Assembly of Bishops September meeting agenda announced

(AOB) - The Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America will hold its sixth annual meeting September 15-17, 2015 at the Hilton Chicago O’Hare Airport Hotel.

This year’s meeting will include two sessions devoted to canonical regional planning. In the first of these sessions, the Assembly’s 12 jurisdictional first hierarchs will have an opportunity to offer their comments on a proposal that has been prepared by the Committee for Canonical Regional Planning for submission to the Great and Holy Council in 2016. In the second session, the Assembly's hierarchs will engage in a facilitated discussion about the proposal. This year’s meeting also includes a working session on pastoral practices of marriage and divorce.

On Tuesday evening, September 15, the Assembly will sponsor a pan-Orthodox youth gathering for high school and college students in the Chicago area. The event will provide an opportunity for dialogue between the youth and a panel of hierarchs.

The agenda for Assembly VI can be found here, and a flyer for the youth gathering here. The hierarchs of the Assembly request the prayers of all clergy, monastics, and laity for a spiritually fruitful meeting.

Will the 6th Assembly of Bishops Result in Canonical Order?

We would do well to remember the words of the saint whose feast we celebrate today...

"He Himself warns us in His Gospel, and teaches saying: 'And there shall be one flock and one shepherd.'And does anyone think that there can be either many shepherds or many flocks in one place?"

- St. Cyprian of Carthage

The Unity of the Church

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(OCL) - Canonical Orthodox Churches have always been Churches in specific geographical areas. Where the Bishop is, so too is the Church. The Church is not a colonial extension of bishops ruling or directing from other geographic areas. Canonical order is bishops in a geographic area meeting as a Synod, electing their own head and working with clergy and laity to build up the body of Christ.

This is not true for the Churches outside the boundaries of the old Roman Empire. In the USA, the situation is chaotic. We have 14 parallel jurisdictions of Orthodox Bishops directed from foreign lands. In 2008, the Autocephalous Patriarchs set up a process for Assemblies of Bishops to meet and develop blueprints in the lands outside of the Roman Empire, so that the Church in these lands could be canonical. Presently, they exist in canonical disorder. Since 2009, the Assembly of Bishops of the USA and Central America has been meeting once yearly - all together some 58 bishops of 14 different jurisdictions or groupings. Their sixth meeting will be held September 15-17, 2015 in Chicago. In between sessions, they have met in various committees. The work of some of these committees, especially studies on College Students, Pastoral Practices and Regional Planning, have been noteworthy. The great accomplishment of these six years has been that the Bishops have met each other, some for the first time, and a sense of fellowship has emerged. See the Assembly website (assemblyofbishops.org) for more information.

But where is the plan for Canonical Unity? Will we see it or learn about some of its details after the September 17 Chicago meeting? Which Bishops will be absent from this meeting? Will a consensus emerge? A draft document was supposed to have been developed by June 2015, but the bishops could not agree on a document. Seventeen members of the Secretariat and committee heads, excluding Antiochian Archdiocese members, instead traveled to Istanbul to meet with Patriarch Bartholomew. There have been no reports posted on the Assembly of Bishops website about the substance of this meeting.

The clergy and laity are prayerful that the Holy Spirit will guide the Bishops to create canonical order, which is to make the Assembly a Synod and elect a head. All other details related to a unified, self-governing Church in the USA will be resolved by the Synod working with the clergy and laity. As a result, the Orthodox Christian Church in the USA will have the opportunity to be renewed and become a truly mission Church.

Pat. Theodoros II of Alexandria completes Russian pilgrimage

(mospat.ru) - On August 28, 2015, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia met with His Beatitude Theodoros II, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria. The Primate of the Orthodox Church of Alexandria was accompanied by Bishop Meletios of Naukratis.

Participating in the meeting were Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the department for external church relations (DECR), Metropolitan Athanasios of Kyrene, representative of the Patriarch of Alexandria to the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, Archpriest Nikolay Balashov, DECR vice-chairman, and Archpriest Igor Yakimchuk, DECR secretary for inter-Orthodox Relations.

Addressing his high guest, Patriarch Kirill said, ‘We have an opportunity to meet and talk from heart to heart and exchange our opinions. I would like to stress once again the very good nature of relations between our two Churches. To a great extent, this nature is determined by your personality: you know Russia, the Russian people and the Russian Church very well. You love our Church and our people, and we can feel it by our hearts’.

Stressing that the Patriarchate of Alexandria is a missionary Church whose responsibility extends to the whole African continent, Patriarch Kirill continued, ‘The Russian Church is a missionary Church too, both in the classical sense, because it is necessary to enlighten peoples on the vast Eurasian continent, who have not yet become Christian, and because of the need to carry out today a new mission among people who are traditionally Orthodox but who still remain uninitiated to the church and sometimes even unbaptized. Certainly, it is a legacy of the difficult past we have experienced. Precisely for this reason we open today new dioceses, unite dioceses into metropolias, including in the Far East, Siberia and the extreme North, since these regions have suffered the most from the persecution against the Russian Orthodox Church’.

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Bishops of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople

(Cyber Desert) - Over the next few days a total of 140 archbishops and bishops will participate in a five-day event in Istanbul (Constantinople) between August 29 and September 2. The Synaxis of the Hierarchs of the Ecumenical Throne is an annual event of the Patriarchate to celebrate the beginning of the Ecclesial Year and coincides with the Orthodox day for the Environment.

This year’s event is quite unique, as this is perhaps the first time that the fullest cohort of bishops possible was invited (rather than just representatives) and a large number came. All the bishops of the “new lands” in Greece were invited, for example. These are diocese now within the Republic of Greece who find spiritual authority in the Ecumenical Throne but were cut off from the Ecumenical Throne some eight decades ago with the fall of the Ottoman Empire, and while still under the spiritual aegis of the Ecumenical Patriarch are also members of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece.

The purpose of the meeting seems to be twofold to celebrate the beginning of the Church Year on 1st September, but also to prepare for the upcoming Pan-Orthodox Synod, which is scheduled to be held next year (2016) and as a forum for the prelates to exchange ideas and discuss a wide-range of issues, such as the environment and churches’ role on the matter, interfaith dialogue and other social issues. Clerics from churches in the United States, Europe, Australia and Asia are in attendance.

Let us pray for our hierarchs and the Church of Christ.

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St. Cyprian of Carthage remembered today (NC)

Only the ROCOR's Diocese of the East can match Trisagion Films in terms of content and professionalism for a US-based source of Orthodox videos. On that point, it has been 9 months since the last ROCOR-EAD video.

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Fr. Josiah Trenham on secularism and the public square

Orthodox Church in the Philippines sees amazing growth

(ROC-The Philippines) - With great joy and gladness, we announce the reception through a mass baptism the parish and catechumens from St. John the Baptist Orthodox Church. Photos taken during the mass baptism last August 21, 2015, Friday, of the newly accepted St. John the Baptist Orthodox Church in Ladol, Alabel, Sarangani Province, Philippines. A total of 239 catechumens are baptized including two Aglipayan (Philippine Independent Catholic Church) "bishops" and four Aglipayan "priests". Aglipayan "bishop" Esteban Valmera was baptized as STEFAN; Aglipayan "bishop Rogelio Ringor was baptized as GREGORY; Aglipayan priest Elieser Delfin was baptized as ELEASAR; Aglipayan priest Dioscoro Bergado was baptized as Alexy; Aglipayan priest John Collado was baptized as Timothy and Aglipayan priest Renato Buniel was baptized as ROMANUS.

Also baptized during this event are the five candidates for seminary in Russia. The baptism was performed by Fr. Kirill Sckharboul and Fr. George Maximov after the almost two years of Orthodox catechisms. This parish formerly serve as the Aglipayan Cathedral where Aglipayan bishop have his See. NOW, it becomes as the 4th Parish of the Moscow Patriarchate in the Philippines.

With this event, it marks a new stage, a series of mass baptism of 29 parishes from different parts of Mindanao is expected in the following weeks. Many years to the newly baptized Orthodox Christians!

Group wants made-up "Turkish patriarchate" out of cemetery

(Hurryiet Daily News) - The Greek Orthodox community in Istanbul seeks to remove the graves of the founder of the self-declared Turkish Orthodox Patriarchate and his successors out of their historic cemetery in Istanbul, daily Cumhuriyet reported Aug. 22.

The old controversy that took a new twist has been revolving around the graves of Papa Efthim, who declared himself the pope of the church he founded in 1921, and his sons and successors, Turgut Erenerol and Selçuk Erenerol, in the Şişli neighborhood of Istanbul.

"This is the Greek Orthodox cemetery. These men were not even Orthodox, let alone Greek. They were excommunicated," Cumhuriyet quoted Mihail Vasiliadis, who owns the Turkey-based Greek daily Apoyevmatini.

The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Istanbul's Fener neighborhood, which has an estimated 300 million Orthodox believers around the world, had excommunicated Papa Efthim I, Efthim II and Efthim III after the church's foundation, which was supported by the Turkish government in 1924.

However, Efthim I were buried in the historic cemetery as a government initiative in spite of local Greeks' opposition in 1968, before his successors followed the suit with their funerals.

"They had found a fake church. In order to be a church, one must be recognized by the Ecumenic church and the other 17 churches," Vasiliadis added.

Temple with no believers

According to Elçin Macar's book titled “Istanbul Greek Patriarchate, the “Turkish Orthodox Patriarchate” was a state-sponsored project that aimed to end the influence of the Greek Patriarchate on Anatolian Christians.

In the 1920s, Pavlos Karahisarithis changed his name into Zeki Erenerol and became the first leader of the church after he declared himself "Papa Efthim I." He was granted permission by the government to settle in Panayia Church in the Galata neighborhood. In 1965, his sons also took control of two other churches in Istanbul, although their "patriarchate" was described as "a temple with no believers."

Efthim was accused of supporting the Sept. 6-7 pogrom targeting Istanbul's Greek community in 1955 and had admitted in 1995 that he had regular meetings with the Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MİT). His sons, and successors, had been arguing for the "expulsion" of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate.

"Do I have to see the graves of these [Turkish] nationalists who did harm to Greeks each time I visit the graves of my parents? As Greeks, we want their graves out of here," daily Cumhuriyet quoted Vasiliadis as saying on Aug. 22.

Sevgi Erenerol, Papa Efthim's granddaugher who now claims the title of “public relations representative of their church, was arrested during the controversial Ergenekon coup attempt case.

The prosecutor had described Erenerol as an ultranationalist who established an organization to provoke public unrest” and preparing the way for a military coup, in which their church served as “the headquarters and the financial hub” of the covert gang, called the Ergenekon.

Controversial case

In the politically-charged Ergenekon case, 274 coup-plot suspects were sentenced on Aug. 5, 2013 to hundreds of years’ imprisonment in total, with many high-ranking army members, journalists and academics given aggravated life sentences.

In April 2014, the long-awaited detailed ruling in the five-year-long marathon Ergenekon trial was issued, nearly eight months after the initial verdict, stating that the organization had targeted a long series of governments.

The mammoth detailed ruling, which ran to 16,798 pages over three volumes, said the court’s verdict was the “first judicial ruling on the deep state.”

“It has been understood that the Ergenekon organization was established within the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) under the name of ‘headquarters houses,’” the court state in the ruling.

The 16th Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals will hold the first hearing in the appeal case on Oct. 6.

A prayer for Child-Bearing

Some days ago a fellow priest asked me if I had a prayer for a married couple who wanted to have children. I checked my four volume Book of Needs, my smaller Book of Needs, my Greek Mikron Euchologion, and then searched online. There was no such prayer to be found. I then asked an online clergy brotherhood forum for help. Much discussion was had on the value of pilgrimages, St. Irene Chrysovalantou, and the relic of the belt (zone, cincture) of the Theotokos. Eventually, someone mentioned that the Priest's Service Book (Mikron Euchologion, Agiasmatarion) by Fr. Evagoras Constantinides of blessed memory has such a prayer. He supplied me with a photo of the page and I was able to pass it on. Sadly, I am unable to find a hard copy of this book and Holy Cross Bookstore no longer carries it.

Pastorally, I would personally advise a couple to make a pilgrimage and send them off with this prayer. God willing, this prayer will be useful to priests and couples praying for the blessing of a child.

O Lord our God, you created man in your image and likeness and established him as the king of creation. And so that he would not be alone on the earth, you took one of his ribs and formed woman who you gave to him as a helper fit for him. And you told them "Be fruitful and multiply, and have dominion over the earth," this giving them the gift of procreation.

Through your first miracle at the wedding at Cana of Galilee, you affirmed the lawful union in marriage and child-bearing therefrom are, indeed, in accordance with your divine will and purpose.

Yet, on many occasions, faithful couples like Abraham and Sara, Jacob and Rachel, Zacharias and Elizabeth, and Joachim and Anna were without children. But when they came to you in prayer and supplication, you responded mercifully to them, answered their prayers, and rewarded their patience and trust in you with one or more children.

In like manner, your servants [Name] and [Name] who were joined in matrimony in your holy name, O Lord, in order to fulfill your will, have not as yet been blessed with child. Therefore, with profound humility and utmost faith and trust in you, the pray to you and supplicate you and ask of you, it it be your will, to be gracious and merciful to them, to remove their pain and sorrow, and to bless them with fair offspring at a time pleasing to you.

Yes, Lord our God, accept the petitions of me, your unworthy servant, and bring to your servants [Name] and [Name] joy and peace by granting them their request and blessing them with with a child.

For you alone are merciful and compassionate, and to you we ascribe glory and thanksgiving and worship, to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and to the ages of ages.

Amen.

Obedience

H/T: The Orthodox Pathway

This is an interesting take on a story from the Desert Fathers.

A brother came to see Abba Macarius the Egyptian, and said to him, 'Abba, give me a word, that I may be saved.' So the old man said, 'Go to the cemetery and abuse the dead.' The brother went there, abused them and threw stones at them; then he returned and told the old man about it. The latter said to him, 'Didn't they say anything to you?' He replied, 'No.' The old man said, 'Go back tomorrow and praise them.' So the brother went away and praised them, calling them, 'Apostles, saints and righteous men.' He returned to the old man and said to him, ‘ I have complimented them’. And the old man said to him, 'Did they not answer you?' The brother said no. The old man said to him, 'You know how you insulted them and they did not reply, and how you praised them and they did not speak; so you too if you wish to be saved must do the same and become a dead man. Like the dead, take no account of either the scorn of men or their praises, and you can be saved.'

Intruders overtake church in Ukraine

Think back to yesterday when you're listening to the choir, the altar boys are visibly milling about through the open spaces in the icon screen, and you've picked up the same small child 4 times to keep him happy an quiet. Now imagine a crashing sound at the front door. People you've never seen before are rushing in and begin forcing everyone out the of the building. That was the experience of people in a church in Ukraine. Please pray for an end to this terrible conflict. As to the photo above, this story reminded me of this incident from last year.

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Moscow, August 24, (Interfax) - The incident has happened at St. Vladimir Church in the village of Malye Dmitrovichi, the Obukhov District, the Kiev Region, Ukraine.

Unidentified people rushed into the church during the liturgy, they called themselves representatives of the local self-defence. Priests of the self-proclaimed Kiev Patriarchate later joined them, press service of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church reports.

"Swearing, they made the rector and parishioners stop the service and leave the church, the the church was closed. Militia arrived on parishioners' call, but kept away from the incident and did not interfere when the service was disrupted," the message further reads.

The local community turned to the prosecutor's office complaining on the intruders and law-enforcement officers.

Upcoming conference: "Caregivers as Confessors & Healers"

Without fail the number one question I get asked when I post conference dates is "Will it be recorded?" The answer here, as last year was, is a very probable yes.

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Please join us for our ANNUAL CONFERENCE Nov. 5-7, 2015
“CAREGIVERS AS CONFESSORS AND HEALERS”
Holy Cross Seminary – Boston, Massachusetts

Keynote Speaker: Holy Confession and the Freedom to Be, Fr. Stavros Kofinas, D.Min., Coordinator of the Network of the Ecumenical Patriarchate for Pastoral Health Care.

The Conference will begin at 7pm on Friday, Nov. 5, and end at 6pm on Saturday, Nov. 7. Members, non-members, students, clergy, healthcare professionals and nonprofessionals are invited to attend!

Please click here for more information and to register!

We would be delighted to add you to our email Contact List; please let us know at ocamprinfo@gmail.com.

Click here for the Program of our 2014 Conference, “Exploring the Mind, Body, Soul Connection: Spirituality in Illness and Healing.” The 2014 conference was recorded by Ancient Faith Radio. Click here to listen to the presentations.

Vintners receive blessing of grapes

The prayer from the Book of Needs (Trebnik / Small Euchologion) is posted below for those interested:

Bless, O Lord, this new fruit of the vine, which, through the wholesomeness of the air, and through showers of rain and temperate weather, Thou art well-pleased should attain to ripeness at this time. May our partaking of this birth of the vine be for gladness, and for the offering of a gift unto Thee for the cleansing of sins, through the sacred and holy Body of Thy Christ, with Whom Thou art blessed, together with Thy Most-holy, Good, and Life-giving Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

(Santa Maria Times) - For winemaker Louis Lucas, the continuing severe drought means fewer grapes, a whole lot fewer. So he'll take any help that he can get, even from the divine.

Lucas, who is a co-founder of Lucas & Lewellen Vineyards Winery, which has estate vineyards in the Los Alamos, Santa Maria and Santa Ynez valleys, said they were looking at harvesting about 40-percent less grapes than last year. Monday was the annual blessing of the grapes at their winery in Buellton.

"This year everything really needs to be blessed," Lucas said. "The crop is much smaller this year."

Louis also said that this year's harvest is about three weeks earlier than normal due to the warm, dry winter and and also an overcast flowering season. It will take about six to eight weeks to finish harvesting the 26 varieties of wine grapes.

While Father John Finley led harvest time with a prayer and a blessing of the grapes Monday at the Lucas & Lewellen Vineyards Winery, Lucas said he likely isn't the only one saying a prayer for this year's wine grape harvest.

"Overall, statewide, I think they'll be seeing a reduction," Lucas said. "It really depends on the field."

Hugely important AFR interview with pro-life advocate

God bless Kevin Allen. Orthodoxy in America needs his special brand of journalism.

How did David Daleiden - The Man Behind the Planned Parenthood Expose - make it through those undercover interviews without being overcome by despondency?

The Jesus Prayer.

Ponder that.

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(AFR) - In this special edition of Ancient Faith Today, Kevin speaks, in this extensive interview, with David Daleiden, the director of the Center For Medical Progress, the pro-life activist organization that planned and produced the ​expose videos that have shaken the abortion industry in the United States.

Sitka's St. Michael the Archangel Cathedral vs. torrential rain

(Pravoslavie.ru) - For two weeks, Archpriest Michael Boyle and the faithful of Saint Michael the Archangel Cathedral here have been praying for relief from the torrential rains that have pounded the region and flooded the historic structure’s basement.

“While the cathedral, which stands in the middle of the downtown district, has been spared from mudslides, it has been significantly affected by rain—especially over the past 48 hours during which at times up to an inch an hour fell,” said Father Michael on Wednesday, August 19, 2015. “For the hearty Sitka faithful, who live in the Tongass National Rain Forest, being wet is not just a part of life—it is life!

“We are thankful to God that none of the icons or artifacts that belonged to Saint Innocent, nor any other sacred items, have been damaged or affected by the water,” Father Michael added. “However, the cathedral’s main dome began to leak, so buckets and tarps now cover the floor.”

Sitka was placed on a State of Alaska emergency alert as Governor Bill Walker visited the city to examine the devastation this week.

Workmen take precautions against additional mudslides.

“We have had three major mudslides, one of which totally engulfed and buried a brand new house under tons of dirt and Sitka spruce trees,” Father Michael reported. “The house has not been found, and rescuers have neither heard from nor located the three painters who were inside the house at the time of the slide. Our faithful and the 9,000 inhabitants of our little town are in shock as the three workers are friends to a number of our parishioners and many of the town’s residents.”

While other families have been evacuated from their homes as a precaution against ongoing slides, the cathedral faithful’s main concern remains additional flooding.

“Over the past two weeks the cathedral basement has been closed off, and it’s been a challenge to keep the basement dry, free of water and most recently, free from the growth of mold,” said Father Michael. “With the severe storm raging these past two days, the basement has been hit hard with major water damage. Yesterday we pumped out 1,100 gallons of water, and we still have about 500 gallons still waiting to be removed. Our sump pumps are working, but our dilemma is the configuration of what we have come to call ‘the perfect storm.’

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Armenian Church begins process of blessing Holy Muron

(Armenian-WD) - On August 19, the preparatory works for the Blessing of the Holy Muron commenced in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. After the Evening Service, the silver cauldron filled with olive oil was placed on the Main Altar of the Mother Cathedral and was covered with an embroidered veil. For 40 days until the Blessing of the Holy Muron, prayers will be offered each day following Evening Services.

This year, the Blessing of the Holy Muron will be held on September 27, the Feast of the Holy Cross of Varag; in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, during which His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians; will bless the Holy Muron with Holy Relics of the Armenian Church. The newly blessed Muron will be distributed to all the dioceses of the Armenian Church.

Rome declares Bp. Flavian-Michel Malké a martyr

(Christian Today) - Thousands of Syrian and Iraqi Christians who have fled the atrocities of Islamic State are expected to attend the beatification of a Syriac Catholic bishop later this month.

The celebration comes after Pope Francis authorised a decree declaring Bishop Flavien-Michel Malké to be a martyr. The beatification will take place in Lebanon exactly a century after Bishop Malké was killed in Turkey on 29 August 1915, victim to the Ottoman Empire's attempt to exterminate Christian minorities.

The beatification liturgy will be celebrated by Ignatius Youssef III Younan, Syriac Patriarch of Antioch, at the Our Lady of Deliverance convent.

Patriarch Younan said: "In these painful times experienced by Christians, especially the Syriac communities in Iraq and Syria, the news of the beatification of one of their martyrs, will surely bring encouragement and consolation to face the today's trials of appalling dimension.

"Blessed Martyr Michael, intercede for us, and protect especially the Christians in the Orient and all the world in these hard and painful days."

Bishop Malké was born in 1858 in Kalat'ül Mara, a village in what is now Turkey but was then part of the Ottoman Empire. He was martyred in Gazireh, Turkey. He originally joined a monastery of the Syrian Orthodox church but then converted to the Syriac Catholic church. Both churches use the same West Syrian rite.

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Antiochian "Little Red Prayer Book" now online

This book is ubiquitous. I consider it one of the 25 most important, formative modern Orthodox books in the English language.

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(Antiochian) - A new prayer section was recently launched on Antiochian.org. The section is linked on the Archdiocese website's homepage "Worship & Devotion" sidebar and in the footer navigation, and is available across all devices. This means that the most popular sections of A Pocket Prayer Book, the well-loved Antiochian Archdiocese spiritual resource affectionately known as "The Little Red Prayer Book," are now readily available to Antiochian.org's many weekly visitors.

So far, the collection of online prayers includes: Morning Prayers, Midday Prayers, Evening Prayers, Occasional Prayers, Prayers in Preparation for Holy Communion, Prayers of Thanksgiving After Holy Communion, Self Examination Before Confession, and Prayers After Confession. Other prayers may be added as appropriate.

The original prayer book, containing Daily and Occasional Prayers as well as the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, was first published in 1956 and is in its thirteenth printing.

Order a hard copy from the Antiochian Village Bookstore.

The life of St. John of Kronstadt

H/T: Mode of Life

1st American Orthodox chaplain at World Scout Jamboree

(OCA) - Chaplains representing many different faith traditions—including Orthodox Christianity—ministered to an estimated 40,000 scouts from 160 countries at the 23rd World Scout Jamboree in Yamaguchi, Japan in mid-August 2015.

For the first time, the American contingent of over 1,900 scouts included an Orthodox Christian chaplain—Archpriest Eric G. Tosi, Secretary of the Orthodox Church in America and member of the Boy Scout’s Religious Relations Task Force. A priest of the Moscow Patriarchate also ministered to Orthodox scouts from Russia.

Also present was His Eminence, Metropolitan Ambrosios of Korea of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, who celebrated the Divine Liturgy for some 300 Orthodox Christian scouts during his four-day visit. DESMOS, the international Orthodox Christian scouting organization, maintained a popular booth that, for many scouts, provided their first exposure to the faith.

Held every four years, the Jamboree gathers scouts in fellowship and the spirit of scouting. This year’s event concentrated on issues that unite scouts from around the world, especially global and environmental issues and the use of science and technology in the today’s world. A component of the scouting program is the development of a cross-cultural understanding of faith and beliefs.

“It was a unique experience to not only be in Japan but also to minister to the Orthodox Scouts from around the world,” said Father Eric, whose participation was made possible through funding provided by the Eastern Orthodox Committee on Scouting, the pan-Orthodox Scouting agency of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the USA, and the OCA. “It was especially moving to see so many Orthodox Scouts from different countries gathered for the Liturgy. While the service was celebrated in English, Greek and Slavonic, everyone was united and it was a real witness to Orthodox worship to many other scouts who had never experienced the Orthodox Liturgy.” [Information on the Eastern Orthodox Committee on Scouting may be accessed here].

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Patriarch of Serbia visiting St. Vlad's

(OCA) - On Friday, September 11, 2015, the Board of Trustees and Faculty of Saint Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary here will bestow a Doctor of Divinity degree, honoris causa, upon His Holiness, Irinej, Archbishop of Peć, Metropolitan of Belgrade-Karlovci, and Patriarch of Serbia. At the Academic Convocation, Patriarch Irinej will deliver an address titled “Theology as a Hope for the Future of the Church.”

Patriarch Irinej will arrive on the seminary campus, briefly visit Three Hierarchs Chapel, and then proceed to the Academic Convocation. The public ceremony will be held at 6:00 p.m. in the Metropolitan Philip Auditorium of the John G. Rangos Family Building. An open reception will follow.

Patriarch Irinej, the 45th Patriarch of Serbia, was enthroned in his present position in January 2010. He was ordained as a hieromonk in 1959. After his consecration to the episcopacy, he served as Bishop of Moravica and Nis prior to his election as Patriarch. He also was both a professor and rector of Prizren Seminary.

Alex Machaskee, Executive Chair of the seminary’s Board, said he greatly looks forward to the Patriarch’s visit, noting, “I was honored to meet with His Holiness, Patriarch Irinej when I was in Belgrade three years ago. His radiance is a bright light for all Orthodox Christians. I look forward to seeing him at Saint Vladimir’s and again en route to Kosovo at the end of September.”

In the Patriarch’s entourage will be His Grace, Bishop Maxim of the Western American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church of North and South America and seminary Trustee; His Grace, Bishop Mitrophan of the Eastern American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church of North and South America; and His Eminence, Archbishop Jovan VI of Ohrid and Metropolitan of Skopje, under the Serbian Patriarchate of Peć, who is internationally known due to his time spent as a political prisoner. Once a member of the schismatic Macedonian Orthodox Church, he responded to a call for reunion with the Serbian Patriarchate in 2002 (known as the Niš Agreement), after which he was for several years persecuted and jailed by the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. On February 2, 2015, in compliance with a ruling of the Skopje Court, he was released from the Idrizovo prison.

“Our Seminary is honored to have Patriarch Irinej receive this award from our hand,” said Archpriest Dr. John Behr, Dean of Saint Vladimir’s. “We are also humbled and blessed by the presence of this entire distinguished delegation, clergy who teach us what it is to witness to Christ by undergoing persecution and trials far beyond our own in the US.”

Of internecine arguments in the Philippines

Some weeks ago, Metropolitan Nektarios of Hong Kong and South East Asia put out yet another excommunication notice to a non-Greek priest operating in the Philippines (see here). As has been posted here in the past, the Antiochians and Russians have been in the Philippines and the rest of South East Asia for many years and often operated in these areas before the Greeks. Met. Nektarios' assertion that his presence in Hong Kong means there can be no non-Greek priests in the east is a contentious one and something that the Russian Church has stated unequivocally to be untenable (see here). The below story comes out a few days after the aforementioned encyclical. Note that the permission to go to the Philippines was granted by the Patriarch of Moscow and not the Greek Metropolitan of Hong Kong. This is a "diaspora" problem and one that is only held in check in US because of the large numbers of people involved that make such a Canon 28 assertion impossible. God willing, we will see some regional assembly discussion of this tragic state of affairs.

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(mospat.ru) - From August 10 to 13, 2015, Bishop Sergiy of Solnechnogorsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate administrative secretariat, was on a visit to the Philippines, with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia. He was accompanied by Hieromonk Pitirim (Dondenko), senior priest at the ROC Parish of the Assumption in Singapore, D. Petrovsky of the Moscow Patriarchate department for external church relations, and N. Sokolov, secretary to Bishop Sergiy.
On August 11, Bishop Sergiy and his retinue, together with Hieromonk Philip (Balingit), administrator of the Philippines Mission of the Russian Church Outside Russia, and M. Ananyin of the Russian Embassy in the Philippines, flew from Manila to the General Cantos city on Mindanao, the second largest island of the Philippines archipelago.

The ROC delegation visited the Orthodox Parish of the Protecting Veil of the Mother of God in Polomolok, Parish of St. Isidore of Rostov in Alabel and Parish of Ss Peter and Paul in Kiblawan. At the church of St John of Shanghai (Russian Church Outside Russia) in Santa Maria, with the blessing of Patriarch Kirill given in response to a request from the First Hierarch of the Russian Church Outside Russia, Metropolitan Hilarion of East America and New York, Bishop Sergiy installed Juan Julito Gabutero Majinai as reader and sub-deacon.

On August 12 the ROC delegation returned to Manila, where Bishop Sergiy met with compatriots living or residing in the Philippines, and with leaders of the President Quirino Foundation. Named after the sixth president of the Philippines, the foundation is engaged in keeping the memory of the life of the community of Russian émigrés led by St John of Shanghai who came from China to stay in Tubabao Island from 1949-1951.

On August 13, Bishop Sergiy and his delegation met with the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference in the Philippines, Archbishop Socrates Villegas. In attendance was also Russian Ambassador I. Khovaev. Bishop Sergiy reminded his interlocutor about the Orthodox church of Our Lady of Iveron, which was part of the Beijing diocese’s deanery of Hong Kong, and expressed hope for the restoration of the Russian church presence in the Philippines, which was fully supported by the representative of the Roman Catholic Church. The interlocutors affirmed the importance of joint Christian witness to the preservation of traditional Christian values in face of the rapidly secularizing world.

Later that day, Bishop Sergiy and Ambassador I. Khovaev discussed problems involved in the Russian Orthodox Church providing pastoral care for compatriots in the Philippines and reviving the historical presence of Russian Orthodoxy in that Asian country.

Women and their housecleaning

Occasionally you read some words from the fathers and reflect, "There is no way I could say that today." I think if I tried to deliver these words today I'd have some more words returned to me at coffee hour. That is not to say that there's no need for these words to be said, but the delivery would be... less pointed. The below is from the blog Orthognosia.

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Women usually have no sense of moderation when it comes to household chores. They’re constantly finding things to do. While they do have a lot of heart and could do much “housecleaning” in their soul, they often waste their heart on insignificant things. Let’s say we have a delicate glass with very intricate designs. Now, if this glass didn’t have all these designs on it, it would still serve its purpose as a glass. But no, women go to the store and start: “No, I want the designs up higher, to this point; no, not this way, the other way…” And if there should be some floral details on it, well then the heart really starts leaping! But by doing this, women lay waste to all their energy and potential.

You’ll hardly find a man paying so much attention to such details. For example, a man will hardly notice if a lamp shade is brown or black. But a woman wants something beautiful and she rejoices in it; she gives a part of her heart to this, a part to that, and then what is left for Christ? Only a tired yawn is spared for the time of prayer.

The more a woman distances her heart from material things, the closer she comes to Christ. And when her heart is given to Christ, then she acquires great strength.

+ St. Paisios of Mt. Athos, Elder Paisios of Mount Athos Spiritual Councils IV: Family Life

Armenian Church blesses grapes at Holy Etchmiadzin

Armenian Church blesses grapes in Jerusalem

Thousands pilgrims flock to Tinos for the Dormition

Head over to Pappas Post for more photos and background.

Harvard Crimson arrive in Moscow to learn bell-ringing

(RBTH) - A group of five bell-ringers arrives in Moscow from Harvard University on Aug. 12.

"The Harvard University students study the Russian bell-ringing tradition in their free time. They will come specially to learn the Russian bell-ringing culture and boost their bell-ringing level. At Harvard, they ring copies of 18 Danilov bells," the press service for the Moscow Danilov Monastery told Interfax-Religion.

The ten-day program includes training sessions using bell-ringing simulators, participation in the bell-ringing in the Danilov Monastery, getting to know with their Russian colleagues, visits to churches, bell-towers and museums, and a short trip in Russia.

Harvard University and the Danilov Monastery earlier reached an agreement on a cultural exchange.

International meeting of Old Believers takes place in Buryatia

Every year without fail I get to post a couple of Old Believer stories. They're fascinating to cover and severely underreported on. I still have not made it to a community in the US (but hope to visit Erie someday soon). Also, they are an important reminder in many ways of pre-Nikonian Orthodoxy. It is not uncommon at all for someone to say that this or that practice has "always" been done only to do some research and find out that it only dates back to the changes of Patriarch Nikon or some of the Westernizing or modernizing influences in the decades after those changes. Sometimes a thing is not done in one tradition because they never added it on and other times a thing is not done because a group removed it. Let the person of many opinions beware lest he claim one way is the "right" way without doing sufficient study to support that assertion.

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(mospat.ru) - On 7-10 August 2015, an international meeting of Old Believers took place in Ulan-Ude, marking the 250th anniversary of the arrival in Buryatia of the first Old-Rite settlers. As part of the meeting called “The Path of Avvakum”, a number of events were held, such as an International Research and Application Conference “The Old Belief: History and Modernity, Local Traditions, Relations Inside Russia and Abroad” and an ethnic forum “The Old Believers’ Congress.”

On August 7, an opening plenary session took place at the premises of the Government of the Republic of Buryatia. Among the speakers were Mr. Vyachslav Nagovitsyn, head of the Republic of Buryatia; Metropolitan Savvaty of Ulan-Ude and Buryatia; Metropolitan Korniliy of Moscow and All Russia (Russian Orthodox Old-Rite Church); Archbishop Alexander of Moscow and All Russia (Russian Old Orthodox Church); and Dagba Ochirov, Did Hambo Lama of the Republic of Buryatia (Buddhist Traditional Sangha of Russia).

On August 8, the ethnic forum was held at the National Library. As part of the forum, a meeting of the Old-Rite clergy took place. Among those who took an active part in the discussions was archpriest Ioann Mirolyubov, head of the Patriarchal Center for Old Russian Liturgical Tradition, secretary of the Commission for Old Rite Parishes and Cooperation with the Old Rite Community. Next day, he delivered an address on the Old-Rite Parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church and Problems of Their Formation.

During the meeting, numerous guests from the Old-Rite communities of Russia and other countries, as well as scholars and representatives of governmental and public organizations had an opportunity to discuss a number of topical issues pertaining to the preservation and development of traditional culture of Old Believers.

Product review: Orthodox Christian Supply

Some days ago the people from Orthodox Christian Supply contacted me to see if I'd like to review their products. I agreed and in no time found a package at my door.

The packaging is layered and quite well thought out. The initial wrapping, found after opening the box, is newspaper. Inside that is bubble wrap. Inside that the icon is a smartly sealed in paper that both protects it from scratches and would be suitable for gift wrapping. I have ordered icons in the past from other companies and had a dented corner hanging out of the cardboard of one, a long crack on the back of another, and a set that was placed together (face to face) that wanted to stay that way so that when I pulled them apart sections of each icon were on the wrong icon (if icon delivery often takes a while to make it to you, returns make one think everything is shipped on river barges harried by outlaws and indians on the warpath) I have a very strong feeling that none of those things would happen with Orthodox Christian Supply.

As to the icon itself (I received one of St. Justin of Ćelije to remember one of my godchildren) it was surprisingly weighty. I had forgotten that they only do panel icons (see here for more on that) and was worried I wouldn't be able to mount it properly. They thought of that and send a metal bracket just for that purpose. The finish of the icon surface is not that overly glossy or "cheap" looking. Actually, for a number of their icons I think there's enough texture that people would think the icon to be an original. The icon is framed well and flush with the backing material. I've received some icons in the past with oddly covered overlapped layers (often the icon image and the decorative border) or others with crooked applications. This icon looks like it was crafted with care.

So, all in all, I'm very pleased and think you will be too. If you aren't going to commission an icon from an iconographer, Orthodox Christian Supply would be a wise choice especially if it is going to be a gift. You aren't going to have to worry about a damaged present in the mail or shoddy craftsmanship.

Want to read more? You might also want to read this interview by Fr. Joseph Huneycutt with a representative from the company for more background. Also intriguing and I think unique to this company is their icon photoshop service.

Burger King vs... the Book of Kells

(The Independent) - Ireland's national treasure, The Book of Kells, has now become a registered global trademark owned by Trinity College - despite fast-food giant Burger King beefing about it.

The worldwide restaurant chain had to be convinced that the use of the initials "BK" didn't infringe on their trademark as purveyors of burgers, fries and milk shakes.

The new venture to commercialise the sumptuously illuminated manuscript of the four Gospels may not please everyone.

But the reality is that Trinity College needs to balance the books to ensure that its priceless collection of ancient texts is properly cared for.

As a result, admirers of the Book of Kells will soon be able to make the masterpiece of medieval art a part of their daily lives.

Trinity, the keeper of the world famous book, has joined with the prestigious art book publisher Thames & Hudson in the UK to produce what it calls "five exquisitely designed gift products" making use of the glorious illustrations in the manuscript.

These gift products include a five-year journal (€18.50); a set of three large notebooks (€11.95); three small notebooks (€8.99); a boxed collection of 20 different notecards with envelopes (€16.99); and a boxed collection of 30 postcards (€10.50). All are illustrated with details from the Book of Kells.

The publisher says that the five products celebrate Ireland's greatest national treasure and will make ideal gifts for anyone interested in manuscripts, design and Celtic art.

Paul Corrigan, retail and merchandising manager for Trinity College at the Old Library where the Book of Kells is on view, does not agree that the move overly commercialises our national treasure, and points to the high quality of the new gift range.

"We don't want to be seen as exploiting the Book of Kells but, as you know, governments have cut university funding and we have to find new ways of financing our preservation of the manuscript and the other ancient texts we look after," Mr Corrigan says.

The title, Book of Kells, became a registered global trademark owned by the College some months ago.

Mr Corrigan revealed that there was some delay in achieving this in America because Burger King initially objected.

"Eventually, they understood that Trinity College was not interested in the fast-food business," Mr Corrigan says.

The new Book of Kells gift range recently went on sale exclusively in the Old Library Gift Shop in Trinity College. From September 7, Thames & Hudson will be distributing it to bookshops across Ireland and internationally. Trinity has done a royalty deal with the publisher, so a percentage of all sales will come back to the college to pay for the upkeep of the manuscript.

Several impressive books about the Book of Kells have been published over the years but are expensive because of the cost of reproducing the artwork. The standard work by Bernard Meehan, the Keeper of Manuscripts at Trinity College Library, republished recently, costs €94.80 in hardback and €15.75 in paperback.

The Book of Kells' brilliant decorations alongside text of the four Gospels include full-page depictions of Christ, the Virgin and the Evangelists as well as a wealth of smaller decorative illustration.

The manuscript is made up of 340 folios of calf vellum and, since 1953, has been bound in four volumes. It has been on display in the Old Library at Trinity since the mid 19th century and last year attracted over 650,000 visitors. Two volumes are on public view, one opened to display a major decorated page, and one to show two pages of script. The pages on display are changed at regular intervals.

Entry to see the Book of Kells costs €10 per adult and €20 per family at the door. A fast-track family ticket to avoid queues is one of the options available online for €26.

Assembly of Bishops meeting in Chicago in September

Jewish peer seeks to repay debt, save Middle East Christians

(The Independent) - A Jewish peer who fled occupied Austria as a child is funding the rescue of up to 2,000 Christians from Syria and Iraq as a way of showing his gratitude to the religion whose members saved him from the Nazis.

Lord Weidenfeld says he has “a debt to repay” to Christians fleeing Isis, because the Quakers and the Plymouth Brethren fed and clothed him and helped him to reach Britain in 1938.

The publisher is spearheading Weidenfeld Safe Havens Fund, which last week supported the flight of 150 Syrian Christians to Poland on a privately chartered plane to allow them to seek refuge, making them the first beneficiaries of the resettlement project.

Having arrived in Britain on a train a year before the start of the Second World War with just a few shillings to his name, Lord Weidenfeld went on to establish the Weidenfeld and Nicolson publishing business a decade later. He was made a life peer in 1976.

The 95-year-old told The Times: “I had a debt to repay. It applies to so many young people who were on the Kinderstransports. It was Quakers and other Christian denominations who brought those children to England.

“It was very high-minded operation and we Jews should also be thankful and do something for the endangered Christians.”

The fund aims to offer 12-18 months of paid support to the refugees.

But the project has run into criticism for its exclusion of Muslims who have also been forced from their homes by Isis, for fear of murder, enslavement or torture.

Countries including the United States have declined to participate in the scheme, which has the support of the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad.

Christians, as well as Yazidis, Druze and Shia Muslims are being persecuted by the terror group in Isis-controlled areas of Syria and Iraq.

The Christian populations of both countries have fallen precipitously in the past decade, however, and Lord Weidenfeld defended the project’s narrow focus.

He said: “I can’t save the world, but there is a very specific possibility on the Christian side. Let others do what they like for the Muslims.”

He added that he hoped to replicate the work done by the likes of the late Sir Nicholas Winton, who helped to organise Kinderstransport trains that saved more than 10,000 Jewish children from the Nazis. Sir Nicholas died on 1 July.

Syro-Malabar Catholics get Canadian exarchate

Why didn't their head, the leader of the second largest Eastern Catholic Church with 5 million faithful, not do this? Because the diaspora is run at the papal level. For the Latin Church even Catholic Churches that have a bishop in the new world have to seek permission from Rome to do rather commonplace things like raising a parish to the level of cathedral. It is, to my thinking a poor setup that reconfirms the secondary place of the so-called Uniate churches in the wider world.

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(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Thursday erected an Apostolic Exarchate for Syro-Malabar Catholics who are residents in Canada, nominating Father Jose Kalluvelil of the Eparchy of Palghat as its first Exarchate and assigning him the titular seat of Tabalta.

The Exarchate extends throughout Canada, where Syro-Malabar Catholics have been present since the 1960’s.

On 16 February 2001, besides being named the first Bishop of the Eparchy of St. Thomas the Apostle of Chicago for the Syro-Malabar Catholics, Bishop Jacob Angadiath had also been designated Apostolic Visitor for the faithful of the Canadian Syro-Malabar Church.

Currently, the Syro-Malabar Catholics in Canada number around 9,000 faithful and 15 priests, of whom 3 belong to religious orders.

The seat of the new Apostolic Exarchate will be in Mississauga, near Toronto.
Eparchy of Adilabad

Pope Francis on Thursday also accepted the resignation of Bishop Joseph Kunnath, C.M.I. of the Eparchy of Adilabad of the Syro-Malabar Catholics (India), according to canon 210 §§ 1-2 of the Code of Canon Law of the Oriental Churches.

In his place, the Holy Father nominated Father Antony Prince Panengaden as Bishop of Adilabad of the Syro-Malabar Catholics.

Born on 13 May 1976 in Arimpur, Fr. Panengaden entered the Congregation of the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate before passing to the Eparchy of Adilabad.

He was sent to Rome for his studies, completing a Doctorate in Biblical Theology at the Pontifical Urbaniana University.

Important christogram found in Bulgaria

(Archaeology in Bulgaria) - Archaeologists excavating the so called Bishop’s Basilica of the Ancient Roman and Early Byzantine city of Parthicopolis located in the town of Sandanski in Southwest Bulgaria have discovered the last fragment from a marble slab with a christogram, a Christian symbol consisting of a monogram of letters standing for the name of Jesus Christ.

The “monogram of Christ”, also known as the “seal of God” and Chi Rho after the respective Greek letters, which has now been put together by the archaeologists from the Sandanski Museum of Archaeology, has been discovered piece by piece over the last 25 years, reports the Bulgarian National Television.

The christogram from the Bishop’s Basilica in Sandanski I, which has not been fully assembled, is dated to the 6th century AD.

“This is a christogram, from the Greek letters Chi Rho which stands for Jesus Christ. It also features the Greek letters alpha and omega which also appear in the central part of the christogram. It is decorated with geometric elements, and has a large diameter of over 55 cm. It was used as a decoration,” explains Vladimir Petkov, Director of the Sandanski Museum of Archaeology.

He points out that the monogram of Christ is a permanent motif in Christian art, and that the christogram pieced together in Sandanski was used as a decoration of a newly unearthed space which was either the scriptorium (a room for the writing and copying of books in medieval monasteries), or the ancient library at the Bishop’s Basilica in the Roman and Byzantine city of Parthicopolis.

What is additionally interesting about the Sandanski christogram is that there is a donor’s inscription engraved on the same marble slab below it.

“These are two small pages in which “God’s servant” Anthim mentions that he built this beautiful and magnificent building, and compares it to Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem,” Petkov says.

The archaeological excavations in Bulgaria’s Sandanski have yielded a number of other Early Christian finds over the years. For example, in March 2015, the local archaeologists announced the discovery of a large bronze cross for church procession from the 5th century AD.

Read more »

Antioch responds to Jerusalem's claims

For short background: Jerusalem, in rather obvious violation of Church order, installed a bishop in Qatar which is the territory of Antioch. It was claimed that Antioch had not taken care of the Christians there and so Jerusalem stepped in to serve the Christian migrant workers there. There has been a back and forth for many months now that culminated in the breaking of communion with Jerusalem by Antioch just a few weeks back. Jerusalem responded with a letter putting forth her position and now Antioch has done the same. Again, we are indebted to Notes on Arab Orthodoxy for pointing us to this statement and for previous translation work.

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(Church of Antioch) - A statement from the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and all the East

DAMASCUS, 8 August, 2015

The Patriarchate of Jerusalem recently issued a statement claiming that it pretends to «tell the truth with honesty,» regarding its aggression toward the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Antioch and regarding establishing an Archdiocese in Qatar under its jurisdiction. The Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East asserts first of all that it keeps itself above public media debates. However, the Patriarchate now considers itself obliged to clarify certain points regarding the above-mentioned statement in order "to tell the truth with honesty."

1) Partictial conditions did not allow the Church of Antioch to be present in Qatar during the period of time in question. This does not mean that the Church of Antioch is a newly established Church in "Arabia." Suffice it to note that the Church of Antioch has been ministering to the Christians in that region since the dawn of Christianity. In the modern era, the actual presence of Antioch was gradually strengthened in that region. On 1953, the church of Antioch had an Archdiocese there. The Church of Antioch historically and in the present time has an Archdiocese which encompasses the entire region, and is led by a Metropolitan who lives in its midst, and ministers to the Orthodox Christian people of various nationalities. A number of successive Metropolitans have been ministering to this Archdiocese up to this day. Thus, the question must be asked: Why didn’t the Patriarchate of Jerusalem ever object to the presence of Antioch, if it believes that it has ecclesiastical jurisdiction over Qatar?

2) The Patriarchate of Antioch is saddened and dismayed by the fact that the Patriarchate of Jerusalem is at such a loss in its approach to this crisis. Jerusalem has created a crisis. Furthermore, the Patriarchate denounces the fact the Patriarchate of Jerusalem misleads the faithful, as though to appear a battered victim. In fact, Jerusalem persists in its aggression, quoting an administrative memorandum issued by the Patriarchate of Antioch, and attributing words to the Patriarch of Antioch which he never said at any time, and will never say in the future. Therefore, in order to prevent any confusion, the Patriarchate of Antioch reiterates the fact that it ministers to the faithful who live within the historical and canonical jurisdiction set forth in the Sacred Canons. Currently, the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Antioch does not now include Egypt, Jordan and Jerusalem. Furthermore, the Patriarchate of Antioch points out that some are maliciously mischaracterizing our outstanding relation with the Patriarchate of Alexandria. The Patriarchate of Alexandria ministers to a large number of Antiochian believers, residing in various countries within the African continent.

3) The Patriarchate of Antioch avoids controversial manners of speaking, and draws attention to two important points:

A – To accuse the Patriarchate of Antioch of ethnocentricity is certainly untruthful and disingenuous. The Patriarchate of Antioch simply says to all peoples: "Come and see." This assertion testifies to the openness of the Antiochian Church, and to the equality among its believers, and the diversity that characterizes the Antiochian ministry throughout world.

B- With respect to, among other allegations in its communiqué, the denial by the Patriarchate of Jerusalem of the "agreement of Athens", and as the Patriarchate of Jerusalem has called "the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs” to witness to this fact. In Response to this, the Patriarchate of Antioch asks for the permission of the most holy Father the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to quote his Protocol No. 943 dated November 12, 2013. The ecumenical patriarch himself is a guarantor in explaining everything:

“As Your Beatitude, kyr kyr John, has come to realize and assess, we, the Ecumenical Patriarchate, in our Mediocrity, have issued many repeated attempts to address the problem at hand. This problem has arisen suddenly and without warning—so we have made many appeals to our brother, His Beatitude, kyr Theophilos, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, in the following vein: that he not continue on any further in his action to ordain the one whom they call archbishop-elect…

Unfortunately, Your Beatitude, contrary to all the counsels of the Ecumenical Patriarchate which are fraternal and sought after, and for the sake of the common pan-Orthodox good, and the sacred tradition of the Church, and even against Your own personal appeals, the patriarchate of Jerusalem has gone forward in ordaining and establishing the archbishop in question…”

Chinese faithful: "You can’t remove the cross in our hearts."

(UCANews) - More Christian and Catholic groups and bishops, both inside and outside China, are protesting the Chinese government's cross-removal campaign in Zhejiang province.

On July 31, two separate groups of priests who graduated from the Central and Southern Seminary in Wuchang and the Sheshan Seminary in Shanghai condemned the campaign in public statements circulated on the Internet, with one group comparing it to the persecution that occurred during the 1966-1976 Cultural Revolution.

One of the priests, who identified himself as Father Ambrose, told ucanews.com that he and 20 classmates from the 2001 class at Central and Southern Seminary lobbied their respective bishops to protest the campaign.

“The prelates may need more time to think over and consider the timing of their remarks. In order to not pressure them, we decided to speak out in the name of our graduate class,” Fr. Ambrose said.

In a separate statement, nine priests who graduated from Sheshan Seminary in 2000 compared the cross-removal campaign to the killings of scholars during the Qin Dynasty, 221-206 B.C., and the widespread persecution that occurred during the Cultural Revolution.

Three underground bishops who are not recognized by the government — John Wang Ruowang of Tianshui, Joseph Wei Jingyi of Qiqihar and Peter Shao Zhumin of Wenzhou — have also spoken out, joining the voices of several government-approved bishops, who spoke in protest of the campaign in late July.

In Hong Kong, the diocesan Justice and Peace Commission and several Protestant churches held a prayer service outside the central government’s Liaison Office Aug. 3, saying the cross-removal campaign was persecuting Christians.

Participants displayed crosses and banners that read “can’t remove the cross in our hearts.”

“It is unprecedented to see more and more Catholic groups and dioceses in China speaking out against the cross-removal campaign, as they used to be very low-key,” Or Yan-yan, commission project officer, told ucanews.com.

“Since the campaign began, the Wenzhou authorities pressured the Church economically to remain silent. Today, some protesters face threats and being arrested on political charges, yet the faithful still choose to speak out. You can imagine how grave the situation is for them,” she said.

Celebrating the Feast of St. Elias in Jerusalem

To be precise, in a monastery on the road between Jerusalem and Bethlehem.

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NFTU has the best article titles

Who else could write the line "Phanar Ecumenist Kallistos Ware to Speak at Monophysite-Coptic Feminist Conferences"?

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(NFTU) - Well-known heretical Phanar Ecumenist, Metropolitan Kallistos Ware, a proponent of “women’s ordination”, plans to speak at a conference run by heretical Coptic Monophysite “Orthodox Women’s Ministry” conference. The event will take place in Heythrop College, University of London, in the United Kingdom from Friday, September 11, 2015, to Sunday, September 13, 2015.

The Conference website states that two prominent ecumenist Phanar notables will speak, which includes Metropolitan Kallistos Ware of Diocletia, and the well-known feminist ecumenist ‘theologian’ of the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s,

Dr. Kyriaki Fitzgerald (Clinical Psychologist and activer member of the WCC). Dr. Fitgerald is well-known in the “women’s ordination” movement in the World “Orthodox” groups.

The tilt by the Phanar and the organization’s acolytes towards feminism and “women’s ordination” has been pronounced; not all of this should be surprising, as the Phanar has been known for its position on abortion and population control.

“Women’s ordination” has found increasing acceptance among “World Orthodox”, especially in ecumenist-modernist jurisdictions in the United State, such as the OCA, Antiochian Archdiocese, and Greek Archdiocese.

Such a ‘conference’, is, like the Ecumenical Patriarchate and other heretical organizations, an abomination in the site of God, as is the demonic concept of “women’s ordination”.

"We are not only to be called Christians, but to be Christians."

Coptic martyrs' families get homes from Focus on the Family

(Focus on the Family) - Because of friends like you, Focus on the Family is able to come alongside the families of martyrs executed by ISIS. ‪Construction in Samalout, Egypt, of homes for these families is well underway, and it is a project that has impacted an entire community (see pictures in the Photos section). The construction contractor is hiring local laborers to help build the homes, providing new jobs. The local Coptic Bishop has offered two buildings that will be turned into Vocational Training Centers, creating new potential. Families from around Samalout are bringing the construction crews meals while they work. Teams from Focus on the Family Egypt regularly make the 2 hour trip to the community to meet with the families and grieve alongside them. What began as a horrific tragedy has brought the whole community together.

The houses are not extravagant, by any definition. But they are safe, they provide shelter, and they are giving members of a marginalized community a place to call home. More than that, they are a physical demonstration of unity within the worldwide body of Christ. This is all possible because you chose be a part of Focus on the Family's Global Outreach.

The Focus Egypt team is committed to long-term ministry in the area, and construction will continue for many more months. The job training center will give new opportunities for families to earn a livelihood. And the final phase of the construction will include a Memorial Community Center in honor of the men who took such a brave stand. Your willingness to contribute so generously to our efforts in Egypt is deeply appreciated. The Lord is using this initiative powerfully as we strive to “visit orphans and widows in their affliction” (James 1:27)

Donate Now to support this outreach.

Background

The news of the 20 Egyptian men and their Ghanaian coworker who were murdered by ISIS in Libya reverberated around the world. All of the Egyptian men were members of the Coptic Christian church, so the nation, and especially members of the Coptic faith, was deeply shaken by the brutal murders. A team from Focus on the Family Egypt visited the communities in Upper Egypt where 20 of the martyrs came from. They spent two days in the villages, going from door to door to meet the friends and families of these men, and were completely unprepared to see the Bible come alive through the faith of these people.

All of these young Christians were in their early to mid-20s, and they went to Libya in search of work to help feed their families living under the poverty line in Egypt. They literally had nothing, except for the very thing they died for because they would not let it go — their faith in Christ. Their families echoed that faith. They did not curse ISIS. They did not ask for pity. They did not ask for supplies or money. When the team asked several of the families what needs they had that Focus might be able to help with, they said, "We have no physical needs. Please just pray that our faith remains strong." These are people who have nothing, including what most people would call a proper home, and not one of them expressed a single need other than maintaining a strong faith. Another elderly lady, who is caring for her grandchildren because her son was one of the 20 killed, was asked how they would survive without the breadwinner. She confidently said, "Our God has always provided for our every need, and He will continue to provide."

The families and friends of the 20 men all rejoiced that the men made the choice they did. They prayed that their children would forgive ISIS. And they said they would all hope to make the same choice, if faced with the same threat. It was a stirring challenge to the team from Focus on the Family Middle East, and to Christians everywhere.

The Focus Egypt team works with the central Coptic church in the area, and is providing counseling and distributing children's Bibles. This ministry was possible because of their existing partnership with the Coptic church. The local churches and the Focus office are partnering to continue their outreach and support to the families of these 20 men. Focus on the Family's Global Partnership is meeting people at their point of need, with biblical counsel and trusted resources. The families' physical need for housing gave Focus on the Family the chance to stand with the Egypt office, and meet the needs of these families in a tangible way. Thank you for choosing to be a part of what Focus on the Family is doing around the world.