Saint James, Missouri, December 5, 2025
Photo: domoca.org
The Annunciation parish community in St. James, Missouri has been elevated from mission to full church status, marking a significant milestone for the Orthodox congregation that has experienced remarkable growth over the past decade.
The change was announced to the community on November 27 by parish rector Fr. Joel Wilson. The decision came after His Eminence Archbishop Daniel of the Orthodox Church in America’s Diocese of the Midwest visited the community in late October to offer talks for their Fall Retreat and serve at the first commemoration of St. Olga of Alaska, the diocese reports.
“Seeing these fruits of more than 12 1/2 years of missionary labor in south central Missouri,” Fr. Joel said, the Archbishop “determined it was time for us to be established as a parish of the Diocese of the Midwest. Glory to God!”
The community’s journey began in early 2012 when then-Deacon Joel received blessing to plant a mission in Rolla, Missouri. The first Divine Liturgy was celebrated on February 9, 2013, with the community named in honor of the Annunciation. Fr. Joel was ordained to the priesthood shortly afterward.
Photo: domoca.org
In its early years, the small congregation met in a Knights of Columbus hall before moving to space in an office building. A significant turning point came in 2014 when Fr. Joel and his family purchased property in St. James that included a house, outbuilding, and five acres of land. By February 2015, the outbuilding had been converted into a temporary chapel.
The mission faced a severe challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic, losing nearly all its membership in 2020. However, beginning in 2021, the community experienced what Fr. Joel described as exponential growth, quickly outgrowing the temporary chapel. Services often saw faithful standing in the narthex or outside by open windows.
In July 2024, the Annunciation parish purchased an adjacent 15-acre plot and began construction on a multipurpose building. The new facility was completed in just nine and a half months and blessed on June 7 this year, with the first services held there on Pentecost.
The building currently serves as the church’s worship and fellowship space. Future plans call for constructing a permanent limestone temple, after which the current building will become a fellowship hall.
Fr. Joel expressed gratitude to the Mother of God, Archbishop Daniel, and all supporters of the parish. Looking ahead, he said the community plans to “take this coming year to rest, reflect, pray, pour out into you all, and then prepare for the even greater spiritual labor of building a permanent temple and planting new missions, in God’s time.”
Information about the building project and opportunities to support the parish’s continued development can be found at annunciationoca.org/giving-back.
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