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WELCOME TO SAINT GEORGE!
Welcome to Saint George Greek Orthodox Church. We are glad to have you as part of the congregation and look forward to getting to know you better. This page is to help you become better acquainted with us.St. George Greek Orthodox Church is a congregation of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, the Metropolis of Denver, under the spiritual guidance of His Eminence Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver. This congregation is largely descended from the ancient church of Ephesus which is mentioned in Revelation 2:1-7 and to whom St. Paul wrote the Letter to the Ephesians. The church in Ephesus remained active until the Christians of Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey) were persecuted at the beginning of the twentieth century and forced to flee their homes. Refugees from this persecution, together with others from Greece, became the founders of the congregation in Shreveport. The first services for the St. George community in Shreveport were held in 1917 on the second floor of a downtown building on Texas Street. Later, services were moved to St. Mark’s Episcopal Church; and then to a house which the Greek community purchased at 725 Hope Street. The present sanctuary on Creswell Avenue was constructed in 1935, and was named after the church of St. George in New Ephesus which had been destroyed during the Turko-Grecian struggle of 1917.Today the congregation at St. George is composed of descendants of the original Greek-American settlers in Shreveport, together with Orthodox Christians from many different backgrounds including Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Bulgaria, Serbia, Romania, India, Ethiopia, and Palestine (Israel). In addition, a large and growing percentage of our members are Americans of various religious backgrounds who have come to the Orthodox faith as adults. Today the primary language of worship at St. George is English, with some of the hymns sung in their original Greek. Sunday School classes for children of all ages meet following the Divine Liturgy, with youth activities and adult Bible-study on Wednesdays and/or other nights. A nursery is available for small children. A coffee hour follows the Divine Liturgy, and is a time to get acquainted with the members of the parish. A bookstore is also available, for books, gifts and Orthodox literature.We value your presence and invite you to take part in the activities of our parish. In this packet we have included information regarding youth activities; Philoptochos (women’s charitable organization); the choir; Orthodox college groups (OCF); pledging for the financial support of the church; and AHEPA and Daughters of Penelope (organizations to promote education about Greek culture and heritage). As your priest I look forward to visiting with you in your home or in my office. Please feel free to call upon me anytime if I can be of help to you.Yours in Christ, +Fr. Brendan Pelphrey
