Welcome to the Orthodox Church! Whether you’re new to our faith or simply curious, we’re delighted to have you explore the rich traditions and timeless wisdom of Orthodoxy. Here are some key points to get you started:

  • Origins and Traditions: The Orthodox Christian Church traces its roots back 2,000 years to the time of Jesus Christ and His apostles. Our practices, beliefs, and ecclesiastical traditions have been faithfully preserved throughout history.
  • Divine Liturgy: Join us every Sunday at 10am for the Divine Liturgy—a central worship service where we encounter God’s grace through hearing and understanding the Scriptures and worshipping the Holy Trinity. All are welcome, regardless of background or nationality. Only Orthodox Christians may partake of Holy Communion.
  • Our Community: We’re a diverse family—men, women, children—from diverse backgrounds. Our doors are open to everyone, whether you’re of Syrian, Lebanese, Greek, Romanian, or any other heritage. The Orthodox Church embraces all people.
  • Classes, Book Club, Sermons, and more: Explore our webpage to see the many ways people are growing in faith.
  • Learn More: If you’d like to deepen your understanding of Orthodoxy, click here to fill out a short form. Fr Alex will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
  • And here is some more basic information below:
What We Believe

The Orthodox Christian Church is the Church founded by Jesus Christ and His Apostles. From the beginning, Christians gathered together to worship God, receive the Holy Eucharist, hear the Scriptures, and live the life Christ taught. The Orthodox Church today seeks to preserve and live this same apostolic faith and life.

The word Orthodox means right belief and right worship. From the earliest centuries, the Church has faithfully proclaimed the truth about God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, and our salvation. When serious questions arose, the Church gathered in Councils, prayed, searched the Scriptures, and expressed the faith handed down from the Apostles.

At the heart of this faith is the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, which begins, “I believe in one God…” It confesses the Holy Trinity, the incarnation of Jesus Christ, His death and Resurrection, the Holy Spirit, the Church, baptism, the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the age to come.

The Orthodox Church is not simply a set of beliefs about God. It is a way of life in Christ. Through prayer, worship, the Holy Mysteries, Scripture, fasting, repentance, and life together in the Church, we seek to know Christ and to be transformed by His grace.

This is the Orthodox Faith. This is the life we seek to live at St. Philip.

[Learn More About the Orthodox Faith]

Worship

Orthodox churches still use forms of worship that were practiced in the first centuries. Our worship is based to a great extent on passages from Scripture. We sing most of the service, joining our voices in simple harmony to ancient melodies.

Our worship is focused on God, not on our own en­joyment, fulfillment, or fellowship. We come into the presence of God with awe, aware of our fallenness and His great mercy. We seek forgiveness and rejoice in the great gift of salvation so freely given. Orthodox worship is filled with repentance, gratitude, and unend­ing praise.

We try, as best we can, to make our worship beautiful. The example of Scripture shows us that God’s design for tabernacle worship (Exodus 25, 26) in­cluded gold, silver, precious stones, blue and purple cloth, embroidery, incense, bells, and anointing oil. Likewise, in Saint John’s vision of heavenly worship (Revelation 4) there are precious stones, gold, thrones, crowns, white robes, crystal, and incense. From the beginning to the end of Scripture, worship is offered with as much beauty as possible. While a new mission’s finances may call for simple appointments, our hearts come to worship seeking to pour out at the feet of Christ all the precious ointment we possess.

A common misconception is that awe-filled, beauti­ful worship must be rigid, formal, and cold. Orthodox worship shatters that stereotype. The liturgy is not a performance, but an opportunity to come together as a family of faith before our beloved Father. True Orthodox worship is comfortable, warm, and joyful. It could be nothing less in His heavenly presence.

Values

Values that are usually termed “Judeo-Christian” have never left Orthodoxy. We believe that sexual expression is a treasured gift, one to be exercised only within marriage. Persons with homosexual or other extramarital sexual impulses are welcomed as fellow servants of God, receiving loving support as they make an offering to God of their chastity. Marriage is a commitment for life. Divorce is a very grave action, and remarriage after divorce a concession to human weakness, undertaken with repentance.

Orthodoxy has stood against abortion since the earliest days of the church. The Didache (circa A.D. 110) states, “Do not murder a child by abortion or kill a newborn infant.” In the midst of a culture which freely practiced abortion, infanticide, and the exposure of infants, early Christians were a consistent voice against violence, as the Orthodox Church continues to be today.

Caring for the poor and disadvantaged has always been a concern for the Orthodox. The strong ser­mons of Saint John Chrysostom, written in the fourth century, bear witness to the importance of this Chris­tian responsibility. The Church continues to see its mission in light of the whole person, body and soul.

Orthodox believers are right, left, and center on many issues. But where Scripture and the witness of the early Church guide us, there is no controver­sy. We uphold and obey God’s will.

Introductory Video Series

Watch an Introductory Video Series based on the book Welcome to the Orthodox Church by Frederica Mathews-Green