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New Academy of Orthodox Christian Studies, Greece:
First successful session!
A new initiative in lay theological education gathered
more than thirty-five people last summer in Volos, Greece, from Australia,
Bulgaria, France, Great Britain, India, Indonesia and USA. And not
all of them were Orthodox - representatives from Protestant churches
also attended.
The setting was the new bi-lingual Volos Academy of Orthodox Christian
Studies, set up under the aegis of the Church of Greece, on the initiative
of the local Bishop, former SYNDESMOS Vice-President (1985-1995),
Metropolitan Ignatius of Dimitrias, and under the direction of former
SYNDESMOS President Dimitri Oikonomou and of Dr Konstantinos Zorbas.
Metropolitan Ignatios' many years of involvement with SYNDESMOS have
given him a wide acquaintance with the varied face of Orthodoxy throughout
the world, and his vision is to make Volos a center where Orthodox
from different cultures as well as other Christians can meet and discuss,
learning together and experiencing together life and traditions of
an Orthodox country.
Volos provides a fine setting for the meeting, situated as it is at
the foot of Mount Pelion, with its many historic monasteries and attractive
villages. It is a region blessed with great natural beauty (- as the
locals say "if you can live on Mount Pelion and not believe in
God, you don't deserve to live on Mount Pelion!"), and hallowed
by the lives of many saints, both monastics and new martyrs of the
Ottoman period.
In 2001, the Session is entitled "The Church and Contemporary
issues" and will run from 6 August to 2 September. Applicants
are not required to have any formal theological background - just
a desire to broaden and deepen their understanding of the Orthodox
faith. Speakers will include Matushka Mariamni Fortunatto (London),
Rev Thomas Hopko (New York), Dr Anestis Kessoulopoulos (Thessaloniki)
and Rev John Jillions (Cambridge), and others.
For further information, contact info@imd.gr or
visit www.i-m-dimitriados.gr
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