About Us
His Eminence Metropolitan Nicholas First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia
Born in Trenton, NJ in 1974, Metropolitan Nicholas graduated from Holy Trinity Seminary in Jordanville, NY in 1998. He served as cell attendant to Metropolitan Laurus and accompanied the First Hierarch on official visits to Russia. In 2010, he was appointed guardian of the Kursk Root Icon of the Mother of God, and in 2014, he was tonsured as a monk and consecrated as Bishop. Following the repose of Metropolitan Hilarion, Bishop Nicholas was elected First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia in September 2022 and enthroned as Metropolitan of Eastern America & New York.
His Eminence, Metropolitan Jonah (Paffhausen)
Born in Chicago, IL in 1959, Metropolitan Jonah was received into the Orthodox Church in 1978 while studying at the University of California, San Diego. He graduated from St. Vladimir's Seminary with Master of Divinity and Master of Theology degrees. After spending a year in Russia, he joined Valaam Monastery and was ordained to the priesthood in 1994, receiving the monastic name Jonah. He established a monastery under the patronage of St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco and worked to establish missions throughout California and Hawaii. In 2008, he was consecrated Bishop and later elected Metropolitan of All America and Canada for the Orthodox Church in America. Metropolitan Jonah was released to the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia in 2015. Today, he serves as the honorable Abbot of our Monastery, overseeing its daily operations and spiritual life.
Father Anthony
Schemahegumen Anthony reposed in the Lord on December 15th/2nd 2021 at age 70. After completing seminary at Holy Trinity (Jordanville), he became a spiritual son of Venerable Seraphim Rose of Platina and accepted the call to monasticism. Eventually, he was sent to the desert of Alamogordo in 1982. There, he dwelt as a hermit and built the Kellion of St. Anthony the Great. After five years, he was called to serve the Orthodox faithful in Phoenix. From 1987 until his repose in 2021, he toiled tirelessly as the original Abbot of the holy Stavropegial monastery of St. Anthony the Great.
Holy Stavropegial Monastery of Saint Anthony the Great
Saint Anthony the Great Orthodox Monastery was founded in 1983 as a monastery for men, with the blessing of His Grace Bishop Nektary of Seattle (Vicar Bishop to St John Maximovich and later to Archbishop Anthony of San Francisco). The monastery is located in central Phoenix Arizona and is custodian of the miracle-working "Phoenix-Bogorodskoe" Icon of the Theotokos.
Many precious relics are housed in the monastery including portions of St Equal-to-the-Apostles, Helen the Empress Mother of Saint Constantine the Great, St Therapontos of Cyprus (attended 1st Council of Nicea), St Joseph of Arimathea, Holy Forerunner and Baptist John, New Martyrs of St Sava Monastery in Judea, New Martyr of St Theodosius Monastery (between Jerusalem and Bethlehem), and New Martyr of St George Hozebite monastery. Also preserved here is a Gospel (in Japanese) belonging to St Nikolai of Tokyo, and other antiquities of the Holy Orthodox Faith.
Today, our monastery remains humble and modest. We are not in the best outward condition, and our property and temple are small. Yet we warmly invite you to come and visit, not for what is seen externally, but for what the Lord offers inwardly.
We ask those who come to do so with the desire to draw nearer to Christ, seeking a place of prayer, repentance, and spiritual quiet. The monastery is not meant to be a social gathering or a place to look for worldly companionship, but rather a refuge where the soul may turn its attention toward God.
May your visit be centered on prayer, on stillness, and on the sincere search for communion with the Lord, keeping the mind and heart focused on Him above all else.