OUR LEGACY
On July 3, 1956, the late Metropolitan Anthony Bashir presented a charter for a new church to seven men: Mitchell Moore, Theodore Maloof, Abraham G. Debs, George Shamyer, Edward Deeb, Alex Sahadi, and George A. Hatab. They are the founders of the church we now call our home.
Our founders mission was unique. They wanted to create a church that would bring together the traditions of all of the cultures of Eastern Orthodox Christianity: Middle Eastern, Greek, Serbian and Slavic. Services would be conducted in English, to include all who attended.
Our founders hoped that the missionary zeal of Saint Anthony, the Father of Monasticism for the entire Christian World, East and West, would galvanize the various cultures, as well as all who looked to embrace Orthodoxy, as one parish family.
In 1961, after celebrating our services at other church halls and lodges, the growing parish acquired two parcels of land, about one acre in total, located at 385 Ivy Lane, at the crossroads of three Bergen County towns: Bergenfield, Englewood and Tenafly.
That year, Architects Harsens and Johns were selected to build our new church, with the vision that it would blend Byzantine tradition with the New World. The hallmarks of the project were:
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beautiful stained glass windows, the first of their kind in North America, by Hendrick VanderVoort, depicting the life of Jesus
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unique Iconostasis, blending Byzantine and Slavic traditions, painted by Pimen Sofronov, a Russian exile
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twelve buttress arches, representing the twelve Apostles.
Three years later, in 1964, our Church was dedicated and featured on Lamp Unto My Feet, a nationally broadcast TV program.
In 1976, we broke ground on our present Church Hall, including a kitchen, stage, and restrooms. Our new and expanded home allowed us to host large-scale events and parties. For our 45th anniversary in 2002, we purchased an adjacent parcel of land, allowing us to create The North Complex. The project expanded the altar, creating the chapel of preparation, enlarged the kitchen, and added a new multi-purpose room, offices and a vesting room. The construction of an elevator offered barrier-free access to the church for the first time.
St. Anthony's has been honored to serve as the prototype of many Pan-Orthodox parishes across North America.