Month: February 2009

Greek Orthodox Archbishop Demetrios announced yesterday that Bishop Savas of Troas, most recently the chancellor of the archdiocese, has been named director of the Office of Church and Society. The bishop will be charged with developing “programs and ministries that promote a creative Orthodox Christian engagement with contemporary societal and cultural realities.”

Readers of this blog will recall the effusive praise with which Bishop Savas greeted the election of Barack Obama, rejoicing that “this is the day that the Lord has made!” Yesterday, the Obama administration moved to rescind a Bush administration regulation, put in place in December, that cuts off federal funding for medical facilities that would force doctors, nurses and other health care workers to participate in practices, such as abortion, that “they feel violates their personal, moral or religious beliefs.” The move to lift the so-called “conscience rule,” which is subject to a 30 day public comment period, was applauded by pro-abortion activists and condemned by religious conservatives.

Perhaps the bishop, in his first official act, could issue a sharply worded statement and go on radio and TV to criticize the Obama administration for its attempt to overturn the health care “conscience rule” and pointing out how removing legal protections for religious belief in the workplace advances the culture of death. There’s a “contemporary societal and cultural” reality for you. Continue reading →

From the encyclical of Greek Orthodox Archbishop Demetrios on the beginning of Great and Holy Lent, which begins March 2.

Like the children of Israel, we too are called to have faith as we set out on a journey that we know is not easy. The days and sacred services of this holy season lead us to the Holy Week, to the Cross of our Lord whereupon we venerate His crucifixion, the supreme act of sacrifice and love by God for us. At the same time, we enter this Lenten journey today with hearts filled with faith, hope, and love; because we know that the destination of this journey, after the spiritual intensity of the Holy Week, culminates with the glorious Resurrection of Christ and His complete triumph over sin, evil, and death.

Today, as we embark upon this great Lenten journey, these forty days of the Great Fast, let us be mindful of all of those before us who also wandered in the wilderness. Let us not squander this beautiful opportunity for repentance and renewal; but rather, let us remain faithful to our calling to holiness and continue on our journey ahead. May our good and gracious Lord grant us all strength for this journey, and may this season of Great and Holy Lent be a blessed time for all our Greek Orthodox communities as we direct our steps towards an encounter with our Lord, Who is waiting for us with His open arms on the Cross, ready to embrace us with the brilliant light of His Resurrection.

Ecumenical News Service interviewed Metropolitan Jonah, who called for better administration and more accountability in Church governance in light of the recent financial scandals in the Orthodox Church in America. The interview was republished by UK church news service Ekklesia.

… Jonah said, “There is a lot of ‘internal reformation’ that has to take place in the church.” He noted that the church needs to put into place systems of administration and accountability that will put it on par with “a 21st century, U.S. non-profit” organization.

Other goals include making the OCA a far more visible presence within the United States, though more vigorous missionary work. Jonah notes that already 60 percent of some one million OCA laity, 70 percent of its clergy and 90 percent of its bishops are, like Jonah, converts from other denominational traditions.

Jonah also wants to promote Orthodoxy unity within the United States and for U.S. Orthodox churches to explore the creation of single synod and patriarch as a long-term goal.

The Metropolitan’s call for more transparency on church administration was backed by George Matsoukas, executive director of Orthodox Christian Laity, and Mark Stokoe of Orthodox Christians for Accountability. Stokoe said that, ” … 2000 years of tradition can be dead-weight hindering solutions to real problems, if a desire to calm things is mistaken for achieving stability. Trying to recreate past glories will not address our current problems.”

Amen.

One of the great things about a blog is that it’s a conversation, not a monologue. The Observer is a moderated blog, but we keep it fairly open to encourage this conversation and the learning that goes on here. Those of us associated with AOI are grateful for your readership and the constant feedback.

I have noticed, however, that in recent weeks some of the comments on this blog have veered off course. Nothing disastrous, but it’s time to recalibrate. Now and then, a course correction is in order.

What we set out to do on The Observer is discuss how the social witness of Orthodoxy can be an effective force in transforming the culture. The focus here is decidedly domestic (American) but we also bring in currents from other Orthodox cultures where they may be instructive.

A couple requests, in particular. First, I’d like to avoid further ruminations on the anti-Christ and other apocalyptic figures. Let us, with the Church, leave these theological excursions to others equipped to handle them with the proper caution. The Observer isn’t the place for that. And, no, I don’t think Barack Obama is the anti-Christ.

Secondly, may we please forever cease these punctilious, Old Calendarist controversies about priestly beards, head coverings and such? We take, here, the cue from Metropolitan Philip who, in his podcast, voices frustration with bishops in “Turkish hats” and priests with long beards and ponytails. What, the Metropolitan asks, do these have to do with the evangelization of the culture? From my point of view, I don’t see why our bishops can’t go among their flocks in a suit and collar, and leave the monastic garb to those who actually live as ascetics. But if you’d still like to discuss these things, I recommend that you start a blog for such purposes.

As always, we want The Observer to be a place where Orthodoxy and all of the big social questions facing American culture can be discussed and debated in a spirit of reasonableness and Christian charity. We owe this to each other. Where this is not in evidence, or where the comments again veer off path, they will be deleted in the future. That is the editor’s prerogative as blog despota and will require no justification or explanation in such cases.

The Observer has had a great start. We are grateful for your readership and your comments, which help us all work through these problems together. I’ve learned a lot on this blog in a short time. Please keep it going.