|
|
|
Published
by the Greek
Orthodox Archdiocese of America,
November 2, 2005
Archdiocesan
Council Holds Fall Meeting in Boston
|
 |
 |
November
2, 2005
Boston, MA - The Archdiocesan Council of the
Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America held its
Fall Meeting in Boston, MA at the Marriott Long
Wharf on Friday, October 27 and Saturday,
October 28, 2005. His Eminence Archbishop
Demetrios of America presided at the Council
Meeting which was preceded by the Executive
Committee Meeting on Thursday, October 26.
The Archdiocesan Council Meeting began with
prayer in which recognition was made of the
heroic day of October 28, as OXI Day for Greece,
the day in 1940 when the people of Greece said
“NO!” to the fascist army of Italy which
wanted to conquer Greece.
The service was followed by the Opening Address
to the Council by Archbishop Demetrios,
reporting on some of the significant events
since the last meeting, which was held in May,
including the recent edifying retreat gatherings
of the National Presbyters’ Retreat and the
National Sisterhood of the Presvyteras. He
continued by stating that two recent important
Conferences were held at Hellenic College/Holy
Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology,
“Poverty in the Ancient Church and Today”
and “Christian Spirituality and Violence in
the Contemporary World”. He also spoke
enthusiastically about the recent Clergy Laity
Conference of the Metropolis of Detroit in
Southgate, MI which he attended.
Archbishop Demetrios continued his Keynote
Address with a report on a recent Conference he
attended at the Ecumenical Patriarchate that was
organized by His All Holiness Ecumenical
Patriarch Bartholomew and the members of the
European Parliament who belong to the People’s
Party (Christian Democrats). This Conference,
with participants from a number of European
countries, offered an opportunity to remind the
Government of Turkey of the deplorable way the
Ecumenical Patriarch is treated in and to
encourage correction of four major items that
are points of conflict and torment for the
Patriarchate – namely recognizing the title
Ecumenical for the Ecumenical Patriarchate,
affirming the legal status for the Patriarchate,
stopping and reversing the confiscation of
properties and the reopening of the Halki
School.
He continued by announcing that the Order of St.
Andrew of America recently awarded the
Athenagoras Human Rights Award to former USSR
President Mikhail Gorbachev, and, on behalf of
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, bestowed the
title of Archon, noting that Mr. Gorbachev was
extremely moved for this honor by the Greek
Orthodox Church and the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
The Archbishop also spoke on the de-Christianization
of society and the responsibility Orthodox
Christians have to offer our faith to the world.
He stated, “We are in conditions that place us
in a necessary course to produce and to offer,
in the strongest way, our Orthodox faith and our
universal Hellenic inheritance to the world.”
He informed the Council that the Holy and
Eparchial Synod has approved a standard version
in Greek and English of The Lord’s Prayer and
The Creed that will be distributed to our
parishes nationwide and closed his remarks by
reminding the Council Members to be vigilant and
alert to the attacks on our faith, so that we
will be able to offer to our children the rich
legacy of the Greek Orthodox faith.
Mr. Michael Jaharis, Vice Chairman of the
Archdiocese Council offered his remarks to the
group, stating that the outlook of the
Archdiocese has improved since the last meeting
in response to a number of new initiatives
including the current SWOT Survey (Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats Survey),
the restructuring of Communications to better
communicate the message of the Church, and the
improving of our Information Technology to reach
out to others. He continued by stating that the
financial outlook of the Archdiocese has also
improved considerably. He closed by thanking the
members for their commitment to the life of the
Church.
The Friday session of the Council was then
recessed to allow the Standing Committees of the
Council to meet and discuss future goals and
recent progress of the institutions and
ministries of the Archdiocese.
Saturday’s session of the Council Meeting
began with a joint report by Youth Ministry,
Outreach and Evangelism and Marriage and Family.
The Meeting continued with the Report of the
Finance and Administration Committee. The
Committee reported that the financial status of
the Archdiocese has improved due to the increase
in Total Commitment Revenue, a contribution
towards legal fees and settlements, and a
reduction in operating expenses. With these
efforts the Committee reported that the debt of
the Archdiocese has decreased from $9.9 million
in December 2004 to $7.4 million as of September
30, 2005. The Committee also stated that despite
the tremendous financial constraints, the
Archdiocese has been able to develop new
programs and initiatives and continue to offer
ministry to our faithful and parishes
nationwide. Also affirmed by the Council was the
sale of former Archbishop Iakovos’ home, with
proceeds being designated for the enhancement of
programs and ministries of the Archdiocese, not
for reduction of debt.
The Meeting continued with a report by William
Planes on the upcoming visit of His All Holiness
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to Tarpon
Springs, FL in January 2006 and an invitation to
attend this celebration.
The Administration Committee presented a final
draft of the Disclosure Policy and Disclosure
Statement (Archdiocesan Council, Metropolis
(Local) Council and Parish Council) which was
approved. The Committee also offered new
guidelines for Archdiocesan Council Meetings and
sub-Committee Meetings to assist all
sub-Committees in their ministry and in
fulfilling their goals.
Other reports were presented by the Committees
of Religious Education which announced the
completion of a new Teen Curriculum,
Communications which discussed the need for
better Public Relations and more frequent issues
of the Orthodox Observer, Technology which
stated the goal of securing the history of the
Archives digitally, and Greek Education which
offered information about the upcoming teacher
training seminar. The goals and results of the
SWOT Survey were also discussed. The SWOT is an
initiative, by the Archdiocese, to review and
evaluate the ministries and programs of the
Archdiocese in order to facilitate a smoother
and more efficient national outreach and to
develop a strategic plan for the Greek Orthodox
Archdiocese of America. Following these reports,
Mrs. Dee Nicolaou, President of the Philoptochos
of the Metropolis of Atlanta, reported on the
relief efforts for the victims of the recent
Hurricanes and the continued need for assistance
from faithful nationwide. As of September 30,
the Archdiocese has raised over $725,000 for
Hurricane Katrina Relief.
In his closing remarks, Archbishop Demetrios
thanked the members of the Archdiocesan Council
for their commitment and work, restating the
need to have better communications in both
process and language.
He continued by offering an insight into
worldwide de-Christianization, stating that de-Christianization
is a result of apathy and causes spiritual
inertia, especially in view of the
uncontrollable events that are happening in this
world. He also stated that in spite of this
apathy we are called by God to be much stronger
and remember what Christ said in the Gospel of
Matthew (26: 3-46). He urged the Council
Members, as faithful Orthodox Christian, not to
be asleep when Christ needs them most. This de-Christianization
is a call to be alert and vigilant in order to
offer, through our Greek Orthodox Faith, the
best of Christianity, as a salvation and as a
hope for all people.
|
