About Us
Our Clergy
Rev. Fr. Thomas Miller
Fr. Thomas has been married to Kh. Jordan since 2005. Prior to seminary, Father earned a Master in Health Administration from the University of Florida and used his degree in the United States Air Force as a Medical Logistics Officer.
Both raised in Protestant families, Fr. Thomas and Kh. Jordan first encountered the Orthodox Church while stationed in Colorado Springs. They were invited to a Saturday evening vespers service at Holy Theophany Orthodox Church (OCA), and for the first time, experienced the richness of the Orthodox Church. Forever changed by this encounter, they, along with their daughter, Eleanor, were received into the Church about a year later. Shortly thereafter, their son Timothy was born.
After a military move to the Oklahoma City area, the Millers became active members of Holy Ascension Antiochian Orthodox Church in Norman. The family also welcomed George, their third, during this time in Oklahoma.
In 2019, Father left the Air Force to attend St. Vladimir's Seminary in Crestwood, NY. Seminary proved to be an edifying experience that combined elements of academic rigor, a rich liturgical life, and a wonderful community of friends. He spent the better part of two years serving at St. Nicholas Antiochian Orthodox Cathedral in Brooklyn, as both a deacon and a priest.
The academic capstone of Fr. Thomas's seminary experience was his thesis on John the Theologian's use of the Prophecy of Isaiah to point his readers to the Cross. The family capstone was the birth of the Miller's fourth child, Cyril, during the height of pandemic lockdown in 2020. In 2022, Father graduated Magna Cum Laude and was assigned by Metropolitan Joseph to serve as priest at St. Peter the Apostle Orthodox Christian Church in Pomona, CA.
Rev. Fr. Elias Hourani
Born in Jordan to Orthodox parents, Fr Elias graduated from the Middle East technical University in Ankara, Turkey with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. After arriving in the United States in 1968 he graduated from Loyola University 1973 with a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering.
As a deacon he was attached to St James Antiochian Orthodox Church in Placentia, CA. and was ordained to the Priesthood on September 7, 2014 by his Eminence Metropolitan Joseph. He is married to Khoria Azhar and is blessed with two daughters and two sons: Raja and Nora, Laith and Seid.
Deacon John Germain
Born in El-Koura Lebanon to Orthodox parents, Deacon John's great grandparents and grandparents had their imprints from five Orthodox Churches. From a very young age, he loved the Church's Byzantine music and hymns and was blessed to have met and have known many Patriarchs, Metropolitans and Bishops. After working as a teacher for a short period, he joined the National Institute of Fine Arts in Beirut and earned a Master's degree in Architecture. In 1974, he moved to Saudi Arabia to work in one of the largest Architectural firms in the Middle East and stayed there until 1981.
In Dec 1974, he married Nabila and had two girls, Rasha and Roula. Due to the civil war in Lebanon, they decided to move to the United States, where most of Nabila's family lived. In the US, Deacon John continued to work in Architecture and in free enterprise. While visiting Saint Peter Church in 2006, Metropolitan Joseph asked him during the service if he would accept the honor of becoming a Deacon. Four years later, he was ordained at Saint Nicholas Cathedral in 2010. He served there until returning to Saint Peter Church in 2018.
Deacon Lazarus (Jeffrey) Lombardi
In 1981 Deacon graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree from Long Beach State University. Over the years, he has also earned many university certificates, including completion of the St. Stephen’s course, he recently completed a certificate in nonprofit management (May 2021). Deacon worked many years as an Industrial Engineer in various manufacturing enterprises in Southern California. Lazarus has also volunteered as a hospital chaplain, a board member to a local homeless charity, and as a helper at a local food pantry. When not serving, Deacon Lazarus is usually found working at home in the garden with his wife, reading and studying (lifelong learner), or out to sea in a ridiculously small sailboat.
In Aug 1981, he married Patricia and they have one son and one daughter, Jonathan, and Lisa. Deacon and his wife and daughter began attending St Michaels Orthodox Church (Western rite) in 2004. After a number of years serving on the altar as a server and as a sub-deacon, he was elevated to the diaconate by bishop John on November 17, 2013. Upon ordination to the sub-diaconate his name was changed to Lazarus to reflect the coming to life for one who was previously dead. After Pasca in 2019 Deacon, Patricia and Lisa were given permission by Metropolitan Joseph to attend and learn the eastern rite. In 2021 Metropolitan Joseph graciously allowed Lazarus and his family to transfer to St Peter the Apostle Church and serve as a Deacon.
Our Parish
In 1996, a Christian community called The Carpenter’s Company underwent a very unusual transformation. The whole group entered into communion with the Holy Orthodox Catholic and Apostolic Church. In short, this Christian group surrendered its sectarian identity and converted to Orthodoxy. Under the leadership of their pastor, Dennis Corrigan, assisted by several very eager aspirants, The Carpenter’s Company had given themselves to a rigorous period of studying the Orthodox Faith. Through imbibing the spiritual treasury of the ancient ascetical fathers and putting elements of this holy tradition into practice, this formative group became increasingly aware of the existence of the unchanged, ancient Church.
After converting as a group, the pastor, Dennis Corrigan along with one additional leader - Craig Kruse, were ordained priests and two of his assistants were ordained as deacons. The community was organized as a parish of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese (the American jurisdiction of one of the ancient churches of the New Testament, founded by the apostles) and given the name St Peter the Apostle Church. The feast-day for the church was set at January 16th, the day on which Orthodox Christians commemorate the liberation of Peter the Apostle from the chains of imprisonment. This is recorded in the New Testament (Acts 12: 6-11).
Most people who explore Orthodoxy find St Peter Church to be very warm and welcome, since most of our community knows first hand how it feels to be an inquirer!
Children are very much welcome and there is an Orthodox School in session on all Sundays, with a break in the summer season. There are outreaches through various groups and fellowship opportunities through the parish community, as well as classes on the faith offered by the current priest, Fr Thomas Miller.
We hope you will be courageous; so, “come and see” (John 1: 39)!
Burial Society
The St. Peter the Apostle Burial Society’s mission is to lovingly care for the departed faithful in a manner that honors both the body and soul of the Person, according to our Orthodox Christian Tradition, and to ease the burden and reduce the cost of burying a loved one. It is also our desire to bring education about the Orthodox Christian view of death and dying and to assist in their preparation spiritually, emotionally, physically, and financially
Local burial societies are a time-honored and ancient Christian custom. The modern multi-billion dollar funeral industry is a historical newcomer, and a very expensive one at that. Today the usual burial practices in our country are not traditionally Christian and many are driven by this industry offering many options that are unnecessary for us to bury a loved one.
The loving care of the departed is an act of love. As the body of the Lord Jesus was cared for by Ss. Joseph and Nicodemos and the Myrrhbearing women, who washed, anointed, clothed and placed our Lord with prayer into a tomb, so Orthodox Christians have traditionally buried their loved ones. The burial society of St. Peter the Apostle Church continues the ancient traditions of the Orthodox regarding the death and burial of those in the Church, and enables our faithful to bury their dead at an affordable cost.
Two teams of parishioners (one male and one female) have been trained by an Orthodox Deacon in the practice of basic burial preparation. This ministry begins at the request of the family of the dying or deceased. Parish families make contact with the parish office, and our Burial Society talks with the family to assess their needs and wishes. The one who is dying is visited, and at the request of the ailing or family members, members of the society pray with and for the ailing until the person falls asleep in the Lord. Prayers are said and bedside vigil is held to usher the dying into the hands of his/her Guardian Angel who will take the deceased into the presence of the Lord. The prayers begin before death and continue through the 40 day memorial and beyond.
After repose the burial society prepares the body according to the Orthodox tradition: Praying for the departed, bathing and anointing the body with oils, arranging the body in repose (this is an involved process), dressing the deceased in baptismal garments or the garments of choice, helping in the preparation for the wake/visitation, funeral services, and burial. The St. Peter Burial Society has arranged to work alongside a local mortuary whose services are employed for the securing of the death and bodily transport certificates, as well as for transporting the deceased to the church and/or cemetery if the family requests. If Hospice is employed for the dying family member then it is possible to avoid mortuary costs even more as they will prepare necessary paperwork for little to no additional cost.
Following the funeral and burial rites the name of the departed is put into a Necrology, which is a Book that has a record of every parishioner who has fallen asleep in the Lord and whose memory we keep in the St. Peter Family. The book records where each of the departed is buried so that each year the Burial Society arranges for visitations to and blessing of the parish graves. The Burial Society also provides the clergy of the church with notification for 40-day and annual memorials of the reposed.
By employing the Burial Society the family of the deceased is able to significantly reduce the costs for after death care and burial from an average of $15,000-$25,000 to $6,000-$8,000 including casket and burial plot. Caskets are secured from a local Orthodox Monastery for between $1,100-$1,800. Using the Burial Society allows parishioners to reduce their mortuary costs. (Some instances require the services of the mortuary which will drive up costs.) If a grave is secured with Oak Park Cemetery, with whom St. Peter has an abiding relationship, each grave site may be purchased through St. Peter for under $3,900. These are estimates, but the savings are significant. Parishioners are encouraged to share at least a portion of the realized savings with the church as a gift in memory of the reposed. Costs for employing the St. Peter Burial Society: $200. This check should be made out to St. Peter Church and delivered to the Church Office as soon as the family speaks with the Burial Society and agrees to utilize its services. This minimal fee simply covers the materials cost involved in preparing the deceased (dry ice, olive oil, swabs, linens and more). The hours of labor are offered by the ministry teams of the Burial Society as a labor of love.
Should you wish to receive more information about the St. Peter Burial Society or speak to one of the burial society ministry leaders please contact the Church Office by email at info@stpeterantiochian.org.
Our Patron Saint
The son of Jonah and brother of Andrew the First-Called of the tribe of Simeon and the town of Bethsaida, he was a fisherman and was at first called Simon, but the Lord was pleased to call him Cephas, or Peter. (Jn 1:42) He was the first of the disciples to give clear expression to his faith in the Lord Jesus, saying: “thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Mt. 16:16) His love for the Lord was very strong, and his faith in Him went from strength to strength. When the Lord was put on trial, Peter denied Him three times, but it needed only one look into the face of the Lord, and Peter’s soul was filled with shame and repentance. After the descent of the Holy Spirit, Peter became a fearless and powerful preacher of the Gospel. After his first sermon in Jerusalem, about 3,000 souls were converted to the Faith. He preached the Gospel throughout Palestine and Asia Minor, in Italy and in Illyria. He performed many wonders, healing the sick and raising the dead, and even his shadow had the power of healing the sick. He had a major struggle with Simon the Magician, who declared himself to be from God but was actually a servant of the devil. He finally put him to shame and overcame him. Peter was condemned to death on the order of the wicked Emperor Nero, a friend of Simon’s. After installing Linus as Bishop of Rome and exhorting and encouraging the flock of Christ there, Peter went to his death with joy. When he saw the cross before him, he asked the executioner to crucify him upside-down, because he felt himself to be unworthy to die in the same way as his Lord. And so this great servant of the greatest Master went to his rest and received a crown of eternal glory.
Because our Patron Saint is the Holy Apostle Peter alone, our Patronal Feast is celebrated on January 16, with the commemoration of the chains with which Peter was shackled by the lawless Herod and which, when an angel appeared to him in prison, fell from him. (Acts 12:7). The faithful kept these chains, both in memory of the great Apostle and also because of their healing power, for many of the sick were healed by touching them (as with the towel of the Apostle Paul: Acts 19:12).
The Patriarch of Jerusalem, St. Juvenal, made a gift of these chains to the Empress Eudocia, the exiled wife of the Emperor Theodosius the Younger. She divided them in half, sending one half to the Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople and the other to her daughter, the Empress Eudoxia, wife of Valentian of Rome. This Eudoxia built the Church of St. Peter and placed these chains in it, together with those in which Peter was shackled before his death under the Emperor Nero.
