His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon Opens 21st All-American Council, Phoenix, AZ
On July 14, 2025, His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon opened the 21st All-American Council of the Orthodox Church in America in Phoenix, AZ. This is the first time the Council has been held in the American Southwest.
The first Plenary Session began with a formal greeting of His Beatitude by his Chancery staff. Following the Molieben for the Opening of a Sacred Council, Call to Order, and welcoming remarks, His Beatitude delivered his opening address.
Speaking on the theme of the Council, “Gathered Together by Christ,” His Beatitude began his address reflecting on the idea of exploration within the Orthodox tradition by recounting the story of a 1979 expedition to the Antarctic island of South Georgia, a journey undertaken by His Beatitude’s uncle and a group of French adventurers. He then turned to the life of St. Herman of Alaska, whose own journey was not fueled by a longing for adventure but by a longing for the Kingdom of God.
Throughout the address, His Beatitude emphasized that the Church’s life is not merely a passage through time, but an upward calling in Christ. He noted, “Just as Moses and Elijah encountered the Lord in high places, so he gathers us in an upper room in order to leave behind worldly things and encounter the Most High God.” Whether considering the Church’s liturgical legacy, its use of English, or the varied challenges facing her, he urged the Church to see each issue in light of the gospel.
His Beatitude spoke on the 2025 Call to Reflection and the growing interest in Orthodoxy across North America, especially in the wake of the pandemic. While acknowledging the strain on resources and challenges regarding formation, he urged the Church to view these challenges as part of shared pursuit of the kingdom of heaven. Said His Beatitude, “We must avoid the temptation to get bogged down in the journey from one point to another; we must always bear in mind the call to ascend.”
In his conclusion, His Beatitude exhorted the clergy and faithful to resist looking at the challenges of our present circumstances through a worldly lens but instead to look inside of ourselves. “If we want to encounter true joy and excitement, the journey is not outside, but within. It takes place in silence and struggle… The resolution to our finitude is indeed the ascent of a mountain, a mountain which is both Golgotha and Tabor.”
For more updates from the 21st All-American Council please visit oca.org/aac.