Three Hierarchs Byzantine & Melkite Catholic Church

History & Founding of Three Hierarchs

Three Hierarchs is the first Melkite Catholic parish in Texas, but its roots reach back more than a decade before that canonical moment. The story begins in 2011 with the St. Anastasia Byzantine Catholic Outreach, an inter-ritual community of Ruthenian, Roman, Melkite and Ukrainian Catholics gathering in San Antonio. After years of priestly coverage from Father Ramon Gonzalez, O.P., Father Elias Rafaj (Houston), and Bishop Nicholas J. Samra's pastoral visits, the community was named Three Hierarchs Byzantine Melkite Catholic Mission in January 2021. On January 30, 2023, Bishop François Beyrouti consecrated the parish's new oak altar, erected the community as a full parish and appointed Father John Mefrige as its first pastor.

• 2011 — St. Anastasia Byzantine Catholic Outreach founded; first Byzantine liturgy March 27 at the Oblate Renewal Center
• 2019 — Inaugural Melkite Liturgy in San Antonio celebrated by Bishop Nicholas J. Samra on May 26
• January 2021 — Community raised to mission status and renamed Three Hierarchs
• January 28–29, 2023 — Bishop François Beyrouti consecrates the altar and erects Three Hierarchs as the first Melkite parish in Texas, effective Jan. 30, 2023

About the Melkite & Byzantine Catholic Tradition

The Melkite Greek-Catholic Church is one of 24 self-governing (sui juris) Catholic churches in full communion with the Bishop of Rome. The Byzantine, Armenian and Syriac rites all trace their origin to the ancient See of Antioch. Byzantine Catholic worship centers on the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, celebrated with singing, incense and leavened bread — a sign that the Lord is risen and the Church is filled with the Holy Spirit. The Eucharist is typically given by intinction from a spoon or directly from the priest's hand into the mouth of the communicant.

• Byzantine-rite churches in the U.S. include Byzantine Ruthenian, Melkite, Ukrainian, Romanian, Russian and Italo-Albanian communities.
• Leavened bread is used for the Eucharist in the Eastern churches.
• The Divine Liturgy is entirely sung to encourage congregational participation.
• All Eastern Catholic churches are in full communion with Rome and recognize the pope as first among equals among the world's bishops.

Pastor: Father John Mefrige

Father John Mefrige is the founding pastor of Three Hierarchs and the Director of Vocations for the Melkite Eparchy of Newton (appointed November 2022). Canadian-born of Syrian and Lebanese descent and now a naturalized American based in San Antonio, Father John was raised in the Eastern Orthodox Church and was received into full communion with the Catholic Church through the Melkite Eparchy in May 2019, while his wife's childhood pastor, Bishop Nicholas J. Samra, was Eparch of Newton. A married priest — the norm in the Eastern churches — he was ordained to the Orthodox priesthood before marriage. He holds a Master of Divinity from Holy Cross Orthodox School of Theology ('98) and a Master of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy from Fuller Theological Seminary ('01), and is pursuing doctoral studies. He is fluent in English, Spanish and French, with working knowledge of Arabic and Greek. He also serves as adjunct vicar for clergy in the Archdiocese of San Antonio under Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller and has been granted biritual faculties by the Dicastery for Eastern Churches.

Getting Involved & Parish Life

Three Hierarchs encourages formal parish registration as the official way to join the community. Newcomers can sign up online or in person, and the parish communicates with members through Flocknote — either by texting the word 'melkite' to 84576 or by signing up on the parish website. Online donations are accepted via PayPal (an account is needed only for recurring gifts), and a monthly Google Calendar keeps members current on parish events.

• Online parish registration via the parish website
• Flocknote email and text alerts — text 'melkite' to 84576
• Online giving via PayPal
• Monthly Google Calendar of parish events

Outreach & Charitable Works

The small but energetic community has stepped outside its walls to serve those in crisis. In November 2022, just weeks after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Three Hierarchs publicly welcomed and sponsored a Ukrainian refugee family settling in San Antonio — an effort led personally by Father John and his wife Janet, who together with parishioners supported the family from arrival onward. The parish has described itself as a place where Eastern and Western Catholics worship and serve side by side, 'supporting each other' across cultural and national lines.

• Sponsorship of Ukrainian refugee family (Nov. 2022)
• Hospitality to Catholics of Ruthenian, Roman, Melkite and Ukrainian backgrounds
• Live-streamed liturgy as a form of pastoral outreach to shut-ins and the homebound

Visiting Three Hierarchs: What to Expect

Visitors from any Catholic background are warmly welcomed at the Divine Liturgy. The service is sung throughout, with generous use of incense and Byzantine chant. Communion is received on the tongue, typically by intinction. You may be greeted by name — the priest may ask your Christian name before placing the Eucharist in your mouth, or simply say 'the servant of God….' Orthodox Christians in good standing may receive Holy Communion; all other visitors should be properly disposed and prepared according to the ordinary law of the Catholic Church.

• Divine Liturgy is entirely sung
• Incense is used throughout the Liturgy
• Eucharistic bread is leavened (a Byzantine-rite sign of the Resurrection)
• Holy Communion is given by intinction on the tongue

Patron Saints: Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian & John Chrysostom

The Three Holy Hierarchs — Basil the Great (bishop of Caesarea, d. 379), Gregory the Theologian (bishop of Nazianzus, d. 389) and John Chrysostom (archbishop of Constantinople, d. 407) — are revered as Ecumenical Teachers and Doctors of the Church. Each has his own feast day in January (Basil on the 1st, Gregory on the 25th, Chrysostom on the 27th). According to tradition, the three hierarchs appeared together in a vision to St. John Mauropous, Metropolitan of Euchaïta, around 1084, declaring that they were 'equal before God' and that there should be no divisions among their followers. A common feast for all three on January 30 was established around 1100, under Emperor Alexios I Komnenos. In the Eastern churches, they are patrons of education, theology and pastoral ministry.

• Basil the Great — 330–379
• Gregory the Theologian — 329–389
• John Chrysostom — 349–407
• Common feast established c. 1100; universally observed on January 30

Visiting & Contact Information

Three Hierarchs is located on San Antonio's near-south side at the former St. Stephen Catholic Church, 2127 S. Zarzamora St., San Antonio, TX 78207. The parish can be reached by phone at (210) 628-9778 or by email at [email protected]. Mass-time listings and bulletin announcements are kept current on the parish website and Facebook page, and updates are pushed out by Flocknote text and email.

• Address: 2127 S. Zarzamora St., San Antonio, TX 78207
• Phone: (210) 628-9778
• Email: [email protected]
• Website: http://melkitecatholicsa.com/
• Facebook: facebook.com/melkitecatholicSA
• Flocknote: text 'melkite' to 84576