Significant growth of the Orthodox Church in Montana: St. Anthony the Great Church is holding mass baptisms and building a new cathedral

In Bozeman, Montana, the Church of St. Anthony the Great of the Orthodox Church in America is experiencing a period of growth in the number of believers. In one weekend, the parish welcomed 10 new members through Baptism and Chrismation, and enrolled 15 more people in the oath-taking process. The congregation, which now has 40 oath-takers, is actively building a new church that will be able to accommodate up to 350 parishioners.

This past weekend was a landmark weekend for St. Anthony the Great Orthodox Parish in Bozeman, Montana. According to OrthoChristian, 10 Baptisms and Chrismations took place on Saturday, and 15 more people were enrolled as oath-takers on Sunday. The parish bulletin for the week of February 14-22 indicates that the total number of people currently being readmitted is 40.

This significant influx of new parishioners is not surprising; the church is already experiencing “blessed overcrowding” and its members are eagerly awaiting the completion of the new church.

The history of St. Anthony the Great Orthodox Church begins in the 1990s. For more than five years, priests from the Orthodox Church in America (OCA) served in the area before the community was officially recognized as a mission in 1999. Prior to that, the faithful had to travel one to two hours to Billings or Butte to attend services. From 2001 to 2012, the parish was served by Fr. Peter Tobias, followed briefly by Fr. Damian Coult, and since June 2013 the congregation has been led by Fr. David Morrison. As the mission grew, the congregation purchased land west of Bozeman and built their first house of worship in 2014. In 2017, the community became a full parish. St. Anthony the Great Parish is largely made up of converts, many of whom were first introduced to Orthodoxy here.

Construction of the new church, designed for 350 people, began in 2024. The plan is to complete the main construction work and begin interior plastering this spring. More information about the construction project and donation opportunities can be found on the church’s website.

Recall, earlier we reported that in the United States of America there was a significant event in religious life: former Catholic priest Sebastian Carnazzo, a father of seven children, transferred to the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. He was received into the clergy of the Greek Archdiocese of America as a result of his deep theological journey and his desire for full unity with the Orthodox Church.