V. Rev. Dr. Victor Gorodenchuk

Ph.D., Catholic University of America | M.Div., St. Tikhon's Seminary | M.Sc., Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology

Fr. Victor Gorodenchuk was born and raised in Ukraine (at that time part of the Soviet Union). After graduating from high school, he decided to pursue his interest in the study of physics and graduated from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology with a Master of Science Degree. While in Moscow, Fr. Victor was drawn to the Orthodox Faith and, upon completion of his scientific education, decided to pursue studies in Theology. He came to the United States to study at St. Tikhon’s Seminary, from which he graduated in 1999 with an M.Div. He was ordained into the Holy Priesthood in 2004 and has been serving at St. Stephen Cathedral in Philadelphia since 2005. While serving as a parish priest, Fr. Victor went for a doctoral program at the Catholic University of America and holds a PhD in the field of Liturgical Studies. The topic of his dissertation was the history and theology of the anointing of the sick in the Orthodox Church. With the blessing of Archbishop Michael and under the auspices of St. Tikhon’s Seminary, Fr. Victor worked on establishing a Diaconal Formation Program hosted at St. Stephen’s Cathedral. This program allows men from the area parishes of various jurisdictions to receive the necessary education for Diaconal ordination. Some of the graduates of the program went for further seminary studies and are now serving as parish priests. In the Fall of 2024, Fr. Victor began to teach as an adjunct faculty member at St. Tikhon’s Seminary. His primary concentration is in Orthodox Liturgics.