Alexei Trader

Archbishop Alexei , or Alexis, secular name John Trader is the Archbishop of the Orthodox Church in America Diocese of Alaska since 2022.

Early life and education

Alexei was born on February 24, 1965, as John Trader in Dover, Delaware. He was raised Methodist; his grandfather was a Methodist pastor. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Franklin & Marshall College and a masters in religion from the University of Chicago. He also obtained a masters of divinity at Saint Tikhon's Orthodox Theological Seminary and a doctorate in patristic studies and psychology from the University of Thessaloniki.
In 1990, Alexei joined Saint Tikhon's Orthodox Monastery as a rasophore, where he also taught courses. In 1995, he went to Greece in Mount Athos to Karakallou Monastery, where he was also known as Alexios Karakallinos. In 1996, he was ordained to the diaconate, to the priesthood in 2001

In 2018, Alexei was called back from Greece on invitation from Metropolitan Tikhon in order to serve as bishop. On November 12, 2019, he was elected Bishop of Bethesda, an auxiliary to Metropolitan Tikhon. On January 25, 2020 at Saint Nicholas Cathedral in Washington, DC, he was ordained bishop.
He was elected Bishop of Sitka and Alaska on March 15, 2022, and enthroned on March 27, 2022, at Saint Innocent Cathedral in Anchorage.
He was elevated to the rank of Archbishop on Wednesday, March 19, 2025, at a meeting of the Holy Synod.
Alexei publicly met with the Russian president Vladimir Putin on August 15, 2025 as part of the latter's visit to Fort Richardson National Cemetery to pay respects at the graves of Soviet soldiers buried there.