On Thursday, August 28, 2025, the Great Feast of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos, with which we conclude the annual liturgical cycle, His Grace Bishop Irinej of Washington-New York and Eastern America, celebrated the Holy Hierarchical Divine Liturgy, with the blessings of His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Porfirije, at Vavedenje Women’s Monastery at Senjak, Belgrade, Serbia.

Upon his arrival at the Monastery, His Grace was warmly greeted by the Most Venerable Mother Abbess Teodora, her beloved Sisterhood in Christ, and the gathered faithful, together with the candidate for ordination and his extended family.

For Bishop Irinej, this was in many ways a nostalgic return home. He knows the monastery well, as he worshipped there when a young man, as it was the epicenter of the return of university students to Holy Orthodoxy, even during Communist times, through the disciples of the Venerable Abba Justin of Chelije.

Thereafter, when summoned to move to Belgrade by His Late Holiness, Patriarch Pavle to lecture in Pedagogy at the Theological Faculty, the then Hieromonk Irinej was assigned to serve at Vavedenje Monastery, where he endeavored to continue the work of his esteemed predecessors.

As it was there that His late Eminence, Metropolitan Amfilohije served, preached and taught the university students of his day, Bishop Irinej chose to ordain Lazar Markovic, originally of Montenegro to the Holy Diaconate for service, together with his wife, now Djakonica Marija, in the Diocese of Eastern America.

His most exceptional acceptance homily, which is both deeply personal, historic and theological, can be read here.

May God grant them many years of health, joy and prosperity laboring in the Lord’s Vineyard! AXIOS!