Who we are
Table of Contents
Who we are
For more than 50 years, Saint Nicholas of Myra Orthodox Parish has been a vibrant, multicultural Christian church community in the heart of the Jordaan quarter in Amsterdam. The current Rector of the parish is Archimandrite Meletios (Webber).
Our parish was founded in 1974 by a small group of Orthodox Christians from the Soviet Union, Serbia and the Netherlands who were looking for a place for prayer and fellowship. The first Rector, Father Alexis Voogd and his wife, Tatiana Voogd-Stoyanova, worked hard to build a community with roots in Russian spirituality, but also open to Dutch language and culture. Metropolitan Anthony (Bloom) of Sourozh, one of the most authoritative Orthodox spiritual personalities of the 20th century, played an important role in this development. Nicholas of Myra, a great saint in the Orthodox Church and also the patron saint of the city of Amsterdam, was chosen as its heavenly patron.
The small parish first found shelter in the attic of Saint Nicholas Cathedral opposite the Central Station. This was followed by fifteen years in a chapel on the Utrechtsedwarsstraat. In 1995, the parish community purchased its own church building: Immanuel Church in the Kerkstraat. In the following years the Parish, led by the new Rector, Father Sergei Ovsiannikov, grew into a large community with members from all over the Netherlands. The arrival of Eastern Europeans after the end of the USSR 1991 also brought many new members. Soon the building on the Kerkstraat became too small, with the result that some of the faithful sometimes had to follow the services standing in the street. In 2005, a larger church was purchased: the Tichelkerk with the adjoining monastery complex in the Jordaan quarter of Amsterdam. Since that time, the spacious neo-Romanesque church has been gradually adapted to Orthodox worship. In 2010, a natural stone, sculpted icon screen was installed. A second chapel, complete with mosaics and an iconostasis, is used primarily as a baptistry. The interior of the church and the baptistry was inspired by the art of early, undivided Christianity.
In 2022 the Parish decided to transfer from the Moscow Patriarchate to the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. our diocesan bishop is Metropolitan Athenagoras of Belgium. Worship and church life remained unchanged. Some of our faithful decided to remain with the Moscow Patriarchate. With our support they established St Sergius of Radonezh Parish with services in Amsterdam and Haarlem.
Our parish community has an open and international character, consisting of more than 20 nationalities, including Dutch, Eritreans, Georgians Greeks, Romanians, Russians, Serbs, Ukrainians and many more. The services (in Dutch, Church Slavonic and English) and pastoral care are in the hands of 5 priests and 1 deacon. In addition, many volunteers are actively involved in the parish: they support the services, sing in the choir, organize children’s activities and catechesis, visit the sick, serve the library, prepare publications, organize lectures and concerts, etc. The Parish also maintains lively contacts with the city, the neighbourhood and other churches. We are members of the Council of Churches in Amsterdam.
What we do
Services
Every Saturday there is a memorial service (panichida) at 5 PM, followed by vigil at 5:30 PM. On Sundays we serve the Divine Liturgy at 10 AM. There are also services for high feasts (see the calendar). The services are alternately (mainly) in Dutch and Church Slavonic. The first and third Sunday of the month, the service is predominantly in Church Slavonic, the second and fourth in Dutch. If there is a fifth Sunday in the month, we also use some English.
All are welcome to attend the services. Feel free to light a candle or discover the church. Participation in sacraments such as Confession and Communion is reserved for members of the Orthodox Church who have prepared themselves for it. If you have any questions about Church life, please contact the clergy of the parish.
Pastoral care and sacraments
The Parish has five priests. They are available to administer sacraments such as Baptism, Confession and Marriage. You can also call on them in the event of serious illness or death. If you want to have a personal conversation, you can make an appointment with one of them, either after the service or through the secretariat. Our priests speak Dutch, Russian, Ukrainian, Greek, French, English and other languages.
Choir
The choir, led by Aliona Ovsiannikova-Voogd and Vincent van Buuren, plays a central role in the services of our church. The choir consists of over 20 enthusiastic volunteers who rehearse weekly, usually on Wednesdays. The choir is always looking for new singers. Are you interested? Please make yourself known to the choir leader after a service or contact the secretariat.
Youth and young adults
Children in the Orthodox Church are full members of the church community from the day they are baptised. They are actively involved in worship as much as possible and once a month the sermon is addressed to them. Also, once a month, after the Sunday service, the parish organises an activity for children of primary school age (with both catechesis and a play element).
Once a month there is a young adult meeting after the Sunday service.
Orthodox Information Centre & Bookshop
The entrance to the Information Centre is to the left of the altar. It is open every Sunday after the Liturgy. There you will find books and brochures about the Orthodox faith, and also other things like icons, icon lamps, crosses and music. There you can also contact the volunteers if you have any questions.
Volunteer Days
Volunteers are central to the life and functioning of the parish. Twice a month (on the first Friday and the third Saturday of the month) volunteers come to the church to carry out repairs, clean rooms and perform other tasks. The day starts with morning prayers and the participants have lunch together. All interested parties are welcome.
Cemetery
Since 2009, our parish has had its own cemetery at Saint Barbara Cemetery, reserved for members of our Parish. Over the years it has become a place where many deceased parishioners have found a resting place and where the living come to pray for them.
The cemetery is not owned by the parish, and all practical and financial questions should be handled with Sint Barbara. This also applies to reserving a grave (this is possible) and placing memorials. You will find all practical information here.
In addition to the rules of Saint Barbara, there are some additional rules for the Orthodox part of the cemetery. The main ones are:
- Burial is only possible with the blessing of the Rector of the Parish
- Tombstones are expected to correspond to the tradition of the Orthodox Church. This means at least that the headstone should contain a cross.
- Images of the deceased must not be larger than 20 x 15 cm.
- Full regulations are available on request.
If you have any questions about the Orthodox graves on Saint Barbara, please send an e-mail to [email protected]. Information about Sint-Barbara you can find here: https://stbarbara-amsterdam.nl/
Organization
Board
The Parish is “an association with a religious purpose” according to Dutch law. The head of the parish is the Rector, appointed by the diocesan bishop. The board of the parish – the parish council – consists of clergy and lay members. The secretary, treasurer, other officials of the parish council are appointed within the council. Every year the parish council reports to the General Assembly, which consists all parishioners who have registered as members.
Finances
The parish has no external sources of funding. The income of the parish consists solely of contributions from parishioners and friends, collections and the sale of candles and prosphora loaves.
ANBI status
House Rules
We ask visitors to maintain an attitude of respect to the services, those in attendance and our property. Visitors are responsible for their own property and any items they bring with them. We cannot accept any liability for theft, loss and/or damage. Disturbances, vandalism or theft will not be tolerated.
Participation in the Eucharist
The Orthodox Church does not practice “Eucharistic hospitality”. Participation in the Eucharist is restricted to Orthodox Christians. In our tradition, the Eucharist is seen as the sign and crowning of church unity. As long as there are ruptures between the churches, the Eucharist cannot be shared with other Christians. We thank you for your understanding.
Photography, video and audio recordings
Emergencies
In the event of an emergency, always follow the instructions of whichever clergy, hostess or host is present at the time.
Contact
Please address your questions, comments or complaints to the parish council: [email protected].
If you have questions to the parish priests, you can find their contacts here.
Our phone number is +31 6 27368675. If there is no reply, please leave a voice or text message.
