History

Saint Theodore Greek Orthodox Church of Lanham, Maryland holds a distinctive place among the Greek Orthodox parishes of the Washington metropolitan area: it is the sole Greek Orthodox church in Prince George's County, serving as the lone beacon of Orthodoxy in a county that borders the nation's capital.

The parish's roots reach back to 1969, when a small group of Greek Orthodox families living in southern Prince George's County established a Greek school for their children, meeting on Saturday mornings at St. John's Catholic Church in Clinton, Maryland. Between 1969 and 1971, those families worked to determine whether sufficient interest existed in the area to support a full parish. The answer was yes. The Greek Orthodox Church of Southern Maryland was formally founded in 1973, holding its earliest services in Brandywine before eventually relocating north into Prince George's County. Fundraising took the form of festivals, bake sales, covered dish dinners, and collections passed among the membership. Whatever people could give, they gave.

Around 1990, the parish purchased two properties on Cipriano Road in Lanham, its present location. One property included a house that parishioners refurbished themselves for use as a worship space while the permanent church was under construction. In the interim the congregation held services at a nearby church, at the Lanham Shopping Center, and at the Marriott Hotel in Greenbelt. When the lower level of the new church building was completed, services moved there; the upstairs followed, and the lower level was converted into a fellowship hall and kitchen. The house on the property continues to serve as the Sunday School, Greek School, and meeting space. The parish's 25th anniversary in 1998 was marked with a celebration honoring the many dedicated people who had built the community from nothing.

Today, Saint Theodore Greek Orthodox Church serves approximately 120 families at 7101 Cipriano Road in Lanham as a parish of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of New Jersey, offering services in both Greek and English with a Greek chanter and an a cappella Byzantine choir, welcoming all who seek the ancient Orthodox Christian faith in the Maryland suburbs of Washington.