Announcing our First Inaugural Summer Summit for the Diaconal and Catechist Vocations Program! We will be meeting on August 15-16, 2025, at the Immaculate Conception Center in Putnam, CT.
Click here to register.
Contact Program Director, Fr Mark Roosien with questions: mroosien@gmail.com 312-961-6097
The Diaconal and Catechist Vocations Program provides theological and practical education to promote the renewal of diakonia in the Diocese of New England. Designed to train both ordained and lay leaders, the Program builds communities of learning to serve the Church, enrich the mind, and uplift the heart.
Now accepting applications for Fall 2025! See below for more details and application forms.
Program Outline
The Program consists of a cycle of seven courses of eight class sessions each, led by local instructors. Here are the courses, in order of instruction:
- Orthodox Spirituality
- Old Testament
- New Testament
- Church History & Patristics
- Dogmatic Theology
- Liturgics
- Pastoral Theology
Each cohort proceeds through the order of courses, which run throughout the year. The Program takes no more than three years to complete, but no less than two. Students seeking diaconal ordination, with the permission of the local hierarch, attend at least one three-day summer Diaconal Practicum session at St Vladimir’s Seminary.
Upon completion of the Program, students receive an official certificate from the OCA Department of Christian Education.
The Program is designed to train individuals for diaconal service in the Church. Diakonia can take many forms: ordained ministry, teaching and catechesis, ministry to the needy, sick, and imprisoned, and community-building.
The Program is open to Orthodox Christians of all ages and backgrounds. There are no prerequisites other than a blessing from your parish priest.
Many of our students are seeking qualifications for ordination or to teach catechesis in their parishes, but others are embarking on the Program to deepen their knowledge of the Orthodox Christian faith and tradition, and enrich their life of faith.
Please note: While the Diaconal and Catechist Vocations Program provides training for diaconal service, it is not a guarantee that one seeking diaconal ordination will be ordained. That decision comes solely from our ruling hierarch, His Grace Bishop Benedict.
There are two applications for the Diaconal and Catechist Vocations Program.
The first is the General Application. This application is required for ALL applicants. CLICK HERE FOR GENERAL APPLICATION
The second is the Special Application. This application is only required for those seeking ordination to the Holy Diaconate. CLICK HERE FOR SPECIAL APPLICATION
Please print and fill out the application and its components, including letters of recommendation, etc. Send to Program Director:
Fr Mark Roosien
532 Norton Pkwy
New Haven, CT 06511
*NOTE* The $200 application fee must be sent along with your application in check form. Please make check out to OCA Diocese of New England, with DCVP in the memo line.
The Diocese seeks to provide an affordable yet high-quality option for students who want to receive theological education but cannot attend seminary.
The tuition cost for each of the seven courses in the Program is $500. The total tuition cost for the seven courses is thus $3,500. Payments are made per course; students are not required to pay the full $3,500 tuition cost up front.
No one who earnestly desires to enroll in the Program should be turned away for reasons of cost. If you have questions about tuition, please contact program director Fr Mark Roosien at mroosien@gmail.com
