FORMAL OPENING OF CHURCH IN BOSTON-CAMBRIDGE
Boston, MA – On Sunday, January 1, 2006 on Serbian Father’s Day the recently purchased church in Cambridge, Massachusetts, dedicated to St. Sava, was formally opened. His Grace Bishop of Eastern America Dr. Mitrophan celebrated the Holy Hierarchical Divine Liturgy, assisted by four priests and a deacon. Besides the fact that many parishioners were absent due to the weather and winter vacation, the church was filled with 500 faithful who came to take part in the celebration. During the Divine Liturgy Bishop Mitrophan ordained Stanislav Kravljaca, a theological graduate of St. Sava School of Theology in Libertyville, living in Portland, Maine.
The Boston Serbs have anticipated this day for a long time. The mission parish in Boston was founded back in 1972 by Bishop Sava (Vukovic) of blessed memory. It was registered by the state as a church in 1975 only to become inactive in 1978 due to a small number of faithful and no clergy to meet the needs. Bishop Mitrophan revived this parish in 1992 and the new chapter in the history of this parish began.
The large number of colleges in Boston brings many young Serbs to the area for post graduate studies. The unfortunate wars in the former Yugoslavia during the nineties forced many Serbian families to flee, many of which found a home in the territory of the Boston parish which includes five New England states.
In 1995 the parish succeeds in purchasing their first property, a commercial building in the city of Wakefield which becomes the center of the spiritual and cultural life of the Orthodox Serbs for the next ten years. Because of the small space at the Wakefield property a campaign for finding new property is launched. Last year an adequate church was located with fellowship facilities. The negotiations commenced with the Roman Catholic church and lasted for some months only to conclude on the day of St. Archangel Michael, November 21, 2005 and the property officially belonged to the St. Sava parish.
The church was built in 1928 in the Gothic style with a stone façade. The church hall has a capacity of 400 while the church can facilitate 700. Besides the church there is a large yard as well as adequate parking.
Clergy from New York and Portland, together with parishioners from the Portland parish, took part in the celebration of the opening of the church. Following the Divine Liturgy the banquet was held in the church hall. Fr. Aleksandar Vlajkovic, the parish priest, greeted the guests, followed by Milica Pogorzelsky, the Chairman of the Grand Opening Celebrations and Suzana Vorkapic, President of the Kola Sestara.
In his speech, Bishop Mitrophan congratulated the parishioners on their great success and praised them for their great deed. For his contribution in the purchase of this beautiful church Bishop Mitrophan elevated the parish priest to the rank of protopresbyter. Also, per His Grace’s recommendation to the Holy Hierarchical Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church, he awarded Milica and Donald Pogorzelski with the Order of St. Sava in the first degree.
This was only the first celebration in the St. Sava Church in Cambridge. After the installation of the new iconostasis and some more work on the interior of the church, the consecration of the church will take place, probably at the end of the year. This day will certainly be remembered by many for years to come. May all things be to the glory of God and St. Sava!