Dmitri (Royster)
Encyclopedia
Archbishop Dmitri was a hierarch of the Orthodox Church in America
. He served as archbishop
of the church's Diocese of the South
from 1978 to 2009 and was the ruling bishop of the Mexican Exarchate
from 1972 to 2008. The territory of the diocese covered fourteen states in the United States
– Alabama
, Arkansas
, Florida
, Georgia
, Kentucky
, Louisiana
, Mississippi
, New Mexico
, North Carolina
, Oklahoma
, South Carolina
, Tennessee
, Texas
, and Virginia
.
on November 2, 1923 and was raised as a Southern Baptist
, converting to Orthodoxy in 1941.
He entered North Texas State University
but left in 1943 to join the Army
. While in the Army he served as a Japanese language
interpreter on the staff of General Douglas MacArthur
in the Philippines
and Japan.
After leaving the Army he resumed his studies, eventually becoming a Spanish language
instructor at Southern Methodist University
. He received his Master of Arts
in Spanish and became a Spanish literature professor.
In 1954, Abp. Royster was ordained
to the priesthood, and served as the rector
of St. Seraphim Orthodox Church in Dallas
from then until 1969. On June 29, 1969, he was consecrated
as Bishop of Berkeley (the Diocese of San Francisco and the West
), making him the first Orthodox convert
to be consecrated in America. In 1970, Bp. Dmitri was assigned as Bishop of Washington, auxiliary bishop
to Metropolitan Ireney (Bekish)
. On October 19, 1971, Bp. Dmitri was elected Bishop of Hartford and New England
.
In 1978, Bp. Dmitri became the first ruling bishop of the newly created Diocese of the South. He was elevated to the rank of archbishop in 1993. Being a senior bishop
in his church
, Dmitri was the locum tenens of the Metropolitan's see
and temporary head of the OCA
from September 4, 2008 until the election of a new primate
, Metropolitan Jonah
on November 12, 2008. On March 31, 2009 the then 85-year old archbishop was granted retirement from active pastoral duties by the Holy Synod of the OCA
. During his last two years he remained the same loving bishop he had always been and although was no longer locum tenens, he was the rock of the church until his death.
feast of the Dormition, which was his favorite feast day.
Orthodox Church in America
The Orthodox Church in America is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in North America. Its primate is Metropolitan Jonah , who was elected on November 12, 2008, and was formally installed on December 28, 2008...
. He served as archbishop
Archbishop
An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
of the church's Diocese of the South
Orthodox Church in America Diocese of the South
The Orthodox Church in America Diocese of the South is a diocese of the Orthodox Church in America . Its territory includes parishes, monasteries, and missions located in fourteen states in the Southern and Southwestern United States – Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana,...
from 1978 to 2009 and was the ruling bishop of the Mexican Exarchate
Orthodox Church in America Exarchate of Mexico
The Orthodox Church in America Exarchate of Mexico is a missionary diocese of the Orthodox Church in America . Its territory includes parishes, monasteries, and missions located in four states in Mexico – Chiapas, México, Jalisco, and Veracruz...
from 1972 to 2008. The territory of the diocese covered fourteen states in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
– Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, and Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
.
Birth
Archbishop Dmitri was born as Robert Royster in Teague, TexasTeague, Texas
Teague is a city in Freestone County, Texas, United States. The population was 4,557 at the 2000 census.-Settlement:The area was first settled around the time of the Civil War. During the latter...
on November 2, 1923 and was raised as a Southern Baptist
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention is a United States-based Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, with over 16 million members...
, converting to Orthodoxy in 1941.
Priesthood and episcopacy
He entered North Texas State University
University of North Texas
The University of North Texas is a public institution of higher education and research in Denton. Founded in 1890, UNT is part of the University of North Texas System. As of the fall of 2010, the University of North Texas, Denton campus, had a certified enrollment of 36,067...
but left in 1943 to join the Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
. While in the Army he served as a Japanese language
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
interpreter on the staff of General Douglas MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...
in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and Japan.
After leaving the Army he resumed his studies, eventually becoming a Spanish language
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
instructor at Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University is a private university in Dallas, Texas, United States. Founded in 1911 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, SMU operates campuses in Dallas, Plano, and Taos, New Mexico. SMU is owned by the South Central Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church...
. He received his Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
in Spanish and became a Spanish literature professor.
In 1954, Abp. Royster was ordained
Holy Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
to the priesthood, and served as the rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
of St. Seraphim Orthodox Church in Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
from then until 1969. On June 29, 1969, he was consecrated
Consecration
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service, usually religious. The word "consecration" literally means "to associate with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different groups...
as Bishop of Berkeley (the Diocese of San Francisco and the West
Orthodox Church in America Diocese of the West
The Orthodox Church in America Diocese of the West is a diocese of the Orthodox Church in America . Its territory includes parishes, monasteries, and missions located in eight states in the Western United States – Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington...
), making him the first Orthodox convert
Religious conversion
Religious conversion is the adoption of a new religion that differs from the convert's previous religion. Changing from one denomination to another within the same religion is usually described as reaffiliation rather than conversion.People convert to a different religion for various reasons,...
to be consecrated in America. In 1970, Bp. Dmitri was assigned as Bishop of Washington, auxiliary bishop
Auxiliary bishop
An auxiliary bishop, in the Roman Catholic Church, is an additional bishop assigned to a diocese because the diocesan bishop is unable to perform his functions, the diocese is so extensive that it requires more than one bishop to administer, or the diocese is attached to a royal or imperial office...
to Metropolitan Ireney (Bekish)
Ireney (Bekish)
Metropolitan Ireney or Irenaeus was the primate of the Orthodox Church in America from 1965 until his retirement in 1977. He was succeeded by Metropolitan Theodosius .Metr...
. On October 19, 1971, Bp. Dmitri was elected Bishop of Hartford and New England
Orthodox Church in America Diocese of New England
The Orthodox Church in America Diocese of New England is a diocese of the Orthodox Church in America . Its territory includes parishes, monasteries, and missions located in six states in New England – Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont...
.
In 1978, Bp. Dmitri became the first ruling bishop of the newly created Diocese of the South. He was elevated to the rank of archbishop in 1993. Being a senior bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
in his church
Orthodox Church in America
The Orthodox Church in America is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in North America. Its primate is Metropolitan Jonah , who was elected on November 12, 2008, and was formally installed on December 28, 2008...
, Dmitri was the locum tenens of the Metropolitan's see
Metropolitan bishop
In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
and temporary head of the OCA
OCA
The Oca , is a starchy, edible tuber, grown in South America.OCA or Oca may also refer to:* Oca a tributary of the Ebro, Spain, having its source in the comarca of Montes de Oca.In business and politics:...
from September 4, 2008 until the election of a new primate
Primate
A primate is a mammal of the order Primates , which contains prosimians and simians. Primates arose from ancestors that lived in the trees of tropical forests; many primate characteristics represent adaptations to life in this challenging three-dimensional environment...
, Metropolitan Jonah
Jonah (Paffhausen)
Jonah , Archbishop of Washington, Metropolitan of All America and Canada, is the primate of the Orthodox Church in America . He was elected on November 12, 2008, and installed to his see on December 28, 2008, in Washington, D.C...
on November 12, 2008. On March 31, 2009 the then 85-year old archbishop was granted retirement from active pastoral duties by the Holy Synod of the OCA
OCA
The Oca , is a starchy, edible tuber, grown in South America.OCA or Oca may also refer to:* Oca a tributary of the Ebro, Spain, having its source in the comarca of Montes de Oca.In business and politics:...
. During his last two years he remained the same loving bishop he had always been and although was no longer locum tenens, he was the rock of the church until his death.
Death
Archbishop Dmitri died in Dallas on August 28, 2011, on the Julian calendarJulian calendar
The Julian calendar began in 45 BC as a reform of the Roman calendar by Julius Caesar. It was chosen after consultation with the astronomer Sosigenes of Alexandria and was probably designed to approximate the tropical year .The Julian calendar has a regular year of 365 days divided into 12 months...
feast of the Dormition, which was his favorite feast day.