Our Vision:
At St. John the Theologian Orthodox Church, you will feel God's love so deeply and hear God's word so clearly, that you will be inspired to become the saint God calls you to be.
 
Our Mission:
St. John the Theologian Orthodox Church of Shirley, NY is commited to reaching out to the people of eastern Suffolk County who are seeking God, by providing loving community, meaningful worship, faithful teaching and caring spiritual support.
 
Our Community:
St. John the Theologian Orthodox Church is a community of compassionate, caring people united in worshipping God, in the English language, in the historical, unchanging truths of Orthodox Christianity.  It is a place to receive caring spiritual support on your path towards discovering God's will for your life.  Here, you celebrate the joys of life, receive comfort from life's pain, and receive help with life's needs.

St. John's is presently still the only English-language Orthodox Church serving the eastern end of Suffolk County. Our parish is a "pan-Orthodox" parish consisting of families from numerous ethnic backgrounds, truly making our community "a house of prayer for all people." Parishioners come from all over the eastern end of Suffolk County with approximately two-thirds to three-fourths of our membership drawn from a ten-mile radius.

Our parish has participated in raising money for foreign and domestic missions, in clothing and food drives for the needy (both here and abroad), and our community has a strong and growing sense of outreach to others in the Lord's service. Stewardship, including tithing, is strongly emphasized.

An active social schedule, such as our Annual Blini Luncheon on Forgiveness Sunday, the Parish Christmas Yolka, Parish Picnic, JOY (church school) Pool Party, weekly community meals, trips to museums, seminaries, and monasteries, and annual events such as that begun by the ladies of the parish Sisterhood combining Christmas shopping and womens’ fellowship with a “Sisters Day Out” during the month of December, provide the community with joyous opportunities for building fellowship and strengthening parish family ties, so sorely needed in our times to fight the feelings of alienation, lonliness and isolation that so many people experience.

Parishioners are encouraged to seek out an area of ministry suitable to the gifts God has given them, and use those gifts for His glory and the upbuilding of His Church.  Such broad participation of the laity ensures that a wide range of opinions and ideas will be brought into the process of formulating parish vision and mission, prioritizing parish objectives and laying the groundwork necessary to make effective, meaningful and life-changing ministry happen.

Plans are currently underway to establish a community-based summer Vacation Bible School program and Scouting program (there are none in our area as of now), as well as chapters for 12-step programs and bereavement and other support groups.