User:TVWeber

From OrthodoxWiki
Jump to: navigation, search

I first attended a Serbian Orthodox Church in March of 1999 in reaction to the Kosovo War. I was amazed to find that the Early Church was alive and well in the Serbian community. But, I had no idea what do about it as I am not of Serbian ancestry. Fortunately, my wife is half-Serbian and an avid reader. We continued to visit St. Nikola in Chicago, Illinois for over a year on a fairly regular basis and, also, continued to read about the faith. Finally, we asked the priest what we would need to become Orthodox. As the Church was 100% Serbian and all seemed to be cradles, the priest did not know what to do, so he had to speak with his bishop, who was in Serbia at the time. By the time, the priest had conferred with the Bishop and we obtained the necessary documentation, it was early 2001. So, Father Miodrag Antic received my wife, Alida and I into the Holy Orthodox Church through Chrismation, sometime before Great Lent in 2001.

Due to the bad economy, my wife had to take a number or short-term projects and lived in a number of different communities, sometimes for only a few months. Only two of those cities had a Serbian Orthodox Church, so we had the opportunity to be a part of a number of Orthodox Churches in a number of jurisdictions. So far, we have been a part of four Serbian Churches, three of Antioch, two ROCOR, two OCA and one under the Greek archdioceses.

Personally, I am partially disabled and therefore semi-retired. I have a daughter who is also Orthodox. I speak a little Spanish and have a desire to help share our faith with the Spanish-speaking world.