Saints Who Have Been at St. Tikhon's Monastery
St. Tikhon of Moscow - Founder of the Monastery
St. Tikhon, the Patriarch of Moscow was, in 1906, Archbishop Tikhon of New York and was primate of the Orthodox Church in North America. St. Tikhon (canonized 1990) was a principal figure in Orthodox Church history during the 20th century. He foresaw the growth and domestication of Orthodoxy in America and did much to bring it about. After returning to Russia he was in 1917 elected patriarch, or highest-ranking cleric, of the entire Russian Orthodox Church (the first patriarch in two centuries), and died under house arrest under the Soviet regime in 1925, having provided leadership to the Russian Church at a time of great trial. In his last words, St. Tikhon spoke of the atheistic darkness which was then engulfing Russia, during which some 45,000 clergy and some 60 million people ultimately perished; he said, "The night will be very long and very dark." St. Tikhon of Moscow, glorified in 1990, remains a common link between the Orthodox Churches of America and of Russia. He is known as the "Enlightener of North America," and with Father Arseny, was a cofounder of St. Tikhon's Monastery.
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St. Raphael of Brooklyn
St. Raphael of Brooklyn was born Rafail Hawaweeny to a Syrian family in Lebanon. Trained in theology in Halki, Turkey and in Russia, he became the first Orthodox bishop consecrated in America. Assisting St. Tikhon, he ministered to Orthodox of diverse nationalities. Engaging energetically in mission work, he undertook journeys throughout North America to found churches. In 1905 St. Raphael dedicated the land on which St. Tikhon's Monastery stands and celebrated the first Divine Liturgy on the site. It was here that he was canonized in 2000.
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St. Nicholai of Zhicha
St. Nikolai Velimirovich, the Bishop of Ochrid and Zhicha, was born on December 23, 1880 to Serbian Orthodox parents, in Lelich, western Serbia, St. Nicholai became a prolific and noted author and a preacher whose gifts earned him the title New Chrysostom (Golden-Mouth), after St. John Chrysostom. In 1919, at age 39, he was elected Bishop of Zhicha. As a bishop of the Serbian Orthodox Church, he helped to inspire and prepare that Church for the difficult times of World War II, during which he himself was imprisoned for two years at the Dachau concentration camp. Later, he preached and lectured in England and America, as he had done many years earlier. He resided at St. Tikhon's Monastery from 1951-56, and taught at St. Tikhon's Seminary, serving as rector from 1955-56. Bishop Nikolai reposed on March 18, 1956 and was canonized by the Serbian Orthodox Church in 1987.
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St. Alexis of Wilkes-Barre
St. Alexis of Wilkes-Barre was born Alexei Grigorievich Tovt (Toth) in an area of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (present-day Slovakia) that is known as Sub-Carpathian Rus'. A widowed priest, he was in the late 1800s ministering to Eastern rite Roman Catholics in the U.S. when he decided to return to the Orthodox faith of his ancestors. He afterwards undertook mission work which resulted in 29,000 others taking the same path that he took. He reposed in 1909 and was buried at St. Tikhon's Monastery, where his relics remain. He was glorified as a saint in 1994, being hailed as "Confessor and Defender of Orthodoxy in America."
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St. Alexander Hotovitsky
St. Alexander Hotovitsky, a member of the "white" (i.e. married) clergy, was born in present-day western Ukraine and ordained a priest in San Francisco in 1896. Editor of the church newspaper, the American Orthodox Messenger, he visited St. Tikhon's Monastery on several occasions and wrote a valuable account of the 1906 pilgrimage and consecration. He performed mission and other important church work in America and later in Russia, working with St. Patriarch Tikhon in both countries. In the 1920s he was imprisoned for 3 years because of his church work. Having arranged for the construction of St. Nicholas Cathedral in New York under St. Tikhon, and served there as priest-in-charge, he occupied the same post many years later at the monumental Christ the Savior Church in Moscow, again at the behest of St. Tikhon. He was arrested again in the fall of 1937 and a majority of oral reports testify to his death as a martyr. He was glorified by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1994.
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Monastery of St. Tikhon of Zadonsk
175 St. Tikhon's Road
Waymart, PA 18472
175 St. Tikhon's Road
Waymart, PA 18472
570-937-4067 (Phone)
Tue
15Oct6:00 Midnight Office, Hours, & Liturgy
4:30 Vespers & MatinsWed
16Oct6:00 Midnight Office, Hours, & Liturgy
4:30 Vespers & MatinsThu
17Oct6:00 Midnight Office, Hours, & Liturgy
4:30 Vigil