Christ is Born! Glorify Him!

To the Clergy, Monastics and Laity of the Western American Diocese!
As we enter into the joyous season of Nativity, we must put aside the distractions of this world and remember that Jesus Christ came into the world to reconcile Divinity with creation. When the Heavenly Angelic Hosts revealed themselves in glory to the shepherds in the fields, the angels glorified God by proclaiming, "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace and goodwill towards man!" (Luke 2:14). Heaven itself confesses the reason God became man – the Divine and the celestial wish to reconcile with man. We see God’s extreme humility in this reconciliation taking upon Himself the flesh, which He created, so that man can experience and know the Light of the Divine. However, our inclination towards sin does not allow us to value, or recognize, the Divine humility that occurred 2000 years ago. Therefore, we are mired in the "cares of this world" and repeat one and the same mistakes over and over again.

Most Reverend Brother Archpastors, Venerable Fathers, Monastics, Brothers and Sisters!

Peace be with you from the Abode of the Miracle-Working Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God “of the Sign!”I warmly greet you all with love on the great holidays of the Nativity of Christ, Theophany, and the New Year, sincerely wishing you inner peace, joy, and tranquility, renewal of all your strength, and God's help! May the fruit you have gained from the past Advent, fasting, and this joyful celebration continue until the Great Fast and the Pascha of Christ, when, as during the Holy Days, being in the church becomes so delightful that you do not want to leave it.
For every Christian, the feast of the Nativity of Christ is beloved and joyful. Throughout the world on this day, people remember the Star of Bethlehem and the manger, the shepherds and angels, the Mother of God and Righteous Joseph the Betrothed, while the Orthodox celebrate, confessing the cornerstone of faith—the Incarnation of Christ, the manifestation of God in the flesh (1 Timothy 3:16). Out of His greatest love, the Lord descended to be born of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, uniting fallen humanity with God through Himself. "The Word became flesh so that we might be renewed and divinized in Him," says St. Athanasius the Great.

Ukase of the Synod of Bishops
No. 09/12/2025

To Bishop Theodosius of Seattle
To Archpriest Michael Crowley, Cleric of the Eastern American Diocese
To Hieromonk Spyridon (Gusakov), Cleric of the Canadian Diocese
To Hieromonk Peter (Karakozoff), Cleric of the Western American Diocese

During a meeting of the Synod of Bishops held on Tuesday, 26 November/9 December, 2025, it was DETERMINED: on the matter of filling the ranks of the episcopacy:

DECREED: 1) To appoint Bishop Theodosius of Seattle as a Vicar of the Eastern American Diocese with the title “Bishop of Manhattan.” 2) Having deliberated on the results of a survey of the Members of the Council of Bishops, to consider Archpriest Michael Crowley, cleric of the Eastern American Diocese, to be elected as Bishop of Boston; cleric of the Canadian Diocese Hieromonk Spyridon (Gusakov) as Bishop of Toronto; cleric of the Western American Diocese Hieromonk Peter (Karakozoff), Bishop of Seattle. 3) In accordance with the Act of Canonical Communion, to submit a corresponding appeal to the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church. 4) The time and location of the episcopal consecrations of the aforementioned clerics will be left to the discretion of the President of the Synod of Bishops.

For which this ukase is issued.

+ NICHOLAS
Metropolitan of Eastern America and New York
President of the Synod of Bishops

+ KYRILL
Archbishop of San Francisco and Western America
Secretary of the Synod of Bishops

From the Editors: During a session of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church on Friday, 26 December, 2025, the election of new Vicar Bishops of the Eastern American, Canadian and Western American Dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia was confirmed. Below is the text of the decision:

JOURNAL No. 125

HEARD: A report by His Eminence Metropolitan Antony of Volokolamsk, President of the Department of External Church Relations, on the decisions of the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia regarding the election of Vicar Bishops of the Eastern American, Western American and Canadian Dioceses.

Background:

Addressed to His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia was an appeal by Metropolitan Nicholas of Eastern America and New York with the request for the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church to confirm the election of Vicar Bishops of the Eastern American, Canadian and Western American Dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia.

In accordance with the Act of Canonical Communion of 17 May, 2007, “Hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia are elected by its Council of Bishops, or, in instances determined by the Regulations of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, by its Synod of Bishops. The election is to be confirmed on a canonical basis by the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia and the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church.”

DECREED:

During these recent days I was able with the help of God to visit our nation's capital and in the company of fellow clergy and laity from some of our sister Orthodox churches (Antiochian, Serbian, and OCA) to speak with representatives of our government regarding the question of religious freedom in Ukraine. Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna, Congressman Darrell Issa, Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy Sarah Rogers, and former Congressman Mark Walker, Trump nominee for Ambassador At-Large for International Religious Freedom, received our inter-Orthodox delegation. Part of the delegation was able to meet with Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi. It is a pity that our visits coincided with a media article that so misrepresented all our Churches, attempting to cast Orthodoxy in a negative light; but we were grateful that the actual reception we had by our political leaders in Washington was warm, filled with a desire for understanding and an awareness of our shared wish to work together for peace. The freedom to pray and to act in accordance with God's commandments is something we highly prize as citizens of the world's pre-eminent democracy and it is a gift that we believe the whole world should share. My own parents and grandparents fled the oppression of the Soviet Union and ultimately immigrated to the United States, where I was born. I treasure the gift of liberty that we enjoy as Americans.