Byzantine, Texas

On the other side of things, I was just at St. Barbara's Greek Orthodox Church in Durham, NC and Fr. Stavroforos gave a wonderful homily on the right-thinking theology entrusted to us through the ecumenical councils. It is not enough to simply know that the councils are there, he said, but to be able to articulate to someone else what you and the Church believe and affirm. Bible study as a layman for me was always a bit of biting of the tongue and some overindulgence in the cookie tray. I gained a pound in weight and loss a few in faith of the orthodoxy of my fellow man. Durham, NC ( Babylon Bee ) - "Home Bible Study Leader Asks If Anyone Else Has Any Blatant Heresy They’d Like To Share" After enduring a sincere, thoughtful, and completely heretical response to an open question about the passage the group was studying, the man leading a home Bible study affiliated with Gracewinds Church reportedly asked if anyone else had any blatant heresy they’d like to share. “T...

Arlington, MA ( Boston Herald ) — Hundreds of devastated parishioners at a Greek Orthodox church in Arlington turned out to mourn and protest a lack of transparency surrounding the firing of a beloved priest at his last Sunday service. The head of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Boston announced in a letter on Thursday that Rev. Nicholas M. Kastanas would be relieved of his duties at St. Athanasius the Great Church after more than 27 years, citing a “state of turmoil” related to “hurtful and destructive communications.” The letter did not mention any specific misconduct, and attempts to reach the Metropolis throughout the weekend were unsuccessful. Kastanas declined to comment at the church Sunday. Members of the church, which serves 800 families, have been crushed by the news, devastated by the dismissal of a man they described as “the salt of the earth” and confused by the circumstances surrounding it. Some alleged at the church on Sunday that Kastanas was fired as a result of...

I missed this when it was originally published in April. Met. Seraphim of Piraeus is known worldwide for his very vocal nature and his steadfast defense of those things he considers fundamental to Orthodoxy. Oh, and for that beard of course. ( Neos Kosmos ) - Greek Orthodox Bishop, Metropolit Seraphim of Piraeus has caused controversy by urging Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to convert to Orthodoxy with Russian President Vladimir Putin as his godfather. And no, it's not a joke. In a 37-page letter to Erdogan written in Greek, Metropolit Seraphim asks the Turkish leader to denounce his Islamic faith and be baptised in the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. "If you want to save yourself and your family you should convert to Greek Orthodox Church, the only real faith," Seraphim writes, reports Keep Talking Greece. "We propose and we advise you to come to the arms of the Greek Orthodox Church before the end of your life on earth. "Other...

( Missionary Albania ) - Today, the Sunday before the 2nd of August, we celebrated the service of Holy Unction. It is a tradition here in Albania to have this service the Sunday before the anniversary of the Enthronment of Archbishop Anastasios. In this service we ask for healing for the country of Albania after the persecution suffered during the communist regime.

This article has everything. Papal role for the Ecumenical Patriarch. A detaching of the EP from his see in Constantinople to a throne of universal power. Diminution of the authority of other patriarchs to destroy conciliarity. Free rein to make important decisions about pressing, timely topics unilaterally. It's like this was taken out of the nightmares of people obsessed with supposed hegemonic Phanariot schemings. The conciliar organization of the Church safeguards us from error and ensures that the entire body has a voice. That patriarchs would silence themselves at the altar of efficiency is a blessedly far-fetched idea. We have enough comparable examples of what the below leads to to make many readers rightfully shudder in discomfort. I don't use this term lightly: Anathema. ( National Herald ) - The fact that the Orthodox Church is fragmented and operates without centralized control is well known. The Holy and Great Pan-Orthodox Council held last year in Crete pr...

To recap: Bp. Irineu was laicized for numerous counts of sexual misconduct and one count of disrespect of his senior hierarch. He has refused to accept this, lives in the Holy Ascension Monastery, and continues to perform services as a bishop. Both sides have been rather loquacious since the synod sent down its decision and I expect the disagreement to continue for some time. ( ROEA ) - Certain procedures were initiated in the late summer of 2015 against then-Bishop Irineu (Duvlea), at that time the Auxiliary Bishop of the Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America (ROEA) and Abbot of Holy Ascension Orthodox Christian Monastery (later renamed Holy Ascension Romanian Orthodox Christian Monastery [unauthorized change]), as a consequence of oral reports made to me in my capacity as Archbishop of the Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America regarding possible sexual and other misconduct on the part of then-Bishop Irineu. In the course of these procedures, then-Bishop Irineu was officially p...

I've enjoyed my experiences going to the Small Parish Forum. I'd recommend it to anyone. ( OCA-DMW ) - A record 70 individuals representing parishes across the US and Canada participated in the Small Parish Forum at Saint John the Baptist Church here July 13-15, 2017. The group was the largest of any previous Small Parish Forums, attracting clergy and lay participants from eight OCA Dioceses — Western Pennsylvania, the Midwest, the South, New York and New Jersey, and New England, and the Bulgarian, Albanian and Romanian Dioceses — as well as the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA, the American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese and the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. Jointly sponsored by the Orthodox Church in America’s Diocese of the Midwest and the Diocese of Western Pennsylvania, the Forum — the fourth in a series initiated in 2014 — had as its theme “Becoming a Community of Engagement.” The program was facilitat...

I have been posting on the Russian Church's catechism effort for years . I'm more than a little excited to see it reaching the final hurdle to publication. Moscow ( AsiaNews ) – The Biblical-Theological Commission of the Moscow Patriarchate has released plans for the official catechism of the Russian Orthodox Church. This comes after a long period of development and follows the release of previews. The plan is the first "modern" attempt to put in a single text the whole of Orthodox doctrine for both clergy and believers. It includes open consultation before a final draft is accepted by everyone. As laid out in the foreword, the Orthodox Church wants to restore the catechistic wisdom of the ancient Fathers of the Church, but it also wants to harvest the best fruits of Russian tradition. So far, Russian catechesis has relied on various texts. Historically, at least two of them have represented an authoritative synthesis of the doctrine, and for this reason have...

( St. Elizabeth Convent ) - Why do we cover the faces of clerics after their death – several similar questions were addressed to the editor after the death of Alexii II the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, when the whole world could see the mourning ceremony where thousands of Russians came to pay last respects to their Patriarch. Fr. Deacon Alexii (Florov) responded to the question, the graduate of the historian faculty of the State university of Samara, the cleric of the church in honor of the holy New Martyrs of Russia in the village Pribrezhny of Samara region, the technical editor of “Spiritual interlocutor” magazine in Samara. “The tradition of covering the face of a reposed Christian go back to the burial of the Lord Jesus Christ. Along with His body which was covered with a shroud, his face was also covered with a sudarium: “And the napkin, that was about his head…” (John 20:7). Sudarium (from latin “sudor” – swet) is a special cloth with which you can wipe the sweat....

BOSTON ( National Herald ) – The Holy Eparchial Synod of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America defied the Synodical decision of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to revise the List of Candidates for the elevation to Episcopacy. Instead in a unprecedented move they decided that the Archbishop with a representation of hierarchs travel to Constantinople to try to convince Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to reverse the initial Synodical decision that canceled the election of Bishop Sevastianos of Zela as Metropolitan of Chicago. The decision was taken on Thursday July 20 in a special session of the Eparchial Synod convened by its president His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America. All the Synodical hierarchs were present except Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver. Archbishop Demetrios will send a letter to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew requesting an audience at the Phanar. The above decision could ignite ecclesiastical developments of historic magnitude.

( ROCOR ) - The Holy Synod, having received the recent text of a publicly-posted e-mail exchange, dated 2nd July 2017, between the Nun Vassa (Larin) and a correspondent, entitled “ EMAIL OF THE WEEK: (from a mother, on MY SON IS HOMOSEXUAL) ,” together with follow-up correspondence, also posted publicly on 8th July 2017, is compelled to confirm to its flock and to all Orthodox Christians that the counsel contained therein is in contradiction to the Church’s teaching on sexuality, repentance and family life. It does not represent an Orthodox understanding of anthropology or theology, and in the counsel it purports to offer presents a grave spiritual danger to those who might follow it, in terms of their own understanding of sexuality, as well as in the rearing of children. While it is not the norm to reply from the Office of the Holy Synod to materials posted on the internet, in this instance the wide readership of the various resources published by this author, who is an Orthodox mon...

If you've read the canons, much of this is already covered, but it's a worthwhile endeavor to clarify and update/expand to match current employment options. I wish this could get application at a pan-Orthodox level. Anecdotally, our bishops in the US often take each secular form of employment on a case-by-case basis with the priest. One bishop may be absolutely fine with his priest delivering pizzas while another might consider it "below the dignity of the presbyterate." It's also worth noting that much of this also applies to the wives of the clergy as well. ( Orthochristian.com ) - The meeting of the Presidium of the Inter-Council Presence of the Russian Orthodox Church, which is gathering in particular to determine which professions and types of activities are incompatible with the priesthood, has begun today. In particular, sports, medical professions, and civil service are under discussion , reports RIA-Novosti. The patriarch’s press secretary Fr. Alexan...

Troparion of Sts. Mardarije and Sebastian: O God of our Fathers, Always act with kindness towards us; Take not Your mercy from us, But through the prayers of Saints Mardarije and Sebastian Guide our lives in peace. Kontakion to St. Mardarije of Libertyville, Tone 8: Tireless preacher of Christ the Lord, Leader on the path of St. Sava for your people in diaspora, Labor-loving practitioner and teacher of repentance, Holy Mardarije of Libertyville and America, Together with all the Enlighteners of the American lands, Entreat the only Lover of Mankind, To grant all Orthodox Christians peace and unity! Born in village of Kornet, Ljesani County, in Montenegro, on November 2, 1889, to pious parents Petar and Jela Uskokovic, he was baptized in his village church dedicated to St. George and received his baptismal name Ivan. His mother was from the well-known Bozovic family. Both of his parents were well respected in their community holding the office of lea...

Broadcast of the Consecration of The Rev’d Fr Ninos Elya, Bishop-Elect to Diocese of Victoria and New Zealand by His Holiness Mar Gewargis III Sliwa, Catholicos-Patriarch Of the Assyrian Church of the East.

( Pappas Post ) - The synod of bishops at the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, meeting currently at the Phanar in Istanbul, Turkey, has rejected the list of three candidates for the position of Metropolitan of Chicago. An official statement has not yet been made as information received by The Pappas Post came from within the meeting quarters, which is still in session. The seat was vacated following the death of Metropolitan Iakovos of Chicago, who held the seat for more than 40 years. The synod of American Metropolitans, comprising the hierarchs from the Metropolises of Boston, Pittsburgh, New Jersey, Atlanta, Detroit, Denver and San Francisco and presided over by Archbishop Demetrios of America, met in New York City on July 6 to deliberate and create what the Church calls a “triprosopon,” or list of three names. These three names are then submitted to the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople for review by thy Synod and ultimate election of the new Metropoli...

Many times people downplay the importance of the shortlist candidate being accepted by a patriarchate. The common belief is that there is an obvious choice and that the other two names for the triprospon are thrown in for show. In some circles people defend autonomy by saying this "formality" is not a sign of power, but of good order. For example, I always get comments when Eastern Catholics follow this process even when they have their own synods. "Why is the pope involved at all? If they're really sui iuris this shouldn't happen," they say. The ready answer is "Oh, that's just a part of the process. They always take the candidate." It seems, in Phanariot circles, this isn't just kabuki theatre. Constantinople will push back on the choice (especially, when as I am told, there are others more favored like Demetrios of Mokissos). NEW YORK ( National Herald ) – The election of Bishop Sevastianos of Zela as the new Metropolitan of Chicag...

Several clergy responded to Sr. Vassa's letter to the mother of a teen boy (see here if you have not yet read the exchange). Fr. Whiteford , others, and I have responded to what the monastic had to say, but Fr. Lawrence Farley has responded with what he would say if the letter were directed to him. I commend him on this and link a bit of it below. Recently Sr. Vassa Larin (famous for her “Coffee with Sr. Vassa” podcast) has attracted much and varied attention from a correspondence she published in which she replied to a question from a woman of a fourteen year old boy about how to handle her son’s “coming out”. (The mother’s question and Sr. Vassa’s response may be accessed here.) Her advice, prefaced by a disclaimer of sorts that it was but her “personal opinion…not in line with some official pronouncements of my Church” (i.e. ROCOR) has drawn lots of admiration and praise from the gay community and lots of criticism from Orthodox clergy. I have always been and will I trust...

( OCA ) - Orthodox Christian couples are often seeking sage advice on how to strengthen their marital bond, and Saint Vladimir’s Seminary Press has just released a book to help them do so. Titled Building an Orthodox Marriage: A Practical Commentary on the Eastern Orthodox Marriage Rite, the volume was written by a long-time married but now widowed bishop and a newly married layman. The book prepares couples to understand marriage as “a great mystery” akin to the relationship between Christ and His Bride, the Church [Ephesians 5.32] while coaching them in practical ways to strengthen their union. His Grace, Bishop John [Abdalah] of the Diocese of Worcester and New England of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America and Nicholas G. Mamey, a recently married seminary graduate, are coauthors of the volume. In their work, they first establish a grounding for marriage, using Scripture and texts from the Orthodox Christian wedding ceremony, and then go on to of...

A Russian Orthodox priest, Valerii Kolesnikov, demonstrated his mastery in aikido and swordplay on Saturday, in the town of Gubkinski.

Holmdel, NJ ( SCOOCH ) - On June 24, 2017, noted theologian Fr. Peter Farrington (Abouna Peter Farrington) of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the UK spoke to an audience of youth and clergy on the subject of Orthodoxy and Heterodoxy at the Sixth Annual SCOOYA Youth Conference. SCOOCH invites you to view the video of his two-part presentation, followed by a Q&A session in which Fr. Peter and a panel of Oriental Orthodox clergy tackle a variety of off-the-cuff questions from the youth, here: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 - Q&A

( EP ) - On Tuesday, June 27, 2017 informal talks between the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Anglican Communion took place in London at Westminster Abbey, to exchange views on issues of common interest and specific positions of the two Churches. The Orthodox delegation headed by His Eminence Archbishop Gregorios of Thyatira and Great Britain and consisted of Metropolitan Athenagoras of Belgium, new co-chairman of the International Dialogue between the Orthodox Church and the Anglican Communion, Metropolitan Kallistos of Diokleia and Protopresbyter Christos Christakis, secretary of the Official Dialogue. The delegation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate informed the Anglicans of the Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church held in Crete in June last year, and many other events of interorthodox and ecumenical interest. On Wednesday, June 28, 2017 a preparatory meeting took place between the two co-chairs of the official dialogue, namely Metropolitan Athenagoras of Belgium and...

( ROC-USA ) - On Sunday, July 9, following Divine Liturgy in St. Gregory Church, the Administrator of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA, His Grace Bishop John of Naro-Fominsk visited a new Orthodox senior care facility in Clearwater, Florida. His Grace reviewed the new facility with director, Peter Schweitzer. His Grace then performed the lesser consecration of the Chapel dedicated to the Icon of the Mother of God "Rescuer of the Perishing." In honor of the opening of the facility, Bishop John presented the facility administrators with an icon of the Heavenly Protectors of North America. Orthodox Senior Care Facility 926 South Myrtle Avenue Clearwater, Fl 33756 727-421-0718

If you have no context for the below comments by Sister Vassa, please go here for some background information. EMAIL OF THE WEEK, from a COUSIN of mine, about my recent correspondence with a woman with a homosexual son): My dear sister, What follows is a totally incoherent series of disjointed thoughts, about your email to the woman with the 14-year-old homosexual son. You know, it’s doing no favors to your reputation, which is my concern. What is the planned course of action from here? Firstly the whole thing is totally ridiculous given the fact that you precursored (real word?) the whole thing by saying it's just your personal opinion and not the opinion of the Church. Personally I'm a bit surprised that you decided to come so close to such a live wire topic, given that most of Modern Chistiandom is so divided on it. Can you offer some explanation on what compelled you to address this topic at all? I don't think you intended to align yourself with the gay comm...

From Chief Justice John Roberts' commencement address given last month: "Now the commencement speakers will typically also wish you good luck and extend good wishes to you. I will not do that, and I’ll tell you why. From time to time in the years to come, I hope you will be treated unfairly, so that you will come to know the value of justice. I hope that you will suffer betrayal because that will teach you the importance of loyalty. Sorry to say, but I hope you will be lonely from time to time so that you don’t take friends for granted. I wish you bad luck, again, from time to time so that you will be conscious of the role of chance in life and understand that your success is not completely deserved and that the failure of others is not completely deserved either. And when you lose, as you will from time to time, I hope every now and then, your opponent will gloat over your failure. It is a way for you to understand the importance of sportsmanship. I hope you’ll be ignored...

Sister Vassa recently posted an advice piece to her Facebook page  (the letter itself has been removed from Facebook and she is actively blocking people who comment on it). I post it below for those who didn't read it when it was available along with my own comments (which I'm sure will upset some readers). Let me say that her words drew immediate response from clergy and laity all over the world. Beyond the pitched battle of the left-leaning and traditionalists sides who might be looking for any arena to draw blood in regardless of the exact context or mitigating circumstances, there was widespread consternation about what was written and the sort of response that will necessarily follow from those with influence in her life (her bishop, her "zillions," ROCOR, AFR, etc.). *EMAIL OF THE WEEK: (from a mother, on MY SON IS HOMOSEXUAL). Hi Sr. Vassa,Please let me first tell you how much your reflections mean to me. I enjoy getting your perspective on scripture each ...

NEW YORK ( National Herald ) – His Grace Bishop Sevastianos of Zela was elected Metropolitan of Chicago during the process of the selection of the three person ballot (triprospon) by the Holy Eparchial Synod of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, presided by His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios Geron of America. Bishop Sevastianos was until now the Chief Secretary of the Holy Eparchial Synod and the Spiritual Advisor to the National Philoptochos Society. He was ordained a Bishop and given the honorary title of the city of Zela on December 17, 2011. The result of the selection process of the Eparchial Synod will be sent to the Ecumenical Patriarchate for the ratification by its Holy Synod by the official election. According to the existing tradition the Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate presiding by His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew elects the candidate who gets the majorly of the votes of the Eparchial Synod. Bishop Sevastianos was born in Ano-Zodia, Cy...

New York ( GOARCH ) – The Holy Eparchial Synod of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America convened today July 6, 2017, at the Synodal Chamber of the Holy Archdiocese, under the chairmanship of His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America and with all its members in attendance. The Synod convened for the purpose of nominating three persons (triprosopon) out of whom one shall be elected to fill the vacancy of the Metropolis of Chicago, which became vacant after the passing of Metropolitan Iakovos of blessed memory. The names of the three nominees (triprosopon) are being submitted to the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, which will elect the new Metropolitan.

( orthochristian.com ) - In recent months, two parishes of the Eastern PA Diocese of the Orthodox Church in America have independently abandoned the Orthodox Church, uniting themselves to unrecognized, schismatic bodies. The site of the Diocese of Philadelphia and Eastern PA has published two letters of Abp. Mark (Maymon) in which he addresses the canonical status of St. Nicholas Independent Congregation in Philadelphia, PA, and Holy Resurrection Church in Alden Station, PA, noting that faithful Orthodox Christians may no longer worship or participate in any Sacraments in these former parishes. In his letter regarding the status of St. Nicholas parish, Abp. Mark writes that as the members of the parish have willfully chosen to join a schismatic body, they have excommunicated themselves from all canonical Local Orthodox Churches worldwide and may not receive the Sacraments in any parishes of the recognized Local Churches, and no other canonical hierarch may restore them to communion....