Browsing: Governance & Unity News

Source: Orthodox Church in America SYOSSET, NY [OCA]  In a letter dated Friday, April 3, 2015, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon shared the intention of the Holy Synod of Bishops to continue the process regarding the revision of the Statute of the Orthodox Church in America and the presentation of the final draft at the 18th All-American Council[AAC] in Atlanta, GA July 20-24, 2015. The text of the letter may be accessed here. While weighing concerns that the time allocated for a Church-wide review of the revisions is insufficient, the members of the Holy Synod agreed to continue the current process…

Source: Pravmir On 31 March 2015, the first meeting of the bilateral commission which will consider the possibility of recognizing the hierarchy of the Russian Orthodox Old-Rite Church took place at the Moscow Spiritual Centre of the Old Believers of the Belokrinitsa branch in the Rogozhskaya Settlement. The commission was established on the initiative of Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations, and Metropolitan Korniliy of Moscow and All Russia, head of the Russian Orthodox Old-Rite Church. Representing the Moscow Patriarchate at the meeting were archpriest Vladislav Tsypin, professor of the Moscow Theological…

Source: Seeds of Hope – Orthodox Christian Healing & Counseling Pascha – a Reminder for All! from our Board of Directors and Advisors: It was Laity – Mary the mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, Salome, and John among others. As we approach Holy week and Pascha, Scriptures remind us, it was Laity at the cross and at the empty tomb – the first disciples to follow Jesus, proclaiming the Good News now for over 2,000 years.  Seeds of Hope, Orthodox Counseling & Healing continues to follow Jesus and His Holy commandment. Orthodox Laity are needed…

Source: Orthodox Christian Laity On February 20, 2015, Orthodox Christian Laity (OCL) hosted an Open Forum for interested clergy and laity in the Jacksonville/St Augustine, Florida area on the progress of the Assembly of Bishops as they finalize a blueprint for Orthodox Unity in the USA. Videos of the Forum at which His Eminence, Archbishop Nathaniel was the principal speaker, are available below: Part 1  Part 2 [subscribe2]

Source: Orthodox Church in America SYOSSET, NY [OCA]  In a document dated March 15, 2015, the members of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America offered a response to the Chairman and Secretary of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America with regard to the “Common Starting Point” for Canonical and Regional Planning. The text of the six-page document is available here. As noted in the document’s introduction, the response is “an expansion of the Preliminary Response which was offered by our Synod on September 17, 2014, during Assembly V in Dallas,”…

Source: Orthodox Church in America SYOSSET, NY [OCA]  The Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America held its spring session at the Chancery here March 17-20, 2015. The session was chaired by His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, who in his opening remarks thanked the members of the Holy Synod, the Chancery staff, and those who facilitate the Church’s boards, committees, commissions and departments for their work and ministry. After hearing the report on the work of ORSMA and SMPAC, the Holy Synod decided that all faculty, staff and administration members of the OCA’s seminaries, together with all faculty…

Source: Orthodox Church in America SYOSSET, NY [OCA]  The Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America will be held at the Chancery here from Tuesday, March 17 through Friday, March 20, 2015. According to Archpriest Eric G. Tosi, OCA Secretary, the members of the Holy Synod will undertake a thorough review of plans for the forthcoming 18th All-American Council, slated to be held in Atlanta, GA July 20-24, 2015.  They will also consider the nomination of Archimandrite Gerasim [Eliel] as Bishop of Dallas and the South and review materials related to Archbishop Seraphim. Synod members will offer…

Source: Orthodox Christian Laity Local advocates are needed.  Are you interested in being the Orthodox Christian Unity advocate in your parish community? If you are committed to the canonical order of an autocephalous, unified Orthodox Church in the USA, you can help this become a reality by: Becoming the “go-to person” in your community for the latest information on this topic; Networking with other parish advocates to develop ideas for ways to inform your fellow parishioners; Assisting your local clergy association to develop pan-Orthodox programs within your community; Providing clergy and parishioners with up-to-date information; Organizing information sessions for parishioners…

Source: Orthodox Church in America [SYOSSET, NY] The Holy Synod of Bishops recently blessed the general release of the revised Statute of the Orthodox Church in America for general review by the Church. The finalized revised Statute will be presented at the 18th All-American Council [AAC] in Atlanta, GA July 20-24, 2015. The proposed revised Statute, together with a letter of introduction from the Statute Revision Task Force is available. A side-by-side comparison of the old and new versions is included. Existing Statute Proposed Revised Statute Side-by-side Comparison “The faithful of the OCA are encouraged to read through the proposed…

Source: Greek Orthodox Christians for Truth and Reform A LETTER TO ONE OF OUR EDITORS FROM A GREEK ORTHODOX PRIEST Dear Editor, I miss Archbishop Iakovos dearly. As a Priest of 30 years, I feel compelled to write this, albeit with some degree of anonymity to protect myself (even though I have fully disclosed who I am to you). This is my confession that I feel most sorrowful for. The poor leadership that our GOA is plagued with is a multi-faceted problem that has its roots from the Seminary. The Church is suffering. If you don’t realize we are, you…

Source: Orthodox Christian Laity “How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in Unity.” Psalm 133:1 What a joy it is to hold our OCL meeting at the Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC), a truly pan-Orthodox outreach mission to the world.  The agency has had its struggles and triumphs, but working together in unity, they make a difference for Christian outreach.  Together with IOCC, they are examples of what we accomplish in unity.  Can you imagine if the Orthodox Christian Church in the USA was united –  what we can accomplish?  A unified Orthodox Christian Church would be…

Source: First Things THE GREAT COUNCIL OF THE ORTHODOX CHURCH IN 2016 by Rev. Dr. John Chryssavgis A Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church has been scheduled for 2016. In March of 2014, the leaders of all the autocephalous (independent) Orthodox Churches met in Istanbul, the sacred see of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, which historically (since at least the fifth century) coordinates such assemblies, facilitating unity while serving as a center of appeal among these churches. Arguably the foremost decision unanimously agreed upon at that assembly of church heads was the convocation of a Great Council in 2016, tentatively planned…