Interview with Fr. Matthew MacKay

Do you know this man? If not, you should get to know him. Your life will be all the richer if you do.

Who is he, you ask? He is my pastor, spiritual father, supervising priest, and friend. His name is the Very Reverend Fr. Matthew MacKay. Fr. Matthew began his adult life as an officer in the United States Marine Corps. During his time in the Marine Corps, he was an Episcopalian, and he sensed a call into the priesthood. After his discharge from the Marine Corps, he went to seminary and was then ordained as an Episcopal priest, in which role he served for seven years, four in parishes and three as a U. S. Navy chaplain.

After getting out of the Navy, Fr. Matthew converted to Orthodoxy. Not long afterward, he was ordained to the Holy Diaconate and then to the Holy Priesthood. In 1994, he and his family moved to Houston to assume leadership of a brand new Antiochian Orthodox mission with 17 families. That mission would eventually become St. Joseph Antiochian Orthodox Church and would be comprised of nearly 100 families. For the last 15 years, Fr. Matthew has lovingly, faithfully and self-sacrificially shepherded his flock, and God has blessed St. Joseph's greatly. He is a great pastor and a great man.

You might object, "I'd love to meet Fr. Matthew, but I'm not planning to be anywhere near Houston anytime soon (if ever)!" No problem! I've got you covered. I recently interviewed Fr. Matthew for the Journeys to Orthodoxy podcast on the Orthodox Christian Network. That interview has just been released. I highly, highly recommend that you listen to it. You will be inspired by Fr. Matthew's story, even as you laugh your head off at his irreverent (in a good way!) and self-deprecating sense of humor.

Click here to access the podcast. After you listen to it, please let me know what you think of it.