Orthodox faithful gather from across the nation for largest conference yet, focusing on spiritual healing.
Butte, Montana, June 26, 2026
Photo: westsrbdio.org
Holy Trinity Serbian Orthodox Church in the mining town of Butte, Montana, hosted its most successful MontaNIKA conference to date earlier this month, welcoming a record-breaking 175 registered participants from across the United States.
The 5th annual Orthodox MontaNIKA Conference, held under the theme “Therapeia” (Healing), brought together two hierarchs, ten priests, two deacons, one subdeacon, six readers, and six nuns for three days of spiritual enrichment and theological exploration from Thursday through Sunday, June 12 to 15, reports the Western American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
His Grace Bishop Maxim served as the conference’s keynote speaker, drawing on his extensive background in Patristics and dogmatics. The bishop was joined by an impressive lineup of speakers and workshop leaders, including Archimandrite Vasileios Thermos, M.D., Ph.D., a child and adolescent psychiatrist from Athens who combines medical expertise with Orthodox theology, Fr. Panayiotis Tekosis from St. Herman’s Serbian Orthodox Church in Kalispell, Montana, who brings experience in existential-phenomenological psychotherapy, and Fr. Turbo Qualls, rector of St. Mary of Egypt Orthodox Church in Kansas City, Missouri, who is an iconographer and holds graduate degrees in addiction studies and pastoral counseling with an emphasis in crisis response and trauma.
Photo: westsrbdio.org The conference featured not only lectures but also intimate workshop sessions led by distinguished instructors including His Eminence Metropolitan Jonah, former primate of the Orthodox Church in America, and licensed Orthodox therapists who provided practical guidance on spiritual healing approaches.
Attendees enjoyed Montana’s natural beauty alongside the spiritual programming, with highlights including a professional bluegrass performance on Friday evening that showcased local Montana culture, and organized monastery visits that allowed participants to experience monastic life in the American West.
The conference reached its spiritual pinnacle on Sunday morning with a historic Divine Hierarchical Liturgy. With His Grace Bishop Maxim presiding alongside His Eminence Metropolitan Jonah, the service drew over 250 worshippers, including both conference participants and local parishioners, making it one of the largest Orthodox gatherings in Montana’s recent history.
The success of this year’s conference, sponsored in part by Hellenic College Holy Cross and the St. Paisios Brotherhood, demonstrates the growing appeal of MontaNIKA as what organizers call “an annual pilgrimage” for Orthodox Christians seeking deeper spiritual understanding.
Photo: westsrbdio.org
Holy Trinity Serbian Orthodox Church, under the leadership of Protopresbyter-Stavrophore Fr. Russell Radoicich, has been instrumental in fostering Orthodox growth throughout Montana for over two decades. The MontaNIKA Conference continues to serve as both a celebration of Orthodox faith and a model for Orthodox community development across the American West.
Plans for the 2026 conference are already underway, with organizers expecting continued growth as word spreads about this unique Montana gathering that successfully combines theological depth with the natural beauty and freedom of the Big Sky state.
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