Rev. Solomon Longo

Acting Rector, Saints Peter & Paul Orthodox Cathedral

Father Solomon Longo was assigned as Acting Rector of Saints Peter and Paul on June 1, 2023. He succeeded Mitred Archpriest Joseph Lickwar, who had served the parish for 32 years. Fr. Solomon is a native of North Carolina. His father grew up in New Jersey, raised Catholic, and converted to the Baptist church after relocating to North Carolina. A generation later, in a twist of providential irony, his son returned to Jersey as an Orthodox priest. Before coming to Jersey City, the Longo family had made their home in Texas, Alaska, and Pennsylvania.

He trained at St. Tikhon's Orthodox Theological Seminary in South Canaan, Pennsylvania, where seminary classmates described him as hard-working, thoughtful, and a willing volunteer who contributed to campus renovations. He graduated with a Master of Divinity degree. Archbishop Michael (Dahulich) ordained him to the diaconate on January 29, 2022, and to the priesthood on January 21, 2023. Both ordinations took place at St. Tikhon's Monastery. As a deacon, he concelebrated the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at the cathedral's 115th anniversary on October 30, 2022, alongside Archbishop Michael and Fr. Lickwar: a service that, in retrospect, looks very much like a deliberate introduction between a seminary deacon and the parish he would lead. The span from his first appearance at Grand Street as a seminarian to his appointment as its rector was less than eight months.

Of all the priests you could ever meet, I am certainly one of them.

He and Matushka Anna arrived at the rectory at 109 Grand Street with their five sons. In January 2024, they welcomed their daughter Hattie Olympia Longo, bringing the family to six children. And, on April 23rd, 2026, they welcomed Peter Augustine Longo, making seven. When asked for more information about himself, he offers this: "Of all the priests you could ever meet, I am certainly one of them."

He hopes to see Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral grow in the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and he believes that following Christ offers us all nothing less than our most free, fulfilled, and complete life in a world set right.