About Saints Peter and Paul
The community of Saints Peter and Paul is made up of people from all walks of life and from many different national backgrounds. We are united by a common desire to find God and to live for Him and by Him in this world.
It began in 1993 when a small group of spiritual searchers in Topeka, Kansas were guided home by the one Spirit, one Lord, and one God.
This handful of men and women had been seeking the truth together for years -- praying, worshiping, and examining the Scriptures and the historical accounts of the Christian Faith. When they finally encountered the worship of the Orthodox Christian Church they knew, like so many thousands of the Saints who have preceded them, that they were home.
Together with a handful of cradle Orthodox Christians and other interested searchers in the area, they formed Saints Peter and Paul Orthodox Christian Mission.
The parishioners of Saints Peter and Paul have always been energetic and ambitious. In the 15 years since our foundation we have grown from a mission to a parish, recorded a CD, created a board game, hosted a home-schooling program, opened a museum, developed our own food festival, hosted a Parish Life Conference and have baptized, chrismated, married, and entrusted to God's hands many Orthodox Christian souls. We have sent youth on mission trips to Mexico and Alaska, helped feed the poor and house the homeless of Topeka, as well as provided heating wood year-in and year-out for a monastery in Colorado.
Our community has been served by the following priests:
- the Reverend Thomas Moffat (1993-1997),
- the Reverend John Mack (1997-2001),
- the Reverend Michael Shanbour (2001-2004),
- and the Very Reverend Joseph Longofono (2004-present).
Father Joseph arrived with his family from Connecticut in 2004 to guide us on our continued journey. He was ordained in 1996 and has served as pastor of Ss. Peter and Paul since 2004 and in 2008 was appointed pastor of St. Mary Magdalene Mission in Manhattan, KS. He previously served at St. George Church, Danbury, CT (1997-2004) and St. George Church, West Roxbury, MA (1996-1997). On the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul in 2008, Fr. Joseph was elevated to the rank and dignity of Archpriest, which is a great honor for him and another significant milestone for our parish.
The parishioners of Saints Peter and Paul are honored to be part of the legacy of Fr. Nicola Yanney's and St. Raphael's work in Mid-America. We are honored to be part of a legacy of the saints that includes the congregations in Rome, Corinth, Galatia, and Philipi, as well as Antioch, Constantinople, Moscow, Anchorage, and all the millions of faithful who have become parishes of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Faith.
Through the intercesions of St. Raphel of Brooklyn, Saints Peter and Paul, the patrons of this community, and of all the saints, may God have mercy on us and save us.
