St. John the Wonderworker Mission Holds First Divine Liturgy

NEW WAVERLY — Tucked away in the rural hills of the Southeast Texas Piney Woods, a gathering for the first Divine Liturgy of the newly established St. John the Wonderworker Mission took place the morning of May 2, 2026. It was an idyllic morning — the spring showers from the prior day brought with them a cool relief to the encroaching summer heat. This was a small grace that represented the optimism of this new community in North Houston.

The mission — part of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR) — was planted by Fr. John Whiteford and a handful of faithful parishioners from St. Jonah Orthodox Church further south in Spring, Texas. The vision was a product of the enormous growth that St. Jonah's has experienced over the last few years, and the recognized need to better service people driving extensively to attend. If Texans living up in the country were finding their way to parishes in Spring, Conroe, and other greater Houston area parishes, then a parish planted in their own backyard could bear great fruit. The Diocese of Chicago and Mid-America agreed, and Abp. Gabriel of Montreal and Canada (then-locum tenens) blessed the mission to be established under the patronage of St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco.

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