Byzantine, Texas

His Grace has quite a following (gifted musician, eloquent speaker, learned scholar). He was until now an outspoken voice of Orthodoxy to Western Europe. He now moves to the very influential position of mouth-piece to the Patriarchate itself. Moscow, March 31, ( Interfax ) - Bishop Hilarion of Vienna and Austria has been appointed head of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations. On Tuesday, the Holy Synod "unanimously approved Bishop Hilarion as chairman of the DECR, Patriarchate spokesman priest Vladimir Vigilyansky told reporters after the meeting. "He will now being transferred to Moscow from abroad," the spokesman said. Archpriest Nikolay Balashov, Patriarchate secretary for relations with other Orthodox Churches, and priest Georgy Ryabykh, acting secretary for liaison between the church and public, were appointed deputy chairmen of the Department for External Church Relations. The Bishop Mark of Yegoryevsk, a former deputy chairman of the DE...

The forums are still a'flutter with unhappy and confused faithful trying to understand why "this was done to them." Expect more discussion both on and off the Antiochian website. ( Antiochian.org ) - Protopresbyter Paul O'Callaghan and The Council of Presbyters of the Diocese of Wichita and Mid-America Beloved in Christ, Greetings and Blessings to you during this holy season of The Great Fast! We have received and reviewed your letter dated March 17 th , 2009 in which you pose fifteen questions related to the February 24 th , 2009 decision of the Holy Synod of Antioch regarding the status of all bishops across the Holy See of Antioch. We will try our best to answer these questions as follows: 1. Are there any other diocesan bishops, outside our Archdiocese, that are affected by the Holy Synod's decision? Answer: Yes. In the Patriarchate there are three bishops, the Bishop of Saydnaya, the Bishop of Qatana, and the Patriarchal Vicar. In addition, the Archdioce...

( SOC-WAD ) - Who do people say I AM? A symposium on Chalcedon's Christology in the postmodern world was held at the Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles on Thursday, March 19, 2009.. Two Orthodox Christian hierarchs offered the Orthodox response: His Eminence, Archbishop Hovnan Derderian of the Armenian Church, Western Diocese; and His Grace, Bishop Maxim of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Diocese of Western America. ( Holy Resurrection )- On March 19 Abbot Nicholas, hieromonk Maximos and hierodeacon Moses attended a symposium at Loyola Marymount University sponsored by the Huffington Ecumenical Institute . The event was titled, "Who do People Say I Am? Chalcedon's Christology in a Postmodern World. The main speakers were His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Western Diocese, and His Grace Bishop Maxim of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Diocese of Western America.

Incest laws often surprise people. Westerners are amazed it is permitted at all and North African emigrants to America are often shocked that they are not permitted to marry their cousins when they go up to the courthouse to get their paperwork filled out. I remember in the 1950s text My Catholic Faith that an entire page is dedicated to listing who you can and can't marry - if memory serves it was a complete a tree with branches showing how close to you someone could be and marry them. Romania ( AP ) – Surprising as it may seem, incest is not always a crime in Europe. Three European Union nations — France, Spain and Portugal — do not prosecute consenting adults for incest, and Romania is considering following suit. The shocking case of Austrian Josef Fritzl , found guilty this week of holding his daughter captive for 24 years and fathering her seven children, has focused new attention on incest — which is a crime in itself in Austria even if the acts are consensual. But in the Fr...

H/T: Christ in our midst

Movie available here .

I've covered this monastery a few times before (see here ). Since the 1970's the group in the monastery have severed ties with the Ecumenical Patriarch and there has been a lively and at times violent back and forth between the monks and the Phanar. The monks threatened to blow the building up and set things on fire. There are even Youtube videos of fighting in the streets and wild finger pointing and yelling. ( Esphigmenou ) - Last Thursday, March 15th, the State Council (III division Seven-member constitution) was about to discuss the annulment application that seven people had submitted, among them Methodios, the leader of the team which occupies the buildings of the Monastery of Esphigmenou in Mount Athos, against the decision of the Holy Community of Mount Athos, according to which, the new fraternity and administration of the Monastery had been determined in 2005. The trial, in the end, did not have to take place because the applicants withdrew from the annulment applicat...

I know this had made the rounds all over this month, but I'm reposting anyway as I enjoyed it so much. Two years ago I was asked to hear the last confession of and bring communion to an old woman who was preparing to die. Once we had arrived at the house where she lived, the relatives who were accompanying me began finding excuses not to proceed. In shy voices, they said things like: “You know, Father? she was a smoker.” “Well,” I answered, “that is certainly not the greatest of sins.” The thus comforted relatives then led me further, but some time later they stopped again. “Father, she was for her entire life an atheist; she cursed the Church, and she couldn’t stand the site of priests.” Well, now. This was a far more serious obstacle. Quite often, people who’ve begun to believe quite recently wish for anything whatsoever to save their loved ones. They do this more often than not in a clumsy manner; and their lingering doubts or belief-on-condition that’s led them away from the Ch...

I rarely get a chance to mention the Orthodox Church in Poland. An equally timely and possibly more interesting story can be found here . ( cerkiew.pl ) - On the 10 March the meeting of the holy synod of bishops was held. The meeting was presided by the metropolitan Sawa, the head of the Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church. Bishops discussed life and problems of each of the diocese in Poland. Monastic life was also discussed. There are more than a 100 monks in Polish monasteries now. Bishop of Piotrków, Paisjusz, who has been an auxiliary bishop in Łódź and Poznań diocese was appointed a bishop of Gorlice – an auxiliary bishop in Przemyśl and Nowy Sącz diocese. There are 6 dioceses in Poland now - Warsaw-Bielsk, with metropolitan Sawa, the head of the church, and bishop auxiliary Miron of Hajnówka, a head of Orthodox Chaplainship, and auxiliary bishop Jerzy of Siemiatycze; Białystok and Gdańsk diocese with archbishop Jakub and bishop auxiliary Grzegorz, Lublin and Chełm diocese with a...

Yesterday my wife gave birth to our son, Basil Elias. He was 8 pounds 15 ounces and measured 19½ inches long. In addition to us, the future godmother and my wife's father were able to join us at different times during the laboring. Many thanks for all their help. He is our sixth child and evens out the brood with three boys and three girls. God grant him many years!

H/T: Orthodoxy Today To be read from the pulpit, Sunday, March 22, 2009; the Veneration of the Holy Cross. And to be disseminated to all parishioners through appropriate parish media. Available as PDF here . March 19, 2009 Beloved Faithful Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago Dearly Beloved, As we pursue the struggle of repentance and holiness during this season of Great Lent with the renewal of our commitment to Christ our Lord, we have become aware of a threat to the freedom of our spiritual and religious lives in the State of Illinois, though such dangers are appearing more frequently throughout our nation. The Illinois General Assembly is considering a bill (HB 2354; “Reproductive Health and Access Act”) that would affect all health care workers by removing their right to conscientious objection to abortion and related procedures, forcing them to participate in or provide abortions or face legal punishments. This bill would basically make the right to an abortion a fundamental huma...

"I am the door. By me if any man enter in he shall be saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture." - John 10:9 At every parish where I have had the pleasure of attending services, there is always a small group of people who find their way all the way up to the church building but don't actually attend services. At one parish it was a group of male gypsies who talked on cellphones or smoked cigarettes. At another it was a few Protestant husbands who, though they never attended services, opened the parish doors for people as they filed in. At yet another parish the men stood in the narthex and chatted until it was time to receive and then got in line. Latin or Greek Catholic, Eastern or Oriental Orthodox I see the same small throng of men standing next to the front door, but not standing, sitting, or kneeling amongst the people. If it were me (and I can only speak for myself here) this option would be an unsavory one. The boredom would be immediate. The anxiety of som...

A surprise to no one who followed the path of then Abbot Jonah to Bishop of Fort Worth as Archbishop Dmitri's intended replacement to Metropolitan. SYOSSET, NY ( OCA Communications ) - The following announcement from His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri of Dallas and the South was received at the OCA Chancery, today: Diocese of the South Orthodox Church in America P.O. Box 191109 Dallas, Texas 75219 (214) 522-4149 March 22, 2009 Sunday of the Cross To the Clergy and Faithful of the Diocese of the South Orthodox Church in America: I would like to take this opportunity first, to ask for your prayers and forgiveness as we continue our journey to Pascha. May our Lord grant you a blessed and fruitful Lent and Holy Week. In addition, please know that over the years your tireless efforts in service to Christ have been a tremendous source of inspiration and joy. We have labored together for 'the Truth that sets man free': in light of your personal dedication it may be said that, ...

Moscow, March 20, ( Interfax ) - The Russian Orthodox Church supports the position of Pope Benedict XVI rejecting condoms including in order to prevent HIV infection. "It is incorrect to consider condoms as a panacea for AIDS," the deputy chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin told a round table in Moscow on Friday, commenting on the international row concerned with the pope's statement in Africa. AIDS can be prevented not by contraceptives but by education and a righteous life, the priest said. "If a person lives a sinful, aimless and senseless life, uses drugs and is lewd, some disease will kill him one day, neither a condom nor medicine will save him," Fr. Vsevolod added. Currently some organizations speaking on AIDS are seeking to simultaneously preserve the ideal of sexual freedom and the fight against AIDS, he said. It is impossible to reconcile these things, he said.

I've been to this parish a few times. Very attractive nave, lots of church groups, informative Orthodox study blog. Euless, TX ( Star-Telegram ) — Maria Kerbow’s young son, Gregory, was talking during the service at St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church a few years ago. "A man started shushing him," said Kerbow, of Benbrook. "Gregory was actually being pretty good, but babbling a little bit. Then the man started lecturing me about parenting. "I said, 'I’m sorry. My son is autistic.’ " In recent years, people have become more educated about autism and its accompanying communication, behavioral and social problems. But sensitivity and education are especially crucial in places of worship, said Carolyn Garver, clinical director of the Autism Treatment Center in Dallas. With that in mind, St. John the Baptist Philoptochos, a women’s philanthropic group at the Euless church, has produced a documentary about the challenges of families seeking to instill ...

( OCA News ) - Even as the dioceses of the Antiochian Archdiocese are threatened with reduction, so too is one of the oldest of the dioceses in the OCA. The Archdiocese of Pittsburgh , created by in 1916, may be in its last days. On March 7th, the Archdiocesan Council sent the following letter to Bishop Tikhon of Philadelphia and Eastern Pennsylvania, locum tenens of W.PA, with a copy to Metropolitan Jonah, asking for clarification... Complete article here .

( Catholica ) - Catholica is in receipt of an important news story that has been forwarded to us with the authority of the Eastern Catholic Bishops resident in Australia. Last Friday, 13 March, the Bishops and leaders representing the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches in Australia held a joint meeting in Sydney. They have endorsed a paper they had commissioned and have voiced a very strong complaint to the other Latin Church Australian Bishops and, through them, to the National Catholic Education Commission and the Catholic Education Offices and Catholic teachers of Australia concerning the religious education and treatment of Eastern Rite Catholic children in Australian Catholic schools. Catholica has been informed that Bishop Peter Stasiuk on behalf of the Eastern Catholic Bishops has been in touch with Archbishop Philip Wilson, President of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, who, according to Bishop Peter, has accepted there is solid foundation to the complaint and undertake...

( Economist ) - For connoisseurs of obscurity, the Republic of Carpatho-Ruthenia takes some beating. Seventy years ago, on March 15th, it enjoyed its sole day of independence—declared in the morning amid the Nazis’ dismemberment of the then Czechoslovakia, snuffed out in the evening by an invasion from neighbouring Hungary. Its leader, Avhustyn [Augustin] Voloshyn, died in a Soviet jail in 1945; so did many others. Before the world had even noticed its existence, independent Ruthenia disappeared into first the Nazi, then the Soviet empires. Ruthenians have had little joy since. A list of famous Ruthenes begins and pretty much ends with Andy Warhol: the artist did not himself speak Ruthene, though his parents did. He once said he had “come from nowhere”. Many Ruthenian activists feel that way, too. A million-plus by the most generous count (but far fewer according to sceptics), Ruthenians are scattered through the Carpathian regions of Slovakia, Poland and Ukraine, with another bunch in...

( Orthodox Biz ) - Globally, Orthodox Christianity is known to be highly conservative concerning what is frequently referred to as "traditional Christian morality." In Europe, for example, more progressive and liberal elements of society spare no effort in attacking the Church as a bastion of traditionalist repression, especially concerning homosexuality. Ironically, however, in the United States an image seems to be growing of the Orthodox Church as more liberal towards sexual sins than, for example, the Evangelical denominations. Quite a few people, judging by chatter on the Internet, are getting the impression that Orthodoxy is similar to the Episcopal Church in respect to moral issues. Part of this confusion stems from the book Same-Sex Unions in Premodern Europe by John Boswell. This book, published in 1994, asserted that certain Greek Orthodox medieval rituals were really ecclesiastical blessings of homosexual unions. Boswell especially singled out the Greek Orthod...

KYIV ( RISU ) — The head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Patriarch Lubomyr (Husar), answered the questions of readers of “Correspondent”. The most popular question pertained to the moving of the seat of the UGCC head to Kyiv in 2004. Patriarch Lubomyr noted: “We haven’t moved the seat of the UGCC head; we just returned to where we were in the past. RISU’s Ukrainian-language web page posted this story on 16 March 2009. “The decision (to move the seat from Lviv to Kyiv) would be illogical if all Greek Catholics were located only in western Ukraine,” continued the patriarch. “I visited Donetsk as well as Sumy and Crimea, and could see that there are also Greek Catholics there. Greek Catholics may have been driven from those parts of Ukraine, but they returned.” According to Patriarch Lubomyr, the Greek Catholic metropolitan was based in Kyiv before the beginning of the 19th century, but “when the Russian Empire occupied Ukraine, it steadily got rid of Greek Catholics on its lands....

( Jerusalem Post ) - Ahead of Pope Benedict XVI's May visit to Israel, the rabbi of the Western Wall, Shmuel Rabinovitch (pictured right) , has said that it is not proper to come to the site wearing a cross. The pope wears a cross in all public appearances and is slated to visit the Western Wall on May 12 after a meeting with Muslim religious leaders at the Dome of the Rock. After the visit, which will include a meeting with Rabinovitch, the pope is slated to meet with Israel's two chief rabbis, Yona Metzger and Shlomo Amar. "My position is that it is not fitting to enter the Western Wall area with religious symbols, including a cross," said Rabinovitch in a telephone interview with The Jerusalem Post Monday. "I feel the same way about a Jew putting on a tallit and phylacteries and going into a church." Rabinovitch is responsible for religious decorum at the site. "In coming days I intend to discuss the issue with the pope's people," Wadie Abu...

( Emportal ) - The United Nations' Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) has called on Turkey to reopen the Greek Orthodox theological seminary on the island of Halki, to return confiscated properties and to promptly execute all judgements by the European Court of Human Rights relating to it. "The Committee invited Turkey to promote adequate representation of the various ethnic groups in the Parliament and other elected bodies, as well as their participation in public bodies. It recommended that research be conducted with a view to effectively assessing and evaluating the incidence of racial discrimination in Turkey, with particular focus on discrimination based on national or ethnic origin, and that Turkey take targeted measures to eliminate such discrimination," a press release by the Committee in Geneva said on Tuesday. The Committee noted its concern "at the particularly serious situation of the Greek minority" and called upon Turkey ...

( Pew News ) - A federal appeals court on Monday upheld a Texas law that requires public school students to observe a daily minute of silence in order to pray, reflect or otherwise remain quiet. A three-judge panel from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans affirmed a district court ruling, saying the law is constitutional because it expressly allows any silent use of that minute, whether religious or not. David and Shannon Croft sued on behalf of their three children, who are enrolled in the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District. The suburban Dallas couple contended that including the word "pray" in the mandatory moment of silence law was a way for lawmakers to advance religion in schools. Another family joined the Crofts in filing the lawsuit but chose to remain anonymous. More from original Dallas Morning News article .

KYIV ( RISU ) —In an interview with “Ukraiinskyj Tyzhden’” (The Ukrainian Week), the head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyivan Patriarchate (UOC-KP), Patriarch Filaret shared his thoughts about church unification, the dialogue with Constantinople, and the new Moscow Patriarch. Patriarch Filaret is convinced that the only realistic model for the establishment of one local UOC church is unification. By this, the patriarch stressed that he means unification with the Moscow Patriarchate because the fate of the Autocephalous Church is decided over and above the decision of a few bishops. “When we unite, autocephaly will come automatically,” he noted. “If the head of the UOC-MP wants one local church in Ukraine, he should separate from Moscow,” stated the patriarch. Patriarch Filaret also told the interviewer about the visit of Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople to Ukraine. “The universal patriarch has different goals. Our goal was to join the Constantinople Patriarchate for a shor...

Eastern Liturgy in the West: The Case of the Armenian Church by Fr. Michael Daniel Findikyan is a paper providing a wealth of insight on the Armenian Church and its people. It goes deeper than an adumbration of the liturgy, a history of the people, or a synopsis of the peculiarities of their devotions. I can only describe it as a cohesive journal of the thoughts of one priest trying to convey what his Church is, has to offer, and how history, language, and distance are affecting what people "should" get out of a life lived within his Church. I am not a specialist in the field of inculturation, so what I offer you is not at all a scholarly address; I will not in any way claim to be comprehensive or definitive in my remarks. That leaves me free to ruminate and to reflect with you on the topic at hand without the obligation to be systematic, or even to tie up loose ends. I shall speak to the topic of inculturation as a student of the history of liturgy and as a representative ...

I've decided to add an interview component to the blog. The first such interview discusses the new and exciting Orthodox Kids Pen Pal program. Please feel free to re-post this interview. BTX is Byzantine, TX and OM is Orthodox Mom. BTX: Thanks for taking the time to talk about your new Orthodox Kids Pen Pal program. Can you tell me a little about how this idea came to you? OM: The thought first came to me after a conversation with my 5-year old son about being the only child in his class who makes the sign of the cross before he eats. I kept thinking I wish there was a way to help Orthodox children connect with each other. A way for them to have a friend that they can discuss things like making the sign of the cross, feast-day traditions and favorite saints with. Some children are fortunate to live in large Orthodox communities. We love where we live but there are very few small children and that can be difficult--for both children and parents! BTX: I've h...

H/T: NLM Diaconal ordination by His Beatitude Nerses Bedros XIX, the Catholic Patriarch of Armenians.

( UOC USA ) - For the fourth time in the last eight years the hierarchs of the Ukrainian Catholic and Ukrainian Orthodox Churches in North America have met in a brotherly “Encounter” to discuss the relationship between the two Churches and the common concerns they share in shepherding the faithful entrusted to their spiritual care. The meeting took place in Clearwater, Florida on 12-13 March following separate meetings of the two groups of hierarchs just preceding the Encounter. Taking part in the meeting from the Churches in the United States and Canada were: Metropolitans Constantine, Ukrainian Orthodox Church – USA; Stefan, Ukrainian Catholic Church – USA; Metropolitan John, Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Canada; Metropolitan Lawrence, Ukrainian Catholic Church – Canada; Archbishops Antony, Ukrainian Orthodox Church – USA; Yurij – Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Canada; Bishops David, Ukrainian Catholic Church – Canada; Paul – Ukrainian Catholic Church – USA; Richard, Ukrainian Catholi...

Constantinople ( AsiaNews ) - With the sending of letters of invitation to all the heads of the Orthodox Churches for the two preparatory meetings for the grand pan-Orthodox synod, scheduled for June and December of this year, Bartholomew has set in motion the decisions made at the recent pan-Orthodox meeting in October, held in Constantinople, and attended by deceased patriarch of Moscow Alexy as his last act in life. Bartholomew has stepped up the pace for the convening of the grand synod, which has the objective of responding to all of the problems that have built up over the course of centuries, and continue to plague relations among the Orthodox Churches, with extensive repercussions for the dialogue between Orthodox and Catholics as well. The schism of 1054, with all of its grave consequences for the universal Church, also deprived the Orthodox Church of the necessary impetus and ability to be constantly present in the course of history. In the recent past, a first initiative for...