Join us for this exciting Webinar on Mar. 16, 2024 1:30 PM CST for a panel discussion on the role of the mission church in America and our call to evangelize all the nations. How we can spread Christian Orthodoxy in the America, what is needed from us, results from current support to mission priests, and how to support missions in our local area? Our panel will answer questions and provide spiritual food on these topics. Special Guests: His Eminence Metropolitan Jonah of ROCOR, Fr. Elijah Drake priest of All Saints Mission in Lodi, CA., and Fr. Dr. Gregory Joyce Rector of St. Vladimir’s and Dean of the Diocesan Seminary.
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Our Panel:
Metropolitan Jonah was born James Paffhausen in Chicago, in a German American family in the Episcopal Church. After college, he entered St Vladimir’s Seminary, finishing two degrees, a Master of Divinity and Master of Theology in Dogmatics. After working in real estate finance for a few years, and for the OCA Diocese of the West, he resumed studies toward a doctorate in Theology in Berkeley. He was choir director then deacon at St Nicholas, Saratoga, CA. He interrupted studies and went to Russia for most of 1993, living in Moscow first, and then becoming a novice at Valaam Monastery. He returned to the US at the end of the year, and was subsequently ordained hierodeacon in February and hieromonk in October, 1994, and was assigned to St Mary Magdalene Mission, in Merced, California. He also served as a circuit riding mission priest, working to establish several missions.
In 1996, he received the blessing to start a monastery, and founded the Monastery of St John of San Francisco in Pt Reyes Station, Marin County, CA. In 2006 the Monastery moved to Manton on Mt Lassen, CA. In 2008 he was elected auxiliary bishop to the Archbishop of Dallas, Dmitri, but was quickly (10 days later) elected Metropolitan of the OCA. He served in that position for 4 years, and stepped down in July, 2012.
Since that time, he has served at St John the Baptist Cathedral, and officially was received into ROCOR in June, 2015. He was assigned as the Rector of St. Herman of Alaska Orthodox Church in September, 2017. He also serves the Holy Archangels Orthodox Foundation. In 2020 he established St. Demetrios of Thessaloniki Monastery in Spotsylvania, VA where he serves as the Abbot.
Fr. Dr. Gregory Joyce was born on October 6, 1968 in Columbia, MO to Dr. B. Patrick Joyce and Katherine Joyce (Grigorieff). He is the first of two children (his sister, Anna, was a parishioner of St. Vladimir’s during her school years at the University of Michigan). Following his graduation from Houghton High School, he was accepted at the University of Michigan, where he graduated with a BA in Education in 1992. On August 8th of that year he married Beth Balma (of Hancock, MI). The new couple spent a year in Ann Arbor as Fr. Gregory studied in the intensive Russian language program of the University of Michigan Residential College. In 1993 he was accepted at Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville, NY. In 1994 he was ordained a Deacon by then Archbishop Laurus (the later First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia). On St. George’s Day (April 23/May 6) of 1995 he was ordained a priest, again by Archbishop Laurus. Fr. Gregory served at Holy Trinity Monastery on the clerical staff and taught English and English as a Second Language at Holy Trinity Monastery during the academic year 1995-96. He received his Pastoral Theological Certificate from Holy Trinity Monastery in 1996. Later that same year Fr. Gregory was appointed Rector of St. Vladimir’s Church by Archbishop Alypy.
In 2001 Fr. Gregory received his MA in Education from the University of Michigan. In 2008 Fr. Gregory was accepted into the Doctorate of Ministry program at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and in 2009 appointed Assistant Dean of the Pastoral School of the Diocese of Chicago & Mid-America. In 2013 Fr. Gregory completed his Doctoral Degree and was appointed Associate Dean of the Pastoral School. In 2014 Fr. Gregory was appointed Dean of the Pastoral School by the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia.
Fr. Gregory and Matushka Elizabeth make their home in Saline, MI with their three children: Maria, Michael, and Natalia. In addition to being the Rector of St. Vladimir’s and Dean of the Diocesan Seminary, Fr. Gregory is the Secretary of the Diocese of Chicago & Mid-America, and the Dean of the Michigan parishes of the Diocese of Chicago and Mid-America.
Father Elijah Drake Is the priest of All Saints Orthodox Mission since it was started in November 2021 as a ROCOR Western Rite Mission with the blessing of Metropolitan Hilarion of blessed memory. Fr. Elijah started off with 5 baptized members and 10 inquirers. The parish met in a chapel built Father Elijah’s converted garage in Stockton, California.
The parish met in the garage chapel for 9 month. In July 2022, the Lord in His great mercy and love, provided a store front space for the parish to rent (at a monthly rental rate one third of the market rate). The store front was located in Lodi California, so All Saints officially moved All Saints to Lodi, where we are the first and only Orthodox Church in the city of Lodi (population 60,000+)
In the last year in in Lodi we have seen an increase of inquirers, and by God’s grace have made 20 catechumens in the last 2 years, most of them have been in the last 12 months. In total the mission has 17 baptized members (1 recently reposed), 20 catechumens, and over a dozen regular inquirers.
The mission has seen catechumens who have come from backgrounds and have renounced being Neo-Nazis, Trans, Wiccans, occultists, and Thai Buddhists. We also baptized a former Roman Catholic Sub- deacon.
Our Moderator:
Rev. Deacon Christopher Purdef was born in Columbus, OH. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from The Ohio State University in 1997, and then his MA in Applied Orthodox Theology from the Antiochian House of Studiesin 2013.
He has been married to his wife Valentina, a schoolteacher, since 2001 and they have a son, Andrej, who loves aviation and writing short stories in his spare time.
Deacon Christopher has been a member of St. Ignatius Antiochian Orthodox Church in Mesa, Arizona since 2007. He was a two-term member of the Parish Council, guides the Men of St. Ignatius study group, directed community outreach for the parish, and has led a parish group meal service for the Greater Mesa Homeless Community since the beginning of his deaconate. Deacon Christopher was ordained in March 2013 and is attached to St. Ignatius under the spiritual guidance of the Very Rev. Dr. James Coles.
In the past, Deacon Christopher worked as a United States Peace Corps Volunteer writing small to medium sized grants for community development projects as well as soliciting funding for these grants from expat NGOs raising over 10,000 USD for the Municipality that he served. In addition, he has worked in outbound sales and account management for an online advertisement firm based out of San Francisco, while the last ten years have been dedicated to counseling students for various on-line Universities.
Deacon Christopher is dedicated to growing the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church in North America. He believes that nurturing new missions and supporting priests is paramount to achieving Christ’s Great Commandment:
Ancient Faith Radio gave Share the Faith Director, Fr Evangelos Pepps, an opportunity to discuss Orthodox mission work in the US. How can we share the faith effectively and establish more Orthodox missions? 
