About Us

Despite the growth of Orthodoxy in the English-speaking world, the overwhelming majority of Orthodox theological, liturgical, and hagiographical texts remain unavailable in English. Many works that have been translated—often with great labor and care—have fallen out of print, becoming prohibitively expensive or effectively inaccessible to clergy, parishes, and the faithful.

To address this need, the Governing Board of the Society of Saint John of Shanghai and San Francisco has moved to establish the Saint John of Shanghai Press. The Press is dedicated to translating, publishing, and preserving essential Orthodox texts for the life of the Church in America and beyond.

Saint John’s Press will publish Lives of Saints, doctrinal and apologetic works, catechetical and educational materials, and liturgical texts currently unavailable in English from across the Orthodox world. In addition, the Press seeks to partner with existing publishers to restore important works long out of print, ensuring that foundational texts remain available, affordable, and in continuous circulation.

This work is already underway. Beginning in 2026, Saint John of Shanghai Press plans to bring nearly a dozen titles into print, with a particular focus on educational works aimed at firmly establishing the next generation in the Orthodox faith. The Society also hopes to encourage and support inter-jurisdictional cooperation toward the development of clear, faithful, and standardized English translations of prominent liturgical texts for use throughout the Church in America.

The Society of Saint John of Shanghai and San Francisco is undertaking a long-term educational initiative to develop a comprehensive, Orthodox K–12 Classical School curriculum for the formation of our children. This project will include complete curricula, textbooks, teacher resources, and supporting materials—designed not as supplements, but as a fully integrated program rooted in the Orthodox Christian worldview.

To accomplish this, the Society is building partnerships with Orthodox educators, scholars, clergy, and well-established educational institutions, drawing on both Orthodox pedagogical experience and the best of the classical education tradition. Our aim is to produce a world-class program that is academically rigorous, spiritually sound, and fully capable of serving parish schools, Orthodox private schools, and homeschool communities alike.

Once published, these materials will be offered on the open market to ensure broad availability. At the same time, members of the Society of Saint John will have access to all educational resources at cost. This ensures that every parish school, homeschool co-op, and Orthodox educational institution affiliated with the Society can obtain high-quality materials at the cost of production—removing financial barriers while maintaining excellence.

This work will require many hands, deep collaboration, and careful stewardship over time. Educators, scholars, and institutions interested in partnering with the Society in this vital work are encouraged to contact us at info@societyofstjohn.com.

In keeping with the command of the Apostle John, the Society is committed to works of mercy that directly sustain the life of the Church and those who labor within it.

To that end, the Society is developing grant programs to support men who hear the call to ministry and are preparing for service through seminary and pastoral school programs. These efforts are intended to remove financial obstacles for worthy candidates and to help ensure that the Church in America is served by well-formed, faithful clergy for generations to come.

The Society also seeks to provide sustained support for clerical widows—pious women who have devoted their lives and hearts to their husbands’ ministries and to the service of parish communities, yet who too often find themselves facing hardship and uncertainty after their husbands’ repose. Caring for clerical widows is not optional charity; it is a sacred obligation of the Church.

In addition, the Society will direct resources toward the establishment and support of new missions, monasteries, and to the care and preservation of places of pilgrimage. These efforts will be spearheaded at the state and regional level, through the collective labor and stewardship of local brotherhoods and sisterhoods working together in unity, so that love may be made visible through deeds, and the Church strengthened in every place.

In addition to its national initiatives, the Society of Saint John of Shanghai and San Francisco aspires to cultivate a living, interconnected Orthodox community in America—one marked by shared prayer, shared labor, and mutual care. To that end, the Society seeks to pursue the following activities as its work develops:

• Organize pilgrimages to holy places in America, the Holy Land, and across the Orthodox world, offering opportunities for prayer, spiritual renewal, and fellowship.

• Host social and community gatherings in cities across the country, in coordination with local parishes, to strengthen Orthodox fellowship beyond jurisdictional boundaries and to better integrate the broader Orthodox community in America.

• Create spaces for young Orthodox Christians to form friendships, build lasting relationships, and, God willing, meet a potential spouse within the life of the Church.

• Coordinate parish and regional “work days,” bringing members together to assist in the building, maintenance, and restoration of churches, monasteries, and other holy places.

• Facilitate networking and mutual support among members, enabling Orthodox Christians to assist one another’s charitable efforts, professional work, parish initiatives, and local missions.

• Mobilize relief and assistance in times of natural disaster or crisis, working alongside parishes and local societies to support those in need.

• Convene national congresses where members may gather in prayer, fellowship, and deliberation, and participate meaningfully in the governance and long-term direction of the Society.

Through these and other efforts, the Society of Saint John seeks to foster a culture of unity, responsibility, and shared labor—so that Orthodox Christians in America may work together for the good estate of the holy churches of God and the union of all.

The Society of Saint John engages in principled advocacy in defense of Orthodox Christians and the fundamental right to religious freedom. The Society serves as a facilitator of dialogue between American Orthodox hierarchs and elected officials, addressing issues affecting the Orthodox community in the United States and abroad.

In November 2025, the Society led a delegation of Orthodox clergy to Washington, D.C. The delegation met with members of Congress, along with Sarah Rogers, Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy.

On December 16, 2025, nearly two hundred Orthodox Christians from across the country, representing every canonical jurisdiction, participated in the Society of Saint John’s Day of Action on Capitol Hill. Over eighty meetings were held with Congressional offices concerning the persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church on both sides of the front line.

A press conference at the Capitol Triangle was co-hosted by Representative Anna Paulina Luna with the Society’s Director of Government Affairs, Catherine Whiteford. Speakers included Representatives Eli Crane and Derrick Van Orden, along with His Grace, Bishop Theodosy of Manhatten, of ROCOR; His Grace, Bishop John of Worchester, of the Antiochian Archdiocese; His Grace, Bishop Seraphim of Kostanjnica, of the Serbian Orthodox Church; and Fr. Allesandro Margheritino, Chancellor of the Orthodox Church in America, representing His Beaitutude, Metropolitan Tikhon of Washington.

The delegation called for the repeal of Law 3894-IX, the release of Metropolitan Arseniy of Sviatohirsk and proper medical care for detained clergy, and an end to the forced use of clergy in combatant roles in violation of international law. The Society emphasized that this advocacy is not political and does not seek to undermine Ukraine’s right to self-defense, but affirms that military support must not come at the expense of the fundamental right to worship God freely.

The Society continues to work with legislators to bring about an end to the persecution of Orthodox Christians in Ukraine.