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Child of Governance

by Rev. Fr. Charles Joanides Twenty years ago, I was hired by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese (GOA) to develop an outreach ministry to intermarried couples and their families, otherwise labeled with descriptors like interfaith, inter-Christian, inter-Christian and intercultural couples. The reason why this subject was given special attention was because 85% or more of Greek Orthodox were intermarrying. Today, this static has not dramatically changed. One of my first tasks was to review what information existed from an Orthodox perspective on the subject. What I discovered was a small body of literature written essentially by theologians for other theologians. Conspicuously…

Source: Observer.com By John R. Schindler Originally published on November 29, 2017 One of the more interesting aspects of Cold War 2.0 is the ideological struggle between the postmodern West and Russia—a struggle that most Westerners deny even exists. President Barack Obama, after Moscow seized Crimea in early 2014, pronounced that there was nothing big afoot: “After all, unlike the Soviet Union, Russia leads no bloc of nations, no global ideology.” Obama’s statement was wrong then, and it’s even more wrong now. As I’ve explained, there is an undeniable ideological struggle between Vladimir Putin’s neo-traditionalist Russia and the post-modern West—one that prominent Russians talk about all…

Source: Orthodox Christian Laity “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”  (Hebrews 13:8) Orthodox Christian Laity (OCL) was organized 30 years ago in the Northbrook, Illinois home of Jim and Mary Koulogeorge.  Orthodox Christians from different parts of the USA gathered, because they had concerns about accountability and oversight in matters of Church governance based on events occurring in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese during the 1980’s.   Together, they established an independent, educational ministry, dedicated to promoting renewal in the Orthodox Christian Church.   By 1993, the blueprint for such a renewal was published in book form as Project…

Does Christianity Need Another Luther or Another Reformation? A Catholic Perspective Source: Insidesources.com Posted on October 29, 2017 by The Rev. Andre Brouillette Martin Luther was a man passionate for God and the Word of God. As an Augustinian monk, a Catholic priest, and a theology professor, he scrutinized and taught the Bible, and was enamored with Scripture. His intellectual endeavor met with existential questions he was harboring. A central quest for him was that of salvation: What do I need to be saved? This question pursued him as a man aware of his sinfulness; what is the meaning of one’s struggle…

Source: The National Herald By Theodoros Kalmoukos The issue of the salaries and benefits of the clergy comes up very often for discussion in many if not all parishes, and certainly at various gatherings of Greek-Americans through the country. Something has to be done to review this issue, because the way we are going, fewer and fewer parishes will be able to afford the high salaries and the demands of many of our priests. Let me say that I have great respect and honor for those faithful, humble, and ethical priests and bishops, no matter in what corner of the…

Source: Orthodox Christian Laity The eighth gathering of the Assembly of Bishops of the USA took place in Garfield, New Jersey, on October 3-5, 2017.  Thirty-two Bishops out of the 52 Bishops were present.  The Assemblies were authorized in 2008, and it is now 2017.  They were authorized by all the Patriarchs and Autonomous Heads of Orthodox Churches with the charge to make the uncanonical structure in the lands beyond the ancient Roman Empire canonical.  In the United States, there exist  14 parallel jurisdictions based on ethnicity and managed by Patriarchs in foreign lands.  The exception is the Orthodox Church…

Source: Orthodox Christian Laity I am struck by the comment attributed to His Eminence that there are many millionaires who can pay off the debt of the Archdiocese. I am sure that this is true. It is also true that many millionaires, and even some billionaires, have been supplementing the monies received from parishes to cover the expenses of the Archdiocese for years. The sad reality is that those donors neither requested nor were provided the transparency and accountability that their substantial financial support deserved. In a previous comment, Fr. Steven Vlahos referred to OCL’s 30 year-old educational and advocacy…

Source: The Word Logically, one should probably begin an essay with this title by expounding the historical background of the Church in our corner of the world. This information, however, is easily available elsewhere. My aim instead is to discuss the current situation, and what, if any, change is on the horizon. Since my childhood (I was born in the middle of the previous century), I have been told that we Orthodox Christians (that is, the Church of the ancient Seven Ecumenical Councils) are sacramentally one, but on account of a multitude of historical factors, exist in North America in…

Source: Orthodox Christian Laity The Recognition Programs Coordinator of iUniverse has informed George E. Matsoukas that his book, A Church in Captivity: The Greek Orthodox Church of America, is now part of the Reader’s Choice Recognition Program.  Upon its publication in July 2008,  iUniverse honored the publication with its selection as an Editor’s Choice book.  The book is also included in the Spring Arbor database catalog of Christian Bookstore vendors. Reviews of “A Church in Captivity: The Greek Orthodox Church of America” “These personal essays … are recommended reading for any … Christian interested in the perspective of an objective protagonist of recent Orthodox Church history in America.  The author is to…

Source: Estiator by P.S. MAKRIAS Although things are transpiring in the usual secrecy, all signs point to serious developments in the Church. These events have the characteristics of an underlying crisis that reached a climax with the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s unexpected arbitrary decision not to recognize the “triprosopon” (a three-person list of candidates for election to the episcopate), and as a result, the Archdiocese’s Charter was violated in regards to filling the vacancy in the Metropolis of Chicago; the very same Charter that the Patriarchate imposed upon the Archdiocese of America, abolishing its cohesion and creating individual fiefdoms that are not under the Archbishop’s…

Source: Estiator by P.S. MAKRIAS The matter of replacing Archbishop Demetrios was discussed last month in Constantinople in conjunction with the crisis that broke out following the Patriarchate’s decision regarding the vacant see of the Metropolis of Chicago. The National Herald reported that it was proposed to Archbishop Demetrios that he resign. The Archdiocese denied this report, but the newspaper insists on the accuracy of its information. It’s much easier for us to believe the newspaper. However, regardless of who is telling the truth, we, too, believe that it’s time for Archbishop Demetrios to hand over his position to another prelate. The Archbishop…

Source: The National Herald By Theodoros Kalmoukos The message recently sent by His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America to submit explanations about the Archdiocese’s finances immediately, to the patriarch and the Patriarchate’s Holy Synod, as The National Herald reported, was certainly ominous. Beyond the specific directive, the patriarch’s decision, communicated directly by him, clearly indicates that the time has come for Archbishop Demetrios to depart willingly and spend his remaining years in peace and quiet. It was a way for the patriarch to tell his archbishop to step down, rather than be dethroned,…

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