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Church must speak for human unity, says Greek Orthodox theologian

January 21, 2013 Leave a Comment
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Source: Ekklesia By agency reporter “It is impossible to speak exclusively for the unity of the church and be indifferent about the unity of humankind,” said Dr Petros Vassiliadis, at an academic gathering held in his honour in Thessaloniki, Greece. Vassiliadis, a Greek Orthodox theologian and formerly a representative of the Church of Greece on the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission for World Mission and Evangelism (CWME), called for a broader understanding of ecumenical … [Read more...]

Michael Jaharis’ Forceful Speech about Issues Affecting Archdiocese

December 13, 2012 2 Comments
National Herald logo

Council Vice Chair is Diligent in Providing Detailed Comments By Theodore Kalmoukos Translated from the original Greek BOSTON, MA – Michael Jaharis, Vice Chairman of the Archdiocesan Council of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, addressed the body in its last meeting in diligent and documented way about the essential and serious administrative problems of the Archdiocese. Initially, Jaharis had planned to deliver his speech at the 41st Clergy-Laity Congress in Phoenix, AZ last … [Read more...]

Ecclesiology of Community and the Need for Tangible Unity in North America

November 27, 2012 Leave a Comment
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Keynote Address by Bishop Maxim (Vasiljevic) of the Western American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church in North and South America at OCL’s 25th Anniversary Celebration, Washington DC – October 27, 2012 I take this paper as an opportunity to clarify the question of ecclesiology of community, which can provide more tangible unity in the Orthodox Church in North America. But before I begin, I must take a moment to express my gratitude to the OCL for inviting me and for its energetic input … [Read more...]

“OCA. We are a city on a hill” – Svetlana Vais interviews Mark Stokoe

October 15, 2012 1 Comment
Mark Stokoe

  Source: Portal-Credo.Ru 1. With your permission, Mark, tell me, based solely on your personal experience, to what extent can the internal life of the church can be presented for public discussion? I do not mean the parish meetings and Council -- the issue is specific to the press. Especially the Internet - with its almost instantaneous reaction. Do you personally have any criteria? St. Mark the Evangelist - not Mark Stokoe - said: "There is nothing hidden that will not be … [Read more...]

A Possible Scenario – “The Celebration of the First Anniversary of the Autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of the United States of America”

September 21, 2012 Leave a Comment
Orthodox Christian Laity (OCL)

[Text of a presentation delivered by His Eminence, Archbishop Nathaniel at the Orthodox Christian Laity Conference, October 20, 2001] “The Celebration of the First Anniversary of the Autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of the United States of America & The Establishment of the Patriarchate” It has been one year since the recognition of the autocephaly of The Orthodox Church of The United States of America. The Church now has a unified voice in the person of His Holiness, The Patriarch, … [Read more...]

A Vision of A Unified Church In North America – Archbishop Nathaniel of Detroit [VIDEO]

July 23, 2012 Leave a Comment
Orthodox Christian Laity (OCL)

As part of the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Orthodox Christian Laity, we present to you a two part video interview: A Vision of A Unified Church In North America - with Archbishop Nathaniel of Detroit. Recorded at the 20th Annual Meeting of OCL, November 2007. Part 1     Part 2             … [Read more...]

The Orthodox Church of Tomorrow – Revisited

June 7, 2012 Leave a Comment
john-peck

Source: American Orthodox Institute Blog Four years ago Fr. John Peck published the essay below and boy did he get hammered. Creativity, a characteristic you would want to see in priests, is feared because sometimes it gets too close to exposing the sheer paucity of substantive ideas and compelling engagement with the larger culture that the Church, in order to be Church, should cultivate in their leaders. The truth is we have got some very fine men serving as priests. The other truth is that … [Read more...]

Can a Fable of Pan-Orthodoxy in America Become Reality?

May 3, 2012 Leave a Comment
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Source: The National Herald My fable begins with four babies being born to four families, all Orthodox. Two live on one block, the others one block over. In fact, two were born on the same day, in the same hospital (this last part is true). Yet all four will be baptized in separate parishes and live their whole lives without ever taking Holy Communion together. Strangers at the Chalice. They will attend each other’s birthday parties; the same schools, sports teams, videogame groups, and … [Read more...]

A Hierarchal Reflection: Smaller Parishes Need More Outreach in Order to Grow

April 30, 2012 1 Comment
Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver

Source: Greek Orthodox Observer Looking across our vast nation, we can say that our Orthodox Church has seen incremental growth, especially in the developing urban areas. On the other hand, we realize that some of the smaller parishes of our Archdiocese are either not growing or are losing numbers of parishioners. For example, the once-thriving Holy Trinity parish in Grand Island, Nebraska, is no longer in existence. While it is an exception, unfortunately, Holy Trinity is not unique. In … [Read more...]

Why Orthodox Hierarchs Should Not Get Involved With Politics

April 19, 2012 Leave a Comment
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On at least three occasions in recent years, hierarchs of various Orthodox Churches in the United States have publicly involved themselves in political discourse: first, in 2008 the California Orthodox Bishops issued a statement on Proposition 8 [i]; second, since 2009 Metropolitan Jonah of the Orthodox Church in America has officially participated in the annual March for Life in Washington DC [ii]; and third, in 2012 the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops published a statement of … [Read more...]