A new educational initiative aimed at English-speaking students has been launched in Western Europe with the opening of an online Center for Orthodox Education based in Paris.

The project was created by the Archdiocese of Orthodox Churches of Russian Tradition in Western Europe, a church body within the Russian Orthodox Church. According to the organizers, the program is designed for both laypeople and clergy who wish to receive systematic theological training or deepen their knowledge of Orthodox tradition. The center is open to students from different countries and canonical jurisdictions across the Orthodox world.

The initiative was launched with the blessing of Metropolitan John of Dubna, who heads the archdiocese. The director of the educational center is Fr. Jacob Siemens.

The program follows a hybrid model. Most coursework is delivered online through a digital learning platform, while students meet regularly with mentors via video conferencing. Participants will also gather annually for an in-person conference in Glasgow. Organizers emphasize that students are expected to remain actively involved in the liturgical life of their local parishes during their studies.

The first course is expected to last about two years and includes five modules: foundations of Orthodox theology, pastoral ministry, liturgical studies, preaching and teaching, and the life of an Orthodox parish. Structurally, the program is designed to correspond to a higher-education diploma level within the Bologna Process system used across Europe.

According to the center’s leadership, theological education should combine academic rigor with the lived experience of church life. The director noted that the transmission of knowledge and spiritual experience is an essential part of a parish’s mission and the Church’s ministry.

Organizers expect the number of students and courses to expand in the coming years. Plans also include seeking academic accreditation in the United Kingdom and establishing partnerships with other theological institutions.

The Archdiocese of Orthodox Churches of Russian Tradition in Western Europe, headquartered in Paris at the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, was founded in 1921 by Patriarch Tikhon of Moscow. Today it unites parishes of the Russian liturgical tradition across several Western European countries and has held its current canonical status within the Moscow Patriarchate since 2019.

Another major academic institution under the archdiocese is the St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute, founded in 1925 in Paris, where teaching is conducted primarily in French and through traditional in-person study. The new online center aims to complement such institutions by making Orthodox theological education more accessible to the global English-speaking community.