Clergy and parishioners gathered around a flower-covered bier in the nave

Next Event

Divine Liturgy: Day of the Angels
Monday at 6am

Sunday Services

Matins at 8:30 am
Divine Liturgy at 10am

Fr. Turbo Qualls, rector of St. Mary of Egypt

Welcome to Saint Mary of Egypt Orthodox Church in Kansas City. We are an Orthodox Christian community ordered around worship and committed to both the formation of the whole person and the serving of those in need around us.

We welcome you to join us at one of our services. And if you don’t find the information you need here on our web site, please feel free to reach out directly.

Fr. Turbo QuallsRector

Our Ministries

Mount Tabor School
Of the Liberal Arts
Convent of the Mother of God
Seeker of the Lost
George Washington Carver
Urban Farm
Saint Eustace
Brotherhood
Holy Resurrection Cemetery
And St Raphael Burial Society
Saint Elizabeth
Lay Sisterhood
Adult Education
Classes & Conferences
Desert Wisdom Books
Parish Bookstore
Worship Through Voice
Music & Chant

Our Parish

Saint Mary of Egypt is an Orthodox Christian parish on the East Side of Kansas City, ordered around worship and committed to the formation of the whole person and the service of our neighbors.

The parish belongs to the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of New Gracanica and Midwestern America, under the pastoral care of His Eminence Metropolitan Longin. Our worship follows the Orthodox tradition, and our services are open to everyone.

Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.
Luke 14:23 · The parish mission

Clergy & Council

Fr. Turbo QuallsRector

Fr. Turbo moved to Kansas City in 2015 with his wife, Popadija Julianna, and their five children. He was ordained a deacon that year, a priest in 2018, and has served as rector since 2019.

Fr. Nicholas OlsenPriest

Fr. Nicholas serves at Saint Mary of Egypt and teaches Catechism I on Wednesday evenings. A full biography is coming soon.

Dcn. John FlowersDeacon

Dcn. John serves at Saint Mary of Egypt and leads the Inquirer’s Class on Wednesday evenings. A full biography is coming soon.

Parish Council: Marina Miller, President; Jason Copling, Treasurer.

Our History

1987A group of Christians on Kansas City’s East Side began serving their neighbors, forming Reconciliation Services at 31st and Troost under David and Thelma Altchul.
1993The community was received into the Orthodox Church. David was later ordained a priest as Fr. Paisius.
2000The parish, worshipping in a storefront church dedicated to Saint Mary of Egypt, joined the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of New Gracanica under Bishop Longin.
2012After the repose of Matushka Michaela, Fr. Paisius took monastic vows as Hieromonk Alexii and later founded the Holy Archangel Michael & All Angels Skete in Weatherby, Missouri.
2015Fr. Turbo Qualls came to Kansas City with his family to do social work and was ordained a deacon.
2019Fr. Turbo, ordained to the priesthood in 2018, became rector.
2020The parish moved to 38th and Chestnut. The convent and the George Washington Carver Farm began their work there.
2021Mount Tabor School of the Liberal Arts opened its doors.

Our ministries

Services

Worship at Saint Mary’s

The life of the parish is ordered around worship. Everyone is welcome at every service, whether you are Orthodox or visiting for the first time.

Weekly Schedule

Day	Service
Sunday	Matins, 8:30 am
Sunday	Divine Liturgy, 10 amFollowed by the agape meal, shared by all
Monday	Divine Liturgy: Day of the Angels, 6 am
Wednesday	Divine Liturgy, 9 am
Wednesday	Vespers, 6 pmInquirer’s Class with Dcn. John at 7 pm; catechism classes follow
Saturday	Confession, 4 pm
Saturday	Vespers, Lity & Preparation for Holy Communion, 5 pm

Our parish keeps the Church calendar of the Serbian Orthodox Church. Feast days and the seasons of fasting bring additional services through the year; see the calendar

O come, let us worship and fall down before Christ.
From the Divine Liturgy

First Time at an Orthodox Service?

Orthodox worship is different from what many visitors expect, starting from the moment you walk in the door. Our greeters will help you find a service book and answer questions. You are welcome simply to stand, listen and pray.

What to expect

Orthodoxy

The Orthodox Church is the Church founded by Christ and handed down through the apostles, keeping the same faith, worship and sacraments from the first centuries until today.

Orthodox Christians confess the faith set out in the Nicene Creed and live it through the Church’s worship, prayer, fasting and care for the poor. The Serbian Orthodox Church, to which our parish belongs, is one of the self-governing churches that together make up the Orthodox Church throughout the world.

O taste and see that the Lord is good.
Psalm 34:8

History

33Pentecost (AD 29 is thought to be more accurate).
49Council at Jerusalem (Acts 15) establishes precedent for addressing Church disputes in Council. James presides as bishop.
69Bishop Ignatius consecrated in Antioch in heart of New Testament era; St. Peter had been the first bishop there. Other early bishops include James, Polycarp, and Clement.
95Book of Revelation written, probably the last of the New Testament books.
150St. Justin Martyr describes the liturgical worship of the Church, centered in the Eucharist. Liturgical worship is rooted in both the Old and New Testament.
325The Nicene Creed is established. The Council of Nicea settles the major heretical challenge to the Christian faith when the heretic Arius asserts Christ was created by the Father. St. Athanasius defends the eternality of the Son of God. The Arians continue their assault on true Christianity for years. Nicea is the first of Seven Ecumenical (Church-wide) Councils.
451Council of Chalcedon affirms apostolic doctrine of two natures in Christ.
589In a synod in Toledo, Spain, the filioque, asserting that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son, is added to the Nicene Creed. This error is later adopted by Rome.
787The era of Ecumenical Councils ends at Nicea, with the Seventh Council bringing the centuries-old use of icons back into the Church.
988Conversion of Kyiv and Kyiv Rus begins.
1054The Great Schism occurs. Two major issues include Rome’s claim to a universal papal supremacy and her addition of the filioque clause to the Nicene Creed. The Photian schism (880) further complicated the debate.
1095The Crusades begun by the Roman Church. The Sack of Constantinople by Rome (1204) adds to the estrangement between East and West.
1333St. Gregory Palamas defends the Orthodox practice of hesychast spirituality and the use of the Jesus Prayer.
1453Turks overrun Constantinople; Byzantine Empire ends.
1517Martin Luther nails his 95 Theses to the door of the Roman Church in Wittenberg, starting the Protestant Reformation.
1529Church of England begins pulling away from Rome.
1794Missionaries arrive on Kodiak Island in Alaska; Orthodoxy introduced to North America.
1854Rome establishes the Immaculate Conception dogma.
1870Papal Infallibility becomes Roman dogma.
1988One thousand years of Orthodoxy in Kyiv, as the Orthodox Church worldwide maintains the fullness of the Apostolic faith.

Worship

What to Expect When You Visit

The church. The walls are covered with icons, and the faithful light candles and venerate the icons as they arrive. You are welcome to light a candle too, or simply to find a place and pray.

The service. Nearly everything is sung, and much of the service is spent standing. Feel free to sit whenever you need to.

Holy Communion. Communion is received by Orthodox Christians who have prepared through prayer, fasting and confession. Everyone is welcome to come forward at the end of the Liturgy to receive blessed bread from the priest.

Afterward. Stay for the agape meal after the Divine Liturgy. It is the best way to meet the parish and ask questions.

Becoming Orthodox

Those who wish to enter the Church begin as catechumens, learning the faith in catechism class and through the life of the parish before being received through baptism or chrismation.

Catechism classes