July, 2013 - Orthodox Christian Laity

Monthly Archives: July, 2013

Primates, Representatives of Local Churches issue statement defending persecuted Christians

By Webmaster on July 26, 2013 Governance & Unity News, Governance Top Stories

Source: Orthodox Church in America [MOSCOW, RUSSIA – OCA] At an unprecedented gathering in the Moscow Kremlin on July 24, 2013, the Primates and Representatives of the Local Orthodox Churches met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, after which a statement was issued on the occasion of the 1025th Anniversary of Rus’. His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, Primate of the Orthodox Church in America, was among those who signed the statement, the text of which reads as follows. “We, heads and representatives of the Local Orthodox Churches, who have come to Moscow on the occasion of the celebration of the 1025th anniversary…

51st Archdiocese Convention Kicks Off in Houston

By Webmaster on July 25, 2013 Governance & Unity News, Governance Top Stories

Source: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America The city of Houston, and Fr. James Shadid and the parish of St. George Orthodox Christian Church, are hosting the Antiochian Archdiocese Convention this week at the Hilton Americas hotel. The largest legislative body of the Archdiocese, the General Assembly meets in convention biennially. In addition to the business meetings, liturgical celebrations, exhibits, youth activities, and department meetings are central to each convention as well. There will also be special events that emphasize the uniquely Southern character of this year’s gathering. Families will enjoy the Country Western Dinner and Dance on Thursday evening, while on Friday…

Metropolitan Tikhon concelebrates at Anniversary Liturgy in Moscow’s Christ the Savior Cathedral

By Webmaster on July 24, 2013 Orthodox News, Orthodox News Top Stories

Source: Orthodox Church in America MOSCOW, RUSSIA [OCA] – His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, was among the Primates and representatives of the Local Orthodox Churches who concelebrated at the Divine Liturgy with His Holiness, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, at Christ the Savior Cathedral here on July 24, 2013. The Liturgy opened a three-part commemoration of the 1025th Anniversary of the Baptism of Rus’ that will be marked with similar celebrations in Kyiv, Ukraine and Minsk, Belarus. [See related story]. According to the Press Service of the Moscow Patriarchate, other concelebrating Primates included His Beatitude, Pope and Patriarch Theodoros II of Alexandria and All…

Vladimir Putin Interview for the documentary film “The Second Baptism of Rus”

By Webmaster on July 23, 2013 Orthodox News, Orthodox News Top Stories

Source: Kremlin Vladimir Putin gave an interview to the makers of the documentary film The Second Baptism of Rus, which screened on Rossia 1 television channel on July 22. The Second Baptism of Rus is a full-length documentary film about the resurgence of the Russian Orthodox Church in Russia over the last 25 years. The film gives a detailed presentation of the main stages in rebuilding church life in Russia from 1988, when the country marked the 1000th anniversary of the Baptism of Rus, to today. * * * QUESTION: We still remember the times when you could ruin your career prospects if you…

George N. Boulukos Receives Prestigious Boy Scouts of America Silver Buffalo Award

By Webmaster on July 22, 2013 Orthodox News, Orthodox News Top Stories

Source: Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America George N. Boulukos has been honored with the prestigious Silver Buffalo Award by the Boy Scouts of America. For decades Boulukos led the Eastern Orthodox Commission on Scouting (EOCS). The award is the highest commendation given by the Boy Scouts of America in recognition of the invaluable contributions that outstanding Americans make to youth. Boulukos has been a lifelong Boy Scout, working tirelessly to promote the goals and objectives of the Boy Scouts of America. He was born and raised in Merrick, NY, and resides with his family in…

St. Spyridon PC President Vigorously Defends Rev. Passias against Allegations

By Webmaster on July 22, 2013 Orthodox News, Orthodox News Top Stories

Source: The National Herald TNH staff NEW YORK – Efstathios Papadatos, Parish Council President of St. Spyridon Church, has angrily taken issue with a New York Post article that suggested there were possible financial improprieties and that head priest Father George Passias, 65, was unusually close with his “spiritual goddaughter,” Ethel Bouzalas, 43, who had taken positions of responsibility. The Post wrote that “the duo’s arrival in 2006 has blown in a storm of controversy. Critics ask how hundreds of thousands of dollars have been spent and why the Wadsworth Avenue church needs a $3.5 million mortgage. Complaints about its…

The First Greek Orthodox Bishop Consecrated in America

By Webmaster on July 22, 2013 Governance & Unity News, Governance Top Stories

Source: Orthodox Observer Originally published in the June 2013 issue on page 26 under the heading “Church History.” by William H. Samonides, Ph.D As the Church in America grew, the need for hierarchs to oversee the ever-increasing number of parishes became more acute. Hierarchs of the Church had visited the United States since 1892, but most returned to Greece after only a brief stay. Before the arrival of Archbishop Athenagoras in 1931, only one hierarch, Bishop Alexander, remained for more than a decade. When the Archdiocese of North and South America was created in 1922, he became its first Archbishop…

Helen Thomas – Memory Eternal!

By Webmaster on July 20, 2013 Orthodox News, Orthodox News Top Stories, Uncategorized

Source: Wikipedia / Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America Helen Amelia Thomas (August 4, 1920 – July 20, 2013) was an American author and news service reporter, member of the White House press corps and opinion columnist. She worked for the United Press and post-1958 successor United Press International (UPI) for 57 years, first as a correspondent, and later as White House bureau manager. She was a columnist for Hearst Newspapers from 2000 to 2010, writing on national affairs and the White House. She covered the administrations of eleven U.S. presidents—from the final years of the Eisenhower administration to the second year of the Obama administration. Thomas was the first female officer of the National Press Club, the first…

Turkey government desecrates the Church of Agia Sophia [UPDATED]

By Webmaster on July 17, 2013 Orthodox News, Orthodox News Top Stories

Source: NeosKosmos.com This is the second time in recent years that the Turkish government has converted a unique Christian church into a mosque The Federation of Pontian Associations of Australia has called upon the Australian government and the international community to protect Anatolia’s indigenous Christian heritage. The announcement follows an incident two weeks ago where Muslim prayers were held in the 13th century Orthodox Church of the Holy Wisdom (Agia Sophia) in Istanbul, Turkey. According to the Federation, this is the second time in recent years that the Turkish government has converted a unique Christian church into a mosque. The first…

Looted Art From Cypriot Churches Is Returned by Germany

By Webmaster on July 16, 2013 Orthodox News, Orthodox News Top Stories

Source: Bloomberg Businessweek By Catherine Hickley Frescos, mosaics and icons looted from churches, museums and monasteries in Northern Cyprus and seized by police in Munich 16 years ago were today handed over to the Cypriot government. The artifacts were discovered in the Munich apartment of Aydin Dikmen, a Turkish-born art dealer, in 1997. Then valued at 30 million deutsche marks ($17 million), they included a mosaic hacked from the wall of the 6th-century Kanakaria church and a fresco from the medieval Antiphonitis Church. After years of legal wrangling, a Munich court determined in March that 173 of the seized artworks…

Drowned bishop a symbol of Bulgaria’s blurred loyalties

By Webmaster on July 16, 2013 Orthodox News, Orthodox News Top Stories

Source: Reuters By Tsvetelia Tsolova The death last week of one of Bulgaria’s most senior bishops, found floating in the Black Sea wearing a snorkel and flippers, was mysterious in its own right, but it was only the final chapter in an enigmatic life. [VARNA, Bulgaria] In the days after Bishop Cyril of Varna, 59, was found dead, a picture emerged of a man respected by many but who had also spied for the communist-era secret police, brokered land deals that raised questions and driven a luxury Lincoln sedan given to him by a local businessman. Through it all, he…

Grassroots Ecumenism of Friendship Keeps Orthodox-Catholic Hopes Alive

By Webmaster on July 16, 2013 Orthodox News, Orthodox News Top Stories, Uncategorized

Source: The Catholic World Report by John Burger “The light of the East has illumined the universal Church, from the moment when ‘a rising sun’ appeared above us: Jesus Christ, our Lord, whom all Christians invoke as the Redeemer of man and the hope of the world.” Thus began Pope John Paul II’s 1995 apostolic letter Orientale Lumen (“Light of the East), which encourages Latin Catholics to better know the traditions of the Christian East. Rather than collecting dust on a Vatican shelf, the letter has continued to inspire a Washington, D.C.-based grassroots ecumenical movement for almost two decades. Initially planned as a…

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Monthly Archives: July, 2013