View source for John (Abdalah) of Worcester

His Grace the Right Reverend Bishop '''John (Abdalah) of Worcester and New England''' is an [[auxiliary bishop|auxiliary]] [[bishop]] of the [[Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America]], overseeing the Diocese of [[Diocese of Worcester and New England (Antiochian)|Worcester and New England]].

==Life==
===Early years===
Bishop John was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts.  His home [[parish]] was St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church. From an early age, he had a desire to serve Christ through the holy [[priest]]hood and so, after college, he attended [[St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary (Crestwood, New York)|St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary]] near New York City.  While in [[seminary]], he became engaged to Joanne Josephs to whom he was married in August 1978.  He was [[ordination|ordained]] to the [[deacon|diaconate]] and priesthood shortly afterwards.

Fr. John and Kh. Joanne are the parents of three children, Gregory, Joseph, and Maria.

Unfortunately, on [[May 25]], 2008, after a long battle with cancer, Kh. Joanne reposed.

===Priesthood===
After his [[ordination]], Fr. John was assigned to the Antiochian parish in Little Falls, New Jersey, where he served for a year, after which point he was transferred to New Kensington, Pennsylvania, where he served for sixteen years, and then to the St. George [[Cathedral]] in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he served for another sixteen years.

For the last fourteen years, he has been the editor of The Word magazine.  Bp. John has also served as advisor to Antiochian Women and the Fellowship of St. John the Divine.  He has also taught Antiochian seminarians at the annual Antiochian House of Studies and is seen as a mentor to seminarians, bringing with him the wisdom of long pastoral experience and practice.

After his wife's repose, Fr. John was elevated to the rank of [[archimandrite]] by His Eminence, Metropolitan [[Philip (Saliba) of New York|Philip (Saliba)]].

===Episcopacy===
In 2011, at the convention of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America, Fr. John was elected as one of three new auxiliary bishops, and assigned to the Diocese of Worcester and New England.

After this decision was accepted by the [[Holy Synod]] of Antioch, Fr. John and the other two bishops-elect, Fr. [[Anthony (Michaels) of Toledo|Anthony Michaels]] and Fr. [[Nicholas (Ozone) of Brooklyn|Nicholas Ozone]], were [[consecration of a bishop|consecrated]] at the [[Monastery of Our Lady of Balamand|Balamand Monastery]] on [[December 11]], 2011.

==External links==
*[http://www.antiochian.org/node/25938] (official biography)
*[http://www.antiochian.org/newengland Diocese of the Worcester and New England] (Archdiocese site)


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[[Category:Bishops]]
[[Category:21st-century bishops]]
[[Category:Bishops of Worcester]]