The Orthodox Church in America Diocese of Washington is a diocese

Diocese

A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...

 of the Orthodox Church in America

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...

 (OCA). Its territory included parish

Parish

A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...

es, monasteries

Monastery

Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...

, and missions

Mission (Christian)

Christian missionary activities often involve sending individuals and groups , to foreign countries and to places in their own homeland. This has frequently involved not only evangelization , but also humanitarian work, especially among the poor and disadvantaged...

 located in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

, southern Delaware

Delaware

Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...

, Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

 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...

. From 2005 to July 1, 2009, it was known as the Diocese of Washington and New York, until the Diocese of New York and New Jersey

Orthodox Church in America Diocese of New York and New Jersey

The Orthodox Church in America Diocese of New York and New Jersey is a diocese of the Orthodox Church in America covering the states of New York and New Jersey. Holy Protection Cathedral on Second Street in Manhattan is the seat of the bishop, with diocesan offices located in Syosset, New York...

 was reestablished as a separate diocese.

The 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 Washington is Jonah (Paffhausen)

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...

, who is also the OCA's ruling primate

Primate (religion)

Primate is a title or rank bestowed on some bishops in certain Christian churches. Depending on the particular tradition, it can denote either jurisdictional authority or ceremonial precedence ....

. He was consecrated to the position of Bishop of Fort Worth on November 1, 2008. He became the Archbishop of Washington and New York in 2008.

History

At the 6th All-American Council, the Holy Synod of Bishops decided to form a new Diocese of Washington, D.C. by splitting the Washington area from the rest of the diocese. The new diocese began functioning in 1981 as the see of the Primate of the Orthodox Church in America. However, the national administrative offices remained at Syosset, within the Diocese of New York and New Jersey. In 1981, the Diocese of New York and New Jersey became one of the local dioceses under its own hierarch, Bishop Peter (L'Huillier), with his see at the Holy Protection Cathedral.

The formation of the Diocese of Washington included the areas of Washington, D.C., Maryland, southern Delaware, and northern Virginia. The St. Nicholas Cathedral in Washington was the see for the Metropolitan. At its inception the new diocese included only a few parishes, those in the Baltimore and Washington metropolitan areas. During the following two decades after formation of the diocese a number of new parishes formed as the population of the diocese increased.

In 2005, after the election of Metr. Herman as the ruling hierarch of the OCA and with the retirement of Abp. Peter, the Holy Synod of the OCA re-merged the dioceses of New York and New Jersey and Washington as the Diocese of Washington and New York. St. Nicholas Cathedral in Washington was designated the see of the ruling hierarch.

In 2009, the Diocese of New York and New Jersey was re-established as a separate diocese.

External links

• Official diocesan website
• Saint Nicholas Cathedral in Washington, D.C., the primatial cathedral of Metr. Jonah.