Browsing: Governance & Unity News

Source: Notes on Arab Orthodoxy Arabic original here. Note that in Arabic, the word for “synod” and “council” is the same. For a succinct expression of a similar understanding of primacy by a medieval patriarch of Antioch, seehere. For more discussions of Antiochian ecclesiology, see here andhere. The Holy Synod It is the gathering  of the regional church, which they call the local church, and in most churches it is made up of their bishops. For example, the churches gathered around the patriarch of Antioch are called the Antiochian Church, those around the patriarch of Alexandria the Church of Alexandria,…

Source: Change.org Petitioning Secretariat for the Preparation of the Great and Holy Council Centre Orthodoxe, Chambesy The Pan-Orthodox Council will meet in Crete at Pentecost. Its voting members will consist of hierarchs from each of the fourteen autocephalous churches. Those delegates will be accompanied by non-voting consultants that may include clergy, monastic, and/or lay participants, with no guarantee that any of them will be female. As a result, the Council is structured in such a way that women—who comprise at least 50% of Orthodox congregations—will have virtually no opportunity to make a substantive contribution on matters that affect the entire body…

Source: Orthodox Church in America DALLAS, TX [OCA]  The Enthronement of His Grace, Bishop Alexander as the second Bishop of Dallas and the South will be celebrated at Saint Seraphim Cathedral, 4112 Throckmorton, Dallas, TX on Saturday, June 11, 2016.  [See related story.] Canonically elected by the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America during their Spring Session on March 29, 2016, Bishop Alexander succeeds His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri, who in retirement fell asleep in the Lord at the age of 87 on August 28, 2011. The celebration will begin on Friday, June 10, with a reception…

Source: OrthodoxOutpost.com By Andrew Estocin May is the month for college graduations. It is a time of new beginnings for Orthodox Christian college students across the country as they transition out of campus life and into adulthood.   Graduation season is also an opportunity to look at Orthodox campus ministry in America and its well-being.   The health of campus ministry is a key indicator of the future health of Orthodoxy in America. College students are by far one of the most at-risk groups in the Orthodox Church today.  Young men and women on college campuses are confronted with an environment that…

Source: Ancient Faith Ministries Live Call-in Programs Live call-in shows are broadcast most Sundays at 8pm Eastern / 5pm Pacific Call in to 1-855-AFRADIO (1-855-237-2346) during the show. Ancient Faith Radio is almost entirely listener-supported. Your monetary assistance is vital to our ongoing existence. Please consider making a donation today. Upcoming program: May 8 Faith Enouraged Live – Program archives The Great Council of the Orthodox Church with Fr. Dn. John Chryssavgis and Fr. Alexander Rentel Faith Encouraged Live features interviews with prominent Orthodox individuals on contemporary topics. It also includes reflections and commentary by host Fr. Barnabas Powell, as well as…

Source: Public Orthodoxy by Rev. Dr. Radu Bordeianu, Will Cohen, Rev. Dr. Nicholas Denysenko, Brandon Gallaher, Rev. Dr. D. Oliver Herbel, and Kerry San Chirico Among the issues to be heard by the Orthodox Churches at the June 2016 Great and Holy Council in Crete is the situation of the Orthodox diaspora. The Council will be working with the document on the diaspora promulgated by the fourth pre-conciliar gathering in Chambésy in June 2009. This document called for a swift canonical resolution to the current organization of the Church in the regions of the diaspora so it accords with Orthodox…

Source: MYSTAGOGY Announcement of the Synaxis of the Primates of the Orthodox Churches (01/27/2016) (Read text here in English) The items officially approved for referral to and adoption by the Holy and Great Synod are: The Mission of the Orthodox Church in the Contemporary World (Read text here in Greek and English) The Orthodox Diaspora, Autonomy and its Manner of Proclamation (Read text here in Greek and English) The Sacrament of Marriage and its Impediments (Read text here in Greek and English here and here) The Significance of Fasting and its Application Today (Read text here in Greek and English here and here) Relations…

Source: Orthodox Observer Originally issued on March 20, 2016. † Bartholomew By the Mercy of God Archbishop of Constantinople,New-Rome, and Ecumenical Patriarch to the Plenitude of the Church, Grace and Peace from God Our holy Orthodox Church, adorned in purple and fine linen by the blood of her martyrs, the tears of her Saints, and the struggles and sacrifices of her confessors of faith, celebrates today her name day.  Following a century-long struggle, this day was appropriately identified as the Sunday of Orthodoxy, marking the day in which truth shone and triumphed over falsehood through the veneration of holy  icons…

Source: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Originally published on September 29, 1977 Introduction The agenda for the forthcoming Great and Holy Council of the Orthodox Church was formulated by the Pre-Synodal Pan-Orthodox Conference, in Chambesy, Geneva, November 21-28, 1976. At the recommendation of His Eminence Metropolitan Meliton, chairman of the Conference, and at the invitation of His Eminence Archbishop Iakovos, co-chairman of our Consultation, the Orthodox-Roman Catholic Consultation in the USA discussed this agenda during its meeting in Washington, D.C., September 28-29, 1977. The Consultation welcomed the agenda as an important step toward the future Great and Holy Council…

Source: Orthodox Theological Society in America Great and Holy Monday Dear Fathers, Members of OTSA, and Friends: Several weeks ago, you received a “save the date” announcement for our upcoming conference, (Friday May 27-Saturday May 28), in which we will be discussing the papers that have been written by many of our members and friends, in anticipation of the Great and Holy Council.  We would like at this time to provide you with a registration site, where you may see the pertinent information for the conference, register for it, and also (if you would like, and so long as there is…

Source:  American Orthodox Institute / Touchstone Magazine (May/June 2016) Eastern Union The Orthodox Dilemma: Personal Reflections On Global Pan-Orthodox Christian Conciliar Unity George Alexander OCP Publications, 2015; 202 pages, $12.00, paperback By John G. Panagiotou In George Alexander’s “The Orthodox Dilemma” the reader is given a highly accessible overview of the history, current situation, and possible future of Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy. Through personal vignettes and historical illustrations, the writer, himself Oriental Orthodox, seeks to explain and address how the Orthodox Churches have found themselves in their present circumstances. To those with a relatively undeveloped knowledge of Eastern Christianity, many examples…

Source: Orthodox Christian Laity Lent is coming to an end.  We are preparing for Holy Week and Pascha.  The liturgical cycle will turn toward Pentecost.    This Pentecost, June 19, will be different from other celebrations.  We are praying and looking forward to the opening sessions of the Holy and Great Council.  This meeting has been 1200 years in waiting, and its agenda has taken 80 years to prepare. This council is a turning point in world Orthodox Christianity and indeed the entire Christian world.  Bringing the bishops to Chania, Crete has not been an easy task.  The Patriarchs, autocephalous and…