I pray for unity and the acceptance of LGBTQ in our church. This is where I find the lack of women in senior clergy a grave mistake. Mothers want our children to have love and blessings no matter something that people are born the way they are.
Steve this is amazing! A United Voice for all Orthodox youth! To develop our Orthodox Christian mindset (fronima) in our youth regardless of cultural background!! Using our pooled resources, avoiding duplication. What a powerful ministry united, together as one Orthodox family. Truly a blessing! Praying for love and unity in cooperation as we lay this important foundation for the future of our Orthodox faith in America! God bless! I share your enthusiasm, Steve!! Thank you!
This Pan Orthodox agency is needed and “many more unifying projects” to draw the jurisdictions closer together. Most importantly to deflect some of the “Nationalism” that holds conversions back! Steve your gonna make a great Priest. To God Be the Glory! 🙏🌺☦️🌺🙏
@@stevenchristoforou1667 Ecumenism is cosmopolitan, monoculture - which is at odds with Orthodoxy. Nationalism is love for your nation's culture, heritage, and traditions - which is 100% in accordance with Orthodoxy. What's odd is why you think these are *not* opposites
@@JasonCodreanu With respect, that's an odd definition of ecumenism. It's also incoherent: how can something be both cosmopolitan and monoculture? A mere love for ones nation and tradition isn't necessarily problematic (though I'm not even convinced that's true; we're called to be citizens of the Kingdom, not our particular kingdoms). Unfortunately, nationalism has a bit of extra baggage which is more problematic than mere love of nation.
YAY!!! I'm soon going to be taking on the role of youth leader in my small Antiochian parish (we only have three teens, all siblings). I'm so excited to hear more about this. My husband and I have been fans of Y2AM since before becoming catechumens, and this is such wonderful news!
Oh wow, God bless your efforts! All of Y2AM's work is there for you. And feel free to reach out if we can help with anything. And let's see how this new Agency comes together!
Such exciting news! OCF instilled in me a thirst for unity between Orthodox Christians. This really does feel like prayers answered! God bless the youth and his Bishops!
Glory be to God! We are One Church with Christ at its head: if we work together for Christ - miracles happen! Heaven comes to earth, and earth goes to heaven!
Steve, I say that any decision by the Bishops that promote what you and Christian are doing and makes that content and programming more widely available the better it is for the Church. I pray that the Bishops will follow through with their commitment and that we see plenty of Lay support. God bless your efforts man.
The point about not having redundancy in work across the jurisdictions is definitely a compelling one. I’m in the Antiochian jurisdiction and was happy to see Metripolitan Joseph speaking. Seems like a good idea to me.
This is fantastic news!! Wow, praise God! It’s easy to get discouraged about the division among different jurisdictions but news like this lifts my spirits and inspires me for the future of the Church in North America. Wonderful!
How exciting🤩 Look forward to learning more about all this! And how good to hear all the bishops speaking about the wellbeing of our youth😇. They are dealing with so much these days🙏
I wonder how many bishops know that in Belgium and in Finland (i think) the Orthodox religion is being taught at secondary schools. The teachers are providing orthodox education to the children and young adults for decades already. There is no distinction being made between Ethiopeans, Russians, Armenians, Greeks, Romanians, all are considered orthodox christians and treated the same
yup there very much are the same. though, metaphorically speaking, It's okay to argue with your mom sometimes, that doesn't mean she's not special to you.
Wonderful news! Thanks, Steve for sharing! Your vlog on RUclips is spot on in "being a real down to earth" role model, reaching Orthodox youth where they are concerning their daily challenges around mental illness, etc., via Social Media! Follow God's will as to how the unified Pan Orthodox Youth Ministry can learn from your online ministry?
Common voice and resource: will there be a united effort for youth education? Will Orthodox Youth Education be a part of this effort? We need to focus on a Pan-Orthodox co-ordination for teaching our children our faith in a consistent, methodical and inspiring way. Church School teachers need the help and some jurisdictions have great resources we should share so we can be teaching our youth the same things in the same way. Thanks, Steve! This is all so exciting! Hope it doesn’t take long to get it going!! We are blessed! Praise God!
This was blessed by the Assembly of Bishops in the United States. But, honestly, I can see this supporting English language Orthodox communities anywhere and everywhere. People around the world are already using Y2AM resources, after all.
@@wambambrose I don't know that it will have chapters. It'll be a central way to create content (videos, curricula, training, etc) that can be used by parishes anywhere. Local youth and young adult groups can then use those materials in their local ministry.
I'm excited to see how existing work at the parish level can roll up into this, especially for folks in areas where there aren't many Orthodox parishes.
Yeah, me too! It's been a challenging creating some semblance of unity within a jurisdiction. Doing that among all the jurisdictions (and reaching down to the parish level) will take a lot of divine help!
Better late than never. With a reserved optimism, I pray this will strengthen the faithful youth of every parish, and I pray that the ecclesial authorities (Bishops, Priests and Deacons) will not be tempted to have knee jerk reactions to every "scary" movement of youthful zeal trying to make a difference in the world.
This is great If we are doing our due diligence of properly raising our children of the traditions of the orthodox faith. If we allow these youth to develop their own liberal ideas the next generation of orthodoxy will fall to the communist regime. We must make sure those in leadership of these ministries are not infiltrated by Freemasons! As they have entered the Roman church and parts of the Greek church. It is would be wise to proceed with caution. young minds are precious to the sustainability of orthodoxy and our tradition.
The Lord His BlessedNess is our Head and He is leading His Church inexorably toward the Beatific Vision. He has His "reserves" because He is our Sustenance and Substance. He has us!! I agree though we must be circumspect about infiltration.
Seems to me an odd time to form a pan Orthodox effort to form the phronima of the youth right when jurisdictions are diverging on some pretty big issues like that. I’d like to be excited, unfortunately with everything going on it strikes me as odd.
Is this just in America? My priest was at a big clergy meeting in England this week. Is there a connection? I'd love if they made a volunteer corp here.
The youth (“young adults”) need to get married, attend divine services, and create strong families. Everything else is simply a distraction and waste of time. ☦️
I'm so elated ❤ I'm a young adult! If people find out about the Orthodox Church ie the 4 patriarchates (of Jerusalem, Alexanderia, Antioch and constantinople) like I did, America would surely be a better place. People would have greater aptitude for discerning spirits and potentially harmful movements. I'm so happy, as a former atheist then evangelical, that I've found the ancient faith. I don't regret a single bit being a Presbyterian, without which I wouldn't have discovered Orthodoxy!
We need visually attractive FREE videos, storybooks, and materials for young children (ages 4-12). At the beginning of the Pandemic, we Orthodox only had Children's Bible Reader, but then FLASH quit working, and we were left with nothing. It would be great if that we revived. Protestants and Catholics offer great FREE online materials - things like Superbook, The Beginner's Bible, RedeemTV's Children's materials, etc. We need more things like that, which come from an Orthodox perspective. Be the Bee is great for teens, but we need to be starting much younger than that. Many of our kids leave Sunday School by the time they're 12. Please get us more fun things (not things that feel like "school") for young kids. Thanks.
God bless! It's sometimes sad to see the duplication of efforts without real fruit or even consistency and sustainability in ministry..because for some reason different people don't want to unite and serve together.. I've seen this in my church and it's really sad.. avoiding the duplication of efforts will be good for all, to work as one body with different talents united for all. God bless
It really is. I think this is one of those areas where our personal pride, inability to work together, etc can get in the way. May God heal our broken hearts and help us serve with greater love!
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I'm pretty sure how it's relevant, because he's been accused of blessing same sex marriage, among other things. The road to hell is paved with good intentions. All the faithful would do well to keep a watchful eye on this.
@@keithqueen352 Again, this is something blessed by the full Assembly of Bishops. Not just one. I'm not interested in online rumor mongering or what people are accused of. I'm interested in faithfully preaching the Gospel and leading young people to Christ.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 the bishops actions are not rumor. And if you are truly concerned as you say you are, you, along with the rest of the faithful body of the church, should be keeping a close eye on exactly where this is going.
@@keithqueen352 One what synod of bishops do you sit? If the answer is "none" (as I suspect), then turn your attention to your actual role in the Church. And leave episcopal oversight to the bishops.
I'm not particularly optimistic, but I hope it works out for the best. Of course, since my diocese is not in communion with the Greek Archdiocese none of our youth will be blessed to participate. The potential of collaboration on volunteer/charitable efforts seems the most promising aspect of this development.
Why isn't your diocese in communion with GOARCH? What diocese is it? This new Agency is going to be doing what we're already doing: making videos, training, curriculum, etc. Participating would be like what you're doing now: watching the videos this Agency makes.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I'm in the Russian Orthodox Eparchy of Eastern America. Don't get me wrong, your videos are usually very good. (There's a "Be the Bee" wristband on my arm right now actually.) It's just my perspective that 'pan-Orthodox' movements, especially in the US, tend to have a quick decay rate. There's always lots of excited emotions at the beginning, but there's rarely enough willpower behind them. Maybe this time will be different. Forgive me, but I must also admit some automatic anxiety that arises anytime I see the Greek Archbishop these days. I'm a sinner and certainly not a bishop, but I have a hard time trusting him.
@@jonathanmontgomery519 I appreciate your honesty. Very much. You're sharing in a spirit of confession rather than judgment. There's an important distinction here. To the extent I can be involved with this new Agency, I want to make sure that it keeps advancing the cause of the Kingdom and keeps leading people to Christ. I've been at this for 8 years. God willing, I've got at least 8 more ahead of me.
This should be helpful; both my parents speak different languages and yet we're still orthodox. We had to learn the songs in both Greek and Russian. It's twice as long to wish someone Happy Easter 😂, but it's normal for us
ROC and ROCOR not included? i love the idea of all the ORthodox youth being able to connect - we are all so small (each jurisdiction) and it would be so good for my young adults to be able to meet other Orthodox young adults.
@@bronwynstirkul3549 The Assembly of Bishops includes something like 50 hierarchs across the canonical jurisdictions. They were all represented at the Assembly. But they weren't all interviewed by Bill. I only pulled the quotes that directly touched on this new ministry Agency.
@@TheHackingWeasel That's something the bishops can sort out among themselves. Neither I (nor you) have any control over that. This is an opportunity for a united vision for ministry in this country. That's something I can (and am) working on.
Good question. The Russian bishops have not been attending Assembly meetings (as I understand it). But the hope is to include ministry workers from all jurisdictions in this process.
@@holdmybeer8224 They were invited (because they're part of the Assembly) but didn't attend the meeting, unfortunately. But that's ok. This new ministry Agency can still work with ROCOR.
I don't live in America. And I pray that this is for the salvation for many, however, God forgive me, but I pray that Archbishop Elpidophoros does not bring in his ecumenism views into this project and it remain PURELY about the orthodox faith.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 Have you not heard and seen what Archbishop Eipdophoros have said and done? If you're going to be involved in ministry to the youth you should be keeping up with such things.
@@gregcoogan8270 I'm not a bishop. No bishop is accountable to me. So I'm not going to spend my time focusing on things I can't control. Are you a bishop? If not, you should probably direct your attention elsewhere as well. My job is to faithfully preach the Gospel and lead young people to Christ. So that's what I'm going to do.
@@helenhollyhead442 You know what they say about assumptions. Keep your eyes on Christ, not the things online that lead us into rage and judgment. God bless you!
Sounds good on the surface, but was this council convened by the same bishops pushing for heretical ecumenism? Any word from those jurisdictions who refused to join the council?
Daniel, we are stronger together. The political leanings of a certain bishop don’t represent all of those who fall under him. This seems like a really good chance to level the politics and ecumenism that leaves the faithful majority feeling betrayed. I’m hopeful for my children’s future a little more with this news ☦️ and most understand the position of ROC, the country is faithful and clinging to trad values and religion because of their immediate past and that stronghold is so necessary, I’m thankful for them. Maybe it will take some time
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I don't wish to appear uncordial or disrespectful. Forgive me. I personally think Orthodox could do a better job doing more cross-jurisdictional events and ministries together. What I'm concerned about is that those board members on the Assembly of Bishops have associations with ecumenism and interfaith dialogue that I am opposed to along with the majority of Orthodox Christians. This is very easy to see as an extension of that same ethos. Making faith fit culture rather than holding fast to the truth and youth coming to and remaining in the faith by God's grace. The council I referred to was the supposed "Synod" of Crete where only a minority of Bishops were present and seems to have made way for a lot of this way of thinking. Unity will not be possible if we allow our modern culture (and all it's baggage our kids have to deal with from it) to dictate how we proclaim the truth of Orthodoxy.
@@juliapetikas2868 Hi Julia. Thank you for your comment. What's interesting is that I feel the exact opposite with regard to my children and the future. I am not hopeful because I see this as a definite step away from what the Church has always taught and towards a blatant culture-obsessed self-help ideology. It is because many fear they will lose their Children so they think they should change or invent a new approach to reach them "where they're at". In reality, this will not bring us together. Compromise never does. It will not make us stronger because it will lead to compromising our faith just like many Churches did during the pandemic because health became more important than the Eucharist. As for my children, building and nurturing our little church at home is what will preserve them. As well as (of course) ensuring they are active in Church, receiving communion, routinely go to confession, learning to confide in their spiritual father, spending time with good families and friends, not being on social media, not being active in too many extra-curricular activities, and having a warm and loving family life.
@@dansysoman3391 I wouldn't worry about things happening half a world away. To the extent I'll be involved with this Agency, I'll work to make sure its advancing the cause of the Kingdom and helping lead people to Christ. That's all. I don't know how much you're familiar with our work over the past 8 years. But that's the vision and direction I'm interested in implementing.
I think the message was sent that the laity are less important than the bishops and other clergy when the doors to the church services were closed last year except for clergy and upper caste laity. Now they are interested about expanding the mission to the laity? It would be easier to take what they say seriously if they would acknowledge their mistakes.
I'm not sure what you're referring to. At the height of the pandemic, there needed to be caps on in-person attendance. This didn't limit things to "upper caste laity" but rather those with a role in the service (chanters) and perhaps some parish leaders. Despite being a leader in ministry in the Archdiocese, I didn't set foot in a church for many months. That never struck me as somehow an affront. It was simple necessity during a difficult time. And we're past that now, thank God. This isn't about "expanding the mission to laity" (who have always been full members of the Church). This new Agency is about creating a more united way to serve youth and young adult ministry.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 we’re told that the laity have an essential role in the services of the church but this was not implemented in practice. Absent any acknowledgement that what was done was wrong in any way, the role of the laity has been shown through this practice to be non essential and optional (unlike the laity’s role in grocery store attendance, which does not need to be capped).
@@Yallquietendown Let's be precise with our language. The clergy are important, and all you need is one presbyter to have a service. The laity are important, and all you need is one lay person to have a service. Attendance at a particular service is not a consumer good any of us own. It's not a "right." Instead of using this pandemic as an opportunity for repentance, we've seen it as an excuse to get mad. I'm not sure what grocery stores have to do with any of this. Are you upset that state governments gave businesses more freedom that parishes? I'm not sure what that has to do with how our bishops lead the Church. Again, we need to be precise with our language and thinking.
Do you really want an honest appreciation or not ? I really don think that you do ! An honest critical appreciation always walks around any proposition and looks at it from all sides and is willing to look at its negetives Didnt the Western confessions go through exactly the same search for relevance and look what happened, it was an apalling episode of revisionist degredation. Terrible ! Perhaps there are bishop who intentionally want the same thing to happen, for reasons of assimilating the Western confessions processes. Instead of an ascent, you have descent Is it not a case of attempting to fill spiritual bankruptcy with inspired shallow activity. The problems are far far deeper than that You dont ask children, adolescence and young adults what they want, you lead them out with discernment, like a good shepherds should. Putting them behind the wheel, is just following the disasterous failed Western model.
I'm not sure what you're actually commenting on. Or how you interpreted "creating a more unified ministry vision for Orthodox Christians in America" as a Protestant Reformation?
All I want is a parish with some girls (17-22) so my sons can find wives. What one of my sons said to me after visiting several parishes near his navy bases: "Dad , it's like Orthodox stop going to church between high school and having their first baby." But that isn't a pan-Orthodox issue. That's a local parish issue and a parent issue. I don't know what this pan-Orthodox ministry is going to do, but if it doesn't help young people find mates it doesn't seem very worthwhile to me. The youth, like all Orthodox, have the services, the prayerbooks, and thousands of Orthodox podcasts to listen to. Maybe, in each parish there could be someone to keep track of young people and forward that information to the diocese to matches could be made.
Needs like this reflect deeper issues in our communities. If we weren't losing so many young people, and failing to cultivate deep and connected communities, this wouldn't be an issue. You're pointing to an important symptom. But the root cause goes far deeper.
The problem is not just about the youth and embracing digital communication but rather about void in communication which has lasted hundreds of years. Traditions are not meant to be dead and yet the Orthodox Church has cloaked them in mystery. The liturgy has taken on a divinity of it's own almost deafening the living word. The Theotokos is venerated far more than the Holy Spirit. The icons are not just venerated but are worshipped and baptism has taken on the form of a social event rather than the gifting of the Holy Spirit. Tradition is not a repetitive action which is cast in stone but something that is alive. The true question should be , if Jesus Christ had to return then how would he embrace Orthodoxy. At the core of Christianity is salvation which is in essence a living body because we have died to ourselves and willingly allowed the breath of God in the form of the Holy Spirit to abide and become one with us.Is Jesus Orthodox or is Orthodoxy part of the living Christ. This question is actually not that difficult to answer since THE HOLY SPIRIT is the living God within us and every time we do not understand something in church the word of God is deafened. In essence what I am trying to communicate is that sermons should be at the core and the liturgy should be shortened. Sacraments should be made alive by explaining their meaning every time they are performed. The essence of been born in the Spirit should be emphasised by encouraging repentance. Their is nothing wrong with Orthodoxy but there is something wrong in the line of communication. This outreach toward the youth should be also an outreach towards a living Truth because God is Truth and truth is manifested in the form of THE HOLY SPIRIT.
You raise some interesting questions, not about what the Church teaches, but rather about what (some) Orthodox Christians believe. Our challenge is ministry and helping to lead people to Christ. This is what we hope to do, by God's grace!
I hope they take the best ideas regardless of community. I think speed is important so that the prefect should not be the enemy of the good. Put out what is good, then work to make it better. I hope a "formal" college - on campus - entity comes out of this. In other words, there would be 3 organizations soon. I think children should be introduced to high level Orthodoxy beginning at age 11 or 12 (5th or 6th grade). The Orthodox doctrine (dogma?) of Redemption being linked to the Genesis story is, to me, very powerful. Makes a cohesive whole, which I think a 12 year old can (begin to) understand. And they should be taught how the Apostles saw (finally) Christ as part of a Triune God, and the Trinity in Genesis and Isaiah. I don't think it is too soon to begin this. I am older and when I was going through there wasn't much of anything. Later when I (substitute) taught Sunday school, we lost a few children as we learnt the Creed in Greek and English. Made an impression. Some kids had no support at home. There was no pressure from the teachers for perfection, but somehow, it was too much for some. Don't have a solution for that, except to perhaps introduce parts of the Creed earlier and in segments - ? Children want to be part of something bigger than themselves. The "something" needs to be meaningful, however. Easing off them is not wise. Putting more on them can work. Also, need to have thought on how someone joining can catch up and be integrated into the group.
So as long as Orthodox doctrine and praxis is taught and upheld, such as that Christ is the only way to the Father, then its all good. If not...not so much. You guys know what I'm referring to.
I'm not sure what you're referring to, actually. We've been doing this for 8 years at Y2AM, and our goal is to faithfully preach the Gospel and lead young people to Christ.
Hopefully this new ministry bears solid fruit. But.. Too bad over $100 Million was funneled into the St. Nicholas Shrine and it’s still not completed. Imagine all of the good that could have been done with that money, other than the OVC imagine the other ministries, mission parishes, priests pensions that could have benefited. It’s a bit ironic that these same bishops are the ones who for the past year would not allow the youth, who they are currently reaching out to, to receive the Eucharist, attend liturgy, venerate icons, etc. The other Orthodox jurisdictions would do good to steer clear of the GOA, both financially and spiritually….and this is from someone who was in the GOA. Many Orthodox in America, both inside the GOA and outside are very skeptical of Archbishop Elpidohphoros and anything to do with Constantinople. Love your work and everything you do Steve, but, I’m sure you know this is true.
The best advice I ever received from my godfather is to avoid getting worked up over things I can't control. It leads to negative emotions and spiritual damage. All I can do is focus on what I can control. So I'm just going to keep doing this work, by God's grace.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 Well, when the head of the Greek Archdiocese says things like this, it’s a bit difficult to ignore, because it has repercussions on how they view the Church: “And referring to the Heavenly manifestation that led the Magi to the Christ-Child, Abp. Elpidophoros continued that Pat. Bartholomew is “the Star of the East, who came to give us once again the light of the ever-shining and martyric Phanar,” which is the “glory of the Orthodox Church and our devout Genos.”
6:14 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩 🚩 RED FLAGS 🚩 Take heed brothers and sisters let those who have ears hear. O Most Holy Theotokos save us! ☦️ St Justin Popovich A division within the Church has never occurred, nor indeed can one take place, while apostasy from the Church has and will continue to occur after the manner of those voluntarily fruitless branches which, having withered, fall away from the eternally living theanthropic Vine-the Lord Christ (John 15:1-6). From time to time, heretics and schismatics have cut themselves off and have fallen away from the one and indivisible Church of Christ, whereby they ceased to be members of the Church and parts of her theanthropic body. The first to fall away thus were the gnostics, then the Arians, then the Macedonians, then the Monophysites, then the Iconoclasts, then the Roman Catholics, then the Protestants, then the Uniates, and so on -all the other members of the legion of heretics and schismatics.”, The Orthodox Church and Ecumenism
How about allowing women into the priesthood? The anglicans have done it. Half our congregation is female and girls are getting educated. If you really want young people to stay orthodox and not leave, you have to move with the times.
There's a growing conversation about reviving the order of the deaconess, which was well established in the early Church. But that's not "moving with the times." We'll never see female presbyters or bishops. In fact, traditions that shift with the whims of culture are shrinking at a faster rate that others. Our ministry approach has to be dynamic, certainly. But that's a question of pastoral care, not theology or anything like that.
I'm not sure who you're referring to. Or whose ordination you're questioning. This is a project blessed by the entire Assembly of Bishops, who all work together. Are they all fools? Who are you?
Can people stop using the word "pan" to modify Orthodox? It only serves to underline division rather than eliminate it. When did the early Church writers EVER use such a silly term? If "Orthodox" doesn't get it across then the audience is immature.
On one level, I agree with you. But this is how people talk. And it's the word we have to communicate something across jurisdictions. Saying the audience is immature isn't a helpful way of reaching them. Or communicating to them. One day, when our jurisdictional divide is healed, we won't need the word.
Their hierarchs are not part of the Assembly. But I've done events at OO parishes, they use our Y2AM materials, etc. I think there can be a lot of ministry collaboration with this Agency!
@@stevenchristoforou1667 The elephant in the room, if you will, is the schism between the EP and the Russian Orthodox Church. Without unity and even solving the US jurisdictional problems, all of this is meaningless.
@@jerseycitysteve Quite the opposite. If young people can grow up with an experience of the Church, rather than a bunch of competing jurisdictions, their spiritual lives will be better for it. Christianity can't be organized or imposed. This is an opportunity to teach the Faith and help people live the Faith.
@@jerseycitysteve There's a difference between optimism (a naive wish that things will turn out ok) and hope (trust in the One Who Is). This is in God's hands. Not mine. Not yours.
Very excited to share this news with you! I'd love to hear what you think and hope for!
Is this open to Jurisdictions (canonical) other than the ones with Bishops represented here?
@@johnrep9690 Definitely! The hope is to serve all jurisdictions and all communities!
I pray for unity and the acceptance of LGBTQ in our church. This is where I find the lack of women in senior clergy a grave mistake. Mothers want our children to have love and blessings no matter something that people are born the way they are.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 Are you available (That is, do you have the time?) to speak with me about Orthodoxy? Sincere seeker
@@JohnBrown-eb9yl I appreciate you reaching out! But that's not my role.
Have you connected with a local parish (and priest)?
Orthodoxy in America would benefit from additional church unity among the jurisdictions :)
I think you're going to like what you hear in the video!
I agree!!!!
Steve this is amazing! A United Voice for all Orthodox youth! To develop our Orthodox Christian mindset (fronima) in our youth regardless of cultural background!! Using our pooled resources, avoiding duplication. What a powerful ministry united, together as one Orthodox family. Truly a blessing! Praying for love and unity in cooperation as we lay this important foundation for the future of our Orthodox faith in America!
God bless! I share your enthusiasm, Steve!!
Thank you!
Yeah, glory to God! I never thought I'd see this happening.
Phromena
It’s an exciting time to be a young adult in the Orthodox Church that’s for sure!
Hi Elias :) and yes it is!
Hey Elias! It really is!
GLORY TO GOD!!! Our bishops have been listening! Prayers are being answered!! WE ARE BETTER TOGETHER!!!
Wow! Orthodox Youth as a whole! Glory to God!
This Pan Orthodox agency is needed and “many more unifying projects” to draw the jurisdictions
closer together. Most importantly to deflect some of the “Nationalism” that holds conversions back!
Steve your gonna make a great Priest. To God Be the Glory! 🙏🌺☦️🌺🙏
Amen to that!
Except for me being a priest. Haha. God knows. If He calls me, He calls me. For now, He's calling me here. May it be blessed!
Some of us like that “nationalism”. Ecumenism is heresy.
@@danieltodorovich8744 What do you mean by nationalism? And ecumenism?
You seem to be using those words as opposites, which is odd.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 Ecumenism is cosmopolitan, monoculture - which is at odds with Orthodoxy. Nationalism is love for your nation's culture, heritage, and traditions - which is 100% in accordance with Orthodoxy.
What's odd is why you think these are *not* opposites
@@JasonCodreanu With respect, that's an odd definition of ecumenism. It's also incoherent: how can something be both cosmopolitan and monoculture?
A mere love for ones nation and tradition isn't necessarily problematic (though I'm not even convinced that's true; we're called to be citizens of the Kingdom, not our particular kingdoms). Unfortunately, nationalism has a bit of extra baggage which is more problematic than mere love of nation.
YAY!!! I'm soon going to be taking on the role of youth leader in my small Antiochian parish (we only have three teens, all siblings). I'm so excited to hear more about this. My husband and I have been fans of Y2AM since before becoming catechumens, and this is such wonderful news!
Oh wow, God bless your efforts!
All of Y2AM's work is there for you. And feel free to reach out if we can help with anything.
And let's see how this new Agency comes together!
I hope this will help young adults with the Faith. Thanks for the video Steve ☦☦
Such exciting news! OCF instilled in me a thirst for unity between Orthodox Christians. This really does feel like prayers answered! God bless the youth and his Bishops!
Oh this is AMAZING news. I love it. Thank you for sharing this news. I'm excited to see what it grows into.
Glory be to God! We are One Church with Christ at its head: if we work together for Christ - miracles happen! Heaven comes to earth, and earth goes to heaven!
Steve, I say that any decision by the Bishops that promote what you and Christian are doing and makes that content and programming more widely available the better it is for the Church. I pray that the Bishops will follow through with their commitment and that we see plenty of Lay support. God bless your efforts man.
I hope Oriental Orthodox Christians can be included!
The point about not having redundancy in work across the jurisdictions is definitely a compelling one. I’m in the Antiochian jurisdiction and was happy to see Metripolitan Joseph speaking. Seems like a good idea to me.
The Year of the Youth was his idea!
these are great news!!!! greetings from Greece! have a good day! Καλημέρα!!!♡♡♡♡♡♡
This is wonderful news!! Thank you for sharing!! 😃😃😃
What a great initiative! Blessings from a Greek Orthodox Christian in Australia. 🙏🏻🇦🇺
As someone who is studying youth and family ministry this is wonderful news!!!!
This is fantastic news!! Wow, praise God! It’s easy to get discouraged about the division among different jurisdictions but news like this lifts my spirits and inspires me for the future of the Church in North America. Wonderful!
Thanks for informing us!
Thanks for visiting us in Winston-Salem!
Glory to God! Слава Богу! We really need this! Excellent news!
A true blessing and an answer to prayer.
How exciting🤩 Look forward to learning more about all this! And how good to hear all the bishops speaking about the wellbeing of our youth😇. They are dealing with so much these days🙏
Yeah, hearing them speak was really inspiring, wasn't it?
I wonder how many bishops know that in Belgium and in Finland (i think) the Orthodox religion is being taught at secondary schools. The teachers are providing orthodox education to the children and young adults for decades already. There is no distinction being made between Ethiopeans, Russians, Armenians, Greeks, Romanians, all are considered orthodox christians and treated the same
yup there very much are the same. though, metaphorically speaking, It's okay to argue with your mom sometimes, that doesn't mean she's not special to you.
That's not good since they are most certainly not the same.
Here we are, 3 years later. What has become of this "Youth and Young Adults ministry agency" from the Assembly?
I am Orthodox I love this religion. I WAS started in the year 33 the same liturgy service that Jesus taught his apostles.
Forgive me for pushing back a bit, but this is no mere religion. This is the very Body of Christ, the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world.
Wonderful news! Thanks, Steve for sharing! Your vlog on RUclips is spot on in "being a real down to earth" role model, reaching Orthodox youth where they are concerning their daily challenges around mental illness, etc., via Social Media! Follow God's will as to how the unified Pan Orthodox Youth Ministry can learn from your online ministry?
Great stuff!
Glory to God!
Wonderful news!
Amen!
Common voice and resource: will there be a united effort for youth education? Will Orthodox Youth Education be a part of this effort? We need to focus on a Pan-Orthodox co-ordination for teaching our children our faith in a consistent, methodical and inspiring way. Church School teachers need the help and some jurisdictions have great resources we should share so we can be teaching our youth the same things in the same way.
Thanks, Steve! This is all so exciting! Hope it doesn’t take long to get it going!! We are blessed! Praise God!
I think that would be awesome! That's a big part of effective youth ministry. I hope it's a part of this!
This is awesome
Will this be for Canada too, or will the bishops forget about us
This was blessed by the Assembly of Bishops in the United States. But, honestly, I can see this supporting English language Orthodox communities anywhere and everywhere. People around the world are already using Y2AM resources, after all.
@@wambambrose I don't know that it will have chapters. It'll be a central way to create content (videos, curricula, training, etc) that can be used by parishes anywhere. Local youth and young adult groups can then use those materials in their local ministry.
@@wambambrose My first thoughts would be to ask your priest to approach the bishop.
Bravo!!!
Good news 🙂
I'm excited to see how existing work at the parish level can roll up into this, especially for folks in areas where there aren't many Orthodox parishes.
Yeah, me too!
It's been a challenging creating some semblance of unity within a jurisdiction. Doing that among all the jurisdictions (and reaching down to the parish level) will take a lot of divine help!
Better late than never. With a reserved optimism, I pray this will strengthen the faithful youth of every parish, and I pray that the ecclesial authorities (Bishops, Priests and Deacons) will not be tempted to have knee jerk reactions to every "scary" movement of youthful zeal trying to make a difference in the world.
This is great If we are doing our due diligence of properly raising our children of the traditions of the orthodox faith. If we allow these youth to develop their own liberal ideas the next generation of orthodoxy will fall to the communist regime. We must make sure those in leadership of these ministries are not infiltrated by Freemasons! As they have entered the Roman church and parts of the Greek church. It is would be wise to proceed with caution. young minds are precious to the sustainability of orthodoxy and our tradition.
The Lord His BlessedNess is our Head and He is leading His Church inexorably toward the Beatific Vision. He has His "reserves" because He is our Sustenance and Substance. He has us!! I agree though we must be circumspect about infiltration.
Is Archbishop Elpidophoros the same one who said no religious exemptions for the vaccines?
I'm not sure what that has to do with anything we cover in the video?
Seems to me an odd time to form a pan Orthodox effort to form the phronima of the youth right when jurisdictions are diverging on some pretty big issues like that. I’d like to be excited, unfortunately with everything going on it strikes me as odd.
@@m.filmtrip Quite to the contrary. What better time is there to focus on Christ and how we can lead people to Him?
Is this just in America? My priest was at a big clergy meeting in England this week. Is there a connection? I'd love if they made a volunteer corp here.
The youth (“young adults”) need to get married, attend divine services, and create strong families. Everything else is simply a distraction and waste of time. ☦️
yes!
Just wondering (because they weren’t interviewed in this video), but are any of the Russian jurisdictions supportive as well? I am hoping so!
Russian and ROCOR hierarchs didn't attend the meeting, unfortunately. But, as I understand it, there's lots of support about this ministry work!
@@stevenchristoforou1667 Thanks for the clarification!
I'm so elated ❤ I'm a young adult!
If people find out about the Orthodox Church ie the 4 patriarchates (of Jerusalem, Alexanderia, Antioch and constantinople) like I did, America would surely be a better place. People would have greater aptitude for discerning spirits and potentially harmful movements.
I'm so happy, as a former atheist then evangelical, that I've found the ancient faith.
I don't regret a single bit being a Presbyterian, without which I wouldn't have discovered Orthodoxy!
Finally! +++
Indeed. Glory to God!
We need visually attractive FREE videos, storybooks, and materials for young children (ages 4-12). At the beginning of the Pandemic, we Orthodox only had Children's Bible Reader, but then FLASH quit working, and we were left with nothing. It would be great if that we revived. Protestants and Catholics offer great FREE online materials - things like Superbook, The Beginner's Bible, RedeemTV's Children's materials, etc. We need more things like that, which come from an Orthodox perspective. Be the Bee is great for teens, but we need to be starting much younger than that. Many of our kids leave Sunday School by the time they're 12. Please get us more fun things (not things that feel like "school") for young kids. Thanks.
I hope this comment gets read.
We'll be in a position to do more with a bigger team and bigger budget, certainly. Protestants and Catholics invest A LOT more in ministry than we do.
God bless! It's sometimes sad to see the duplication of efforts without real fruit or even consistency and sustainability in ministry..because for some reason different people don't want to unite and serve together.. I've seen this in my church and it's really sad.. avoiding the duplication of efforts will be good for all, to work as one body with different talents united for all. God bless
It really is. I think this is one of those areas where our personal pride, inability to work together, etc can get in the way.
May God heal our broken hearts and help us serve with greater love!
Isn't that the same bishop who said that any religious exemption signed by priests in his jurisdiction was null and void?
I'm not sure how that's relevant. This is a project blessed by the full Assembly of Bishops, not just one.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I'm pretty sure how it's relevant, because he's been accused of blessing same sex marriage, among other things. The road to hell is paved with good intentions. All the faithful would do well to keep a watchful eye on this.
@@keithqueen352 Again, this is something blessed by the full Assembly of Bishops. Not just one.
I'm not interested in online rumor mongering or what people are accused of. I'm interested in faithfully preaching the Gospel and leading young people to Christ.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 the bishops actions are not rumor. And if you are truly concerned as you say you are, you, along with the rest of the faithful body of the church, should be keeping a close eye on exactly where this is going.
@@keithqueen352 One what synod of bishops do you sit?
If the answer is "none" (as I suspect), then turn your attention to your actual role in the Church. And leave episcopal oversight to the bishops.
I'm not particularly optimistic, but I hope it works out for the best. Of course, since my diocese is not in communion with the Greek Archdiocese none of our youth will be blessed to participate. The potential of collaboration on volunteer/charitable efforts seems the most promising aspect of this development.
Why isn't your diocese in communion with GOARCH? What diocese is it?
This new Agency is going to be doing what we're already doing: making videos, training, curriculum, etc.
Participating would be like what you're doing now: watching the videos this Agency makes.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I'm in the Russian Orthodox Eparchy of Eastern America. Don't get me wrong, your videos are usually very good. (There's a "Be the Bee" wristband on my arm right now actually.) It's just my perspective that 'pan-Orthodox' movements, especially in the US, tend to have a quick decay rate. There's always lots of excited emotions at the beginning, but there's rarely enough willpower behind them. Maybe this time will be different. Forgive me, but I must also admit some automatic anxiety that arises anytime I see the Greek Archbishop these days. I'm a sinner and certainly not a bishop, but I have a hard time trusting him.
@@jonathanmontgomery519 I appreciate your honesty. Very much.
You're sharing in a spirit of confession rather than judgment. There's an important distinction here.
To the extent I can be involved with this new Agency, I want to make sure that it keeps advancing the cause of the Kingdom and keeps leading people to Christ. I've been at this for 8 years. God willing, I've got at least 8 more ahead of me.
This should be helpful; both my parents speak different languages and yet we're still orthodox. We had to learn the songs in both Greek and Russian. It's twice as long to wish someone Happy Easter 😂, but it's normal for us
Are there any organizations like this in Canada?
No. Though I know a lot of Canadian parishes use our Y2AM resources. I expect a similar thing will happen with this new Agency.
ROC and ROCOR not included? i love the idea of all the ORthodox youth being able to connect - we are all so small (each jurisdiction) and it would be so good for my young adults to be able to meet other Orthodox young adults.
This doesn't exclude anybody! What gives you that impression?
I wondered that. Surely there’s also Bulgarian, Romanian etc as well, that did not appear to be represented here.
@@bronwynstirkul3549 The Assembly of Bishops includes something like 50 hierarchs across the canonical jurisdictions.
They were all represented at the Assembly. But they weren't all interviewed by Bill.
I only pulled the quotes that directly touched on this new ministry Agency.
ROC & ROCOR are standing up for the truth
How can we Unite when Constantinople
Excepted schismatic.
Let's not forget that now it is a big problem
@@TheHackingWeasel That's something the bishops can sort out among themselves. Neither I (nor you) have any control over that.
This is an opportunity for a united vision for ministry in this country. That's something I can (and am) working on.
Are the Russians involved?
Good question. The Russian bishops have not been attending Assembly meetings (as I understand it). But the hope is to include ministry workers from all jurisdictions in this process.
Because Constantinople united with schismatic groups let's not skip that topic
Any ROCOR bishops?
@@holdmybeer8224 They were invited (because they're part of the Assembly) but didn't attend the meeting, unfortunately. But that's ok. This new ministry Agency can still work with ROCOR.
Be the Bee!!!
I don't live in America. And I pray that this is for the salvation for many, however, God forgive me, but I pray that Archbishop Elpidophoros does not bring in his ecumenism views into this project and it remain PURELY about the orthodox faith.
Ecumenism? What does this have to do with anything?
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I have seen his tweets and how he likes to get involved with other faith leaders so I'm making assumptions. Forgive me
@@stevenchristoforou1667 Have you not heard and seen what Archbishop Eipdophoros have said and done? If you're going to be involved in ministry to the youth you should be keeping up with such things.
@@gregcoogan8270 I'm not a bishop. No bishop is accountable to me. So I'm not going to spend my time focusing on things I can't control.
Are you a bishop? If not, you should probably direct your attention elsewhere as well.
My job is to faithfully preach the Gospel and lead young people to Christ. So that's what I'm going to do.
@@helenhollyhead442 You know what they say about assumptions. Keep your eyes on Christ, not the things online that lead us into rage and judgment.
God bless you!
Sounds good on the surface, but was this council convened by the same bishops pushing for heretical ecumenism? Any word from those jurisdictions who refused to join the council?
I'm not sure what you're referring to. This is from the Assembly of Bishops, which is all the canonical hierarchs in the United States.
Daniel, we are stronger together. The political leanings of a certain bishop don’t represent all of those who fall under him. This seems like a really good chance to level the politics and ecumenism that leaves the faithful majority feeling betrayed. I’m hopeful for my children’s future a little more with this news ☦️ and most understand the position of ROC, the country is faithful and clinging to trad values and religion because of their immediate past and that stronghold is so necessary, I’m thankful for them. Maybe it will take some time
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I don't wish to appear uncordial or disrespectful. Forgive me. I personally think Orthodox could do a better job doing more cross-jurisdictional events and ministries together. What I'm concerned about is that those board members on the Assembly of Bishops have associations with ecumenism and interfaith dialogue that I am opposed to along with the majority of Orthodox Christians. This is very easy to see as an extension of that same ethos. Making faith fit culture rather than holding fast to the truth and youth coming to and remaining in the faith by God's grace. The council I referred to was the supposed "Synod" of Crete where only a minority of Bishops were present and seems to have made way for a lot of this way of thinking.
Unity will not be possible if we allow our modern culture (and all it's baggage our kids have to deal with from it) to dictate how we proclaim the truth of Orthodoxy.
@@juliapetikas2868 Hi Julia. Thank you for your comment. What's interesting is that I feel the exact opposite with regard to my children and the future. I am not hopeful because I see this as a definite step away from what the Church has always taught and towards a blatant culture-obsessed self-help ideology. It is because many fear they will lose their Children so they think they should change or invent a new approach to reach them "where they're at". In reality, this will not bring us together. Compromise never does. It will not make us stronger because it will lead to compromising our faith just like many Churches did during the pandemic because health became more important than the Eucharist.
As for my children, building and nurturing our little church at home is what will preserve them. As well as (of course) ensuring they are active in Church, receiving communion, routinely go to confession, learning to confide in their spiritual father, spending time with good families and friends, not being on social media, not being active in too many extra-curricular activities, and having a warm and loving family life.
@@dansysoman3391 I wouldn't worry about things happening half a world away. To the extent I'll be involved with this Agency, I'll work to make sure its advancing the cause of the Kingdom and helping lead people to Christ. That's all.
I don't know how much you're familiar with our work over the past 8 years. But that's the vision and direction I'm interested in implementing.
YAY!!
I think the message was sent that the laity are less important than the bishops and other clergy when the doors to the church services were closed last year except for clergy and upper caste laity. Now they are interested about expanding the mission to the laity? It would be easier to take what they say seriously if they would acknowledge their mistakes.
I'm not sure what you're referring to.
At the height of the pandemic, there needed to be caps on in-person attendance. This didn't limit things to "upper caste laity" but rather those with a role in the service (chanters) and perhaps some parish leaders.
Despite being a leader in ministry in the Archdiocese, I didn't set foot in a church for many months. That never struck me as somehow an affront. It was simple necessity during a difficult time. And we're past that now, thank God.
This isn't about "expanding the mission to laity" (who have always been full members of the Church). This new Agency is about creating a more united way to serve youth and young adult ministry.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 we’re told that the laity have an essential role in the services of the church but this was not implemented in practice. Absent any acknowledgement that what was done was wrong in any way, the role of the laity has been shown through this practice to be non essential and optional (unlike the laity’s role in grocery store attendance, which does not need to be capped).
@@Yallquietendown Let's be precise with our language. The clergy are important, and all you need is one presbyter to have a service. The laity are important, and all you need is one lay person to have a service.
Attendance at a particular service is not a consumer good any of us own. It's not a "right." Instead of using this pandemic as an opportunity for repentance, we've seen it as an excuse to get mad.
I'm not sure what grocery stores have to do with any of this. Are you upset that state governments gave businesses more freedom that parishes? I'm not sure what that has to do with how our bishops lead the Church. Again, we need to be precise with our language and thinking.
Do you really want an honest appreciation or not ? I really don think that you do !
An honest critical appreciation always walks around any proposition and looks at it from all sides and is willing to look at its negetives
Didnt the Western confessions go through exactly the same search for relevance and look what happened, it was an apalling episode of revisionist degredation. Terrible !
Perhaps there are bishop who intentionally want the same thing to happen, for reasons of assimilating the Western confessions processes.
Instead of an ascent, you have descent
Is it not a case of attempting to fill spiritual bankruptcy with inspired shallow activity.
The problems are far far deeper than that
You dont ask children, adolescence and young adults what they want, you lead them out with discernment, like a good shepherds should.
Putting them behind the wheel, is just following the disasterous failed Western model.
I'm not sure what you're actually commenting on. Or how you interpreted "creating a more unified ministry vision for Orthodox Christians in America" as a Protestant Reformation?
Amen good!
All I want is a parish with some girls (17-22) so my sons can find wives. What one of my sons said to me after visiting several parishes near his navy bases: "Dad , it's like Orthodox stop going to church between high school and having their first baby." But that isn't a pan-Orthodox issue. That's a local parish issue and a parent issue. I don't know what this pan-Orthodox ministry is going to do, but if it doesn't help young people find mates it doesn't seem very worthwhile to me. The youth, like all Orthodox, have the services, the prayerbooks, and thousands of Orthodox podcasts to listen to. Maybe, in each parish there could be someone to keep track of young people and forward that information to the diocese to matches could be made.
Needs like this reflect deeper issues in our communities. If we weren't losing so many young people, and failing to cultivate deep and connected communities, this wouldn't be an issue.
You're pointing to an important symptom. But the root cause goes far deeper.
The problem is not just about the youth and embracing digital communication but rather about void in communication which has lasted hundreds of years. Traditions are not meant to be dead and yet the Orthodox Church has cloaked them in mystery. The liturgy has taken on a divinity of it's own almost deafening the living word. The Theotokos is venerated far more than the Holy Spirit. The icons are not just venerated but are worshipped and baptism has taken on the form of a social event rather than the gifting of the Holy Spirit. Tradition is not a repetitive action which is cast in stone but something that is alive. The true question should be , if Jesus Christ had to return then how would he embrace Orthodoxy. At the core of Christianity is salvation which is in essence a living body because we have died to ourselves and willingly allowed the breath of God in the form of the Holy Spirit to abide and become one with us.Is Jesus Orthodox or is Orthodoxy part of the living Christ. This question is actually not that difficult to answer since THE HOLY SPIRIT is the living God within us and every time we do not understand something in church the word of God is deafened. In essence what I am trying to communicate is that sermons should be at the core and the liturgy should be shortened. Sacraments should be made alive by explaining their meaning every time they are performed. The essence of been born in the Spirit should be emphasised by encouraging repentance. Their is nothing wrong with Orthodoxy but there is something wrong in the line of communication. This outreach toward the youth should be also an outreach towards a living Truth because God is Truth and truth is manifested in the form of THE HOLY SPIRIT.
You raise some interesting questions, not about what the Church teaches, but rather about what (some) Orthodox Christians believe.
Our challenge is ministry and helping to lead people to Christ. This is what we hope to do, by God's grace!
I hope they take the best ideas regardless of community. I think speed is important so that the prefect should not be the enemy of the good. Put out what is good, then work to make it better.
I hope a "formal" college - on campus - entity comes out of this. In other words, there would be 3 organizations soon.
I think children should be introduced to high level Orthodoxy beginning at age 11 or 12 (5th or 6th grade). The Orthodox doctrine (dogma?) of Redemption being linked to the Genesis story is, to me, very powerful. Makes a cohesive whole, which I think a 12 year old can (begin to) understand. And they should be taught how the Apostles saw (finally) Christ as part of a Triune God, and the Trinity in Genesis and Isaiah. I don't think it is too soon to begin this.
I am older and when I was going through there wasn't much of anything. Later when I (substitute) taught Sunday school, we lost a few children as we learnt the Creed in Greek and English. Made an impression. Some kids had no support at home. There was no pressure from the teachers for perfection, but somehow, it was too much for some. Don't have a solution for that, except to perhaps introduce parts of the Creed earlier and in segments - ?
Children want to be part of something bigger than themselves. The "something" needs to be meaningful, however. Easing off them is not wise. Putting more on them can work. Also, need to have thought on how someone joining can catch up and be integrated into the group.
We already have Orthodox Christian Fellowship which leads pan-Orthodox campus ministry. I'm on the Board and we're making great progress!
👍🏽
Major thumbs up! Haha
О каком объединении идет речь,если на собрании не было ни одного представителя от Русской Православной Церкви?
The OCA is the American offspring from the ROCOR.
So as long as Orthodox doctrine and praxis is taught and upheld, such as that Christ is the only way to the Father, then its all good. If not...not so much. You guys know what I'm referring to.
I'm not sure what you're referring to, actually.
We've been doing this for 8 years at Y2AM, and our goal is to faithfully preach the Gospel and lead young people to Christ.
Hopefully this new ministry bears solid fruit. But..
Too bad over $100 Million was funneled into the St. Nicholas Shrine and it’s still not completed. Imagine all of the good that could have been done with that money, other than the OVC imagine the other ministries, mission parishes, priests pensions that could have benefited. It’s a bit ironic that these same bishops are the ones who for the past year would not allow the youth, who they are currently reaching out to, to receive the Eucharist, attend liturgy, venerate icons, etc.
The other Orthodox jurisdictions would do good to steer clear of the GOA, both financially and spiritually….and this is from someone who was in the GOA.
Many Orthodox in America, both inside the GOA and outside are very skeptical of Archbishop Elpidohphoros and anything to do with Constantinople.
Love your work and everything you do Steve, but, I’m sure you know this is true.
The best advice I ever received from my godfather is to avoid getting worked up over things I can't control. It leads to negative emotions and spiritual damage.
All I can do is focus on what I can control. So I'm just going to keep doing this work, by God's grace.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 Well, when the head of the Greek Archdiocese says things like this, it’s a bit difficult to ignore, because it has repercussions on how they view the Church:
“And referring to the Heavenly manifestation that led the Magi to the Christ-Child, Abp. Elpidophoros continued that Pat. Bartholomew is “the Star of the East, who came to give us once again the light of the ever-shining and martyric Phanar,” which is the “glory of the Orthodox Church and our devout Genos.”
6:14 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩 🚩 RED FLAGS 🚩
Take heed brothers and sisters let those who have ears hear.
O Most Holy Theotokos save us! ☦️
St Justin Popovich
A division within the Church has never occurred, nor indeed can one take place, while apostasy from the Church has and will continue to occur after the manner of those voluntarily fruitless branches which, having withered, fall away from the eternally living theanthropic Vine-the Lord Christ (John 15:1-6). From time to time, heretics and schismatics have cut themselves off and have fallen away from the one and indivisible Church of Christ, whereby they ceased to be members of the Church and parts of her theanthropic body. The first to fall away thus were the gnostics, then the Arians, then the Macedonians, then the Monophysites, then the Iconoclasts, then the Roman Catholics, then the Protestants, then the Uniates, and so on -all the other members of the legion of heretics and schismatics.”, The Orthodox Church and Ecumenism
I don't understand what you're trying to communicate here.
How about allowing women into the priesthood? The anglicans have done it. Half our congregation is female and girls are getting educated. If you really want young people to stay orthodox and not leave, you have to move with the times.
There's a growing conversation about reviving the order of the deaconess, which was well established in the early Church.
But that's not "moving with the times." We'll never see female presbyters or bishops.
In fact, traditions that shift with the whims of culture are shrinking at a faster rate that others.
Our ministry approach has to be dynamic, certainly. But that's a question of pastoral care, not theology or anything like that.
Only a fool would do anything with that 'bishop.'
I'm not sure who you're referring to. Or whose ordination you're questioning.
This is a project blessed by the entire Assembly of Bishops, who all work together. Are they all fools?
Who are you?
Can people stop using the word "pan" to modify Orthodox? It only serves to underline division rather than eliminate it. When did the early Church writers EVER use such a silly term? If "Orthodox" doesn't get it across then the audience is immature.
On one level, I agree with you. But this is how people talk. And it's the word we have to communicate something across jurisdictions.
Saying the audience is immature isn't a helpful way of reaching them. Or communicating to them.
One day, when our jurisdictional divide is healed, we won't need the word.
I think we can all agree that in 2021 Steve is the name for the most wholesome people. Like Karen but a good thing.
If that's true, I'm the Steve bringing the name down!
Too bad that the oriental orthodox churches were not invited/included.
Their hierarchs are not part of the Assembly. But I've done events at OO parishes, they use our Y2AM materials, etc. I think there can be a lot of ministry collaboration with this Agency!
Oriental groups are not canonical
Were not in communion with each other
@@stevenchristoforou1667 yes, you have spoken at my church. I hope there would be mutual benefits.
@@TheHackingWeasel No, but the dialogue with the OO is very promising. And there's plenty of room for ministry collaboration.
@@MrEgyPete Indeed!
Without Russian orthodoxy, this is meaningless.
I'm not sure what this means. Why is it meaningless?
@@stevenchristoforou1667 The elephant in the room, if you will, is the schism between the EP and the Russian Orthodox Church. Without unity and even solving the US jurisdictional problems, all of this is meaningless.
@@jerseycitysteve Quite the opposite. If young people can grow up with an experience of the Church, rather than a bunch of competing jurisdictions, their spiritual lives will be better for it.
Christianity can't be organized or imposed. This is an opportunity to teach the Faith and help people live the Faith.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I admire your optimism.
@@jerseycitysteve There's a difference between optimism (a naive wish that things will turn out ok) and hope (trust in the One Who Is).
This is in God's hands. Not mine. Not yours.