Our Parish

In July 2016, Father John Hinton received a blessing from Metropolitan Demetrius to begin services in his home chapel in Simpsonville, South Carolina. Pursuant to that blessing, the church, performs its cycle of services according to the Russian rite and menaion.

Originally, the church was named for the Precious and Life-giving Cross. In 2018, as more parishioners joined, according to ancient custom, a drawing to choose the patron saint of the young parish was conducted. Saint Philaret the New Confessor, Metropolitan of Eastern America and New York was chosen, and the parish henceforth was named for and dedicated to his memory.

Multiple attempts to purchase property in Greenville and Abbeville Counties were unsuccessful, until finally, the parish closed on the current property in Anderson in 2021. The rural 33-acre expanse has been farmed in the past, and boasts a large farmhouse, four ponds, and an abundance of local wildlife, including waterfowl, turkey, foxes, and deer. The great room of the farmhouse was converted into a chapel in fall 2021, and was approved for religious assembly in February 2022.

Excavations for a stone church began in June 2022. Our church will be a replica of a 1000 year-old Byzantine chapel. The construction is being overseen by architect and general contractor Philip Jones. It is hoped to be completed by November 10th, 2025. Metropolitan Demetrius consecrated the foundation of the building on the Feast of All Saints in 2022.

Our congregation is represented by residents of five states (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee) who are of diverse ethnic backgrounds. And it is growing!

*The parish of Saint Philaret is served by Father John Hinton (priest) and Father Nikolaos Laggis (deacon).