Although St. Paul's as a community celebrated its first services in Irvine in 1978, it is part of the worldwide Orthodox Christian Church that began on the day of Pentecost in Jerusalem as described in the Acts of the Apostles, and today spans the globe from Palestine to Japan, Greece to Tanzania, Russia to Argentina, England to Korea, Romania to Kenya. Initially established by men and women of Greek descent, St. Paul's today reflects the American experience and is comprised of more than 450 families representing more than a dozen different nationalities.

Although we are one of the largest Christian communions in the world, many people visiting St. Paul's for the first time ask: what is the Greek Orthodox Church? The best way to answer that question is to ask a couple of questions. Did you know that every book of the New Testament was originally written in Greek? That the Apostle Paul preached in Athens not far from the Parthenon and wrote five letters to the Churches he established in Corinth, Philippi and Thessalonika that are today books of the Bible? Who are we? The answer is actually very simple: we are that Church written about on the pages of the New Testament some 2,000 years later!read more »

Newcomers and visitors are always welcome at St. Paul's! While it is our hope that this website will help you learn more about our parish and the Orthodox Christian faith we confess, we hope - above all else - that you will personally come visit us. Please feel free to visit St. Paul's and pray with us on any given Sunday. You will discover an ancient yet dynamic faith, a welcoming Church family, and perhaps even a spiritual home where you can plant roots to deepen your relationship with Christ in the Holy Spirit.

With love in the crucified and risen Lord,