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[[Image:Alaska.png|thumb|right|Visual representation of the Diocese of Alaska]]
The '''Diocese of Alaska (OCA)'''—in full, the '''Russian Orthodox Diocese of Alaska'''—is a [[diocese]] of the [[Orthodox Church in America]]. It is currently under the administration of Metropolitan [[Herman Bishop]] [[Benjamin (SwaikoPeterson) of Washington and New YorkSan Francisco]] as ''[[locum tenens]]'', assisted by Bishop [[Benjamin (Peterson) of San Francisco]] as diocesan administrator. Its territory includes the American state of [[Alaska]].
The diocese has, since 2007, been struggling with a crisis regarding the leadership of its [[bishop]], including allegations of abuse against both the bishop and the diocesan [[chancellor]], Archimandrite [[Isidore (Brittain)]]. His Grace, the Right Reverend [[Nikolai (Soraich) of Sitka|Nikolai (Soraich)]], the diocesan bishop, was placed on a leave of absence beginning [[March 4]], 2008, which was rescinded shortly thereafter and then reinstated on [[April 17]], 2008. The leave become became voluntarily permanent in May of 2008, followed by his official retirement.
__TOC__
{{orthodoxyinamerica}}
==History==
The territory of what is now the Diocese of [[Alaska]] was the beginning of the presence of Orthodox Christianity in the Western Hemisphere when Russian [[monk]]s arrived as [[missionary|missionaries]] to preach the [[Gospel]] of [[Jesus Christ]] to the indigenous peoples in the 1790s. This mission expanded into the formation of a series of dioceses and [[vicar]] [[see]]s that became the Archdiocese of the Aleutian Islands and North America during the first decade of the twentieth century with the territory of Alaska served by an assistant/vicar bishop.
With the establishment of the diocese of the Aleutian Islands and North America, the position of an auxiliary/vicar [[bishop]] was established for Alaska, first held by Bishop Innocent (Pustynsky). When the [[Church of Russia]] granted autocephaly to the [[Metropolia]], the successor organization to the Archdiocese of the Aleutian Islands and North America, the territory of Alaska was organized as a [[diocese]] of of the new [[Orthodox Church in America]], with a diocesan bishop.
== Diocesan bishops ==
; Alaska Vicariate of the North American Diocese
* [[Innocent (Pustynsky) of Alaska|Innocent (Pustynsky)]] (1904 - 1909)
* [[Alexander (Nemolovsky) of Brussels|Alexander (Nemolovsky)]] (1909 - 1916)
* [[Philip (Stavitsky) of Alaska|Philip (Stavitsky)]] (1916 - 1917)
* [[Anthony (Dashkevich) of Alaska|Anthony (Dashkevich)]] (1921-1922)
* [[Amphilochius (Vakulsky) of Alaska|Amphilochius (Vakulsky)]] (1923 - 1931)
* [[Antoninus (Pokrovsky) of Alaska|Antoninus (Pokrovsky)]] (1931 - 1934)
; Diocese of Alaska
* [[Alexis (Panteleyev) of Omsk|Alexis (Panteleev)]] (1934 - 1944)
* [[John (Zlobin) of Alaska|John (Zlobin)]] (1945-1952)
* [[Amvrossy (Merejko) of Pittsburgh|Ambrose (Merejko)]] 1955-1967
* Theodosius (Lazor) (1967 - 1970)
; OCA
* [[Theodosius (Lazor) of Washington|Theodosius (Lazor)]] (1970 - 1972)
* [[Gregory (Afonsky) of Sitka|Gregory (Afonsky)]] (1973-1995)
* [[Nikolai (Soraich) of Sitka|Nicholas (Soraich)]] (2002-2008)
* Vacant (2008 - Present)
<!-- ==Diocesan Council==
==Metropolitan Council Representatives== -->
==Institutions==
*Protecting Veil of the Theotokos Community in Anchorage, AK
*St. Yakov Center for Orthodox Christian Learning in Soldatna, AK
*[http://www.russianorthodoxmuseum.org Russian Orthodox Museum ] in Anchorage, AK
*[http://www.rossialaska.org ROSSIA Inc.] - Russian Orthodox Sacred Sites in Alaska Inc.
*Unalaska Deanery
==Ruling bishopsPublications==*[[Nikolai (Soraich) of Sitka|Nikolai (Soraich) of Sitka and Anchorage]], 2002http://www.oca.org/DOC-PUB-2008*[[Gregory (Afonsky) of Sitka]NS.asp?SearchYear=&SID=34 The North Star], 1973-1995Quarterly Diocesan Publication
==External links==
*[http://www.cnewa.org/mag-article-bodypg-us.aspx?articleID=3247 CNEWA One Magazine, 2006, Vol 32:6 (November) - Orthodox Alaska]
*[http://www.ocanews.org/ OCA News] (includes information on the crisis in the diocese)
*[http://www.oca.org/news/2272 Title to Historic Church Lands Returned to Alaska]
[[Category:Dioceses|Alaska]]
[[Category:OCA Dioceses|Alaska]]
[[fr:Diocèse orthodoxe russe d'Alaska]]