OCCA Diocese of New York

All are welcome here!

Informal, intimate, inclusive, sincere ...

Ours is a small, intentional, progressive Christian faith community.  By 'intentional' we mean that we are not formed out of a particular neighborhood or area, but have made a conscious decision to be a part of this small and personal community. 

What binds us together is fidelity to the gospel, the apostolic teaching, and the faith of the great Councils of the Church in the first millennium of Christianity.  More specifically, what unites us is prayer grounded in the Divine Liturgy and in the solitude of each person's struggle with God. Ours is a spirituality grounded in the great sacramental tradition, which calls us to reach out to one another in friendship.  St. Basil said that "God arranged things so that we need each other." Out of that need, and out of our struggles in prayer, we reach other so that we can go on together.

In our parish, as in other parishes of the Orthodox-Catholic Church of America, we receive people who have experienced deep personal suffering of mind, body, soul and spirit, and we have received others who have been deeply moved by significant experiences of God's overwhelming love. We pray each other more deeply into the Christian mystery, sharing as adults the faith, hope and love that are our gifts from God.  We are a parish community offering something for those who are looking beyond the large, major congregations.

Come to the living water. 

As George Bernard Shaw is reputed to have said, "We're pilgrims sitting at the roadside on the way to Jerusalem, and as the other pilgrims pass by we like to be able to give them a little word of encuragement, to put them back enroute again."

We affirm, honor and celebrate the lives and life-experience all people of good will; and we are glad to number women and LGBTQ+ people among our members and clergy. 

How to Find Us

In the New York metropolitan area, a number of us from different jurisdictions meet at the South Presbyterian Church, at 343 Broadway, Dobbs Ferry, NY at 4.30 pm. Reach out to us by email to sjokcentre@hotmail.com for specific details.

Please make a point to come and visit with us!

... where two or three gather together ....   

We are a church of small parishes in a time when mega-churches serve huge congregations.  While many of our brothers and sisters are thinking 'bigger and bigger,' it is our place to continue to 'think small.'  Smallness may be an icon of sorts, both among the churches and in the world in general.  God's ways, certainly, are not our ways, and what is small and weak comes also from God. 

If you are interested in knowing more, please click on the "About Us" tab. 

If you want to know more about the Orthodox-Catholic Church of America, click on the "Links" tab.

Our clergy and parish communities offer the Sacraments (or Mysteries) according to the needs of those who come for worship with us. 

In addition to the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, we are blessed to celebrate Holy Baptism, Chrismation (Confirmation), Reconciliation, the Anointing of the Sick, and Holy Matrimony. 

Please confer with one of the clergy with any concerns or questions about any of these Sacraments.

People come to us from many different faith traditions. Some settle into the community, while others stay for a while to re-ground their faith, then move on to other faith communities. 

Our ministry is always one of hospitality for all who come through the door.

All are welcome here!