Decisions on Some Palestinian and Jordanian Communities in the USA
August 5, 2008
After a long process that began in 1993 related to the ecclesiastical status of a portion of the Palestinian and Jordanian communities in the USA, the portion connected to the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, there has been a final agreed decision by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Patriarchate of Jerusalem concerning these communities. The Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Jerusalem Patriarchate have agreed that the canonical and pastoral supervision of these communities and their clergy should belong to the canonically established jurisdiction in the United States which is the Eparchy of the Ecumenical Throne in America, that is, the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. Henceforth, the Patriarchate of Jerusalem no longer asserts any jurisdiction in the Western Hemisphere.
On Tuesday, April 1, 2008, His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew received His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem, together with the senior member of the Holy Synod of the Jerusalem Patriarchate, Metropolitan Vasilios of Caesaria (Palestine) and other clergy. Final details for the implementation of the agreements were completed, with a mutual decision that these communities come under the canonical jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of America. Following the meeting at the Phanar, His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America was directed to proceed with the implementation of the agreements by the creation of a Vicariate for the inclusion of the clergy and communities w ithin the Archdiocese of America. The official name of the Vicariate is: Vicariate for Palestinian/Jordanian Communities in the USA.
The clergy and communities of the Vicariate will be directly under the Archbishop of America and will report to the Archdiocese through the Vicar. Through the Archdiocese, all of these clergy and communities will be able to participate in the programs and agencies of SCOBA.
Contact: Ecumenical Office
Tel.: 212.570.3593
Email: ecumenical@goarch.org
Educational Seminars Held in Cyprus for the Second YearJuly 28, 2008
Twenty teachers from various parochial schools of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America are taking part in a summer educational seminar held at the University of Cyprus, in Nicosia from July 21 to August 5. The fifteen-day program, which is being offered for the second year by the University of Cyprus, is organized in cooperation with the Archdiocese Department of Greek Education and the Ministry of Education and Culture of Cyprus and is designed especially for teachers of the Archdiocese Greek-American schools.
The daily seminar lectures and workshops focus on proven methods of teaching history and Greek as a second language. Participating teachers also have the opportunity to visit historical and religious sites of Cyprus and meet some of the country’s leaders including Archbishop Chrysostomos of Cyprus and President Demetris Christofias.
Contact: Stavros H. Papagermanos
Tel.: 212.570.3556 – Fax: 212.774.0237
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