OUR DIOCESE AND OUR CHURCH
Christ the Saviour Church is a member of the American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese, a canonical, autonomous jurisdiction of the Eastern Orthodox Church, headquartered in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, and under the protection of His All-Holiness, BARTHOLOMEW I, pictured here. As "the Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome, and Ecumenical Patriarch," every canonical local or world-wide Orthodox Church is in full communion with the Ecumenical Patriarch. The Throne of the Ecumenical Patriarchate is in modern-day, Istanbul, Turkey. He is the "first among equals" of all Orthodox Patriarchs--the visible "spiritual father" of the Orthodox Church, serving many times as its spokesman, but at no time exercising "temporal jurisdiction" over the Church universal. He is the 270th successor of the Apostle Andrew, and twice visited the American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese to address the faithful and bless diocesan facilities.We enjoy the spiritual leadership and arch-pastoral, fatherly guidance of His Eminence, Metropolitan NICHOLAS of Amissos, ruling hierarch of our diocese,who is pictured here following the fourth ordination to the priethood of vocations from Christ the Saviour Church--Frs. David Moriak, George York, Rodion Pfeiffer and Daniel Montville.Our diocese, through the leadership of Metropolitan NICHOLAS and the consistent love-offerings and bequeaths of its 25,000 faithful maintain Christ the Saviour Seminary, headquartered in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, which is fully accredited by the State of Pennsylvania to grant a B.Th degree and is linked with the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North and South America to grant a D.Min degree in cooperation with Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. The diocese also provides camping sessions for youth and educational conferencing for people of all ages through Camp Nazareth Youth and Retreat Conference Center in Mercer, Pennsylvania, an accredited member of the Christian Camping Foundation. The diocese publishes, as well, the bi-weekly newspaper--"The Church Messenger," a member of the Associated Church Press.
CHRIST THE SAVIOUR AMERICAN ORTHODOX CHURCH in North Royalton is a welcoming, all English speaking community founded in l964. We are one local community of over 160 national diocesan churches. We exist to bring "the good news of Jesus Christ" in the fellowship of community and in the grace of His Sacraments to all believers and strive to deepen their faith in the Living God, our Lord Jesus Christ.
We do this through a variety of sacraments and ministries in the church, the crown of which is the Eucharist celebrated in each Divine Liturgy. We confess as the basis of our Faith the Holy Scriptures. We practice our Faith according to Holy Tradition handed down to us from the great Fathers and Mothers of the Church and according to the doctrinal and disciplinary canons of the first Seven Ecumenical Councils of the "undivided Christian Church."
We confess the Nicene Creed in its original form, without the later addition of the double procession of the Holy Spirit from the Father "and the Son," we reject any notion of papal infallibility, but subscribe to the Apostolic conciliarity of the church, viewing all canonical bishops as sharing equally in the charism of the Holy Spirit's grace--infallibility lying ONLY within the Church Universal called together in Holy Council; we view the Virgin as the first redeemed of all creation, but reject nuances such as the "immaculate conception;" likewise we honor and revere the saints as models of the "church triumphant" and intercessors for us still on our journey to salvation; icons adorn our church as "windows into heaven," calling to mind for all of us the miracle working power of Our Saviour and His Saints in redeeming us and all creation; and we take seriously the call of our Saviour "to be holy, even as I am holy."
In order to facilitate each one of us on our pilgrimage to holiness, we hold healing services for those sick in body and soul, and gather together on an as-needed basis, to serve those who hurt or seek discernment for their lives. We prayer-network, buddy-system and do whatever is necessary to make Christ "alive" for you, and not some historical and musty figure living in the past, for we devoutly believe that "traditionalism is the past faith of the dead;" whereas, "tradition is the present faith of the living." We are committed to creating new and personal "idioms" to communicate the changeless message of salvation through faith and grace to each individual, geared to the personal need of each person.
WE HAVE SEEN AND WE BELIEVE IN MIRACLES! Hundreds of faithful were anointed with myrhh, a fragrant oil miraculously appearing on the surface of an icon of St. Nicholas brought to Camp Nazareth from St. George Orthodox Church, Michigan City, Indiana, for the Diocese's Annual Pilgrimage in honor of the Mother of God. As God's Holy Wisdom would have it, this was Fr. Michael's first pastoral assignment and the current priest, his first altar boy over 20 years ago!
We are a small enough faith community so that no one is a number on a roster, anonymous to the clergy or fellow parishoners, but large enough in physical and spiritual resources, to tailor the ministry of Christ to uniquely meet the felt-needs and spiritual aspirations of each person as a unique and unreplicable child of God. As created in "his image and likeness," His and our goals are to restore this image fully in you.
THORUGH THE GRACE OF ALMIGHTY GOD AND THE SACRIFICAL GIVING OF OUR GOOD PEOPLE, THE MORTGAGE WAS BURNED ON OUR CHURH ON 7 JUNE, 1999--TWO YEARS AHEAD OF SCHEDULE
"GLORY TO GOD FOR ALL THINGS"
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