Welcome
Welcome to Holy Cross Saints Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church, located in the heart of Huntsville, Alabama, and serving the North Alabama Orthodox Christian Community.
Founded in 1964, the church was formed by a few Greek immigrant families and began services with part-times priests in various locations around the city. A permanent location was found and, in 1972, we built the cornerstone for our current church. The community now consists of Orthodox Christians across many ethnic backgrounds, including Albanians, Ethiopians, Belarussians, Bulgarians, Egyptians, Georgians, Greeks, Lebanese, Palestinians, Romanians, Russians, Syrians, Thai, and others across the Orthodox world as well as American converts to the Orthodox faith. We strive to continue to be a witness to Orthodox Christianity, the third-largest Christian body in the world with an unbroken history of 2000 years.
When you walk through our doors, you will find a warm, welcoming, and diverse community of Orthodox Christians who live and worship together as a family in order to deepen our relationship with the Triune God, thus becoming “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter. 1:4) with “the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16), and “filled with the Holy Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18), as the Apostles Peter and Paul teach us in the Holy Scriptures.
Persons of all backgrounds are welcome to worship with us.
On behalf of our community, I welcome you to “Come and see!” Please feel free to contact us by phone or email, or to ask to speak to us in person at the Church. May God be with you all.
Yours in Christ’s love,
FR. Elias Stevens
Holy Cross / Ss. Constantine & Helen Orthodox Church
3021 University Drive, NW
Huntsville, Alabama 35816
251-281-7691
Founded in 1964, the church was formed by a few Greek immigrant families and began services with part-times priests in various locations around the city. A permanent location was found and, in 1972, we built the cornerstone for our current church. The community now consists of Orthodox Christians across many ethnic backgrounds, including Albanians, Ethiopians, Belarussians, Bulgarians, Egyptians, Georgians, Greeks, Lebanese, Palestinians, Romanians, Russians, Syrians, Thai, and others across the Orthodox world as well as American converts to the Orthodox faith. We strive to continue to be a witness to Orthodox Christianity, the third-largest Christian body in the world with an unbroken history of 2000 years.
When you walk through our doors, you will find a warm, welcoming, and diverse community of Orthodox Christians who live and worship together as a family in order to deepen our relationship with the Triune God, thus becoming “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter. 1:4) with “the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16), and “filled with the Holy Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18), as the Apostles Peter and Paul teach us in the Holy Scriptures.
Persons of all backgrounds are welcome to worship with us.
On behalf of our community, I welcome you to “Come and see!” Please feel free to contact us by phone or email, or to ask to speak to us in person at the Church. May God be with you all.
Yours in Christ’s love,
FR. Elias Stevens
Holy Cross / Ss. Constantine & Helen Orthodox Church
3021 University Drive, NW
Huntsville, Alabama 35816
251-281-7691
OUR CLERGY
Fr. Elias Stevens was born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama. His parents, Patricia and Eli Stevens, were lifelong members of Holy Trinity Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Birmingham. Fr Elias and his 3 siblings were all baptized and continue to attend the Birmingham Church. He graduated from Auburn University and received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Political Science (1987) and MA Theology at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology (2008). After graduation from Auburn University, Father Elias worked in his family’s business for 20 years. Father Elias was ordained to the Deaconate in December 2007 and served at the Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church in Lowell, Massachusetts. Father Elias was ordained to the Priesthood in May of 2008 and upon graduation that year, he was assigned as Ephemerios to Holy Trinity Holy Cross Cathedral in Birmingham, Alabama. In July 2009, he was assigned to the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Mobile, Alabama until 2019 as the Proistaminos. Fr. Elias has been on several mission trips to Guatemala as well as Co-Director of the Winter Youth Rally in Atlanta.
Fr. Elias and Presbytera Kasandra met while attending Auburn University and were married in 1988. They have four children: Eli (Kellie), Olivia, Anna and Oleksandra. Fr. Elias enjoys the outdoors, reading and exercising.
Email: priest@hsvgoc.com
Fr. Elias and Presbytera Kasandra met while attending Auburn University and were married in 1988. They have four children: Eli (Kellie), Olivia, Anna and Oleksandra. Fr. Elias enjoys the outdoors, reading and exercising.
Email: priest@hsvgoc.com
Planning your First Visit to our Parish?
Here are a few resources to help you get familiar with the Orthodox Church and our parish.
Welcome Letter
Click this link to sign up to recieve our welcome letter!
Inquiring?
Whether you've been researching Orthodoxy for years or just stumbled across it today, read this letter from our priest to help guide you on your inquirer journey!
Parking
Our parish is growing rapidly and parking on Sunday mornings can get tricky. See the graphic linked below to help you plan where to park.
Holy Cross Saints Constantine and Helen GOC Capital Campaign
His Eminence Metropolitan Sevastianos envisions that Holy Cross Saints Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church would become a beacon of Orthodoxy in North Alabama. Your gift to our Capital Campaign will go towards building a lasting future for the Orthodox Church in North Alabama as we embark on the construction of a new sanctuary and parish life facilities. We are working to raise $6 million dollars to build a campus that meets the needs of our rapidly growing parish! Give today to help us reach our goal!
See the most up-to-date renderings
of our New Building Project
as we plan our growing parish facilities!
These images contain architechural renderings that are subject to change.
Phase 1 New Sanctuary Building & Expanded Parking
Phase 2 Parish Hall with Gynamatorium, Kitchen, and Office Space
Phase 3 Educational Class Rooms and conversion of existing space into a Youth Center
Full Build-Out Street View
Phase 1 Elevation View
Phase 1 Internal Rendering
Phase 1 Site Plan
Phase 2 Site Plan
Phase 3 Site Plan
Join our Fundraising Efforts
to Make this Vision a Reality
His Eminence Metropolitan Sevastianos envisions that Holy Cross Saints Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church would become a beacon of Orthodoxy
in North Alabama.
Your gift to our Capital Campaign will go towards building a lasting future for the Orthodox Church in North Alabama as we embark on the construction of a new sanctuary and parish life facilities. We are working to raise $6 million dollars to build a campus that meets the needs of our rapidly growing parish! Give today to help us reach our goal!
in North Alabama.
Your gift to our Capital Campaign will go towards building a lasting future for the Orthodox Church in North Alabama as we embark on the construction of a new sanctuary and parish life facilities. We are working to raise $6 million dollars to build a campus that meets the needs of our rapidly growing parish! Give today to help us reach our goal!
Our Strategic Plan
PDF
The Long-Term Strategic Planning Committee oversees the planning and design of the future expansion of our parish facilities. We are currently in Phase 1 development. Phase 1 focuses on constructing the new primary sanctuary (nave, altar, narthex) along with essential infrastructure (foundations, utilities, parking sufficient for initial occupancy). This creates our new consecrated sanctuary as a priority. The sanctuary will be designed to accommodate our growing congregation (e.g., ~400 seating capacity) and will be the visual and spiritual heart of the new campus.
The current status of this project will be presented at the upcoming General Assembly Special Meeting. See the presentation here!
Ministries
Outreach
The Mission of the Outreach Ministry is to renew and share the Orthodox Christian Faith in America by nurturing a deeper commitment to our Lord Jesus Christ within His Church, by reaching out to inactive Orthodox Christians and to the unchurched and by meeting the needs of those inquiring about the Orthodox faith. We gather for coffee hour after church on Sundays, offer classes on the Orthodox faith during the week, and become involved with the local community through charity work.
Prison Ministry
The Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry serves those who are incarcerated and provides resources, training, and support to our ministry partners so that lives are transformed and God is glorified. We accept that each person is made in the image and likeness of God and that person is worthy of compassion and respect.
Bookstore
The St. Anne’s Bookstore & Gift Shop offers a wonderful selection of books regarding the Orthodox faith available for purchase. Also available are beautiful icons, incense, prayer ropes, and a variety of gift items for people of all ages. When planning a baptism or wedding, stop by the Cathedral Book and Gift Shop and purchase candles, stefanas, or just to get some ideas. The staff is here to help you after Liturgy on Sundays.
Youth Initiatives
Sunday School
The Sunday School Program is a religious education program for preschool through high school aged students. Staffed by dedicated and trained volunteers, students participate in weekly classes following Holy Communion each Sunday during the academic year.
Special events and projects include:
Special events and projects include:
- Youth Sundays
- Snack Packs for the Homeless
- Angel Tree
- Christmas and End of Year Programs
- Sunday of Orthodoxy
- and Palm Sunday Processions.
GOYA
The Greek Orthodox Youth of America (GOYA) is open to youth ages 9th – 12th grades. GOYA is an important organization that enables our youth to establish an Orthodox identity by growing in their faith and establishing friendships. Our youth are given the opportunity to establish bonds with GOYAns from other parishes through the Winter Youth Rally (December 27-30), the St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival and St. Stephen’s Summer Camp.
St. Stephen’s Summer Camp
Our St. Stephen's Summer Camp has a rich tradition, dating back to the 1980s, and is grounded on the principals of living a true Orthodox lifestyle with twice daily liturgical services, opportunities for reflection, community living and meals, athletics, arts & crafts, and nightly social activities. St. Stephen's Summer Camp offers teens entering 6th through 12th grades (when school begins in the fall) an opportunity to spend a week at our camp.
For more information visit https://atlmetropolis.org/st-stephens-summer-camp
For more information visit https://atlmetropolis.org/st-stephens-summer-camp
Online Orthodox Parenting and Family Resources
There is an extensive list of on-line resources available to parents and children who want to learn more about the Orthodox Faith. Be the Bee is a brief weekly video series on Youtube that focuses on the various ways in which God has infused all of creation with goodness and beauty. It is about finding God in everything.
https://bethebee.goarch.org/
https://bethebee.goarch.org/
Soak up the Son
Soak Up the Son is a summer program designed for individuals, couples, and families alike. This ten-week seasonal series is offered as a reminder “to commit ourselves and one another and our whole lives to Christ our God.”
Visit https://www.goarch.org/soak-up-the-son to learn more.
Many other articles and resources can be found at https://www.goarch.org/family-articles
Visit https://www.goarch.org/soak-up-the-son to learn more.
Many other articles and resources can be found at https://www.goarch.org/family-articles
Philoptochos (Friends of the Poor)
The Greek Orthodox Ladies Philoptochos Society, Inc. the philanthropic arm of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America that has offered 88 years of philanthropy through a multitude of programs that make a difference in the lives of people in the United States and throughout the world. The Society was established in November 1931, by the late Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras I, who was then serving as Archbishop of North and South America.
Philoptochos fulfills its mission to “help the poor, the destitute, the hungry, the aged, the sick, the unemployed, the orphaned, the imprisoned, the widowed, those with disabilities and the victims of disasters through its National and Metropolis Boards and its 26,000 members and more than 400 active chapters, nationwide. Philoptochos responds immediately to needs and crises and its philanthropic outreach extends to each area of the country and throughout the world.
We have a very active local chapter open to both women and men in our Parish. Our current local mission projects are Hope Place, Our House, Salvation Army and Dress a Girl Around the World. For more information visit our national website at https://www.philoptochos.org/
Contact Us
Have questions about our church? Fill out the form below to get in contact with us!