Orthodox Church in America (OCA)

The Orthodox Church in America, which grew from the mission eight monks of Valaam brought to Alaska in 1794, among them St Herman. St Innocent built it up in Alaska, St Tikhon led it as archbishop in North America before he became Patriarch of Moscow, and St Raphael of Brooklyn gathered its Arab faithful. After the Russian revolution it governed itself as the Metropolia, and in 1970 the Moscow Patriarchate granted it autocephaly, which Constantinople and several other Churches have not recognised. It worships largely in English, and its seminary of St Vladimir’s gave the Church Fr Alexander Schmemann, Fr John Meyendorff and Fr Thomas Hopko. Metropolitan Tikhon has led it since 2012.