Clergy

The Very Reverend Fr. Ilyan Eades is our Parish priest. He is an archpriest, serving the in the Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia, New Zealand and the Philippines.

Fr ilyan (born Alan Eades) first felt the call to the priesthood in 1984 and underwent three years of study and preparation before Bishop Gibran ordained him to the diaconate on September 26^th, 1987, and as priest on September 27^th. Bishop Gibran give him the name Ilyan, after St Ilian of Homs in Syria.

Fr Ilyan is originally from Te Awamutu in the Waikato and moved to Auckland to take up the position of Parish Priest at St Ignatius.

In 1992 Father Ilyan moved from Auckland to Dunedin take up the position of Parish Priest at St Michaels and has been here since then.

Fr Ilyan rented a house directly behind the church after he arrived and which he later purchased. This now serves as the Presbytary for St Michaels.

The Greek community in Christchurch were without a priest and shortly after Fr Ilyan's arrival in Dunedin, Metropolitan Dionysios requested Fr. Ilyan's help in looking after that community. Until the middle of 1996, Fr. Ilyan made monthly trips to Christchurch. Until recently he also travelled to many other centers in both the North and South Islands to care for the faithful of those communities who did not have a local parish priest to serve their needs.

St Michaels is the only Orthodox church in Otago so Fr Ilyan is required to serve the needs of all Orthodox Christians in this province, regardless of juristiction. As a result Fr ilyan uses Greek and Church Slavonic in the services held in St Michaels and elsewhere.

During the week Fr. Ilyan works for the IHC caring for people with an intellectual disabilities. His wife, Matuska Mary, a trained veterinary nurse now teaches at the Otago Polytechnic.

In 2004, the Multi-Nations Council, Invercargill, requested that Fr Ilyan serve a monthly Divine Liturgy in that city. A borrowed Anglican church near the airport, is used for this purpose.

In 2007 Fr Ilyan was diagnosed with a serious illness but this has done little to interfere with the performance of his pastoral duties and he has continued to serve the Orthodox faithful of Otago and Southland throughout his struggles.