I am interested in what pan-Orthodox ministries there are out there. I know of very few TRULY pan-Orthodox ministries—those ministries that are incorporated as a pan-Orthodox entity or, at least, have a board that is truly pan-Orthodox. Most ministries that we might consider to be pan-Orthodox (at least on the local level) are really more (what I would call) “cooperative ministries.” They are spearheaded by a particular parish with some help from the surrounding parishes. While this is laudable, I don’t consider them to be a truly pan-Orthodox in the sense that they are attached to a particular parish within…
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Orthodox Christian Laity (OCL) presents the Project for Orthodox Renewal: Seven studies of Key Issues Facing Orthodox Christians in America. This publication enables OCL to fulfill its mission of providing the “royal priesthood” of believers, clergy, hierarchy, and other Christians with information that fosters meaningful discussion on renewal of the Orthodox Church in the United States. Originally published in 1993. Edited by Steven J. Sfekas and George E. Matsoukas.
Research by Rev. Fr. Charles Joanides, Ph.D., LMFT indicates an alarming demographic trend in American Orthodoxy that applies to all jurisdictions: we are losing our youth. Below are presentations and links to more articles where Fr. Joanides quantifies these trends and suggest how ministry to interfaith couples is essential for the future viability of Orthodoxy in America. Most of the information can be found on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese website and deals with trends in the GOA. Nevertheless, it is clear that the decline in young people in American Orthodoxy affects more than the GOA. Presentation to Leadership 100 Part…
Our Orthodox Past – Our Orthodox Present – Our Orthodox Future WHEN: Weekend of Thursday, October 25, Friday, October 26 & Saturday, October 27, 2012. WHERE: Savoy Hotel, 2505 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington DC MAKE RESERVATIONS TODAY: SPECIAL OCL RATE Call 800-944-5377 (Call before Sept. 23 for OCL Rate + weekend events subject to change) St Nicholas Cathedral Library of Congress George Washington University, Mt. Vernon Campus Schedule Thursday, October 25, 2012 9:00 am St. Nicholas Cathedral (3500 Massachusetts Ave, Washington DC). Hierarchical Liturgy celebrated by His Eminence Archbishop Nathaniel (Archbishop of Detroit and the Romanian Episcopate; Locum Tenens of the Metropolitan See of the Orthodox Church in America),…
Source: Greek Orthodox Archdiocese NEW YORK – His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America, was invited by President Barack Obama to deliver the invocation at the official opening of the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C. Archbishop Demetrios, being unable to personally attend, asked Metropolitan Nicholas of Detroit to represent him and deliver the invocation on behalf of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, Tuesday Sept. 4, at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte.
Source: Orthodox Church in America SYOSSET, NY [OCA] Registration forms and related materials for the 17th All-American Council of the Orthodox Church in America, slated to convene at Holy Trinity Church, Parma, OH on Tuesday, November 13, 2012, are now available in this PDF document, which includes a wealth of information on various aspects of the Council. [See related story at http://oca.org/news/headline-news/17th-all-american-council-to-be-held-o… ]. “Per the Statute of the Orthodox Church in America, parishes will need to elect new delegates,” said Archpriest Eric G. Tosi, OCA Secretary. “Registration forms, as per normal procedures for an All-American Council, must be completed and…
Source: Times of India KOCHI: The Jacobite Syrian Church, which traces its origins to Saint Peter, is ordaining widows and divorcees as nuns. Conventionally, across various church denominations, only unmarried women are admitted to the fold as nuns. Around 250 nuns are part of the church, which follows Orthodox traditions, and the outreach may increase that number. The church runs 10 convents in Kerala and with plans to set up a string of hospitals and educational institutions, authorities feel it could do with more hands. “Widows, divorcees and the disabled can get trained and become nuns,” says Father Varghese Kallappara,…
Source: Russian Orthodox Church Department of External Church Relations On August 25, 2012, with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations, led the celebration of the Divine Liturgy at Fort Ross, the place of the first Russian settlement in California. The liturgy was celebrated in the open, next to the reconstructed Russian Church of the Holy Trinity. Among His Eminence’s concelebrants were Metropolitan Hilarion of Eastern America and New York, the First Hierarch of the Russian Church Outside Russia, Archbishop Justinian…
Source: Orthodox Church in America For many years, His All-Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, has issued a statement on the protection of the environment in conjunction with his annual message marking the beginning of the ecclesiastical year on September 1. “Our God, who created the universe and formed the earth as a perfect dwelling place for humanity, granted us the commandment and possibility to increase, multiply and fulfill creation, with dominion over all animals and plants,” writes His All-Holiness in this year’s message. “The world that surrounds us was thus offered to us as a gift by our Creator as an…
As part of the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Orthodox Christian Laity, we present to you a two part interview: A Vision of A Unified Church In North America – with Metropolitan Christopher. Recorded at the 20th Annual Meeting of OCL, November 2007. Part 1. Why is Unity in the United States Important? Part 2. What is the Role of the Laity in Helping to Create Unity?
Source: Eurasianet | Molly Corso A growing number of Georgians are turning to yoga to shake off the stress of daily life. But their quest for inner calm and smaller waists is generating hostility from the powerful Georgian Orthodox Church. Over the past two years, yoga has gone from a largely unknown Eastern tradition to a popular fitness routine in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi. Georgian National Yoga Federation President Giorgi Berdzenishvili, a passionate practitioner for the past 15 years, called the trend a “dynamic” process that started under former Soviet leader Mikheil Gorbachev’s glasnost’ policies in the late 1980s. During…
Source: Chicago Tribune The local bishop of the Orthodox Church in America has been placed on administrative leave amid allegations of “inappropriate” behavior with a woman. The action comes more than a month after the church’s national leader, from Chicago, was forced to resign. In a letter to parishioners, Bishop Matthias, 63, denied the accusations, which he said came to light in a formal complaint submitted to the church last week. “The allegations are that I made unwelcome written and spoken comments to a woman that she regarded as an inappropriate crossing of personal boundaries and an abuse of my…