St. Michael Mission

Self-Ruled Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of North America

Dothan, Alabama

1450 Hartford Hwy
Dothan, AL 36301
ststephenhiram@bellsouth.net

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Greetings to you, in the name of Jesus Christ!

Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He came into the world by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary. The Orthodox Church clearly teaches that Jesus Christ was fully divine and fully human.

The purpose of Jesus Christ's coming to earth was to reconcile mankind to God. In order to do this, God, in the person of Jesus Christ, had to become fully human. He had to experience all the pain, temptations and sufferings that all human beings face. Finally, having preached, taught, healed and performed many miracles, He had to experience the last pain that all people must undergo: death. Thus, He allowed Himself to be crucified. As a human being, He died; but, being God, He rose from the dead, proving that all who believe and follow Him will do likewise. This is why Jesus Christ is called "Savior," for He saves us from death.

Welcome to Saint Michael Antiochian Orthodox Mission

in Dothan, Alabama

Welcome to the website for Saint Michael Antiochian Orthodox Mission. We hope that your visit will be an informative and enjoyable one. Thank you for your interest!

Saint Michael

Holy Archangel Michael

The Holy Archangel Michael is one of the most celebrated of the Angels and bodiless powers; he is called the Archistrategos, or chief commander, of all the bodiless powers. According to Holy Scripture and Tradition, he has interceded for humanity multiple times and continues to serve as the Defender of the Faith. St Michael is most often invoked for protection from invasion by enemies and from civil war, and for the defeat of adversaries on the field of battle. He is celebrated primarily on November 8, the Synaxix of Michael and all the Bodiless Powers of Heaven; September 6 also marks the miracle of the Archangel at Colossae.

Prayer to Saint Michael

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray. O Prince of the Heavenly Host, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen

Text: OrthodoxWiki

The Orthodox Church

"The Orthodox Church is the original Christian Church, the Church founded by the Lord Jesus Christ and described in the pages of the New Testament. Her history can be traced in unbroken continuity all the way back to Christ and His Twelve Apostles."

The Orthodox Church began at Pentecost. It was founded by our Lord Jesus Christ, when after His Ascension, He sent down upon His Apostles the Holy Spirit who proceeds from God the Father as is written in the New Testament. The Orthodox Church of today can trace its history back to the New Testament Church in unbroken continuity. The Apostles, as per our Lord's command, preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ and founded churches in Europe, Asia and Africa. Under the direction of the Apostles and their successors, whom they appointed to carry on their mission, the Orthodox Church began to thrive. At each city and town that the Apostles traveled they would appoint a bishop to continue to minister to the faithful, before leaving on their missionary journeys. As the Church grew, the bishops in turn had to appoint priests and deacons to help them with their flock.

The Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Holy Trinity who proceeds from the Father. Like the Son, there was no time that the Holy Spirit did not exist. He was present at the creation of the world (Genesis 1:2). He was present, "in the form of a dove" at the baptism of Jesus; and, He is the person of the Trinity that Jesus promised He would send upon the Church as its Comforter and guide after His ascension (John 14 and John 15:26).

Jesus sent the Holy Spirit upon the Church (Acts 2:1-4; the Orthodox Church celebrates this great event on Pentecost); and the Church in turn bestows the Holy Spirit to each of its members through the sacrament of Chrismation. In fact, the Holy Spirit is present in all the sacraments of the Church.

The Virgin Mary

The Virgin Mary is the woman God chose to bear His Son in this world. The Orthodox believe in the ever-virginity of Mary. Since God chose her to manifest His presence among men, she is called, " All Holy" and the bridge between God and man. For this reason, she is highly praised and venerated in the Orthodox Church. The Orthodox always pray to the Virgin Mary, beseeching her to intercede for us to God. The Orthodox do not worship the Virgin Mary-worship is do to God alone. The Orthodox make a distinction between worship and intercessory prayer. Just as we ask other people to pray for us, we ask the Virgin Mary, for she has found favor in God's eyes and has a very unique relationship with God, to pray (intercede) for us. It should be noted that the Virgin Mary and all the saints are ceaselessly praying for all of us.

The Bible

The Orthodox believe that the Bible is the recorded history of God's relationship to man in human history, and man's response to God. The Orthodox also believe that the Bible was written by persons inspired by God and that it is the word of God.

The Orthodox recognize the Old Testament, New Testament and the Deuterocanonical books, as a source of her doctrine. The worship services and prayers are based on the Holy Scriptures. In fact, there is not a worship service in the Church that does not read an excerpt from the Bible. Readings from both/either the Old and New Testament are done in each service. Orthodox Christians are encouraged to read and study the Bible daily. However, interpreting the Bible is not left to the individual but to the Church.

Holy Tradition

Another source of Orthodox doctrine is Holy Tradition. This includes the oral tradition, i.e., teachings that have been passed down from one Christian generation to the other since the time of Christ, which may or may not be included in the Bible. It is, if you will, the living consciousness of the Church; its continuity with the Church of the Apostles. For example, the Orthodox practice and believe many things that may not be specifically written in the Bible but may have biblical meanings and/or symbolic Christians truths. For example, doing the sign of the cross, triple immersion in baptism, facing toward the east in prayer, the ever-virginity and all holiness of the Virgin Mary, the various rites, worship services and devotional practices of the Orthodox that have been passed down from one generation to another, etc. Thus, the Orthodox Church bases its doctrine on the Bible, Holy Tradition, writings of the Church Fathers (early successors of the Apostles), and on the various ecclesiastical councils which were held throughout the history of the Church.

The Sacraments

The Church is that living institution which is eternally joined to Christ, whose task it is to guide and bring all its children to God in His eternal Kingdom. All Orthodox Christians are called upon to observe the commandments of God: to love God with all their being and their fellow man as themselves; but, they must also participate in the liturgical and sacramental life of His Church.

There are at least seven sacraments in the Orthodox Church. The first is baptism which is the Christian rite of initiation in the Church. Chrismation is the second sacrament which bestows upon us the Holy Spirit. Holy Communion is the sacrament of receiving the resurrected body and blood of Jesus Christ. Although all Orthodox Christians are to confess their sins daily to God privately, all are encouraged to participate in the sacrament of Confession with a priest. Marriage is a sacrament of the Church for it is Christ himself through the priest or bishop that joins the couple together. Ordination to the sacred priesthood is also a sacrament, as is Holy Oil (Unction) which the faithful are anointed with for the healing of soul and body and for the forgiveness of sins.

It is the sacraments of the Church that manifest God's saving energies in our lives. A life without the sacraments is like a life without God. One of the Church's important functions besides preaching, teaching and caring for her children, is to make these sacraments available to her people.

Icons in the Orthodox Church

One of the unique characteristics of the Orthodox Church is its use of icons (i.e., holy images). Icons have been in use since the earliest days of the Christian Church. Icons, in their simplest forms, were found in the catacombs, grave sites and other places of ancient Christian worship. They included: the cross, the fish, the lamb and other symbols that represented Jesus Christ. By the fifth century, iconography began to be widespread. Beautiful paintings, mosaics, frescoes and other media of art were used to depict Christ, the Virgin Mary and the saints. The Church felt quite comfortable in depicting our Lord and His saints, for they felt the media of art was just another way to praise and teach about God-just as the Church used music and poetry. Icons were depicted on churches, homes and public buildings.

Icons served a many-fold purpose in the Orthodox Church. They were used to help teach the faithful about God. A person can walk into an Orthodox Church and see the whole Bible story unfolded on its walls. Icons of Old and New Testament people and events were used to teach the faithful-keeping in mind that many could not read- about the Christian Faith.

Another purpose of icons was to aid the faithful in prayer and meditation on the person or the salvific significance of the event depicted. Icons kept the mind from wandering and helped focus one's attention on prayer. They also served as a reminder to all the Orthodox of God's omnipresent and immanence in the world.

There was a brief time in the Church's history when civil and ecclesiastical leaders renounced the use of icons as idolatrous. As a result, many priceless icons were destroyed and people who were found possessing them were persecuted; yet, many people continued to use icons in secret. This prompted the Church to defend the use of icons for liturgical and didactic purposes.

The Church defended its use of icons by stating that if God became man in the person of Jesus Christ, then He can be depicted. To say that He cannot be depicted is saying that Jesus was not fully human (the Church believes that Jesus Christ was fully human and fully divine; to say otherwise is heretical). And, if Jesus can be depicted, His holy Mother and saints can be depicted as well.

Against the charge of idolatry, the Church made it quite clear that the faithful do not worship the wood and paint, but deeply respect and venerate the person depicted. The Church made a clear distinction between adoration (i.e., worship, due to God alone) and veneration (i.e., deep respect). The pagans worshiped idols because they believed that the deity was present in the stone or wood. The Orthodox make no such claim concerning icons. Icons are only images of the person depicted; therefore, do not venerate the wood but the person whose image it bears. Thus, by the end of the eighth century, icons were restored in the Orthodox Church and have served their proper purpose ever since.

The Clergy and the Laity

The Orthodox Church consists of both clergy and laity. The ranks of the clergy are: bishop, priest and deacon. The clergy may be married or celibate, except in the case of the bishop who according to a long standing practice has been celibate. The deacons and priests must be married before ordination, and, once married cannot remarry.

The bishop is the head of the local Church. He is elevated to the episcopacy from the ranks of the celibate clergy. Each bishop can trace his ordination back to one of the original apostles! As head of the local Church he can perform all the sacraments of Church including the ordination of other bishops, priests and the consecration of churches. In the Orthodox Church, all bishops are equal. Special titles are given to bishops depending on the geographic size, population or historic prominence of their diocese. Thus we have titles such as: Metropolitan, Archbishop or Patriarch.

Candidates to the priesthood are ordained by at least one bishop. They are given the grace to perform all the sacraments except those performed by bishops alone. The priest represents the bishop at the parish level; and, like the bishop, can trace his ordination back to the Apostles.

Deacons cannot perform the sacraments, but can administer them. For example, once the priest or bishop consecrates the bread and wine into the body and blood of Jesus Christ, the deacon can administer the sacrament to the faithful at the Divine Liturgy or, in case of the sick and elderly, to homes and hospitals.

The clergy are the sacred priesthood, where the laity are called the royal priesthood. One is not greater than the other but equal and distinct. Each play a very important role in the liturgical and administrative life of the Church. The clergy cannot conduct formal worship services without the participation of the laity; nor can the laity perform the same services without the clergy to lead them in prayer. The laity are called upon to live by the same Christian moral standards as the clergy. Both are expected to participate in all the worship services and keep the various days and seasons of fasting and feasting.

Send Father Moore a Message

ststephenhiram@bellsouth.net

Father Andrew Moore graduated from Georgia Tech in 1960 with a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering, but this was only the beginning of his education. In 1969, Father Andrew graduated from Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, Georgia with a Master of Divinity degree.

Ordained in the Presbyterian Church in August of 1969, he and Khouria Dannie then began their ministry at Bethel Presbyterian Church in Kingsport, Tennessee. From 1972 to 1975, they founded and served in an inner-city ministry known as The Way, also in Kingsport. In 1979, after resigning the pastorate of Woodlawn Presbyterian Church in Mableton, Georgia, Father Andrew and Khouria Dannie, with a few families, founded St. Stephen Evangelical Orthodox in the inner-city neighborhood of Grant Park in Atlanta, Georgia.

Along with other EOC churches throughout the country, St. Stephen was received into the Antiochian Archdiocese in February of 1987. Father Andrew was ordained in the Orthodox Church by Metropolitan PHILIP on February 22, 1987 and was assigned as pastor of St. Stephen Orthodox Church. St. Stephen moved to Hiram, Georgia in 1988, where God has graciously granted them a peaceful and fruitful community resting on twenty-five beautiful acres of land.

Father Andrew and Khouria Dannie have been married for 46 years and have been blessed by God with six children and thirteen grandchildren. The Lord has further extended His kindness to them through many spiritual children and fellow-servants in this Christ-loving parish.