Question
I am curious about the western rite within Orthodoxy and the position of the OCA in regards to it. Are the western rite parishes in full “communion” with other Orthodox and are they able to concelebrate, etc?
Are there any OCA western rite parishes?
Answer
If a Western Rite parish is within the jurisdiction of a canonically-appointed hierarch, it enjoys the same rights as parishes of the Byzantine Rite. “Full communion” is determined, not by rite, but by submission to the duly constituted hierarchal authority.
There are no Western Rite parishes in the Orthodox Church in America (OCA). To my knowledge, the only Western Rite parishes in North America are within the jurisdiction of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America headed by Metropolitan PHILIP—and if I am not mistaken, there are very few of them.