WITH LOVE FROM EBAUMS WITH LOVE FROM EBAUMS WITH LOVE FROM EBAUMS WITH LOVE FROM EBAUMS WITH LOVE FROM EBAUMS WITH LOVE FROM EBAUMS{{diocese|name=Parishes in Australia|jurisdiction=[[Orthodox Church in America|OCA]]|type=Administrative District|founded=1971|bishop=[[Herman (Swaiko) of Washington and New York|Metr. Herman]], administrator|see=n/a|hq=Syosset, New York State, USA|territory=Qld and NSW, Australia|language=Slavonic and English|music=[[Russian Chant]]|calendar=[[Revised Julian Calendar|Revised Julian]], [[Julian Calendar|Julian]]|population=unknown|website=[http://oca.org/CAdioceseAU.asp?SID=8 Parishes in Australia]}}The '''Orthodox Church in America - Parishes in Australia''' is the grouping applied to the [[church]]es who, [[ROCOR and OCA#1970: Autocephaly for the OCA|in 1971]], left [[Diocese of Australia and New Zealand (ROCOR)|ROCOR]] and asked to be taken under the [[Orthodox Church in America|OCA]]'s protection. It is directly under the Metropolitan of the OCA (currently Metropolitan [[Herman (Swaiko) of Washington and New York|Herman]]), and has two churches in Australia.{{orthodoxyinaustralia}}== History ==In 1971, in a split from [[Diocese of Australia and New Zealand (ROCOR)|ROCOR]], a group of Orthodox faithful applied to the Orthodox Church in America for acceptance. Saint Nicholas Parish in Bankstown, NSW, was formed in 1959 and worshipped in premises the parishioners built on land leased from NSW Government Railways. In 1971 it was under the rectorship of Archimandrite [[Veniamin (Garshin)]] who had resigned as dean of the ROCOR Cathedral in Sydney and departed from that jurisdiction. At that time they petitioned OCA for their acceptance under the omophorion of the OCA Metropolitan. Their petition was quickly granted. A second [[parish]] in Brisbane, Holy Annunciation Church, was formed under the rectorship of Fr [[Gregory Malisheff]] and following the example of the Bankstown parish petitioned OCA and was also quickly accepted. In 1977 a third group, later named the Australian Orthodox Fraternity of St Michael, was formed in Sydney for the purpose of purchasing and organising another parish, under the rectorship of Fr [[Michael Mersher]]. In November of that year, Mr Verjbitsky contacted the Uniting Church and was offered a surplus Presbyterian church in Homebush. The building was made suitable for Orthodox worship, including an iconostasis, on [[January 26]], 1978. Fr Michael was the [[rector]] from 1978-80, Fr [[Theodore Michaluk]] from 1980-86, Fr Leopold in 1986, and Fr [[Igor Chlabicz]] from 1987 to the present. Following the repose of Archim. Veniamin in 1994, the Orthodox Church in America was unable to supply a replacement [[priest]] for the Bankstown parish. The parish council of Saint Nicholas approached the Antiochian Orthodox Bishop [[Gibran (Ramlawey) of Australia and New Zealand|Gibran]] and asked if he was able to supply a priest who could celebrate in Slavonic. Hieromonk [[Andrija (Vujisic)|Andrija (Zoran) Vujisić]] and later Fr [[Nicholas Gan]] assisted on a temporary basis until Fr [[Mitko Machevski]] was appointed and commenced services at St Nicholas on 10 August 1996. The parish later formally changed jurisdictions to the [[Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia and New Zealand]]. Fr Mitko was appointed rector of the parish, which continues to use Church Slavonic and follow the [[Julian Calendar]]. ==Organisation==The OCA Parishes in Australia is an administrative grouping of two churches.*Holy Annunciation Orthodox Church, Woolloongabba, Queensland.*St. Michael Orthodox Church, Homebush, New South Wales. == The Episcopacy =====Current Episcopacy===* Metropolitan [[Herman (Swaiko) of Washington and New York|Herman (Swaiko)]] of Washington and New York, administrator of the parishes in Australia. ===Previous Bishops===* [[Sylvester (Haruns) of Montreal|Sylvester (Haruns)]], Archbishop of Montreal and Canada, 1963-1981, administrator of the parishes in Australia, 1972-1981. == External links ==* [http://oca.org/CAdioceseAU.asp?SID=8 Website of the Parishes in Australia] (on the OCA website)* [http://ha-oca.faithweb.com/ Holy Annunciation Orthodox Church] (the church in Woolloongabba, Brisbane, Queensland)* [http://www.antiochian.org.au/SaintNicholasBankstown/ Saint Nicholas Bankstown] (the former parish in this grouping) [[Category:Jurisdictions|Australia]][[Category:Orthodoxy in Australia]]
