Metropolia.

Membership in St. Seraphim's parish has grown from the original 3 to approximately 125 souls. Average attendance at the Sunday Liturgy has increased year by year and is now about 75. A Sunday School with two classes is maintained. Services are held regularly on Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday evenings, and the Liturgy is celebrated on Sundays and on holy days.

Mr. Jenner. Mr. Raigorodsky, in that connection, this document which is entitled "Some Historical Information Concerning St. Seraphim Eastern Orthodox Church," when was that prepared?

Mr. Raigorodsky. I have no idea because I have—let's see—the early part of this year I have asked Father Royster if he has anything historical about the St. Seraphim, how it started and everything, or can he prepare something, and he said "No," he already had something, and I said, "All right, send me a copy of it."

Mr. Jenner. Do you understand that Father Royster prepared this historical summary?

Mr. Raigorodsky. That's my understanding.

Mr. Jenner. Now, have you read this historical summary?

Mr. Raigorodsky. Oh, yes; I did.

Mr. Jenner. And, are you familiar with the events and course of events that are recited in that 1-page summary?

Mr. Raigorodsky. I am.

Mr. Jenner. And to the best of your knowledge and information, does Father Royster, if he prepared it or whomever prepared it, is the recital reasonably accurate?

Mr. Raigorodsky. Well, I'll say it's reasonably accurate except it does not give the actual reason for the split of the churches. You see, here he said:

"In order better to pursue its mission," as a native language parish, "and to attract orthodox people of all national backgrounds, St. Seraphim's Church decided to acquire property of its own."

Well, that's not the reason—the reason is that we couldn't get along together, you see, and there was a constant fight between the two churches.

Mr. Jenner. And, the factions split primarily, as I understand your testimony today, over the Father Royster group, and I use that expression not to tag him, well, I'll say the St. Nicholas Church, that would possibly be better, because Father Royster preached in the English language.

Mr. Raigorodsky. That's right.

Mr. Jenner. And in the St. Nicholas Church or parish the services were said in what language, again?

Mr. Raigorodsky. In the old Slavic language. That's not the principal reason either.

Mr. Jenner. Then, another reason is that the organizers of the St. Nicholas Church were, as you have said, labeled "Old Guard" in the sense that they were composed primarily of those people of Russian origin and other Slavic origins who in Europe fought——

Mr. Raigorodsky. Either fought or escaped.

Mr. Jenner. Fought the Communists or Bolsheviks or escaped from their regime.

Mr. Raigorodsky. Yes—because there are lots of women and children over there, you see, they never fought against them.

Mr. Jenner. Yes; there are a lot of ladies, of course, who did not fight.

Mr. Raigorodsky. Sure.

Mr. Jenner. And because of that common experience they tended to stay together?

Mr. Raigorodsky. That's right—more closely knit.

Mr. Jenner. More closely knit and they had a preference for the use of the basic language, and that group organized the St. Nicholas Church.

Mr. Raigorodsky. St. Nicholas was organized to begin with.

Mr. Jenner. Then, you tended to support it and you have supported it and you are more active in that Church?

Mr. Raigorodsky. Sure.

Mr. Jenner. You are more active by far, in fact, you are an officer of that group, are you not?

Mr. Raigorodsky. Yes; I am president.

Mr. Jenner. You are president of that group, but you are a member of the other parish or the other church and you assist it financially as a parishioner?

Mr. Raigorodsky. Yes, sir.

Mr. Jenner. Is there anything else in the 1-page summary prepared or given to you by Father Royster that you would like to comment upon?

Mr. Davis. I would like to ask—did we ever get to the real reason for the split of the church?

Mr. Raigorodsky. I just made a statement a while ago.

Mr. Davis. I didn't understand—what was the reason that the church was split?

Mr. Raigorodsky. Well, they just couldn't get along together. I mean, it's purely personality.

You see, Father Royster at that time—that's the main point—Father Royster doesn't mean anything to you or to me, but to lots of Russians it means everything. You see, Father Royster at that time belonged to the Ukraine branch of the church. You see, he couldn't get ordained, but then he tried to, and I tried to help him to be ordained by Metropolitan and Anastasia, but he couldn't fulfill the requirements so he tried to get in through Metropolitan Leonty. He couldn't quite get in because of their requirements, but they suggested that he will be ordained by the Russian Ukranian Church, of which Father Joseph Bogdan, B-o-g-d-a-n [spelling] had the jurisdiction of the Ukranian branch of Metropolitan Leonty's branch of the Russian Church in this country, and so, you see, and that was—now, we have to go back through the basic facts that Russians and Ukranians have never gotten along together, and in fact, Ukranians were separative—they wanted to separate from the rest of the Russians and he will have their church to become part of their parish. That was just going against the grain of every Russian.

Now, all those things tended to create dissatisfaction and fights, I mean verbal fights, of course—no physical violence of any kind, but verbal fights, and Father Royster decided to pull out and he asked me if I would help him, and I said, "Sure, as long as it is a Greek Orthodox Church," and that's how it happened.

You see, some of the statements—like he said, "In September of 1958 the parish was transferred from the jurisdiction of Bishop Bogdan to that of Metropolitan Leonty, the Russian Metropolia."

Well, he is Russian Metropolia, but it isn't finished—in this country.

Mr. Jenner. The words "in this country" should be added there?

Mr. Raigorodsky. Yes; in the United States. I mean, those are minor, but substantially, it is correct—what he said.

Mr. Jenner. With those explanations, Miss Oliver, will you please copy the historical statement into the record?

The Reporter. Yes, sir.

(The instrument referred to is set forth on pp. 8 and 9 of this volume.)

Mr. Jenner. These differences of opinion, historical, religious, and otherwise, and arguments rather than facts, tend to affect also the views of an individual who is a member of St. Nicholas Church with respect to individuals who regularly attended St. Seraphim's?

Mr.