Source: Orthodox Christian Laity Editor’s Note: Pan-Orthodox Cleveland is the setting for the 9th meeting of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops charged with bringing the separate Orthodox ethnic divisions together. They meet the first week in October. They are really meeting under the radar. Many faithful people actively involved in the life of the church in Cleveland do not even know that the meeting is taking place. What a shame! Over fifty bishops meet and the church faithful at large do not have access to their discussions. Why are not the minutes, results of surveys and discussions made public? If the bishops got out into the…
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Source: Orthodox Christian Laity It is time for the Orthodox Christian laity to speak up and to act. We come to the end of the ecclesiastical year and the beginning of a new one. This is a time for serious reflection concerning canonical leadership and responsibilities related to church governance. What do we expect from the Assembly of Bishops? We begin the new ecclesiastical year with the meeting of the Assembly of Bishops which will take place in Cleveland on October 1-4, 2018. As of late August, there is no information on the Assembly’s web site about the meeting. The…
Source: Orthodox Christian Laity Orthodox Christian Laity prayerfully remembers and honors the memory of the Servant of God, Jeffrey Semon of Monroe, Connecticut, who fell asleep in the Lord 2017. Mr. Semon was a supporter of Orthodox Christian Laity and honored our mission by remembering OCL in his will. May His Memory be Eternal! Twenty four people and organizations were named in his estate. We are grateful and thankful to be one of the recipients of his gifts.
Source: Voyage Chicago Magazine Today we’d like to introduce you to George Matsoukas and George Karcazes. Orthodox Christian Laity is a movement and catalyst supported and founded by laypersons who are members of the Orthodox Christian faith. In the United States, the Orthodox Christian faith is seen as a fragmented, ethnic Church made up of 14 different ethnic jurisdictions… i.e. Greek, Russian Romanian, Serbian, Antiochian, etc. In reality, they are one faith and have been in the USA for over 200 years. Missionary Russian monks, led by St Herman of Alaska, established the Orthodox Mission in Kodiak, Alaska in 1794.…
Source: Orthodox Christian Laity Roy Snyder, George Matsoukas and George Karcazes at the OCL Display Booth. They attended the opening session of the 19th All American Council in St. Louis, Missouri on July 24, and were inspired by the tribute to Fr Alexander Schmemmen and the theme of the conference: “For the Life of the World”. Metropoliam Tihkon presented his vision of the Four Pillars as a guide for the future of the OCA.
Source: Orthodox Christian Laity In Support of Efstathios (Steve) G. Valiotis: Time for other appointed leaders of GOA to Speak Up for the Autocephaly of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese In a letter addressed to Mr. Valiotis, George Matsoukas, Executive Director of Orthodox Christian Laity, wrote: “On behalf of the board of directors, advisory board, supporters and friends of Orthodox Christian Laity, thank you for expressing your thoughts on the present condition of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and offering positive suggestions for the future of the Orthodox Christian Church in the United States. Your remarks upon receiving an honorary degree…
Source: Orthodox Christian Laity “He who only England knows, knows not England.” – Rudyard Kipling The month of July 1992 brought me into contact with two events in the life of Eastern Orthodoxy in the United States that provided me with the opportunity to reflect and pray. As Executive Vice President of Orthodox Christian Laity (OCL), I was privileged to be an observer and provide OCL workshops at the 31st Biennial Clergy-Laity Congress of the Greek Orthodox Church in New Orleans (July 3-9, 1992), and then to be an observer and exhibition participant at the 10th All American Council of the…
Source: Orthodox Christian Laity I served on my Parish Council for more than twenty years; three as President. I also represented my Parish as a lay delegate to ten Clergy-Laity Congresses. I no longer serve on our Parish Council. Although I was removed from a volunteer position on our Stewardship Committee for sending an entirely truthful and accurate “Letter to the Editor” of The National Herald, I was still asked to come back and advise our Parish Delegates about what they should say and do at the Boston Congress as delegates to the Congress. In summary, the following was my…
Source: Orthodox Christian Laity Saturday of Lazarus The Saturday of Lazarus and Palm Sunday precede and foreshadow the events of Holy Week. In addition to showing Christ’s divinity, the feast of the Resurrection of Lazarus is a prophecy of the resurrection of Christ and all the dead for all time. The events of Holy Week are overwhelming, but in the end, the light of Christ prevails. There is hope! It is in this Season of Hope that I reflect upon my experience of witnessing the Enthronement of the Metropolitan of Chicago, Nathanael, on March 24, 2018. I am hopeful, because…
Source: Orthodox Christian Laity On March 25, 2018, George Karcazes (President) and George Matsoukas (Executive Director) visited the Orthodox Christian Laity Archives housed in the Special Collections Community Archives of Richardson Library located on the main downtown campus of DePaul University, Chicago, IL. They discussed the contents of the 34 boxes of materials and how emails and digital media can become part of the collection. An overview of the collection can be accessed at: https://libguides.depaul.edu/ld.php?content_id=10135894.
Source: Orthodox Christian Laity OCL President, George Karcazes and Executive Director, George Matsoukas, along with other members, attended the Enthronement of Metropolitan Nathanael at Annunciation Cathedral in Chicago on Saturday, March 23, 2018, and received the new Metropolitan’s blessing of the congregation.