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More than 70 clergy of the Orthodox Church in America gathered online September 15 for the Office of Pastoral Life’s Fall 2026 Synaxis. The quarterly gathering provides clergy with an opportunity for prayer, reflection, shared learning and mutual encouragement.
The keynote address was delivered by Archpriest Thomas Moore, pastor emeritus of Holy Apostles Orthodox Church in Columbia, SC. Father Thomas served the parish for many years before retiring in 2022. Ordained to the priesthood in 1997, he has devoted his ministry to pastoral care, counseling and service to the community. He holds degrees in psychology and family counseling, as well as a Master of Divinity from St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary.
Following the keynote, clergy participated in breakout sessions exploring retirement as both a practical responsibility and a spiritual transition. Discussions addressed financial, physical, emotional and relational preparation, as well as ways to prepare families and parish communities for the transition.
For more information about the Synaxis and other Office of Pastoral Life programs, email assistant@opl.oca.org or visit opl.oca.org.
About Synaxis
Synaxis is the Office of Pastoral Life’s quarterly online gathering that offers clergy across the Orthodox Church in America opportunities for support, peer learning, and shared reflection.
About the Office of Pastoral Life
The Orthodox Church in America’s Office of Pastoral Life supports the well-being of clergy and their families, the foundation of parish life across North America. Believing the health of the Church is inseparable from the health of her clergy, the Office offers programs that build resilience, connection and pastoral joy. Programs include Thriving in Ministry peer-learning groups, Financial Health Initiatives, quarterly Synaxis Gatherings, Pastoral Retreats and Clergy Wives Ministry. In partnership with bishops, dioceses, parishes and our generous donors, the Office of Pastoral Life helps create sustainable conditions in which priests, deacons and their families of the Orthodox Church in America can flourish spiritually, vocationally and personally through every season of parish ministry.
