HOLY AND GREAT COUNCIL DOCUMENT

Draft Synodical Document

Τρίτη 24 Μαΐου 2016

ORTHODOX THEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA CONFERENCE “ PREPARING FOR THE HOLY AND GREAT COUNCIL OF THE ORTHODOX CHURCH ” INTERCHURCH CENTER, NYC


 Ecumenical Patriarchate Press Office
On May 27-28, the Orthodox Theological Society of America (OTSA) will sponsor a conference dedicated to the Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church The conference will be held at the InterChurch Center (475 Riverside Dr., NY, NY) in New York City, and will help foster a discussion around the Holy Council’s procedures, agenda, and official documents (for more information about the Council and to access these documents, please visit: OrthodoxCouncil.org). 
This conference is co-sponsored by the Department of Inter-Orthodox, Ecumenical, and Interfaith Relations of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and New York Theological Seminary.

OTSA and the Orthodox Christian Studies Center at Fordham University jointly sponsored a working group project where teams of scholars and single authors prepared concise responses to the Council’s documents; these scholars exchanged ideas, received mutual feedback on their drafts and many of the documents were posted on the Fordham’s Orthodox Christian Studies Center website publicorthodoxy.org.  The working groups included 73 Orthodox scholars and several Byzantine Catholic, Oriental Orthodox and Episcopal contributors.  A total of 29 papers were officially accepted. An effort is underway to publish these theological commentaries and make them publicly available to the faithful and those who will participate in the Holy and Great Council. 

The OTSA conference will center around these working group papers. Scholars will present their papers, followed by an open discussion. The papers presented will cover the range of topics to be discussed at the Council (Impediments to Marriage, the Orthodox Diaspora, Ecumenical Relations, Fasting, Mission of the Church in the World, and the Council’s Procedures and Rules). The scholars participating in the conference include participants from a variety of disciplines and settings, including faculty at theological schools and universities, missionaries, educators, theologians, practitioners, and pastors. 

The conference is open to the general public. Registration is available at:  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/preparing-for-the-great-and-holy-council-theological-reflections-tickets-24323995726. The conference proceedings will be recorded and made available online at a later time. In addition to Orthodox scholars, we anticipate that the conference will be attended by members of other faith traditions, including students and faculty members of New York Theological School. 

In the Fall 2016 (Sept. 29-Oct. 31), OTSA is planning its annual meeting at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology (Brookline, MA). The meeting will focus on the reception of the Council’s decisions.