Source: Public Orthodoxy by Mark Arey As the last General Secretary of SCOBA (the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas) and the first Secretary (albeit for less than an hour) of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America, I have always marveled at the ‘Golden Age’ syndrome around “Ligonier” of many Orthodox Christians when it comes to Orthodox unity in the Western Hemisphere. There are still many who believe that the Ligonier gathering in 1994 of most of the Orthodox Bishops in America (represented by SCOBA primates) was an inflection point for Orthodoxy in…
Browsing: America
Source: US News & World Report Leaders in the Orthodox Church say the religion may need to adapt to contemporary times to remain relevant. By Sintia Radu, Staff Writer A season of religious holidays around the world moves into higher gear on Wednesday with the observance of one of the most important saints in the Orthodox Church, a person whose gift-giving legacy is partially tied to the birth of the Santa Claus legend in the U.S.and Father Christmas in the U.K. But with the arrival of St. Nicholas Day – observed on Dec. 6 in Western Christian nations but on different December days…
Rev. Dr. Frank Marangos – FINDING OUR VOICE: Orthodox Leadership for the 21st Century Rev. Fr. Hans Jacobse – THE CHALLENGE OF SECULARISM IN THE LOCAL PARISH Dr Frances Kostarelos, PhD – RELIGIOUS PLURALISM & FUNDAMENTALISM & CONTESTED IDENTITIES IN THE GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH IN AMERICA His Grace, Bishop PAUL (Gassios) PROGRESS AND PROSPECT OF THE WORK OF THE ASSEMBLY OF BISHOPS AS THEY WORK OF THE UNITY OF THE ORTHODOX IN THE USA AND CANONICAL GOOD ORDER Thanks to John Maddex of Ancient Faith Ministries for recording the sessions and making them available!
Source: Catalogue of St. Elisabeth Convent Most people are aware that the Norse explorer Leif Eriksson was the first European to reach America, some 500 years before Christopher Columbus, but very few know he arrived as part of a Christian mission. Fewer still realize Leif Eriksson was an Orthodox Christian. Having become a hirdman (guard) of the royal army of King Olaf Tryggvason in Norway, Leif had himself accepted baptism into the Christian faith, and had received from the King orders to travel to Greenland with a priest in order to convert the Norse settlements there. When their ships were…
Holy Resurrection Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in Chicago, Illinois is the setting for the Conference held on Saturday, October 28, 2017. Theme: “Orthodox Christianity in America: Where are we Going? The presentations will soon be available on Ancient Faith Radio and the OCL website. Please check back for updates. CLICK HERE to view the power point presentation of Fr Frank Marangos’ presentation: Finding Our Voice: Orthodox Leadership for the 21st Century. View the photo gallery below: OCL Celebrates 30 Years with Joy, Gratitude, Fellowship and Thoughful, Relevant Presentations
Source: Center for Religious Freedom – Hudson Institute Over the last two thousand years, the Church of Antioch has played a major role in the formation and development of Christian theology and philosophy. Today the Church is facing tremendous challenges in its native homeland, Syria. Six years after the beginning of the Syrian civil war, the country is in ruins and millions of its citizens have become refugees or are internally displaced within Syria. The ongoing war has flamed sectarian tensions that threaten the existence of Christianity in one of its earliest locations. Though suffering at home, the Church of…
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: Public Orthodoxy by Richard Barrett Who gets to decide what it means to be Orthodox in America? Greeks? Russians? Converts? Foreign bishops? How do “cradle” and convert identities come together – or not? How do “diaspora” narratives that tie Orthodoxy to nationalism translate in an American context? What does Orthodoxy mean in the American religious marketplace of ideas? Is it really the fastest growing religious group in America, as some have claimed, or is it a solution looking for a problem? Perhaps the most important–and difficult–question is, “Will there ever be an American Orthodoxy?” Many Orthodox in America, of course,…
Source: The New York Times By ROD DREHER According to Genesis 1, in four days, God made the heavens, the earth and all the vegetation upon it. But four days after Anthony Scaramucci’s filthy tirade went public, Team Trump’s evangelical all-stars — pastors and prominent laity who hustle noisily around the Oval Office trying to find an amen corner — still had not figured out what to say. Fortunately, the White House relieved them of that onerous task by firing Mr. Scaramucci — not, please note, on the president’s initiative, but rather at the request of John Kelly, the new chief…
Source: MYSTAGOGY Let us now turn our gaze from the East to the far West, i.e., to America. About 150 years ago, Orthodox people of every nationality began to come to this New World, first daring individuals, then small groups, until in our days they have reached, by immigration and by birth, a number equal at least to the number of Episcopalians in the United States. The first settlers were very simple people, hard workers, farmers. They were just the kind of people who were authentic bearers of that threefold Christian ideal, i.e., of spiritual vision, of moral discipline and…
Source: The Baltimore Sun By Jonathan M. Pitts, Contact Reporter The Baltimore Sun Growing up a Southern Baptist in eastern Tennessee, Brent Gilbert says, he never realized there were other ways to worship. He figured everyone knew the best church music was contemporary. He was sure there was a 45-minute pastor’s sermon at the heart of every Sunday service. And didn’t all Christians agree that religious art, symbols and rituals were relics of a less desirable past? Then he encountered the ancient faith that would change his life. In the formal liturgy, rituals and language of the Greek Orthodox Church, he…
Source: Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America NEW YORK – In accordance with Article 14 of the Charter of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and the pertinent Regulations of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America (Advisory and Consultative Role in Hierarchical Elections) and in light of the vacancy in the Holy Metropolis of Chicago, the Archdiocese publishes the list of candidates eligible for election to the Office of Metropolitan or Auxiliary Bishop. The list includes the names of Auxiliary Bishops, in order of ordination to the Episcopacy; and the names of other clergy in alphabetical order. This list has recently been…