Byzantine, Texas

( UOC-KP ) - October 29, 2010 in the morning His Holiness Patriarch of Kyiv and all Rus-Ukraine Filaret left for a visit to the United States. The primate is accompanied archpriest Oleg Malanyak and theology professor Dr. Dmitry. Every year Met. Filarer of the Kiev Patriarchate visits parishes in the Americas. This visit will last until 16 November. The meeting will include services, meetings with clergy, and the Ukrainian community. A more detailed program of the visit can be found in the General Vicariate Kiev Patriarchate in the USA and Canada Archpriest Victor Polar.

I won't post it here as the formatting would take too long to do and I wouldn't be able to do justice to the layout in general. Read it here: St. George Orthodox Church of Prescott, AZ

His Holiness Maran Mar Baselios Marthoma Didymos I KOTTAYAM ( IOH ) - The great shepherd of Malankara decided to step down. It is in a special session of the Holy Episcopal Synod that was convened at the Catholicate Palace, Devalokam, Kottayam, today that the Pontiff decided to disclose on his abdication. “The Almighty allowed me to lead the Church for the last five years. Looking back, I consider everything as grace of God. I love the Church and the people of God. I also thank all of you, who stood as strong support to me during these years”, said the Catholicos and Malankara Metropolitan to the members of the Holy Episcopal Synod in the preface of his speech. “For the rest of my life, I want to retreat in prayer and wish to set aside myself from all administrative responsibilities”, carried on the Catholicos. Twenty Metropolitans including Dr. Geevarghese Mar Osthathios attended the meeting. A meeting of the Holy Episcopal Synod will officially convene tomorrow. Details ...

( msnbc ) - A woman cleanses a young man at the Temple of San Simon (Saint Simon) in the municipality of San Andres Iztapa in Chimaltenango, some 72 km west of Guatemala City, on Oct. 28.

I like this photo because it say to "church" to me in a way that large stained glass windows, the imposing cross on an apse wall, or rows of pews do to some people. I've been to little hermitages, huge cathedrals, and suburban parishes and the sight of an epitrachelion hanging from the iconostasis speaks to the living, breathing Church peopled by priests who serve all over the face of the earth. ( mospat.ru ) - On October 27, 2010, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations, led a pilgrims group of the Russian Orthodox Church to the Skete of St Anne on Holy Mount Athos./td>

( RISU ) - The Hierarchical Council of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyivan Patriarchate (UOC-KP), which was convened on October 21 in Kyiv for the 15th anniversary of the enthronement of Patriarch Filaret of Kyiv and All Ukraine, analyzed the events which took place in the Ukrainian church since the last council and passed a Council Address reflecting the position of the Kyivan Patriarchate on urgent issues. The authors of the document stated their unanimity and unity regarding the question of the dialogue with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP): the church approves of and supports such a dialogue. “Whereas, in the Moscow Patriarchate, we can see at least several viewpoints and centers of influence, non-coordination of which is the main cause of the present state of preparation for the dialogue,” reads the address of the UOC-KP. The council also confirmed that it completely shares the ideas and positions on various issues expressed during the period since t...

( WCC ) - Naming casteism as "sin, apostasy and rebellion against God", churches in India have committed themselves to serve as "zero tolerance zones" for caste-based discrimination. They also called for Lent 2011 to be "a time of purging caste" from Christian communities. Representatives of 31 churches grouped in the National Council of Churches in India (NCCI) made those commitments at an ecumenical conference held in New Delhi on 22-24 October. The event was convened by the NCCI and the World Council of Churches (WCC). "The moment of truth has come", said the NCCI president Bishop Dr Taranath Sagar, speaking at the opening of the conference. He called on churches to get involved, in all sincerity and faithfulness, with the liberation of Dalits as part of the mission of God. Despite the fact that the caste system was abolished under India’s constitution in 1950, "untouchability" is still practiced, particularly in rural areas. C...

RHODES, Greece, OCT. 27, 2010 ( Zenit.org ) - Representatives from both the Catholic and Orthodox Churches in Europe are sharing concerns about the secularization of society. The warned about the dangers derived from a secularized society, "without points of moral reference and without a plan worthy of the human person," in a final communiqué of the 2nd Catholic Orthodox Forum. The forum took place Oct. 18-22 in Rhodes, on the theme "Church-State Relations: Theological and Historical Perspectives." It was presided over by Metropolitan Gennadios of Sassima of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, and by Cardinal Peter Erdo, president of the Council of European Bishops' Conferences (CCEE). Some 17 delegates from the council participated, and as many other representatives of the Orthodox Churches. The participants affirmed, "It is not possible to lay the foundations of coexistence without establishing a relationship with the objective reality ...

( antiochian.org ) - October 27, 2010 To: The Clergy of the Diocese of Toledo and the Midwest From: His Eminence, Metropolitan PHILIP Re: Appointment of His Grace, Bishop THOMAS as Locum-Tenens of the Diocese Beloved in the Lord: Greetings in the name of our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ. I pray you are in good health. As you are no doubt aware, our Local Synod of the Archdiocese met on Friday, October 22, 2010 in Jacksonville, FL. Among the things we discussed was the deteriorating situation in the diocese. As such, it was determined that the best thing was to transfer His Grace, Bishop MARK to the Diocese of Eagle River and the Northwest. A majority of the bishops of the synod agreed with the decision that this was in the best interest of the Archdiocese so that both the Diocese of Toledo and His Grace, Bishop MARK could have a fresh start. Citing health reasons, Bishop MARK said he could not live in that part of the country and subsequently requested to be released to t...

H/T: Frontier Orthodoxy ( Rustavi 2 ) - French anthropologists have confirmed that the grave of Saint Maximus the Confessor is in Tsageri, Svaneti Region, Georgia. A special conference dedicated to the discovery was held in the Youth Centre of the Saint Trinity Cathedral yesterday. The participants have discussing the details of the discovery and history of the Saint Maximus. They said the only holy part of Saint Maximus` body has been so far held in Israel. French scientists presume that after popularizing the discovery, the Tsageri monastery will become a place of pilgrimage for many worshippers due to the grave of the Saint Maximus.

Troparion - Tone 3 The world has found you to be a great defense against tribulation and a vanquisher of heathens, O Passion-bearer. As you bolstered the courage of Nestor, who then humbled the arrogance of Lyaios in battle, Holy Demetrius, entreat Christ God to grant us great mercy. Kontakion - Tone 2 God, who has given you invincible might, has tinged the Church with streams of your blood, Demetrius! He preserves your city from harm, for you are its foundation!

H/T: Mystagogy Saint Nikolai the Serb is a wonderfully produced documentary depicting various aspects of the life and works of a truly monumental 20th-century saint! Nearly 2 hours concerning the life of this prolific writer and Saint!

"...and I am unanimous in that!" There is some sweeping stuff in the OCANews website article (to be found here ). Bishops must now call themselves "Auxiliary Bishops" in all documents, the diocesan websites are to be shut down (controlling the flow of information to the archdiocesan office), bishops can be commemorated (subject to change whenever Met. Philip wishes) after Met. Philip in the liturgy, all money needs to be sent to the archdiocese and bishops can't accept money themselves (remember the now famous "I have millions" quote by Met. Philip last week), priestly brotherhoods have been banned (they have been thorns in the side of Met. Philip when he has done unpopular things in the past),  the Hierarchical Manual is to be rewritten, and no negative comments about any of this can be made. There is now one voice alone, or, as Mrs. Slocombe from Are You Being Served used to say for emphasis "...and I am unanimous in that!"

I've always found this conference to be well worth listening to. More on the conference can be found here . The audio is available from Ancient Faith Radio here . Speakers included: Fr. Nicholas Triantafilou, President of Holy Cross Seminary Fr. Peter Gillquist, Chair of the Antiochian Archdiocese Department of Missions and Evangelism Fr. Wilbur Ellsworth, Pastor of Holy Transfiguration Church, Warrenville, IL Dn. Michael Hyatt, President and CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishing

I waited to report on this news story until I had more to say. Below the official antiochian.org announcement is a letter reposted by the blog 150 knots  of Bp. Mark speaking of the meeting's proceedings and his decision to seek release to the OCA. If you want some history on the Bp. Mark issue and the possible material to be covered in this meeting, I can recommend this article to start . ( antiochian.org ) - This weekend, the regular Fall meetings of the Archdiocesan Synod of Bishops and the Archdiocesan Board of Trustees will be held in Jacksonville, Florida. The Archdiocesan Synod will meet during the morning of Friday October 22, 2010. The Archdiocesan Board of Trustees will meet in their first session during the evening of Friday October 22, and will reconvene during the morning of Saturday October 23. We ask all of the faithful for your fervent prayers for our hierarchs and the members of the Board of Trustees that their meetings will be greatly blessed. And the letter......

"Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do." - James 2:18

As reported earlier, the synod for the Middle East (composed of Latin and Eastern Catholic representatives) came up with hundreds of propositions to send to the Pope of Rome that were then whittled down to 44 propositions. The entire list can be found here . Below are some that I found to be interesting. Propositio 11 Pastoral practice for emigration The presence of numerous Eastern Christians in all the continents challenges the Church to devise an appropriate pastoral programme in light of emigration: the Eastern bishops are to visit the seminaries of the Middle East to present the situation and the needs of their eparchies; the formation of seminarians with a missionary spirit, open to different cultures; the preparation and accompaniment of priests missioned outside the patriarchal territory; the promotion of vocations work in the communities outside of the patriarchal territory; and the sending of priests and the establishment of their own eparchies wherever the pastoral...

The Rangers celebrate winning the game beating the Yankees 6-1. Texas Rangers play the New York Yankees in the American League Championship Series - Game 6, Friday, October 22, 2010, at the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, TX. ( Fort Worth Star-Telegram /Max Faulkner)

The Vatican continues to publish material from proceedings of the Synod of the Latin and Eastern Catholic bodies in the Middle East. The complete listing of summaries can be found here (AUDITIO DELEGATORUM FRATERNORUM). H. Em. Georges KHODRE Greek-Orthodox Metropolitan of Byblos, Botrys and Mount Lebanon (LEBANON) “This communion within the Universal Church is manifested in two ways: firstly, communion in the Eucharist; secondly, communion with the Bishop of Rome”. The ambiguity of this statement rotates around the use of the term Catholic Church as well as the tie of the Eucharist with the Pope. Now, the expression begins with Saint Ignatius of Antioch, and designates communion in a local Church united in Orthodox faith to his bishop in such a way that the liturgy mentions him without referring to another ecclesial authority. The mention of the Bishop of Rome in the liturgy outside of one’s own diocese introduces the idea of a universal Church mentioned in the Instrumentum labo...

On Sunday, November 14, 2010 , Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Dallas, TX along with the support of the Orthodox Clergy Brotherhood will host the annual fund raising event for the International Orthodox Christian Charities ( IOCC ). It is hoped that food from all of these countries will be served. Albania Bulgaria Ethiopia Eritrea Georgia Greece Lebanon Russia Romania Serbia Ukraine Turkey Texan (I know it’s not a country) but it's Texas Our parishes are blessed to be Pan-Orthodox in make up and this event would like to take the opportunity to share our different foods and display our cultural items that are indigenous to our countries. The suggested minimum donation for the evening will be $15.00 Adults $5.00 Children under 12 Please be reminded that ALL PROCEEDS will be going to the IOCC If you are unable to attend or you would like to offer to underwrite any portion of the evening, a donation in any amount to the IOCC would be greatly appreciate...

A great reposting of Fr. Patrick Reardon's Pastoral Ponderings is available at the blog Again and Again . Anger, as the article points out, is often misunderstood. I think most people see anger in purely negative terms - the idea that we should have a Jedi's tranquility, and this short article digs into that line of thinking. Anger is troublesome. Among Christians striving seriously to live the mandates of the Gospel, I wager, anger is the sin most often mentioned in the Sacrament of Confession. Alas, it also has a remarkably long shelf life. High among the problems attending anger is this: In the classical inventories of the passions, anger is the only one with no opposite impulse. Each of the other passions is paired with a reciprocal antithesis: love is matched by hatred, desire by aversion, hope by despair, fear by boldness, and joy by sorrow. Only anger stands by itself, with no corresponding emotive pull in the opposite direction (cf. St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theo...

Venerable Lot of Egypt (5th c.) commemorated today. He was one of the company of ascetic Fathers who fled the world into the Egyptian desert in the fourth and fifth centuries. Once Abba Lot went to his spiritual father Joseph and asked him, simply, 'What shall I do to be saved?' Abba Joseph stretched his hands toward heaven and his fingers became ten flames. He said, 'If you desire it, you can become entirely as a fire.' A brother once came to Abba Lot in terrible distress and said to him, 'I have committed a great sin, that I cannot admit to the Fathers.' 'Confess it to me and I will bear it for you,' answered the Elder. 'I have fallen into fornication,' the brother said, 'and to do so, I sacrificed to idols.' The Elder said to him, 'Take heart: no sin is beyond God's mercy. Repentance is always possible. Go and sit in your cave; eat only every other day, and we will each take an equal share of the burden of your offence....

Video fits in with overall topic, but isn't completely representative of the below news story. VATICAN CITY ( CNS ) — The Synod of Bishops for the Middle East has hit the crunch point. This morning, the 185 voting members were given the first draft of the “propositions” in Arabic, French, English and Italian. The final proposals will be given to Pope Benedict XVI as suggestions for use in his post-synodal apostolic exhortation. There are 41 different proposals in the first draft; they are the result of a multilingual committee sifting through and consolidating the 194 propositions submitted by the small working groups. The fact that the committee worked until 2 a.m. on putting the list together and translating each proposal means they have to be forgiven for missing a few things — even if they’re big things — said Maronite Archbishop Paul Nabil Sayah of Haifa, Israel. Winnowing through 194 ideas submitted in either French, Arabic or English and translating them all into ...

Ancient Faith Radio puts out a lot of new podcasts. Some of them worth bending my ear for and some I choose to close my ears to. Most of the time I take a few minutes to give a listen, and, if I like it, subscribe. Often I can tell from the topic being discussed if it won't be my cup of tea, sometimes I find that I've been subscribed for a few weeks and unsubscribe knowing I'll never listen again, and sometimes (rarely really) I'll feel I've made a discovery that I feel obliged to tell people about. The podcast ' A Voice From The Isles ' is one such "discovery." I listened to Fr. Gregory Hallam's podcast entitled ' Indwelling: Gal 2:20 - I have been crucified with Christ. ' and was hooked. I drove to work and sat in the parking lot unable to turn the key until it was over. For me, those homilies that can immediately applied to the congregation's lives are the most worthwhile. Certainly there is a place for more high brow fare ab...

( spc.rs ) - The Catholic Church in Germany returned a looted gold cross to Serbia on Tuesday, 65 years after it was stolen from an Orthodox monastery by an unidentified German soldier. Hans-Josef Becker, archbishop of Paderborn, handed over the cross at the Serbian embassy in Berlin, an embassy spokeswoman said. The treasure is a gilded cross with a base so it can stand upright on a table and a hollow space for a religious relic. It had been on display in the bishop's diocesan museum in Paderborn since after the Second World War. It had been looted from the 800-year-old monastery at Zica, south of Belgrade, at the end of the Second World War and taken to Germany by the soldier. Germany has been stepping up efforts to recover its own lost art which was seized by the Soviet Union in reparation after the war, and has also been working to identify looted art on German soil so it can be sent home to other nations. And Also... ( spc.rs ) - His Holiness Irinej, Serbian Patria...

( GOARCH ) - The Holy Eparchial Synod of the Holy Archdiocese of America convened in its regular fall meeting on October 13 - 14 at the Synodal Chamber of the Holy Archdiocese in New York. His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America presided and participating were also the Members of the Synod. The Holy Synod deliberated on the following issues: 1. Educational and Youth: The Holy Eparchial Synod had the opportunity to exchange ideas on issues of Religious Education. The Synod was briefed on the work of the Department by its director Dr. Anton Vrame. It was emphasized that Religious Education should be extended beyond the children and adolescents to include adults. The beneficial effect on the youth offered by youth camps, liturgical and cultural opportunities, and other programs was determined, especially by the didactic success of the use of the new media used by the Religious Education Departments of the Archdiocese (i.e. magazines, CDs etc.) 2. Clergy: The Eparch...

From The Sacred Sandwich :

( AOI ) - It’s not clear what is now happening for the establishment of an autocephalous Orthodox Church of the United States made up of the member churches of the former SCOBA. These are my questions: What concrete steps are now being taken to establish an autocephalous Orthodox Church of the United States that would be recognized as a “sister church” by all the autocephalous Orthodox churches in the world? What can Orthodox Christians in North America and around the world expect the Patriarchates of Constantinople, Antioch, Moscow, Romania, Serbia and Bulgaria to do with their North American “jurisdictions” to establish this self-governing Orthodox Church of the USA? How will the future Orthodox Church of the USA relate to the dioceses and parishes in Canada and south of the US border that are now in North American “jurisdictions”? And why should there be any problems regarding the OCA and its place in the US Episcopal Assembly and in the future Orthodox Church of the United Stat...

( spc.rs / SOC-AU ) - The members of the First Episcopal Assembly of all canonical Orthodox Bishops of Oceania welcomed the opportunity to meet in Sydney from 16-18 October, 2010 under the chairmanship ex officio of His Eminence Archbishop Stylianos of Australia. The Assembly commenced with a Divine Liturgy manifesting our essential eucharistic unity at the Cathedral of the Annunciation of the Theotokos, Redfern, Sydney. In accordance with the decisions of the pre-conciliar Pan-Orthodox Conference convened in Chambésy, Switzerland from 6 - 13 June, 2009, the canonical Orthodox Bishops met in a brotherly spirit, and after lengthy and edifying discussion centered on issues of mutual concern, such as pastoral care, catechesis, liturgical life, reaffirmed the unity of all canonical Orthodox Churches. Consequently, we strongly condemn all of those who attempt to destroy the precious unity of our Church through adherence to new or existing schismatic groups and sects in our region. ...

( Youtube ) - The first Exarchate of the Malankara Catholic Church in USA, Mar Eusebius, is installed. The ceremony was officiated by His Beatitude Moran Mor Baselios Cleemis.

Q: What is the goal of this conference? A: Technology today allows for communication possibilities that were not possible even a short time ago. There are several companies who provide Internet based communication for large groups of people to hold meetings, conferences, and to keep in contact with one another on a regular basis over great distances. This medium allows individuals and large groups to collaborate with one another at a fraction of the cost it would otherwise cost to travel to another state or country. We have an opportunity to gather Orthodox Christians from across the nation to listen to Orthodox speakers talk about and discuss education within our churches, schools, and homes. A webinar will allow a substantially greater number of parents, teachers, clergy, godparents, and friends to attend this conference versus a physical conference with the obstacles involved with travel and costs. This conference will provide the opportunity to inform and share with oth...

The Way is the new course introducing the Orthodox Faith from the Institute of Orthodox Christian Studies . It draws on the elements of hospitality and human social relations in sharing the Christian faith used in the well known Evangelical programme, the Alpha Course. But it takes a distinctively Orthodox theological approach - for instance on the Liturgy and the sacraments, the Mother of God, the life and structure of the Church and human salvation - and this is integral to the course. The 12 weekly sessions consist of: a meal together a talk on a central aspect of Christian belief free discussion in small groups a question and answer session and panel discussion More information available here .

VATICAN CITY ( CNS ) - Specific synod suggestions for a common Catholic-Orthodox celebration of Easter, wider authority for Eastern Catholic patriarchs -- including participation in conclaves to elect a pope -- and the need for local dialogue with Muslims and Jews were repeated in the midterm report of the Synod of Bishops for the Middle East. Coptic Patriarch Antonios Naguib of Alexandria, Egypt, the synod's recording secretary, presented his summary of synod speeches and suggestions Oct. 18 and gave synod members a list of 23 questions to discuss in their small working groups. The questions were designed to help synod members draft proposals to be presented to Pope Benedict XVI before the synod formally ends Oct. 24 with a Mass. The need for a common date for Easter, and also for Christmas, "is a pastoral necessity," especially because of the numbers of marriages between Christians of different churches and because it would be "a powerful witness" of Ch...

From a seminarian friend of mine...

( orthodox.cn ) - At the patronal feast day in the only opened church in Harbin, of the Holy Protection of the Theotokos, Fr Michael Wang, the priest from Shanghai of Chinese Autonomous Orthodox Church, celebrated the Divine Liturgy, during which several dozen Chinese and Russian believers prayed. For Orthodox believers in Harbin the clergy visit is a rare opportunity to take part in religious services.

( SOC-Raska-Pizren ) - This year's feast of the Shroud (Omophorion) of the Virgin Mary was solemnly celebrated at Peć Patriarchate Monastery with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Irinej of Serbia. Decani monks were chanting the service. The Liturgy was attended by a few hundred believers from Serbia, Montenegro as well as from local Serbian enclaves in Metohia. More wonderful photos available here .

H/T: Paideia

( st-catherine.ru ) - On October 14, 2010, with the blessing of His Beatitude, Metropolitan JONAH of All America and Canada and by invitation of the Georgian Orthodox Church, His Grace, Bishop MICHAEL of New York and New Jersey together with Archimandrite Zacchaeus, Representative of the Orthodox Church in America to the Moscow Patriarchate participated in the celebration of the 1000th Anniversary of the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Life-Giving Tree in Mtskheta, Georgia. Also accompanying His Grace, Bishop MICHAEL was Archpriest Alexander Tandilashvili who, while still a cleric of the Georgian Orthodox Church, serves in the Orthodox Church in America’s Diocese of New York and New Jersey. The celebration began with the festal Divine Liturgy led by His Holiness and Beatitude ILIA II, Archbishop of Mtskheta and Tbilisi, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, together with His Beatitude ANASTASIOS, Archbishop of Tirana, Durres, and All Albania and also His Beatitude, Metropolitan CHRI...

( spc.rs ) - On the occasion of the Episcopal Assembly of all canonical Orthodox Bishops of Oceania and Asia, which will take place in Sydney from 16th-18th October 2010, there will be on Sunday 17th october 2010 , from 7:30 am in the Cathedral of the church of the Annunciation of the Theotokos, Redfern, a concelebration of the Divine Liturgy, presided by His Eminences Hierarchs Paul of the Antiochian Church, agapit of the Russian, Irinej of the Serbian, Michael of the Romanian, Their Eminences Metropolitans Amphilochios of New Zealand, Ambrosios of Korea, Nectarios of Hong Kong, and Their Graces Assistant Bishops Ezekiel of Dervis, Seraphim of Apollonias and Nikandros of Dorylaion, assisted by Priests of all jurisdictions. We invite you to pray together with us. After the Liturgy, refreshments will be served in the Main Hall of the Theological College, next to the Cathedral. In Sydney, 5th October 2010.

LIFE TRANSFIGURED tells the story of the Orthodox Christian Monastery of the Transfiguration in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania. It was founded by Mother Alexandra, a former Romanian princess, and was consecrated in 1968. This vide3o explores the history, daily life and commitment of these women as they pray, worship and extend hospitality and counsel to visitors seeking a relationship with God.

Moscow ( ru-news.ru ) - On Saturday, 09 October at Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit pastor Abbot Sergius (Rybko) consecration of the new banner "Orthodoxy or Death!" was performed. Consecration took place at the request of Orthodox-patriotic organizations.

Fr. Maximos from Holy Resurrection Monastery points to a great resource entitled ' Index of stories from Synod of Bishops on the Middle East ,' which catalogues all the stories from the synod updated daily. I would also like to point to Fr Hunwicke's Liturgical Notes for an editorial on some of the demands made by synod representatives. ( HRM ) - The best reporting I’ve seen on the current Synod of Bishops on the Middle East is, here . John Allen really does seem able to distill many of the most important issues. He made the point that this is the first time in modern times that a Synod of Bishops of the Catholic Church comprises a majority of voting members from the Eastern Churches. I’ll be throwing in my two cents over the next few days . . .