Fr. Irénée (Rochon) to be consecrated bishop of Quebec City

QUEBEC CITY, QC (OCA Communications) - On Thursday, October 1, 2009, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Jonah and the members of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America will consecrate Archimandrite Irénée (Rochon) Bishop of Quebec City and Auxiliary to His Eminence, Archbishop Seraphim of Ottawa and Canada.

The Rite of Consecration will take place at a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at Annunciation Cathedral, Ottawa, ON, beginning at 8:30 AM.

On Wednesday evening, September 30, the Rite of Nomination, Proclamation, and Acceptance by Archimandrite Irénée will take place at the cathedral at 5:00 PM, immediately before Vigil.

Archimandrite Irénée was born into a large French Canadian Roman Catholic family on December 25, 1948, in Montréal, QC.

In 1961 he had his first contact with the Orthodox Church in Rawdon, QC, at the summer church of Saint Seraphim of Sarov, under the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, Montréal.

On January 20, 1967, he was received into the Orthdoox Church by His Eminence, Archbishop Vitaly of the Russian orthdoox Church Outside of Russia [ROCOR], and until 1971, he participated in the parish life at Saint Nicholas Cathedral [ROCOR] in Montréal. During this time, he also took part in the activities of the McGill University Orthodox Christian Fellowship.

In 1971, he completed his B.A. in Slavic Studies at the University of Ottawa, and then joined Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville, NY.

In March 1974, after three years of study at Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Seminary, he was tonsured a rassophore monk. A year later, in March 1975, he was tonsured a stavrophore monk, and received the name of the Hieromartyr Irénée of Lyons.

In February 1978, he was blessed by Bishop Laurus, then Abbot of Holy Trinity Monastery, to serve in France, in the French-speaking parishes there. He was ordained Hierodeacon on May 19, 1978, in Brussels, Belgium and Hieromonk on August 20 of the same year in Geneva, Switzerland by His Eminence, Archbishop Antony of Geneva.

After serving for four years in Lyons, Father Irénée returned to Montréal to serve the French Mission there.

After the election in 1986, of Bishop Seraphim as Auxiliary Bishop for the Archdiocese of Canada, Hieromonk Irénée, Hierodeacon Marc (Pierre), and members of the French Mission in Montreal petitioned to be received into the OCA's Archdiocese of Canada.

Father Irénée was elevated to the rank of Igumen in 1992, to care for the French speaking monastics in Québec. In 1993, he was assigned priest-in-charge of the Saint Benoît French-speaking parish in Montréal. He served also as supply priest in many parishes in Montréal, Ottawa, Toronto, and Québec City.

In 1996, Father Irénée was assigned as Administrator of the Russian Cemetery and Saint Seraphim parish, Rawdon, QC, an obedience which he fulfilled until 2007.

In addition to his pastoral duties in parishes of the Orthodox Church in America, he worked full-time in a local Montréal hospital until December 2008.

On April 2, 2009, the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America, elevated Igumen Irénée to the rank of Archimandrite, and elected him Auxiliary Bishop for His Eminence, Archbishop Seraphim of Ottawa and Canada, with the title of Bishop of Québec City.

The Archdiocese of Canada has announced that, in conjunction with the consecration of Archmandritre Irénée, the wonder-working Pochaiv Mother of God icon will be visiting Ottawa as part of a Canada-wide tour.

The Pochaiv Mother of God icon will be available for veneration at Annunciation Cathedral from 12:00 noon September 30, until midnight. On the evening of October 1, the Akathist to the Pochaiv Mother of God will be served at 6:30 PM at Annunciation Cathedral, followed at 7:30 PM by a public talk by Metropolitan Jonah.