Source: Orthodox ObserverThis morning, in Southampton, Long Island, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew celebrated the Divine Liturgy at Dormition of the Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church of the Hamptons. At the end of the service, before a crowd of nearly 500, His All-Holiness announced two “surprises” to the parish–conferring the title Megas Protopresbyteros of the Holy and Great Church of Christ upon Proistamenos Fr. Alexander Karloutsos and elevating Dormition Church to the status of Cathedral. Fr. Alex and his wife, Pres. Xanthi Concelebrating the liturgy were members of the Holy Eparchial Synod, including His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America, as…
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Source: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America Report and photos from the Patriarchate of Antioch Photo album Damascus, September 21, 2025 His Beatitude Patriarch John X, accompanied by Bishop Arsenius (Dahdal), inspected the progress of the rehabilitation work at the Church of Prophet Elias the Zealot in Dweilaa, Damascus, Syria following the brutal terrorist bombing on June 22 that gave the Orthodox Church 22 new martyrs. His Beatitude commended the efforts made thus far. He also gave his directives for the house of worship to be restored to its former glory. Earlier this month, the church baptized 22 babies in the…
Source: Orthodox Church in America SPRINGFIELD, VA [OCA] The Orthodox Church in America is drawing attention to a growing problem for parishes and nonprofit institutions: so-called “copyright trolls.” Specialized law firms scour the internet for unauthorized uses of copyrighted images and issue costly settlement demands. A simple mistake in using an image found online can become an expensive problem for a parish, monastery, or other institution. To address this issue, the Orthodox Church in America is sharing a new article by Dn. Kenneth Liu, Executive Director of the Orthodox Christian Attorney Network and an experienced intellectual property attorney. In his…
Source: Orthodox Observer Yesterday afternoon, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew once again visited St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church & National Shrine, where he offered an audience and blessing to young adults as part of the 2025 Archdiocesan District Young Adult League (YAL) Conference. The Ecumenical Patriarch gave the youth encouragement and guidance, expressing that “It is still possible to … stand with integrity as a spiritual path.” “You are much more than the future of our Church,” he stressed, “you are also the now.” His All-Holiness also offered an impromptu address in Greek, visibly moved to tears and telling the…
Source: Orthodox Christian Missions Center The Translation Department at the Mission Center is proud to announce the launch of DOXA Version 1.0 (Digital Orthodox Akolouthia), a digital platform built to protect, preserve, publish, and expand Orthodox liturgical translations. For decades, native translators have struggled with data loss, outdated or out-of-print editions, and inconsistent texts. DOXA solves these challenges by providing secure Cloud storage, version control to recover past drafts, and collaborative tools that allow translators to share work across dioceses. Templates and reference systems simplify the process, while digitization ensures that historic texts are preserved alongside new translations. Once entered, texts can be published…
Source: Orthodox Observer Today, the American Hellenic Institute reported that on September 15, 2025, 28 members of Congress (23 Members of the United States House of Representatives and 5 Members of the United States Senate) honored His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew by submitting comments to the Congressional Record “praising his religious leadership and advocacy for peace and human rights.” AHI, a non-profit Greek American think-tank and public policy center, commended the Members of Congress for submitting these remarks to the Congressional Record. The institute’s press release included the following excerpts: Submitted by Representative Dan Goldman (D-NY-10), who represents the 10th district of…
Source: Orthodox Observer On Monday, September 15, 2025, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew met at the White House with His Excellency Mr. Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America, who is the sixth President he has visited. The meeting in the Oval Office, which lasted more than half an hour, was conducted in a very cordial atmosphere, with His Excellency the President expressing great interest in the various initiatives and ministry of the Ecumenical Throne, as well as in the life of Christians in Türkiye. During the discussion, His All-Holiness congratulated His Excellency the President for his initiatives…
Source: Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America By Theodore Kalmoukos BOSTON – From now on, the entrance of service dogs into churches across the Archdiocese in the U.S. will be permitted – meaning specially trained dogs that accompany and guide people with special needs, such as the blind. To this end, a decision was made during the recent meeting of the Archdiocesan Eparchial Synod on Saturday, September 13, at Hellenic College-Holy Cross School of Theology in Brookline, MA allowing service dogs to enter churches during the Divine Liturgy and other sacred services. Specifically, Archbishop Elpidophoros invited two Archdiocesan staff members –…
Source: Orthodox Church in America SPRINGFIELD, VA [OCA] The Orthodox Church in America announces the reorganization and expansion of the Clergy Wives Ministry under the Office of Pastoral Life. This transition affirms the Church’s ongoing commitment to supporting clergy wives and their families. It also brings the Clergy Wives Ministry into alignment with the other established programs of the Office of Pastoral Life and consistent with the structure of other departments and offices of the Orthodox Church in America. In this way, the ministry is being elevated to a higher and more intentional level, ensuring that it will continue with the same seriousness…
Source: Orthodox Christian Studies Center – Fordham University Click here or on the image below to view the PDF
Source: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America As our children go back to school, our youth fill our parish classrooms on Sunday, and we begin the Ecclesiastical Year, the Sept.-Oct. edition of The WORD is now available online and offers the following articles for our spiritual nourishment: Download the PDF Keynote Address at the General Assembly by His Eminence Metropolitan Saba The Philokalia: The Spiritual Life of the Priest by Metropolitan Basilios of Australia & New Zealand The Gospel in the Ashes by Fr. Samer Youssef Oratorical Festival Judges’ Choice 2025 by Sophia Griffith News from the Archdiocese Office: information about Board of…
Source: Orthodox Church in America SPRINGFIELD, VA [OCA] The Orthodox Church in America’s Office of Pastoral Life has announced that its Clergy Wives Ministry has been awarded a grant of $3,000 from the Elsie Skvir Ganister Foundation Fund at the First Community Foundation Partnership of Pennsylvania. The first-ever In-Person Clergy Wives Retreat is scheduled to take place at St. Tikhon’s Monastery from July 27–30, 2026. The grant will help fund rooms for approximately forty of the clergy wives attendees from across the Orthodox Church in America, making participation more accessible for clergy wives who may not otherwise be able to come. The Elsie Skvir Ganister Foundation Fund supports…