St. Peter and St. Paul Orthodox Church in

Burr Ridge, Illinois Burr Ridge (formerly Harvester) is a village in Cook and DuPage counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. A suburb of Chicago, it is among the wealthiest towns in Illinois and is locally known for its large, elegant mansions and luxury lifestyles. ...

, is a parish of the

Orthodox Church in America Diocese of the Midwest The Diocese of the Midwest is a diocese of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA). Its territory includes parishes, monasteries, and missions located in eleven states in the Midwestern United States – Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, ...

in the

Chicago metropolitan area The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States. Encompassing 10,286 sq mi (28,120 km2), the metropolitan area includes the city of Chicago, its suburbs and hi ...

History

On August 3, 1931, Rev.

Peter Semkoff Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

officially petitioned Theophilus, Archbishop of Chicago, the local bishop of the Russian Metropolia, for his permission to establish a new parish in the Gage Park area of Chicago (2410 W 53rd St. Chicago, IL 60632), to be eventually known as ''St. Peter and St. Paul Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church''. The first membership meeting was held on September 30, 1931, and on December 1, 1931, property for a new church was purchased on the northwest corner of Western Ave. and 53rd St. The first liturgy in the new church was celebrated on Palm Sunday, April 20, 1932. The majority of parish founders were Carpatho-Russians formerly belonging to St. Mary's Greek Catholic Church under papal jurisdiction. The desire to control parish property and retain what was then perceived as nasa Ruska Vira ("our Russian Faith") were primary reasons for affiliating with the Metropolia. After being spiritually served for over 50 years by V. Rev. Peter Semkoff and his son, V. Rev. Nicholas Semkoff, this once tight-knit

ethnic enclave In sociology, an ethnic enclave is a geographic area with high ethnic concentration, characteristic cultural identity, and economic activity. The term is usually used to refer to either a residential area or a workspace with a high concentration ...

of southwest side Chicago parishioners vacated their original temple and continued their parish life in a new church on County Line Rd. in Burr Ridge, Illinois. The new location was determined by the demographics of the parish members, who now reside as far north as Racine, Wisconsin, and as far south as Bourbonnais, IL. The first service in the new church was held on February 15, 1998. The parish now serves an English-speaking congregation representing many ethnic roots.

Sources

''This article incorporates text fro
an article of the same name on orthodoxwiki.org
which see for attribution history. Orthodoxwiki i
licensed
under

GFDL The GNU Free Documentation License (GNU FDL or simply GFDL) is a copyleft license for free documentation, designed by the Free Software Foundation (FSF) for the GNU Project. It is similar to the GNU General Public License, giving readers the r ...

.'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Peter And Saint Paul Orthodox Church (Burr Ridge, Illinois) Eastern Orthodox churches in Illinois Orthodox Church in America churches Christian organizations established in 1931 Churches completed in 1932 Russian-American culture in Illinois Rusyn-American culture in Illinois 20th-century Eastern Orthodox church buildings