Who are we?
We are a vibrant, growing community of Orthodox Christians belonging to the Orthodox Church in America. We are dedicated to sharing the love and teachings of Jesus Christ. We welcome all who seek to grow in their faith and knowledge of God. Our community is a place of love and support for all people, and we invite you to join us in worship and fellowship.
OCA Mission Statement
The Mission of the Orthodox Church in America, the local autocephalous Orthodox Church, is to be faithful in fulfilling the commandment of Christ to “Go into all the world and make disciples of all Nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all [things that He has] commanded” so that all people may be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth: To preach, in accordance with God’s will, the fullness of the gospel of the Kingdom to the peoples of North America and to invite them to become members of the Orthodox Church. To utilize for her mission the various languages of the peoples of this continent. To be the body of Christ in North America and to be faithful to the tradition of the Holy Orthodox Church. To witness to the truth, and by God’s grace and in the power of the Holy Spirit, to reveal Christ’s way of sanctification and eternal salvation to all.
The Orthodox Life
The center of our Orthodox life is the worship of God the Father, and His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. This worship follows a tradition of a thousand years and more, and is almost entirely scriptural in language. Most of it is sung or chanted, with no instrumental accompaniment. Its focus is on proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ and participating in the Holy Mysteries (often called sacraments). Baptism and Chrismation (anointing with the seal of the Holy Spirit) bring us forgiveness and enter our names into God’s adopted family; the Eucharist feeds us with spiritual food and gives us life from God; Confession restores us when we stray from God. These and other Holy Mysteries fill all of life with the presence and power of God. The weekly rhythm of our worship is based on the celebration of the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. We begin Saturday evening with the Vespers service, which prepares us for hearing the Gospel and participating in the Eucharist Sunday morning at the Divine Liturgy.
What are we?
The Orthodox Church traces its beginnings to the self-revelation of God on earth. As testified in the Scriptures, God has revealed Himself through a particular people whom He chose and taught through the prophets, teachers, evangelists and all those who have made His righteousness known throughout the ages. Most particularly He has revealed Himself to us through His Son, Jesus Christ (the anointed one of God) who became a man, suffered, died, rose again, ascended into heaven and is coming again in glory to bring judgment and salvation; and through His Holy Spirit who was revealed to us on the day of Pentecost. This Holy Spirit gave the Apostles the power and understanding to preach the good news (the Gospel) of Jesus Christ throughout all the world. Those who received and followed their preaching rightly and faithfully are the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church of which the Nicene Creed speaks. The Orthodox (literally, "right-believing") Church is the company of Christians who have upheld the whole tradition of the Apostolic Faith to this day.
Although this tradition remains the greatest treasure of Christians, it also is a cause of sorrow, because all of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and we have frequently allowed sin, division, and false teaching to flourish. By the mercy of God alone, the great treasury of His Church remains open to all who wish to find it. From the beginning, people have strayed from the ways God had set for them, and it is also difficult to express divine truths in human terms, accessible to each generation and culture. So there have been divisions among Christians from the beginning. The Roman Catholic Church has been divided from the Orthodox on important matters of teaching and practice for hundreds of years, before the Protestant Reformation.
In our own day, the Orthodox Church is found mostly in the East: Russia, Eastern Europe, Greece, the Middle East. But Orthodox missionaries have established churches not only in America but southern Africa and the Pacific. Significant communities of Orthodox Christians can also be found in Western Europe. World-wide, there are about a quarter of a billion Orthodox Christians, with about two million in North America. The Diocese of New England, of which St. Mark of Ephesus Orthodox Church is a member, is comprised of 27 parishes and missions. His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon is the leader of the Orthodox Church in America and Bishop Benedict Churchhill is the Bishop of the New England diocese.
