A Publication of the ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN LAITY
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| Volume 6 Number 14 - Tuesday, April 6th, 2004 |
A Publication of the ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN LAITY |
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GREEK ORTHODOX FAITHFUL SIGN PETITIONS IN ARIZONA CALLING FOR THE FORMATION OF SPECIAL GENERAL ASSEMBLIES Phoenix (April 1, 2004) - A group of more than 100 lay leaders and concerned Orthodox Christian parishioners from five Arizona Greek Orthodox Churches meeting in Phoenix on Saturday, March 27 signed petitions calling for Special Parish Assemblies to discuss a charter that is being imposed upon the members of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese by the Patriarchate of Constantinople located in Istanbul, Turkey. The patriarchal charter would substantially alter the administrative structure of the Church in America. The local parish assemblies are to discuss and vote on resolutions asking that the any changes to the 1977 Charter be the first item of business at the 2004 Clergy-Laity Congress to be held in New York this July. The Clergy-Laity Congress is the highest legislative body of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, where decisions and changes affecting church governance are voted upon. In 2002, delegates assembled in Los Angeles voted to reject the charter that the Patriarchate has insisted on imposing to replace the 1977 Charter. Contrary to the statement in the 2004 Yearbook of the Archdiocese that "the laity shares equally in the responsibility for the preservation and propagation of the Christian faith and Church," the Patriarchate's charter substantially reduces the involvement of the laity in church governance. During the past two years, several efforts have been made by members of Orthodox Christian Laity to discuss the issue of the proposed revision of the 1977 Charter with the Hierarchs of the Archdiocese and the Patriarchate and the lay leaders of the Archdiocese. Appeals were also made for the intervention of the Primates of the other thirteen autocephalous Orthodox Churches around the world. On February 3, 2004 more than thirty influential members of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese filed suit in the New York State Supreme Court asking for assistance in resolving the issue of the required procedure for the revision of the 1977 Charter. Of particular note, an open invitation was sent to Patriarch Bartholomew during his recent visit to New York, March 13-19, requesting a meeting to discuss the issue. No response was received to this request. According to Peter Haikalis, President of the Orthodox Christian Laity (OCL), the group of concerned parishioners supporting the suit “has received considerable support from around the country. Unfortunately, the hierarchy has launched an attack on the plaintiffs and has used various intimidation tactics including the threat of excommunication. The plaintiffs remain committed to using the courts as a means of bringing the issue to the attention of the nation and to preserving the integrity and credibility of the Archdiocese by requiring it to follow its own established rules and procedures." St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church, Tucson, Arizona, has already adopted a resolution to send delegates to the Congress in support of the Charter discussion. Thirteen additional parishes throughout the nation, representing over 5,000 faithful, have passed resolutions requesting that the charter be on the Congress agenda. Hundreds of concerned parishioners have attended information sessions organized in South East Florida, Phoenix, and Western Michigan.. Additional open forums will be taking place across the country in an ongoing effort to confirm support for this issue. The next informational meeting will be taking place in Chicago on May 8, 2004.
For additional information on the Charter issue or
the Orthodox Christian Laity, please visit
www.ocl.org. |
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