Clergy & Clergy Wives Newsletter January 2026

Renewing the Heart of Ministry – Facing the Challenges & Opportunities Ahead

The pastoral landscape clergy families navigate is both familiar and demanding. Many priests and clergy wives carry significant responsibility quietly—serving faithfully, responding to changing parish needs, and doing so in ways that often go unnoticed. This is the reality of parish life for many, and it is the context in which The Office of Pastoral Life carries out its work.

The Office of Pastoral Life is focused on strengthening the interior life of priests, supporting the shared vocation of clergy families, and helping ensure that those entrusted with pastoral care are themselves supported and sustained. This work is concrete and ongoing. It takes shape in peer learning groups where clergy can speak honestly and listen carefully, in programs that help ease financial strain and support long-term stability, and in gatherings that reconnect priests and clergy wives to one another and to the deeper sources of their calling.

None of this happens on its own. The work of the Office of Pastoral Life depends directly on the prayerful and financial support of parishes across the Orthodox Church in America who recognize that healthy clergy families are essential to faithful, stable parish life.

As you read this newsletter, consider speaking with parish leadership and inviting your parish to support the work of the Office of Pastoral Life. An investment in this work is an investment in the well-being of clergy families and in the long-term vitality of the Church. The stories, reflections, and opportunities that follow show how this shared commitment is already taking shape.

In Christ,
Fr. Nicholas Solak
Director, Office of Pastoral Life

Poem From A Parish Priest:
“Ars Pastoralia” by Archpriest Alexander Garklavs

Archpriest Alexander Garklavs, a retired priest of the Orthodox Church in America and former Chancellor, continues to serve the Church through his work as a Thriving in Ministry facilitator. Drawing from decades of parish experience and his recent work facilitating a peer group of brother clergy, Fr. Alexander offers this poetic reflection on the priestly vocation—its demands, contradictions, and enduring grace. Ars Pastoralia emerged from within that Thriving in Ministry setting, where honest conversation and shared reflection often open unexpected paths of insight. The poem stands as both a tribute to the art of ministry and a meditation on what it means to bear the Cross with faith, humility, and love.

Ars Pastoralia

A priest must be gentle and brave,
Qualified with words,
In speaking, deliberate,
Attentive, like an owl at dusk,
And bold, like the lion at dawn.

Traditional, innovative, creative, kind,
The priest is ethical and respectable,
Virtuous, always learning,
Wise, and therefore evolving,
Politically attentive,
Comprehending science,
Athletic, musical, artistic,
Recognizing that progress
Is mystery of living history,
An articulate soothsayer
A lover of true prayer.

At times a fireman,
Extinguishing desire’s flames,
And a doctor,
With words that heal so many pains.
As tailor, baker and a cook,
The priest can sew and sift
In the kitchen of modernity,
Soulful grace as serendipity.

Because people have faces,
Becoming families and friends,
A priest detects differences,
Measuring: wants that need affection
And combinations that transcend results.

With reflective meditation a priest
Matures by acceptance:
Dignity as sacrifice,
Nurturing comfort as discernment,
As situations multiply,
Expected and detected,
Some holy, some perverse.

Observation, inspiration,
Organized imagination,
Perceptively placing the “other” in view,
Composed, patient, forgiving,
The priest balances ends,
Thins excess, disperses into ether.

Society’s underdog,
Heaven’s cheerleader,
The priest comes across kenotic,
Unbroken, unfiltered, uneven,
Gaining from every loss,
With courtesy as courage, mollified,
Mighty, humble, cogent in peace,
Subduing and pacifying persuasively;
Ministry claims angelic strength.

Ask a priest, “What is the Cross?”
The answer is pointing to the heart:
“To be an example in speech and conduct,
In love, in faith, in purity, and fail daily.”

Because, in fact, there is but one Priesthood,
And in the beginning, in the middle and the end,
Only God’s love explains, sustains and remains,
The priest is the person who seeks the meaning
Of explaining what it means “to be.”

– Fr. Alexander Garklavs
October 11, 2025
Feast of Optina Elders

As I settle into my new role as Director of Clergy Wives Ministry, I’ve had the opportunity to sit down with several women as they contemplate becoming clergy wives, selling all they have, moving across the country with their little ones to live at seminary with their husbands as they pursue their dreams. Their excitement is mixed with nerves and oh so many questions. I remember that chapter of my life, when my own “yes” was yet a seed and its potential was simultaneously invisible and powerful. Today, my husband is almost twenty years into his priesthood and looking back at my own life through these women’s eyes causes me to pine for those days. I was alive with wonder and desire to do good for Christ’s church.

I wish for that flame to rekindle, for the sense of awe at the power God gives me to make a difference when I work in His strength. This excitement is something we can re-engage at any age and like a spark, it’s contagious. Indeed, it’s meant to be shared.

I am thrilled to present One Book. One Sisterhood. aimed at uniting all clergy wives across the three countries and five time zones of the Orthodox Church in America. Inspired by One Book, One City, this program promises to build community as we not only read the same book, but engage in activities around the themes it presents throughout the year.

For 2026, our first book of this new program is: The Joy to Serve by Matushka Juliana Schmemann. This encouraging read by one of our own is down to earth and quick to read. It promises to help us find joy in everyday ministry challenges and vivify our walk with Christ. Mka. Juliana was an inspiring force of nature who looked for beauty everywhere. A mother of three, teacher and headmistress, and wife of renowned Fr. Alexander Schmemann, Mka. Juliana wrote this book specifically to priests wives when a seasoned widowed clergy wife in her final decade of life. She offers aphorisms on topics ranging from motherhood to ministry to marriage, all through her unique joy-filled, stalwart voice that testifies to a life full of “yeses” for Christ and His church.

The Joy to Serve is available now from SVS Press and will be available from Alexander Press in March. Use the code OneSisterhood at checkout with SVS Press for a $3 discount. Get 30% off at Alexander Press by requesting the OneSisterhood 30% discount when you receive your invoice through email. Non-Canadian participants are encouraged to buy from SVS Press to avoid tariffs.

Plan to buy a copy with your Christmas cash and join your sisters on this enriching journey as we renew the heart of our ministries together in 2026.

Across the Church, many of our parishes are seeing new faces, fuller coffee hours, and a deepening interest in the Orthodox faith. These are encouraging signs of life, but they also bring new demands. Priests and their wives are finding themselves stretched in new ways—navigating questions of parish growth, volunteer leadership, family balance, and pastoral care in an increasingly complex world.

The Thriving in Ministry program was created to meet these realities with community. Since 2018, this initiative of the Office of Pastoral Life has supported clergy through peer learning groups—gatherings of priests and priest wives

who meet regularly to share experience, reflect theologically on their ministry, and support one another in faith. These are separate groups; clergy wives form their own peer groups, creating safe and supportive spaces to share the unique joys and challenges of their vocation. In both settings, participants are discovering that renewal happens not in isolation, but in relationships.

At the heart of this work is a simple conviction: the fellowship, collegiality, and community that mark our residential seminary years are not meant to end at ordination. They are essential to the ongoing life of a healthy priesthood. Peer learning carries that same spirit into the later seasons of ministry—helping clergy and clergy wives stay connected, reflective, and spiritually grounded.

The Office of Pastoral Life is now shepherding its second Thriving in Ministry grant from the Lilly Endowment, a matching grant that sustains this growing network across the Orthodox Church in America. Currently there are over 30 Pan Orthodox Peer Groups, serving almost 200 priests and priests’ wives. Donations allow us to fulfill our mandate of matching grant funds, and expand the program to serve more clergy families across North America.

When we gather to reflect, we rediscover what ministry was meant to be—a shared journey, strengthened by the fellowship of those who walk it with us.

Most clergy families carry financial concerns alongside the work of ministry. They are not always urgent or dramatic, but they do have a way of slowing things down. Over time, they can draw attention away from parish life, family responsibilities, and the effort it takes to stay steady and healthy in ministry. This is not unusual, and it is not a failure. It is simply part of the landscape many clergy families live with.

Through the Financial Health Initiative (FHI), clergy families work through an online financial education program that provides structure, practical tools, and access to trusted coaching. Participants who complete the program also receive a modest financial grant, up to $5,000, from the Office of Pastoral Life. The aim is straightforward: to help families get a clearer handle on their finances and reduce some of the background stress that often accompanies them.

FHI does not solve every financial challenge. What it can offer is a measure of order and steadiness. When finances feel less reactive, it becomes easier to stay present to parish work, family life, and the long work of sustaining oneself in ministry. As with many areas of life, small changes made consistently often matter more than dramatic shifts.

The Financial Health Initiative is supported by generous funding from the Lilly Endowment and depends on ongoing matching support. Parish support helps make participation possible for clergy families across the Orthodox Church in America.

The Synaxis program offers a straight-forward venue online for clergy to come together for honest, friendly, yet profound reflection on our ministry and personal lives. Meeting for two hours each season, Synaxis attracts a hundred or more bishops, priests, and deacons who find this engagement refreshing, encouraging, and thought-provoking. Each session begins with a thirty minute talk by a guest speaker, followed by 70 minutes in break-out groups where clergy can learn from one another in confidential conversations, returning to the public session for 20 minutes of Q&A.

About 120 clergy participated in our latest Synaxis on December 16, 2025, with His Eminence, Alexei, Archbishop of Sitka and Alaska speaking on the topic, “Hard-Pressed But Not Crushed,” confronting clergy burn-out and discouragement with hope-filled wisdom from the Orthodox tradition. Drawing from Holy Scripture, the Psalms and the pastoral wisdom of St. John Chrysostom, His Eminence reflected on how clergy may remain rooted in hope while carrying the weight of pastoral ministry entrusted to them.

On Tuesday, January 13, 2026, the Synaxis program hosted its first “Clergy Conversation” in collaboration with Orthodox Christians for Life. The conversation invited clergy to reflect together on the question, “How Do We Promote a Culture of Life in Our Parishes?” Clergy Conversations are designed as shorter, less structured gatherings that allow for timely discussion of pastoral topics that do not easily fit within the full Synaxis format. Two one-hour sessions were offered, and clergy engaged in thoughtful, candid conversation grounded in shared pastoral experience.

On Tuesday, March 17, 2026, at 2 PM ET, Archimandrite Sergius of St. Tikhon’s Monastery will be speaking to the next Synaxis on “Further Thoughts on Prayer.” On Tuesday, June 16, 2026 at 2 PM ET, Dr. Randa Anderson will speak on “Digital Discernment in Our Parish Life.” On Tuesday, September 15, 2026, Fr. Thomas Moore will reflect on “What I Would Tell My Younger Self About Retirement.”

OPL Pastoral Retreat: The Fields Are Ripe For Harvest
September 29 to October 2, 2026

The annual clergy retreat is designed to create safe space for priests and bishops to step away from the constant demands of parish life and give sustained attention to their priestly and pastoral ministry. It establishes a shared rhythm of prayer, collaborative learning, and conversation that can be hard to sustain as parish life has become busier and more active. Returning to Saint Mary of the Lake Retreat Center in Mundelein, IL following the 2024 gathering reflects a commitment to building a regular and recognizable rhythm rather than a one-time event.

With Father John Parker, Dean of St. Tikhon’s Orthodox Theological Seminary, serving as the main speaker this year, the retreat will continue to emphasize thoughtful engagement shaped by the experience clergy bring with them. Participants gather as peers within the Orthodox Church in America, sharing common responsibilities and realities. By setting aside time for careful listening and mutual learning, the retreat offers clergy an opportunity to reflect on priestly work with clarity and perspective—an approach that aligns closely with the Office of Pastoral Life’s commitment to ongoing clergy formation and sustainable patterns of service.

The Clergy Wives Wives Retreat: Establishing a First In-Person Rhythm
July 27 to 30, 2026

This summer marks the first in-person Clergy Wives Retreat, an important step in establishing a regular gathering shaped by shared experience and common understanding. The retreat is structured to offer time intentionally set apart for conversation, prayer, and presence—free from the expectations and responsibilities that often accompany parish life. Held at the Antiochian Village Retreat Center in Bolivar, Pennsylvania, the setting supports unhurried, meaningful connection.

This location will allow attendees to:

• Sleep, dine, and gather in one building designed specifically for Orthodox groups
• Include those with mobility concerns more seamlessly in all activities
• Pray in the Sts. Peter and Paul chapel accompanied by the relics of St. Raphael
• Stay inside and avoid the unpleasantness of bugs, difficult weather, and unfamiliar roads
• Choose between single, double, and triple occupancy rooms to meet a range of needs for varying budget or privacy levels
• Connect in all the delightful impromptu ways a one-building venue affords
• Enjoy 300 acres of beautiful nature surrounding the conference center

As a in-person gathering, this retreat lays the groundwork for a steady rhythm in the life of clergy families. Rather than focusing on programming alone, it prioritizes the simple but essential practice of being together in a supportive environment. Creating and sustaining such spaces is central to the mission of the Office of Pastoral Life, which exists to encourage clergy and clergy families through thoughtful, well-designed opportunities for connection, learning, and care over time.

The Office of Pastoral Life is pleased to welcome PJ Gorman as Development Director. PJ brings great experience in nonprofit development and will be working closely within the Office of Pastoral Life to strengthen financial support for its work across the Orthodox Church in America.

In the months ahead, PJ will be assisting Office of Pastoral Life in meeting current matching-fund commitments and in building sustainable support 

for programs such as Thriving in Ministry, the Financial Health Initiative, Synaxis gatherings, Clergy and Clergy Wives retreats, the Clergy Wives Ministry, and related pastoral initiatives.

His role will help ensure that this work, grounded in care for clergy, clergy families, and parish life, can continue to grow.

Support for the Office of Pastoral Life is an investment in the long-term health of priestly ministry and parish life throughout the Orthodox Church in America.

Parish support and individual giving make this work possible and are deeply appreciated!

Help OPL maximize the impact of our Lilly Grants by contributing to our matching fund!

Your parish’s gift will be doubled, directly supporting our essential programs for clergy. To learn how your parish can participate, please click here.

We deeply appreciate your partnership. If you know individuals who are passionate about supporting the health of our clergy, please connect us — their generosity can go even further through this match.

We are very excited to announce our online community that is open for all on Facebook and Instagram. The purpose of providing social media that you and the greater OCA community can follow is to provide a place where all the good can be shared.

Posts will showcase all that is happening in the programs of OPL and what is taking place in our greater community in how we can support one another. Please click and follow today!