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[STOTS Communications, South Canaan, PA] St. Tikhon’s Seminary has released a new short film that has attracted more than 22,000 views since its posting on Facebook and YouTube on April 10. The 10-minute film tells the story of Father John and Matushka Michelle Kennerk, who reflect on their three years at St. Tikhon’s, and share how their time in seminary has prepared their entire family for their next step: ministry in the Orthodox Church.
“You start seeing how the Lord opens up paths for you to come here. He opens up paths for you to remain here,” Fr. John says in the film. “And I think that’s one of the most powerful things that has ever happened to me in my life.”
The new film, “Holding St. Tikhon’s Close to My Heart,” is a follow up to another short film the seminary produced about the Kennerks last year, in which they very engagingly tell the story of how it was they ended up coming to St. Tikhon’s.
“Watching both of these films together, you see the providential nature of the Kennerks whole journey,” Archpriest Steven Voytovich, Dean of St. Tikhon’s Seminary, said. “At all stages of their discernment process, from visiting the seminary to living in this community to accepting God’s call to ordination, they have engaged fully in the opportunities for pastoral formation offered here at St. Tikhon’s.”
Most of the film’s views have taken place on Facebook, where a wide variety of people have responded to the Kennerk’s story.
“Quite a few people have told me they have teared up watching this film,” Seraphim Danckaert, Director of Mission Advancement, said. “It’s simply beautiful. When you put most people in front of a camera, they try to say the ‘right’ thing. They try to sound eloquent or present themselves with more polish than normal. The Kennerks, however, simply become a more transparent and honest version of who they really are: they open up and share from their hearts.”
Both of the films about the Kennerks, and a number of other short films about seminary life at St. Tikhon’s, are available on the seminary’s website, YouTube, and Facebook pages.
