Byzantine, Texas

Amusingly, the town motto "Audentior" comes from Virgil: Tu ne cede malis, sed contra audentior ito (Yield thou not to adversity, but press on the more bravely). October 28, 2009 ( Daily Mail ) - Parents are being banned from playing with their children in council recreation areas because they have not been vetted by police. Mothers and fathers are being forced to watch their children from outside perimeter fences because of fears they could be paedophiles. Watford Council was branded a 'disgrace' yesterday after excluding parents from two fenced-off adventure playgrounds unless they first undergo criminal record checks. Children as young as five will instead be supervised by council 'play rangers' who have been cleared by the Criminal Records Bureau. Councillors insist they are merely following Government regulations and cannot allow adults to walk around playgrounds 'unchecked'. But furious parents attacked the move and threatened to boyco...

The Youth Equipped to Serve (YES) program is a part of FOCUS North America - The Fellowship of Orthodox Christians United to Serve.

NEW YORK ( SCOBA ) – His All Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew gave an audience yesterday Tuesday, Oct. 27, to the Orthodox Primates of the USA, most of whom were present the previous evening for the Ninth Annual Orthodox Prayer Service for the United Nations Community. Present at the audience were Archbishop Demetrios of America (Greek Orthodox Archdiocese); Metropolitan Philip (Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese); Metropolitan Christopher (Serbian Orthodox Archdiocese); Metropolitan Nicholas (Carpatho- Russian Diocese); Archbishop Nicolae (Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese); Metropolitan Jonah (Orthodox Church in America), Metropolitan Constantine (Ukrainian Orthodox Church in the USA); Bishop Ilia (Albanian Orthodox Diocese) and Archpriest Alexander Abramov (Representation of the Moscow Patriarchate in the USA). Archbishop Demetrios welcomed His All Holiness on behalf of the Primates. The remarks of His All Holiness follow: “We bring to you the greeting, the blessing, and the...

The Iconoclast theologian John the Grammarian and an Iconoclast bishop whitewash an image of Christ, from a 9th century Psalter. (H/T: Counterlight's Peculiars ) Moscow, October 28, ( Interfax ) – The Moscow House of Icon opens an exposition of Soviet leaflets and posters on anti-religious theme. Visitors will have a chance to watch documentaries from video archives showing destruction of churches in tragic years of “atheistic five-year plans,” the museum workers told Interfax-Religion. The exhibition will represent icons damaged by atheistic fighters in 1920s, including the Icon of Our Lady of the Sign dated by the 18th century, the surface with the Mother of God’s face is cut with stars. Another icon shows a piece of the Last Judgment composition dated by the 17th century. Moscow Region farmers used this icon as a bail in the cowshed for fifty years. The House of Icon opened in Moscow on September 18 on the initiative of a patron of arts to promote Orthodox icon painti...

October 26, 2009 ( OCA Communications [ PDF ]) - It is with great joy and thanksgiving to God that I tell of a historic moment in the life of the Monastery of St. Tikhon of Zadonsk. On the night of October 24th, 2009, I was elected Abbot of St. Tikhon's Monastery, America's oldest Orthodox monastery. This is the first time in 47 years that the Abbot was elected by the Brotherhood from within the fathers of the monastic community. The date for the installation as the Abbot of St. Tikhon’s Monastery is set for Saturday, January 23rd, 2010. We invite everyone to come to celebrate with us and participate in this monumental event which is important not only for the Monastery, but also for the entire American Orthodox Church, which the monastery is the flagship of and spiritual front runner. This historic change will enable our Brotherhood to grow in a new and unprecedented direction, operating as a Stavropegial, self-determining, autonomous Monastery, directly and exclusively u...

NEW YORK ( patriarchate.org ) – Last evening, Monday, October 26, His All Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew presided over the Ninth Annual Orthodox Prayer Service for the United Nations Community, at the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Archdiocesan Cathedral, the traditional site when the service is hosted by an Eastern Orthodox Church. The Ecumenical Patriarch was accompanied to the Service by Metropolitan Geron Athanasios of Chalcedon, Metropolitan Emmanuel of France, Metropolitan Ambrosios of Korea, and clergy and lay leaders of the Church of Constantinople. This Service is sponsored annually by the Joint Commission of the Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA) and the Standing Conference of the Oriental Orthodox Churches of America (SCOOCH). His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America welcomed His All Holiness and the assembled Hierarchs, Clergy, Ambassadors and Dignitaries of the UN Diplomatic Corps and laity to the Cathedral whic...

H/T: ROCOR United October 26, 2009 ( Daily Herald ) - For the first time in nearly 20 years, John Jaresko dusted off his robes to serve as a subdeacon during a service at the St. Andrew Ukrainian Orthodox Church on Sunday. It was, after all, the chance of a lifetime for Jaresko, 40, and for the church. Patriarch Filaret, the leader of nearly 15 million Ukrainian Christians worldwide, visited the Bloomingdale church and officiated Sunday's liturgy, his second and final ceremony since his arrival Friday night. "It's a wonderful experience," said Jaresko, president of the St. Andrew church board. "I grew up in the church and served with many archbishops in the metropolitan area. Now to serve with the Patriarch, it's a huge honor." Patriarch Filaret visited the United States to both meet with his faithful and promote the independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which today still remains under the Russian orthodox umbrella. The religious leade...

STOCKHOLM, October 26, 2009 ( Directions to Orthodox [from Life Site News]) - Representatives of the Catholic and Orthodox Churches in Sweden are joining conservative Lutherans in denouncing the recent decision by the Lutheran Church of Sweden to conduct homosexual "marriage" ceremonies, reports the Catholic News Agency. I n a joint statement Catholic and Orthodox church officials expressed "sadness" upon learning "about the decision by the synod of the Church of Sweden," which is the largest religious organization in the country. "In our churches and communities, we will not unite homosexual couples since it is in complete contradiction with the tradition of the church and our vision of creation," the statement added. It also stated that the decision "is a swing away not only from Christian tradition but also from the point of view on the nature of marriage which is typical of all religions." They noted that although dialogue wi...

( ROCOR Chicago ) - With the blessing of Bishop Peter of Cleveland, Administrator of the Diocese of Chicago & Mid-America, the Third Annual Diocesan Bell Ringing Exposition took place at St. Vladimir parish in Ann Arbor, MI October 24-25, 2009. The weekend began on Saturday afternoon with a bell ringing clinic led by Reader Alexander Kallaur. Reader Alexander has many years of experience ringing the bells in the large bell tower of Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville, NY and his presence added much value for all involved. Each of the gathered teams was able to practice their ringing technique under the watchful eye of Reader Alexander and receive specific instructions and suggestions on their approach to the Russian style of bell ringing. At the evening service on Saturday night many of the teams had the opportunity to practice their rings in the context of the Divine Services, the context in which the bells are meant to be rung. Both the parish set of bells were rung, as w...

The Carpatho-Russian Archdiocese has really ramped up their Internet presence this year. If you looked at their website last year and compared it to today you would think two different groups were being mistaken for one another. JOHNSTOWN, PA ( ACROD ) - The Diocesan Apostolate For Christian Education is pleased to announce that a seven-week on-line introductory class on Orthodox Christianity, Orthodoxy 101, will begin on Monday November 16, 2009. The class, led by Fr. Peter Paproski, will be broadcast live each week from St. John the Baptist Orthodox Church in Stratford Connecticut. The class will begin at 7:00 pm and will last approximately 90 minutes.. Those faithful living in the greater Bridgeport, Connecticut region are cordially invited to attend the class in person. Topics to be discussed will include, Salvation History, Holy Tradition, Church History, Doctrine and Dogma, Prayer, Ethics and Morality and discovering one's vocation in life. Time will be allowed at...

From OrthoCuban ... Yesterday I asked the question about why the early Christian monks did not fall into the trap of the modern separatist fundamentalists. After all, if you read Church history, the monastic movement started from some of the same concerns the Anabaptists had about the purity of the Church and the failure of Christians to practice, or at least try to live, a life of increasing Christian perfection. So, the monastic movement could have easily fallen into the same trap. And, when the monastic movement started the Church was not yet approved by the empire, so it would have been rather easy for them to leave without the rest of the Church being able to do much about it. (The previous sentence is for those who buy into imperial conspiracy theories.) Perhaps I should emphasize that my question is why the monastic movement did not fall into that trap. You see, the reality is that individual Christians are quite sinful and prone to behavior and thoughts that do not match th...

H/T: Again & Again

The AOI has a hard hitting editorial on Constantinople's rather laissez faire attitude on abortion on the one side and the "grand super-governmental, trans-national solutions" direction the Ecumenical Patriarchate is backing. I highly recommend reading and reflection. It is interesting to note that at the same time the AOI has brought this issue to the forefront, the Moscow Patriarchate has, over the last year in particular, made several unequivocally pro-life statements through it's External Church Relations department, in talks with Rome aimed at working together to defend the family, and from its bishops in interviews available online. Moscow is, of course, not alone. The OCA in the person of Met. Jonah has made made his stance clear as has the Antiochian archdiocese . Reading Andrew Estocin’s fine essay, “ Constantinople’s Moral Oversight ,” I was reminded once again of the long running institutional silence — a scandal really — from the Greek Orthodox Archdio...

St. Barbara's (OCA) in Fort Worth, TX hosted a lecture on "The End Times" given by Archpriest Dimitri Cozby. It was much less about dragons, fire, seals, and horsemen than was expected by many and a lot more about Mark 13 , personal and private eschatology, and submission. If a CD or DVD is made available I'll post an update.

H/T: Principium Unitatis OCT. 22, 2009 ( Zenit.org ) - A Bulgarian Orthodox prelate told Benedict XVI of his desire for unity, and his commitment to accelerate communion with the Catholic Church. At the end of Wednesday’s general audience, Bishop Tichon, head of the diocese for Central and Western Europe of the Patriarchate of Bulgaria, stated to the Pope, “We must find unity as soon as possible and finally celebrate together,” L’Osservatore Romano reported. “People don’t understand our divisions and our discussions,” the bishop stated. He affirmed that he will “not spare any efforts” to work for the quick restoration of “communion between Catholics and Orthodox.” Bishop Tichon said that “the theological dialogue that is going forward in these days in Cyprus is certainly important, but we should not be afraid to say that we must find as soon as possible the way to celebrate together.” “A Catholic will not become an Orthodox and vice versa, but we must approach the altar toget...

( Armenian WD ) - Upon the invitation of His Grace Bishop Serapion of the Diocese of Los Angeles, His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America, delivered a lecture on "The Priest and Contemporary Challenges," during the Southern California Coptic Clergy Assembly at St. Mark Coptic Church in Los Angeles, On October 15, 2009. Prior to the lecture, His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian offered the invocation and blessed the tables at the luncheon. Several dozen Coptic Clergy and Diocesan representatives, including the Very Rev. Fr. Dajad Dz. V. Yardemian, Vicar General of the Western Diocese participated in the lecture. His Grace Bishop Serapion in his welcoming remarks thanked His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian for accepting the invitation to lecture during the Coptic Clergy Assembly in Los Angeles, and praised him for his dedication to the mission of the Church. In his lecture, the Primate addre...

( OBL News ) - On Sunday 11th October 2009, His Beatitude Theodoros II, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa ordained His Grace Savvas of Burundi and Rwanda in the Holy Patriarchal Church of St Savvas the Sanctified in Alexandria. His Grace is the first Bishop of the newly established Diocese, which has two countries in its jurisdiction; two of the most suffering on the African continent and on the planet, as His Beatitude emphasized in his address saying that “this fact leads the steps of the Alexandrian Church to support the indigenous population even more and to offer its philanthropy through the establishment of this Diocese”. He went on to praise the service of the new hierarch to this day in the ancient Patriarchate in which he has held various successful positions. In his reply. His Grace Savvas expressed his gratitude for the great honour bestowed on him by His Beatitude, thanked clergy and lay people who came to his assistance as a priest, and promised to give o...

( RISU ) UZHHOROD — With the blessing of Bishop Tykhon of Philadelphia and Eastern Pennsylvania, on October 21, 2009, a delegation of the American Orthodox Autocephalous Church (USA) came to St. Cyril and Methodius’ Uzhhorod Ukrainian Theological Academy. RISU was informed by the press service of the academy that the delegation was received by its rector, Protopriest Viktor Bed, on the blessing of Metropolitan Volodymyr of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate. The meeting dealt with questions of establishing international cooperation in the area of scholarly-educational activities, the modernization of the educational process, and the government of the higher education of the Bologna Process for creating one European educational space.

( orthodox.org.ua ) On October 20, during the metropolitan's journey the Diocese of Odesa, the Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church visited the city of Balta, where he celebrated the Divine Liturgy and the rite of glorification among the saints of the Righteous Theodosius of Balta († March 9, 1845). Concelebrating to His Beatitude were: Metropolitan Agathangel of Odesa and Izmayil, Archbishop Ionafan of Tulchin and Bratslav, Archbishop Varfolomiy of Rivne and Ostroh, Archbishop Ioann of Kherson and Tavria, Schema-Bishop Alipiy, Bishop Petru of Hâncu, Vicar of the Metropolis of Chisinau, Bishop Alexy of Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi (Vicar of the Diocese of Odesa), Bishop Alexander of Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyi (Secretary for the Primate of the UOC), the diocesan clergy. After the Lesser Entrance at the Divine Liturgy the last memorial office (Litia) was said for the reposed righteous man. Then His Eminence Metropolitan Agathangel announced the decision of the Holy Synod of the U...

( mospat.ru ) On 22 October 2009, the Chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department Archbishop Hilarion of Volokolamsk met with His Beatitude Archbishop Chrysostomos II of Nea Justiniana and All Cyprus. Taking part in the meeting that took place in Paphos, Cyprus, was Metropolitan Isaiah (Kykkotis) of Tamassos. They discussed a wide range of the problems of mutual interest in the atmosphere of fraternal understanding. Archbishop Hilarion of Volokolamsk thanked the Primate of the Church of Cyprus for his care for the Russian-speaking flock living in Cyprus. Having noted that the need in spiritual care for the Russian-speaking population is increasing, he suggested that, following the established practice, the future clergymen of the Church of Cyprus should be sent to the theological schools of the Russian Orthodox Church to learn the Russian language and the traditions of the Russian Orthodoxy. The DECR MP Chairman informed the Primate of the Church of Cyprus that the Russian Or...

From Notes on Arab Orthodoxy ... The following article is about Orthodox and Greek Catholic iconography in the Middle East is taken from the November/December 1971 Saudi Aramco World , of all places. Actually, though, being Saudis, they like to throw their money around, so if you send them a request, they'll subscribe you to their magazine for free. It's worth it just for their photography, though sometimes they'll also have a good article. Arabs and Icons by Karen Lewis When most people think of icons they think of delicate Greek triptychs or the fabulous jeweled icons of Russia locked deep in the vaults of the Kremlin. Yet for almost three centuries, Arab artists, usually members of Christian religious orders, made icons in the Middle East. Icon is a Greek word meaning 'image' but on the basis of funeral portraits found in Fayyoum, Egypt, scholars have suggested that the iconic form itself may be Middle Eastern. The Arab icons are called "Melkite...

From Leitourgeia kai Qurbana ... Last Saturday, it being Great Vespers for the Feast of St. Luke, there were Old Testament readings appointed for the service. I normally leave those to other people so as to save my voice, but I got asked to do one of them anyway since we were short some people we might otherwise have had. “Just read off of the printout of the liturgical guide?” I asked. Yes, I was told, since the parish doesn’t own a Prophetologion . Well, long story short, nobody owns an English-language Prophetologion, because it doesn’t exist. There’s Archimandrite Ephrem (Lash)’s draft version online , and I’m increasingly coming to the conclusion that if I were to be involved in starting a mission I would argue passionately for the use of his translations, but obviously an electronic version just isn’t quite the same thing as actually having a printed liturgical book. Besides which, Fr. Ephrem has done the exactly right thing of translating liturgical texts as a self-referenti...

H/T: The Ochlophobist

From Adventures of an Orthodox Mom ... A while ago I had the blessing of spending quite a bit of quiet time venerating the holy relics of Elder Joseph the Hesychast, or Papouli, as many refer to him. Needless to say, after that time I requested his intercessions even more incessantly. Several weeks later we took a road trip to North Carolina. As my children slept peacefully in the back and my husband grew lost in his own thoughts, my mind stirred with story ideas. I had such an overwhelming desire to write a story about Elder Joseph. I prayed that he would plant a seed in my heart that would blossom forth into a story about his life and works. Indeed a story was born during our 5-hour trek on I-95. Although the story is not about his life or works, I believe that Papouli undeniably sowed that seed in my heart and I like to think he would be pleased with the outcome. I am delighted to present my first children's book, A Pocketful of Seeds , which will be available beginning ...

You can watch the video here . Alas, they don't make it possible to embed the video. The new website is really expansive - I keep finding new things to pore over so do go take a look if you haven't already.

Laissez les bons temps rouler!

It is interesting, and not at all unexpected, that, as the Anglican Communion continues to break up into an every more stultified ecclesiological construction, the East and West will do their best to catch as many souls as they can. The simple truth is that you cannot build a Church on the infirm ground of popular morality and expect to have anything to show for it because as soon as you set a pillar in place public opinion changes and the drafting tools have to come out again. People should not seek to change the Church to conform to their opinions, but should seek to be changed by the Church and its transformative message. October 20, 2009 ( Telegraph ) - T his is astonishing news. Pope Benedict XVI has created an entirely new Church structure for disaffected Anglicans that will allow them to worship together – using elements of Anglican liturgy – under the pastoral supervision of their own specially appointed bishop or senior priest. The Pope is now offering Anglicans worldwide “...

Vatican City, Oct 19, 2009 / 06:41 pm ( CNA ) - Several Italian newspapers speculated on Monday that the Vatican may welcome a large number of members from the Traditional Anglican Communion into the Catholic Church tomorrow. The group previously separated from the Anglican Communion due to issues such as the ordinations of both women and sexually active homosexuals. According to Giacomo Galeazzi from the Italian daily La Stampa, the press conference to be held tomorrow at the Vatican press office by Cardinal William Joseph Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith; and Archbishop Augustine DiNoia, Secretary of the Congregation for the Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments, will be the occasion in which the reception of the Anglican group, which claims to have some 500,000 members –among clergy and laity- will be officially announced. “The news story, already anticipated by some Australian media, could be finally confirmed during the press brief...

From OCANews ... Houston, TX Initial reports from the weekend meeting of the Local Synod and Board of Trustees of the Antiochian Archdiocese indicate at least two major decisions were taken: - The Board of Trustees agreed to an internal audit of the Archdiocese. Without the suggested complete audit of every parish in North America as was bandied about ( threatened ?). - The Synod agreed that Bishop Demetri (Khoury) has been officially “re-retired”, and will reside in Miami. To the delight of many readers I expect. Finally, the proposed “Manual of Hierarchical Responsibilities” was not presented to the Synod. Rather, a committee was formed under the leadership of Bishop Joseph to review it before final submission. Formal announcement of these and other decisions is expected on the Archdiocesan website Antiochian.org later this week. New York, NY Plans for the consecration of Fr. Michael Dahulich as the OCA Bishop of New York remain under consideration. A suggestion put fo...

( mospat.ru ) - On 17 October 2009, a plenary session of the Joint International Commission for the Theological Dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church began its work on Cyprus. Taking part in the session is a delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church headed by the Chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations Archbishop Hilarion of Volokolamsk. The participants will discuss the document on the role of the Pope of Rome in the first millennium prepared by the Joint Commission Coordinating Committee in October 2008. The Russian Orthodox Church presented its critical remarks to the Organizing Committee before the session. On Sunday, October 18, the ordained Orthodox members of the Commission celebrated the Divine Liturgy in Nicosia. His Beatitude Archbishop Chrysostom of Cyprus officiated in concelebration with the representatives of the Patriarchates of Constantinople, Alexandria, Moscow, Serbia, Romania, and Georgia, the Chu...

From AOI ... Hellenes Abroad News , one of the primary voices of the Greek lobby, reports that Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew will meet with SCOBA during his visit to the United States, which kicks off tomorrow. The article makes a startling assertion: Under the leadership of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew,  the worldwide Orthodox Church has moved significantly in the past year toward a canonical normalization of the Churches that exist in the so-called “Diaspora.”  This opportunity for the Members of SCOBA to meet with the Ecumenical Patriarch comes at a fortuitous time in the process. Considering that the newly constituted U.S. episcopal assembly is not scheduled to gather for its first meeting until May 2010, this is what we “barbarians” in America’s so-called “diaspora” refer to as  jumping the gun . Recall, to cite just one example, Antiochian Metropolitan Philip’s  critique  of Constantinople’s interpretation of Canon 28. Met. Philip argues that ...

Images from an enjoyable article and set of comments that are to be found here .

This unusual icon was commissioned by Elder Ambrose of Optina, and reflects the profound, childlike faith he had in the Mother of God. The Elder himself gave the icon its title (Sporitel’nitsa Khlebov-also translated as “Multiplier of Breads” or “She Who Ripens the Grain”), which conveys an image of the Mother of God as helping those in need to obtain their “daily bread”. The icon was sent to Saint Ambrose in 1890 by Abbess Ilaria of the Bolkhov Convent. Its original composition depicts the Mistress of Creation seated upon clouds, her arms outstretched in supplication; below is a harvested field on which are several sheaves of wheat.

H/T: AOI ( NCR ) - Archbishop Hilarion of Volokolamsk is a rising star in the Russian Orthodox Church. Only 43 and an accomplished scholar, liturgist and composer, earlier this year he was appointed head of the Church’s external relations (effectively their foreign minister), replacing Metropolitan Kirill, who was elected Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox in January. In mid-September, Archbishop Hilarion made his first visit to Rome in his new capacity. In an extensive e-mail interview Oct. 5, the archbishop discusses that visit, recent speculation that Catholic-Orthodox union could be imminent, and the challenges in furthering the current dialogue. How happy have you been with your visit to Rome, and what has it achieved in terms of furthering Catholic-Orthodox unity? It was my first official visit to Rome as chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Affairs, and I am satisfied with its results. First, it was a very eventful visit. For the few days I s...

(UOC-MP) - On October 12 at the residence of the Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in the Holy Dormition Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra His Beatitude Metropolitan Volodymyr of Kyiv and All Ukraine met with V. Rev. Leonid Kishkovsky, deputy head of the Office of External Affairs and Interchurch Relations of the OCA. In the course of the talks the aspects of the closer cooperation between the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the Orthodox Church in America were discussed. Taking part in the meeting were Secretary for the Primate of the UOC Bishop Alexander (Drabynko) of Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyi and the co-worker of the Department for External Church Relations of the UOC archpriest Valery Kravets.

( mospat.ru ) - An Orthodox church was consecrated in the territory of the Russian embassy in Beijing, People’s Republic of China, on 13 October 2009. It is dedicated to the Assumption of the Most Holy Mother of God. With the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, the consecration was celebrated by Bishop Mark of Yegoryevsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate secretariat for Russian Orthodox Church institutions abroad. According to a report from the Parish of the Assumption to the DECR communication service, the celebration was attended by the embassy official and staff as well as representatives of the Russian trade representation in China, their family members and Orthodox believers residing in Beijing. The Church of the Assumption was built in the territory of the Russian Orthodox Mission in Beijing in 1903 with the blessing of the head of the 18th Mission, Bishop Innokenty (Figurovsky) of Beijing. Earlier there was a Church of the Assumption in the ...

( st-catherine.ru ) - On Monday, October 12, 2009, His Beatitude, the Most Blessed JONAH of All America and Canada arrived in Tbilisi, Georgia for his first official visit to the Georgian Orthodox Church which will continue until Sunday, October 18, 2009. Accompanying His Beatititude in the official delegation were: Archimandrite Zacchaeus, OCA Representative to the Moscow Patriarchate; Archpriest Alexander Garklavs, OCA Chancellor Protodeacon Kirill Sokolov, His Beatititude’s Archdeacon. To everyone’s great joy, Archpriest Leonid Kishkovsky, the Ecumenical officer of the OCA also joined the official delegation later that evening. Upon arrival, His Beatitude, Metropolitan JONAH was met by His Holiness and Beatitude, ILIA II Archbishop of Mtskheta and Tbilisi, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia who warmly greeted the Primate of the Orthodox Church in America who expressed his joy in being able to welcome the Metropolitan in Tbilisi. The Metropolitan, together with the delegation a...