Byzantine, Texas

( STOTS ) - On Friday, January 18th 2019, Saint Tikhon’s seminarians and community members gathered around His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, for the Annual March for Life in Washington DC. This year’s March marks 46 years since the Roe v. Wade decision, when the United States Supreme Court legalized abortion. St. Tikhon's Seminary was well-represented during the March. Archbishop Michael, Seminary Rector, and Archpriest John Parker, Seminary Dean, were among those who stood stalwart behind His Beatitude as he offered a Panikhida for the holy infants slain by abortion. Fr. Ignatius Gauvain, Director of Student Life, organized the arrival of over twenty-five St. Tikhon’s seminarians and community children. Hieromonk Herman (Majkrzak) and seminarian James Latimer (STOTS ‘20) led the seminarian choir during the prayer service. St. Vladimir’s seminarians and several local Orthodox clergy and parishioners were also among the Orthodox Christians who marched down Constitution Ave...

( AOB ) - The Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America affirms the sanctity of life based on the firm conviction that life begins at the moment of conception. The Assembly remains steadfast in its conviction that any interference in the development of life is a serious issue, and therefore it regularly participates in a variety of relevant events and also releases pertinent statements on the topic. While recognizing that there are rare but serious medical instances where mother and child may require extraordinary actions, the Assembly of Bishops is deeply concerned that the taking of innocent life through abortion has become an acceptable cultural norm. This phenomenon – increasingly prevalent throughout contemporary societies – was exacerbated by a recent law of the New York State Senate (Bill S.240). Not to mention the heinous legislation offered by Delegate Kathy Tran of Virginia who thought writing a law that said aborting babies even to the point ...

Tbilisi, January 29 ( Interfax ) - A delegation of the Constantinople Patriarchate will pay a visit to Georgia to discuss the Ukrainian church's autocephaly on Wednesday. Metropolitan Emmanuel of France is heading the delegation, Archpriest Andria Dzhagmaidze, the head of the press center for the Georgian Patriarchate, told reporters on Tuesday. Members of the delegation will meet with Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II of All Georgia and discuss the Ukrainian church's autocephaly at the meeting, he said. "Constantinople itself initiated the meeting," he said, adding that he does not think that this visit would drastically change the stance of the Georgian Orthodox Church. Last week, Archpriest Andria Dzhagmaidze said that the Georgian Patriarchate believes that pressure certain local politicians and non-governmental organizations exert on it regarding the recognition of the new Ukrainian church is inadmissible.

The OCA is taking the measured, patient approach. As many have said, given the precarious nature of the OCA's own autocephaly, this is a delicate situation. Some worried that Moscow would request/demand the OCA follow suit, but that has not yet happened. Will other jurisdictions follow this tack? I don't know, but it isn't at all impossible that we'll see a continuation of the way things are; continued communion with a continuation of refusal to accept the OCU (the de rigueur term for the EP's Orthodox Church in Ukraine on which we seem to be coalescing). The below is a very clear and comprehensive document that informs both clergy and laity the definitive opinion of the OCA. ( OCA ) - On Monday, January 28, 2019, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon and the members of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America issued an Archpastoral Letter concerning the situation of the Church in Ukraine and related matters, as decided during the Fall Session of ...

The Order of Saint Andrew the Apostle, Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Condemns New York’s New Abortion Law The Order of Saint Andrew the Apostle, Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, strongly condemns the State of New York’s new Reproductive Health Act that was passed on January 22, 2019. This new law allows abortions up to the moment of birth and gives people who are not doctors the right to perform abortions. The Order also deplores the celebratory atmosphere surrounding the new law, as One World Trade Center was lit pink to commemorate the passage of the law, as if it represented a great advance for the rights of women. The rights of no human being are ever advanced at the expense of another. The State of New York will not truly have respect for the rights of women until it once again restores legal protections for every human being, from his or her first moment of existence until natural death. Hailed as progress, New York’s Reproductive Health Act is not actually...

A few months ago Archpriest Michael Oleksa gave a talk at St. Vlad's entitled " The Legacy of St. Herman and the Alaskan Mission Today ." I listened to it on a plane ride nearly entranced by his ability to tell a tale. His delivery mixes the careful pacing of a master storyteller, the precise recall of a historian, and the empathy of an Orthodox Christian. If you haven't listened to this talk, I encourage you to do so not only because of the impassioned delivery, but because it gives a unique voice to the Alaskan Orthodox experience that you will be hard-pressed to hear anywhere else. As a very dedicated audiobook listener, I was heartened to see Ancient Faith Publishing delivering some of their titles on Audible and that heartening was followed by no little delight at discovering Fr. Oleksa's " Everyday Wonders: Stories of God's Providence " an available title. I downloaded it to my phone while packing on a Saturday before I got on the road to ...

( Aleteia ) - Taken off the tennis courts for six months because of persistent elbow pain, Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic made his return to the ATP circuit on Tuesday, facing off against American Donald Young in the first round of the Australian Open tournament. He won the match handily (6-1, 6-2, 6-4). And it’s a safe bet that this man, who dominated the world tennis elite from August 2014 to November 2016, was able to find the energy he needed for his comeback thanks to his regular Bible reading. “Before I am an athlete, I am an Orthodox Christian” The former number 1 tennis player in the world is an Orthodox Christian, and he does not hesitate to say it publicly. It is not uncommon to observe Novak Djokovic invoking Christ during a meeting or wearing a cross around his neck to witness to his faith. For him, his religious beliefs come before his 68 titles, including 12 Grand Slam tournaments earned since the beginning of his career. “This is the most important title ...

( RISU ) - The Church of Cyprus plans to recognize Metropolitan Epifaniy. “The time will come for His Beatitude Epifaniy to visit Cyprus and to concelebrate with us,” Archbishop Chrisostomos said, Cerkvarium reports, citing the Greek media outlet Phos Phanariou, Light of the Phanar. The Primate of the Church of Cyprus said that he had heard Metropolitan Epifaniy expressing a desire to establish communion and replied that it is quite natural. He also noted that Epifaniy had already visited Cyprus previously, knows the local situation well and speaks Greek. Archbishop Chrysostomos has given such an answer to Metropolitan Elpidophoros of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, who is on a visit to the Orthodox Church of Cyprus. Metropolitan Elpidophoros has gifted to Chrysostom his newly published book on the visit of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to Ukraine in 2008. Also, the Head of the Cypriot Church has said that he considers the Ecumenical Patriarchate to be the Mother Chur...

So, two notes here. One is that the anniversary of Patriarch Kirill's election is going to be a convenient place for primates to discuss Ukraine. The other is that Moscow claims that no one is going to the enthronement of the OCU primate. While that's possible, there are some patriarchates that are quite close to Constantinople and may actually send someone. We shall see. Moscow, January 24 ( Interfax ) - None of the world's Orthodox Churches except for Constantinople will send a delegation to the enthronement of Yepifaniy Dumenko, the head of Ukraine's new church, the Moscow Patriarchate said. "None of the world's local Orthodox Churches has recognized the church recently created by Ukrainian politicians and Phanar or congratulated its head. No one is going to send representatives to the 'enthronement' of its so-called head on February 3," Archpriest Nikolay Balashov, the deputy head of the Synodal Department for External Church Relations, sa...

ALBANY, NY ( Babylon Bee ) — As the New York State Senate voted to legalize abortion until the moment of birth, remove legal protections for late-term unborn babies, and allow anyone with a pulse to perform abortion procedures, witnesses claim a demon lord was clearly visible in the gallery cheering on the decision. "This dude in a dark cloak appeared in a flash of fire and started cackling and stuff," said one woman who also applauded the decision. "We thought maybe we should call security, but then we saw he was cheering right along with us, so we decided that he can't be all that bad." The demon lord solemnly applauded as legislators passed the historic legislation, in which a human being can be murdered even though he or she has fully formed organs and can feel pain. "We've been pushing for this legislation for a long time," the evil overlord told reporters after the session. "It just goes to show when you believe in your cause, ...

H/T: Full of Grace and Truth O Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son, Who are in the bosom of the Father, True God, source of life and immortality, Light of Light, Who came into the world to enlighten it: You were pleased to be conceived in the womb of the Virgin Mary for the salvation of our souls by the power of Your All-Holy Spirit. O Master, Who came that we might have life more abundantly, we ask You to enlighten the minds and hearts of those blinded to the truth that life begins at conception and that the unborn in the womb are already adorned with Your image and likeness; enable us to guard, cherish, and protect the lives of all those who are unable to care for themselves. For You are the Giver of Life, bringing each person from non-being into being, sealing each person with divine and infinite love. Be merciful, O Lord, to those who, through ignorance or willfulness, affront Your divine goodness and providence through the evil act of abortion. May they, and all of us,...

Let's not forget that this man is a recipient of the Athenagoras Human Rights Award . I guess this is who one picks when Nero is no longer alive. ( Daily Wire ) - On Tuesday, New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, delighted that the New York legislature passed the Reproductive Health Act, which would allow mothers to kill (pardon me, abort) their babies up until birth, celebrated this legalized murder by ordering that the spire at One World Trade Center, the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, the Kosciuszko Bridge and the Alfred E. Smith Building in Albany all be lit in pink on Tuesday night. HORRIFIC: The One World Trade Center is lit up pink tonight to "celebrate" the passage of a bill that legalized abortion until birth for any reason. pic.twitter.com/tqwvFrWRqs — Live Action (@LiveAction) January 23, 2019 Cuomo chortled, "The Reproductive Health Act is a historic victory for New Yorkers and for our progressive values. In the face of a federal government i...

Let me say that Archon George E. Demacopoulos is not someone with whom I'd like to while away my Saturday afternoon. I'm about as big a proponent of Fordham's Orthodox Christian Studies Center as I am mowing shoeless or drinking water from the tap on a vacation to Mexico. Still, regardless of your feelings on Ukrainian autocephaly, this is where you are going to hear the Ecumenical Patriarchate's talking points. So if you want to know how the EP is going to talk about what they did, how they think of themselves in the larger context of world Orthodoxy, and what it means for relations in the future, this is the place to be prepared for what they are going to roll out. Hate it or love it, this is worth joining in to listen to. ( ARCHONS ) - On Saturday, January 26, 2019, from 1PM to 3PM EST, the Order of Saint Andrew, Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, is hosting our first-ever nationwide call-in Virtual Town Meeting on an issue of cardinal importance for every...

H/T: OAJ

( AINA ) - On Thursday Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited the recently opened Coptic Cathedral of the Nativity, not far from Cairo. "It is a very special thing to have this in the heart of the Middle East, this enormous cathedral where people can come worship in Egypt," he told the press. "It's a land of religious freedom and opportunity. It's remarkable." But many Coptic Christians feel the new house of worship means little given the persecution they face. Copts make up only about 10% of the Muslim-majority country. But they trace their church back to the visit of the Apostle Mark, the first pope of Alexandria, to Egypt in the year 50. These Christians have faced tough times for nearly 2,000 years, but their recent history is especially disheartening. On Jan. 1, 2011, Islamists bombed a Coptic church in Alexandria, killing 23 and injuring 97. Nermien Riad, executive director of the nonprofit Coptic Orphans, tells me the attack was a catalyst. She s...

Sadly I can't make it this year because I'm traveling in the opposite direction, but please do go if you can. ( OCA ) - January 22, 2019 marks the 46th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion in the United States, and Orthodox Christians from across the US will be marking the occasion by participating in the annual March for Life in the US Capital on Friday, January 18. His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon will join other Orthodox Christian hierarchs, seminarians, and clergy and faithful from around the country in the annual March, which will conclude with the celebration of Memorial Prayers for the victims of abortion near the US Capital. The theme of this year’s March is “Unique From Day One”. The March will begin at noon on the grounds of the Washington Monument. Orthodox Christian participants are asked to gather at that time at the “Orthodox Christians for Life” banner, which will be prominently displayed at the southwest corner of 12th ...

JOHNSTOWN, PA ( ACROD ) - Our Diocese is pleased to announce a series of Parenting Workshops designed to help parents raise their children in the Faith. The title of the series is “Raising Believing Children” and will focus on the ways parents can help their children stay faithful to Christ and His Church in a world that is filled with doubt and most often works against their Faith. The Workshops are for parents of any age – you’re never too old to be a son or daughter, and likewise you’re never too old to be a parent! This series of Parenting Workshops will be hosted by different Churches and Deaneries around our Diocese starting in March 2019. The first Workshop in the Series will be hosted by Sts. Peter and Paul Church in Rockaway, NJ on March 2, 2019. The first will feature His Eminence Metropolitan Gregory of Nyssa and Very Rev. Stephen Loposky as presenters and workshop facilitators. Each workshop will be broadcast live online and will be archived for later viewing as well, and ...

( CLS ) - On October 13th, 2018, Orthodox Christian attorneys and law students from across the nation gathered in Clearwater, Florida, for the second annual Orthodox Christian Attorney Network (OCAN) conference. The event was held in conjunction with the Christian Legal Society (CLS) National Conference, the nation’s premier Christian legal conference. The OCAN conference addressed a fundamental question that we, as Orthodox lawyers, tend to ask ourselves at several points throughout our careers: Is it possible to be a good Christian and a good lawyer? We were privileged to hear from speakers, who are both devoted Orthodox Christians and successful lawyers, talk about good stewardship of our hearts, minds, and churches through the practice of law. The keynote address for this event was given by the Honorable Judge Stephanos Bibas. Judge Bibas serves on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and is also an ordained Deacon in St. Elizabeth the New Martyr Orthodox Church in ...

Ukraine has been THE topic of the year (understandably), but I'm happy to cover anything you think has been lost in the mix. So please send your topics to the comment box so they can get more attention. Pretty pictures and videos also appreciated. Really, anything to get a reprieve from 24-hour Ukraine coverage.

( OCA ) - His Eminence, Archbishop Alexander of Dallas, the South and the Bulgarian Diocese is among the participants representing the Orthodox Church in America at the inaugural conference of the International Orthodox Theological Association [IOTA], which opened in Iasi, Romania on Wednesday, January 9, 2019. The theme—“A Call to Pan-Orthodox Unity”—will be explored in a variety of presentations and papers throughout the conference, which concludes on January 13. His Eminence, Metropolitan Kallistos [Ware] of Diokleia, serves as the conference’s keynote speaker, while 50 sessions will highlight the work of some 300 Church leaders, scholars and professionals representing over 30 countries. In addition to Archbishop Alexander, presentations will be offered by the OCA’s Dr. Peter Bouteneff, Dr. Frank Cerra, Archpriest Michael Oleksa, Archpriest John Parker, and Prof. Richard Schneider, among others. Also attending are Deacon Nicholas Denysenko; Deacon Pavel Gavrilyuk, IOTA found...

Tbilisi, January 10, ( Interfax ) - The Georgian Orthodox Church will not rush its decision on whether to recognize the autocephaly of the new church of Ukraine, Metropolitan Nikoloz of Akhalkalaki and Kumurdo told reporters. "The Churches that are ahead of us in the hierarchy have to state their positions first. The decision of the Constantinople Patriarchate to grant autocephaly to the Ukrainian church needs to be studied. On the one hand, the Georgian Church can support the right of the Ukrainian state to have an autocephalous church, but on the other hand, one needs to take into account who should recognize this autocephaly and on what conditions. In particular, who the head of the Ukrainian church and other hierarchs should be," Metropolitan Nikoloz told the Georgian information agency Interpressnews. It is especially important to determine the canonicity of those Ukrainian clergymen who are represented in the new church of Ukraine, as some of them were anathematize...

( Orthodox Synaxis ) - "The Tomos for Ukraine: What’s Typical and What’s Specific" by Vladimir Burega We will start with the fact that the tomos signed at the Phanar on January 5, 2019 carries on a certain tradition of issuing similar documents that has been formulated at the Patriarchate of Constantinople over the past two centuries. It began with the issuing of the tomos on the autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of Greece (that is, the church within the borders of the Greek state) in 1850. This was followed by the tomoi on the granting of autocephaly to the Churches of Serbia (1879), Romania (1885), Poland (1924), Albania (1937), Bulgaria (1945) and Czechia and Slovakia (1998). In 1990, a tomos was likewise issued on the recognition and approbation of the autocephalous status of the Orthodox Church of Georgia. Thus, the tomos for Ukraine wasn’t created from scratch. Both its form and its content follow a certain rule. In ecclesiastical documents of this level, there are a...

Damascus, 31 December 2018 ( AOCANA ) - Your All-Holiness, Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch, beloved brother and concelebrant in Christ the Lord, Kyrios Kyrios Bartholomew. With great joy, we embrace Your Beloved person in the Lord and we say, In these blessed days of the Holy Incarnation of our Lord, we lift up our warmest supplications for the abundance of your good health and deep prosperity. May this upcoming year bring forth God's mercies and blessings on the Orthodox world and all the world. We are in receipt of your letter dated December 24th, 2018, in which you inform us of the developments related to the Orthodox church in the State of Ukraine, with which we are familiar. We do not hide from Your Loving Person that it was alarming to us, not just for the disunity it has generated in the Orthodox Church, but also because it continuously disregards the opinions of the local Orthodox Churches. Your All-Holiness, We would like to assure y...

Why does Constantinople restrict the UOC-KP from expanding outside of the state border? Canon 28 of the 4th Ecumenical Council which states that the diaspora is Constantinople's. The below codifies the Ecumenical Patriarch's assertion that this canon means everything not within the boundaries of the other autocephalous Churches is Constantinople's. So for those who continue to email in and ask: No. The UOC-USA will not be under this new body, but will remain under the EP. ( EP ) - Bartholomew, by God’s mercy Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch: “You have come to Mount Zion . . . and to the Church of the first-born” (Heb. 12.22–23), as the blessed Paul, apostle to the nations, declares to all the faithful, appropriately likening the Church to a mountain to affirm conviction and recognition as well as steadfastness and stability. For although the Church of God both is and is called one flock and one body of Christ—everywhere sharing the confess...

( Kyiv Post ) - Ukrainian Church’s autocephaly tomos to be briefly returned to Istanbul to be signed by Constantinople Patriarchate’s Synod All members of the Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople must sign the tomos of authocephaly of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Andriy Yurash, the director of the Ukrainian Culture Ministry’s department of religions and interethnic relations, said. “The tomos will be displayed so that everyone who wishes may come and see this unique document until the evening (on Monday). (..) In the near future, it will return to Istanbul, to the Patriarchate of Constantinople, because at present it was signed only by the Ecumenical Patriarch [Bartholomew],” Yurash said during a Christmas liturgy at the St. Sophia’s Cathedral in Kyiv broadcast on Ukrainian television channels on Monday. If anyone has the Greek original or an English translation from the original, please send it over. “All members of the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s Holiest Syno...

He's pretty clear on that point. The below from Patriarch Irinej's Nativity Encylical available here . ( SOC ) - "... our very close and brotherly Ukraine, where the passion filled chauvinist-Russophobes, led by corrupt politicians with the assistance of Uniates and, unfortunately, with the uncanonical cooperation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, deepened and spread the existing schism and seriously jeopardized the unity of Orthodoxy in general."

( President of Ukraine ) - President Petro Poroshenko took part in the ceremony of signing the Tomos of Autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in Istanbul. The solemn ceremony took place in the Patriarchal Church of St. George. After the ceremony, the Head of State appealed to the attendees: "Your All-Holiness, Your Beatitude, Your Eminence, Ladies and Gentlemen. Dear Ukrainians who are watching us today in Ukraine and around the world, who have been waiting for this event for thousands of years. Thank God! For without God's will this event would have been impossible". "I am grateful to His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew for his faith. Your All-Holiness, these applause are heard all over the world," Petro Poroshenko said. The President thanked Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew for his faith and love for Ukraine, for his prayer for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people, for the courage that His All-...