Source: Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America The first day of meetings of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America reflected a growing collegiality and cooperation among those present. Forty-three hierarchs representing 11 jurisdictions are in attendance. The morning began with hierarchs participating in a common celebration of the Divine Liturgy at the Holy Virgin Protection Cathedral in Des Plaines, IL. “Today…we are here together in unity and joy in full awareness of the truth that the love of Christ has brought us together and is with us,” said Archbishop Demetrios, Chairman…
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Source: Orthodox Church in America SCHAUMBURG, IL [OCA] – His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon and the members of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America are among 65 hierarchs participating in the 2013 annual meeting of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America at the Chicago Marriott here Tuesday through Thursday, September 17-19, 2013. The first annual meeting was held in New York City in 2010, while the second and third gatherings were held in Chicago in 2011 and 2012. The schedule and agenda as posted on the Assembly web site may be accessed here. According to…
Source: Here & Now Syrian military forces continue to battle Islamic rebels near the ancient Christian town of Maaloula, Syria, where some residents still speak Aramaic, the language of Jesus Christ. Most Maaloula residents have fled, but nuns and orphans remain holed up in Mar Tekla, one of the town’s two early Christian monasteries. They are members of the eastern orthodox Church of Antioch. Its leader in the U.S., Metropolitan Philip Saliba, is concerned about their safety. Philip is a strong supporter of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. He joined church leaders in calling for a special “Day of Solidarity” in…
Source: Catholic News Service By Carol Glatz ROME (CNS) — Recent remarks by Pope Francis about the need for a stronger pastoral approach to marriage and divorced couples, do not signal the church is overturning its laws or practice of denying communion to Catholics who divorce and remarry, said two canon law experts. When Pope Francis made parenthetical reference to the Orthodox churches permitting, in some cases, a second marriage, he was referring to an issue that has been under discussion for decades, said U.S. Cardinal Raymond L. Burke, prefect of the Supreme Court of the Apostolic Signature. The pope…
Source: Orthodox Church in America PRINCETON, NJ [OCA] – Sunday, September 15, 2013 marked the observance of the Orthodox Christian Fellowship’s “College Student Sunday” in parishes across the US through special services, programs, and other activities. [See related article.] Among them was a celebration, at which His Grace, Bishop Michael of New York presided, at the Chapel of the Transfiguration on the campus of Princeton University. Bishop Michael celebrated the Divine Liturgy, as he has each year throughout his episcopacy, at the chapel. Assisting were Archpriest Daniel Skvir, Orthodox Christian Chaplain at Princeton; Archpriest Paul Shafran, a faithful supporter of the Chapel since…
by Alexandru Cautis Source: Drum european He is Syrian, he is Orthodox Christian and he just finished his studies in Romania. S.M. lives through the war in Syria as an eyewitness and views it completely differently than it is presented to us in Romania. (The Syrian asked me not to give his name; I guarantee that the following interview is an honest one, that S.M. is not forced by the Syrian authorities to talk nice about Bashar Al Assad) How does a Christian living in Syria view the current situation from Syria? I am a Syrian who studied in Romania.…
Source: Orthodox Christian Laity As part of its 26th Annual Meeting, Orthodox Christian Laity is sponsoring a Forum on Saturday, November 2 from 9:00 am to noon at the Holy Trinity Serbian Orthodox Church in Moraga, CA (Click here for more detailed information). The program will focus on the work of the Assembly of Bishops with an update on its September 2013 conclave. In discussing the forum, OCL President Susan Haikalis said: “Although the majority of Orthodox Christians in America support the idea of unity, few of us are aware of the work of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops…
Source: Ancient Faith Radio September 13, 2013 Length: 16:13 Direct link Play in Popup Download We talk with Fr. Peter Jackson, newly appointed OCMC missionary to Guatemala following the mass conversion of 150,000 people into the Orthodox Church. Learn about his work in training clergy and translating liturgical documents for the 300-plus churches and 8 priests. Want to help? Fr. Peter Jackson – Rector – Sts. Theodore Orthodox Church (ROCOR) Address: 96 Los Robles St., Williamsville, NY 14221 Phone: (716) 634-6712 Email: frpeterjackson@yahoo.com OCMC (Orthodox Christian Mission Center): Jackson Family Page E-mail Very Rev. Peter Jackson: fpjackson@ocmc.org E-mail Matyushka Styliana Jackson: s.jackson@ocmc.org The Jackson Family on Flickr…
Source: Pravmir.com His Eminence Philip (Saliba), Archbishop of New York and Metropolitan of All North America, head of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America, sent a message to the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, which reads, in particular: “We monitor with gratitude your tireless efforts in support of the Christians, and all the God-fearing people of Syria.” His Eminence Metropolitan Philip expresses his conviction that the forces responsible for stirring up the conflict in the country “have ulterior motives in mind, not the least of which is to expunge the area of Christians who have been living…
Source: Orthodox Church in America [SYOSSET, NY] Today marks the 12th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorists attacks on New York City; Shanksville, Pennsylvania; and Arlington, Virginia. As Archpriest John Jillions, Chancellor of the Orthodox Church in America, writes in his “Chancellor’s Diary” entry for today, “September 11 [is] a day to remember both the desperate fallenness of this world and the indestructible marks of its creation by our good and loving God… the unspeakable violence of a few terrorists alongside the courage and divine humanity of thousands and thousands.” According to Donna Karabin, who chairs the OCA’s Department of Christian Service and…
Source: Patristic Nectar Publications Four years ago, in June of 2009, something momentous took place in World Orthodoxy. At the invitation of His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, delegates from the fourteen Autocephalous Orthodox Churches participated in the historic Fourth Pre-Conciliar Pan-Orthodox Conference, meeting at the Center of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Chambésy-Geneva, Switzerland. They expressed their “desire for the swift healing of every canonical anomaly that has arisen from historical circumstances and pastoral requirements, such as in the so-called Orthodox Diaspora, with a view to overcoming every possible influence that is foreign to Orthodox ecclesiology.” This ecumenical decision translated…
We reprint the OCL Resolution calling for Autocephaly of the American Orthodox Church passed in 1998, fifteen years ago, and pray that the meeting of Assembly of Canonical Bishops on September 17-19 in Chicago will make progress in developing the blueprint for a unified, self-governing, canonical Church in our geographic areas. The “fullness of time” for the unification and autocephaly of the Church in the United States and in all other geographic areas has arrived. – Editor Orthodox Christian Laity A Resolution for Autocephaly Adopted October 10, 1998 BE IT RESOLVED THAT: The Orthodox Christian Laity (OCL), assembled…