Source: Orthodox Church in America GATINEAU, QUEBEC [OCA] – Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko, Dean Emeritus of Saint Vladimir’s Seminary, Yonkers, NY, was presented with the rarely awarded Saint Innocent Award, Gold Class, by His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon on behalf of the Holy Synod of Bishops and the Orthodox Church in America. The award, which was presented on August 24, 2013—the 50th anniversary of Father Thomas’ ordination to the priesthood by His Eminence, the late Archbishop [later Metropolitan] Ireney—was given in recognition of Father Thomas’ outstanding service as a priest, teacher, seminary dean and writer who has had a deep influence for good…
Browsing: Orthodox News
Source: CantonRep.com By Charita Goshay CantonRep.com staff writer CANTON, OH — Talk to him for a bit, and it becomes apparent that the Very Rev. Stacey Richter is passionate about his faith. It wasn’t always the case. Once upon a time, the priest of Holy Assumption Orthodox Church at 2027 18th St. NE, was an atheist. A native of Winnipeg, Manitoba, in Canada, Richter and his twin brother were raised by a lapsed Catholic mother and an atheist stepfather. Their father, who lived nearby, also was an avowed atheist. “My dad was a militant atheist,” Richter said. “He really did…
Source: Ekathimerini Plans for a new highway threaten Profitis Ilias By Dimitris Rigopoulos Plans for a new highway are threatening one of the last surviving Greek Orthodox churches in the region of Izmir (Smyrna) in Turkey. Profitis Ilias (named after the Prophet Elias/Elijah, a revered figure for both Christians and Muslims) is a three-aisled basilica commissioned in 1846 by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Anthimus VI. Its dimensions are 10 by 19 meters and it has a quadrilateral rooftop. It lies on a prominent spot on the road to the suburb of Budjah, 2 kilometers southeast of the city center,…
Source: The National Herald Sara Polsky – Curbed.com NEW YORK – A Greek-American newspaper (The National Herald) earlier this year reported that Santiago Calatrava was the frontrunner to design the rebuilt Church of St. Nicholas downtown. The Post hears from multiple sources that the rumors are indeed true: out of a dozen finalists, Calatrava has been chosen for the project—though he hasn’t yet signed a contract, so it’s certainly possible that he’ll be out of the Archdiocese’s price range. The rebuilding of the church has been a matter of controversy for years. The original church was destroyed on 9/11 and…
Source: The Wall Street Journal By SAMUEL TADROS No one knows exactly when the Virgin Mary Church was built, but the fourth and fifth centuries are both possible options. In both cases, it was the time of the Byzantines. Egypt’s Coptic Church—to which this church in modern-day Delga belonged—had refused to bow to imperial power and Rome’s leadership over the nature of Christ. Constantinople was adamant it would force its will on the Copts. Two lines of popes claimed the Seat of Alexandria. One with imperial blessing sat in the open; the other, with his people’s support, often hid, moving from…
Source: Orthodox Church in America YONKERS, NY [SVOTS Communications] – “Every ten years Saint Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary is visited by a team that decides whether to renew the seminary’s accreditation, and we are inviting all our constituents to participate in the process,” said Dr. Peter Bouteneff, faculty member at the Seminary and Director of Institutional Assessment. Dr. Bouteneff explained that Saint Vladimir’s Seminary is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools in the US and Canada (ATS), and that the ATS would be making an on-site campus visit October 21–24, 2013, to interview students, alumni, faculty, staff, and trustees…
Source: Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney As the death toll from recent violent clashes in Egypt continues to climb with 556 now reported dead and thousands more injured Australia’s Egyptian community remains in shock. “We who stand for 80,000 Christian Egyptians in Australia are deeply saddened by events and the tragic loss of life in Egypt on Wednesday. No matter the difference in our political or religious stance, it is unacceptable to see such bloodshed and the destruction of public buildings and churches throughout Egypt,” the leaders of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Australia, Bishop Anba Suriel and Bishop Daniel said…
Source: The Algemeiner The Palestinian Christian Initiative, an anti-Israel Christian group in Israel, said it condemned an Israel Defense Force program aimed at recruiting Christian cadets. While Christians around the world praised the increased Christian enlistment in the Israeli Army, the group, known as Kairos Palestine, denounced the news. A statement from the group was posted by Palestinian site International Middle East Center, and highlighted on Sunday by anonymousblogger Elder of Ziyon. “Those who call for recruiting Christians to the occupation army do not represent us, do not represent our Churches, and do not represent the Christians. It seems that some of those who…
Source: Sofia Globe by The Sofia Globe staff The Bulgarian Orthodox Church Metropolitan of Sliven, Yoanikii, has issued a statement objecting to reported plans for a monument to Roman Catholic Pope John XXIII in the seaside town of Nessebur, saying that John XXIII did not deserve this and the move would create tensions between Orthodox Christians and Roman Catholics. John XXIII, Pope from October 1958 to June 1963, was Papal Nuncio to Bulgaria from 1925 to 1935. The plan for a statue of him to be erected at the isthmus of the town was inspired, according to the municipality, by him…
Source: The National Herald MERRICK, N.Y. – Fire officials are investigating a fire that caused heavy damage to St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church at 2421 Hewlett Ave. Flames could be seen shooting through the roof of the church the night of Aug. 9. Firefighters helped worshipers carry items out of the church building, trying to salvage what they could. There were no reports of any injuries. According the Nassau County Police, the fire started around 9:25 p.m. from a lit candle inside the church. The altar area inside church suffered smoke and water damage, however, the total damage to the…
Source: Virtue Online By Ralph H. Sidway, guest contributor Scarcely a day goes by now where we do not read of yet another in a constellation of initiatives being undertaken by both the Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian government on behalf of persecuted Christians and other victims in Syria, Egypt, and elsewhere in the world. For instance, on July 31 it was announced that a charitable drive launched at the end of June by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia had raised US$1.3 Million to assist victims of the Syrian armed conflict. That these funds will be distributed…
Source: The National Herald To the Editor: I write to reply to your irresponsible and unnecessarily vitriolic editorial in your May 25 edition entitled “Not Even the Greek Flag?” in support of your belief that a Greek Orthodox Church in the United States must regularly fly the Greek Flag along with the American and Patriarchal flags. You make a number of misleading, derogatory, and pejorative allegations. I will refer to only three. 1) As Fr. George Stephanopoulos states in his article concerning the name of the Greek Orthodox Church, the word “Greek” is not used to describe just the Orthodox…