The Struggle for Virtue

“Archbishop Averky was one of the last giants of 20th-century Orthodoxy … . [He] was an Orthodox scholar in the unbroken tradition of patristic thought which has come down to us from the ancient Fathers to our own days.” –Hieromonk Seraphim (Rose), author, The Orthodox Word

Archbishop Averky (Taushev) (1906Ð1976) was born in Imperial Russia and taught and served throughout Europe before being assigned to teach at the Holy Trinity Seminary in New York in 1951 and became the abbot of Holy Trinity Monastery in 1960. As abbot and rector, he was heavily involved in the formation of the seminary curriculum and the daily life of the seminarians and monks. He became well known among Orthodox Christians for his staunch defense of his Church’s faith and traditions. Nicholas Kotar is a graduate of Holy Trinity Seminary and an assistant editor at Holy Trinity Publications. He is a founding member of Conquering Time, an ensemble of artists inspired by the Inklings that stages original works of storytelling and traditional music and publishes new poetry and prose. He lives in Jordanville, New York.