revisit St. Tikhon’s past together:

• 1937: The Sixth All-American Sobor meets and decides to establish St. Tikhon’s Pastoral School. The Church in America is growing, but leaders know—if Orthodoxy is going to flourish—priests must be trained here in America. So, they sacrifice. They give from their own coin purses. They build. They lay the foundation for the future of Orthodoxy in America.
  
  
• 1942: The Holy Synod of the Metropolia converts St. Tikhon’s Pastoral School into a full-fledged seminary. Its mission of forming priests, deacons, and leaders who will guide the Church for decades to come is only just beginning, but the path ahead is full of promise.
  
  
• 1950s: Bishop Nikolai Velimirovich (St. Nikolai of Žiča) joins St. Tikhon’s Seminary as a professor and eventually takes up the role of Seminary Rector. For almost seven decades after his repose, new generations of church leaders walk the halls where he once lived and taught.
  
  
• 1971: The newly autocephalous Orthodox Church in America holds its first council at St. Tikhon’s. The seminary is no longer just a school. It’s a pillar of The Orthodox Church in America and deeply intertwined with the Legacy of Faith in the United States.
  
  
• 2004 and Beyond: Full accreditation is granted by the American Theological Association (ATS). In 2024, St. Tikhon’s turns 85, reveals a new logo, and announces ten-year re-accreditation by the ATS. The mission continues. The future is bright. But this is not the end of the story because the next chapter of this legacy hasn’t been written yet…

And that’s where YOU come in. A seminary is not a museum. It is not a relic of the past. A seminary is a living, breathing place where the Church of tomorrow is being formed today. It exists because people like you choose to invest in the future of the Orthodox Church. YOU are part of this Living Legacy.

The future priests, deacons, chaplains, and leaders of the Church are here right now, cracking open textbooks, chanting in the Church, studying The Church Fathers, performing prison outreach, and figuring out how to survive Great Lent on peanut butter, pasta, and canned beans. So, when you look at the timeline on the back, don’t just see history—see YOUR place in the legacy of the Orthodox Church, today and for future generations.

This mission doesn’t sustain itself. Priests don’t just appear out of thin air. They are formed. They are trained. They are honed into faithful instruments of Christ. By giving, YOU are ensuring that, until “Christ Comes Again,” the sacred work of priestly formation will continue.

We thank you for your generous donation today to make their vocation possible—because, in the Name of the Lord, their vocation is not only FROM YOU, it is FOR YOU!

“How much should I give?” you might ask. Some give a full scholarship—$10,000. Some cover a month’s tuition—$1,000. Some sponsor a day’s formation—$55. Some give what they can—and that’s enough!

Whatever you give, YOU are taking your place in the history and legacy of St. Tikhon’s Seminary and helping to ensure the future of the Orthodox Church in America!

“What method of giving should I use?” Again, mileage varies—but every penny helps!

• Give a one-time gift
• Set up a monthly pledge and become a Monthly Sustainer
• Discover other ways to give

St. Tikhon’s is not merely a collection of stories stored on the dusty shelves of history. It is a place where saints have walked and new saints are being formed. A place where the living tradition and growing legacy are sustained and strengthened with each generation. However much, and whatever way.

Will you take your place in the Living Legacy?

Fr. John Parker, Dean