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The Mitred Protopresbyter '''Joseph J. Pishtey II''' was the first [[Chancellor ]] of the [[Orthodox Church in America]] (OCA). As Chancellor of the Metropolia (the former general designation for the OCA), he was a member of the delegation that negotiated for its [[autocephaly]] in the 1960s.
==Life==
He married Susanne Padick. They had three children, two sons Joseph J. III (who became a [[priest]]) and Wallace, and a daughter, Sonja.
On [[June 16]], 1924, Joseph was [[ordination|ordained]] to the [[priest]]hood by [[Metropolitan]] [[Platon (Rozhdestvensky) of New York|Platon]] at [[St. Nicholas Cathedral (New York, New York)|St. Nicholas Cathedral]] in New York City. Subsequently Fr. Joseph served in [[parish]]es in Terryville, Connecticut, and Old Forge and Olyphant, Pennsylvania. He arrived at his last parish, Holy Trinity Church in Yonkers, New York in 1940, where he served until his death.
While serving at Holy Trinity Church, Fr. Joseph also served as secretary-treasurer of the Metropolitan Council from 1946 to 1964. In 1964, he was appointed to the position of Chancellor of the Metropolia by the [[Synod]] of Bishops. In his position as chancellor Fr. Joseph was a member of the delegation that carried out negotiations with the [[Church of Russia]] for the eventual granting of autocephaly to the Metropolia. This involved travel to meetings in Geneva and Tokyo as well as in New York.
