Welcome to the website of the Office of Institutional Chaplaincy within the Orthodox Church in America! We hope you will utilize this website to learn more about institutional chaplaincy in the Orthodox Christian Tradition and credentialing bodies in the greater pastoral care and counseling community, and be apprised of current events within the chaplaincy community. Please also take a moment to read the life of St. Porphyrios in the “About Orthodox Chaplaincy” whose icon is now on the front page of our website.
OCA Mission Statement for Institutional Chaplains
The Mission of Institutional Chaplains of the OCA is to be faithful in fulfilling the commandment of Christ to love our neighbor as He has loved us:
To bring spiritual nourishment through sacraments, prayer, and presence to those who are sick, hungry, estranged, poor, naked, dying, and in prison unto the healing of mind, soul, and body.
To bear witness to the Holy Orthodox Faith within the greater pastoral care and counseling community in this country and throughout the world.
In the words of St. Tikhon: It is our obligation to share our spiritual treasurers, our truth, our light and our joy with those who do not have these gifts. And this duty lies not only on pastors and missionaries, but also on lay people, for the Church of Christ, in the wise comparison of St. Paul, is a body, and in the life of the body every member takes part.
The Life of St. Porphyrios
The Elder Porphyrios was canonized in 2013, and commemorated on December 2nd, on the anniversary of his repose in 1991. His life of spiritual ascesis on Mount Athos and the surrounding communities is spiritually illuminating, incredibly extensive, impacting the lives of many others around him. Please click here to read a biography of his life.
In the midst of struggles related to his ascetic life, on the 12th of October 1940 he was given the duty of temporary priest to the Chapel of St. Gerasimos in the Athens Polyclinic, which can be found on the corner of Socrates and Pireaus Street, close to Omonia Square. He would serve in this role for over thirty years ministering to many, and even after active service, continued to make visitations until 1973.
Please take time to read his life, and writings that capture it. Through the prayers of St. Porphyrios, may God strengthen the ministry of our chaplains ministering to those who are sick, imprisoned, and suffering.
The Life of St. Porphyrios
St. Porphyrios, Hospital Chaplain
The Elder Porphyrios was canonized in 2013, and commemorated on December 2nd, on the anniversary of his repose in 1991. His life of spiritual ascesis on Mount Athos and the surrounding communities is spiritually illuminating, incredibly extensive, impacting the lives of many others around him. Please click here to read a biography of his life.
In the midst of struggles related to his ascetic life, on the 12th of October 1940 he was given the duty of temporary priest to the Chapel of St. Gerasimos in the Athens Polyclinic, which can be found on the corner of Socrates and Pireaus Street, close to Omonia Square. He would serve in this role for over thirty years ministering to many, and even after active service, continued to make visitations until 1973.
Please take time to read his life, and writings that capture it. Through the prayers of St. Porphyrios, may God strengthen the ministry of our chaplains ministering to those who are sick, imprisoned, and suffering.