On Saturday, November 15th, 2025, His Grace, Bishop Irinej, presided at the celebration of the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at St. Nicholas Serbian Orthodox Church in Monroeville, PA, on the occasion of the 120th anniversary of the parish and the consecration of the new iconostasis. The parish, whose roots were in Wilmerding, sprouted into a vibrant Church community in Monroeville where, until this day, the parish testifies to Christ to the broader community, albeit now, with a new and beautiful iconostasis and iconography.

When the Church community of St. Nicholas from Wilmerding was transferred to Monroeville, the hard-working people brought with them the original iconostasis from Wilmerding. They cut it to fit the new space. The plan from the start was for this iconostasis to be temporary and, in due time, replaced by a new one that would reflect traditional Orthodox iconography. A few years ago, His Grace, our Bishop Irinej, gave us the blessing to begin work on the new iconostasis. For that endeavor, Miroslav Petrovic, a master carver from Charlotte, North Carolina, was hired. Bishop Irinej created the drawing of the iconostasis to follow the Church's architecture, and Mr. Petrovic began work on its details. While visiting Ohrid in Macedonia, he saw one of the oldest carved iconostases in the Orthodox world and, inspired by its intricate carvings, began working on the design submitted by His Grace. The result was a stunning cherry wood iconostasis intended to host high-class Orthodox iconography. 

For the Iconostasis iconography, master iconographer Tanja Ristic from Valjevo was hired and, under the supervision of His Grace, began work on the icons for the templo of St. Nicholas Church. His Grace also gave a blessing to Basil Gerwing, the iconographer from the Pittsburgh area, to work on the alcoves, with the plan to turn them into exo-prothesis and a reliquary area. 

The work of all these people involved was celebrated on November 15th as the feast day, gathering not just those alive and current parishioners, but also those departed and those who worked hard to make this 120th anniversary possible. His Grace emphasized this togetherness in the Liturgy, saying that in it we all enter through the “Gates of Beauty” into our union with Christ, where all our ancestors can rejoice with us at the seeing of our efforts. 

After the Divine Liturgy and the consecration of the iconostasis banquet's, an Episcopal Grammaton was given to Jovo and Rachelle Kozomara for their immense contribution to the parish, without which the much-needed work of beautifying the iconostasis would not have been possible. Another Grammaton was also bestowed upon the Church-School Congregation of St. Nicholas as a reward to every individual who donated towards this project of beautification. The reward of one is the reward of many, and vice versa. 

Although there are many projects to come, encouraged by His Grace, Bishop Irinej, the congregation is optimistic that it will continue to grow in numbers and in beautification within the Church. Glory was given to God for all things accomplished so far, while the new victories await.