The pastoral conference of the clergy
of the two dioceses
of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas
in pictures
August 27-28, 2021
On August 27-28, 2021, on the Zoom platform, the Clergy Pastoral-Missionary Conference of the of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas took place. Friday, August 27, at 18:00 (EST), His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae opened the event with the prayer O Heavenly King, after which, he welcomed all those present, expressing his joy of being together again and recalling the brotherly atmosphere of the two previous meetings in Chicago and Mississauga. Then His Eminence gave an overview of the Agenda.
For his part, His Grace Ioan Casian, the Romanian Orthodox Bishop of Canada, welcomed all the participants, saying that in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, the virtual meeting is the best option. His Grace expressed the hope that all conclusions that we will be reached will be put into practice for a better and fruitful pastorate.
Metropolitan Nicolae presented the meditation The priest's mission in a complicated and confused world. Taking as motto the Savior's words addressed to the Holy Apostles: "Behold, I send you as sheep in the midst of wolves; be therefore wise as serpents, and innocent as doves" (Matthew 10:16), His Eminence said that these words apply to the clergy of our time as well. Further, arguing with ample quotations from the Holy Scripture, the speaker showed that God, the Supreme Wisdom, is the one who gives wisdom and innocence to those who serve Him, harmonizing their will, through the fulfillment of the divine commandments, with the cosmic plan of the Creator of all: "From the above said we can understand that wisdom has a pathway that does not follow the rational order, but the spiritual one. It is a reasoning, but not of the mind, but rather of the heart. Only with the heart can we understand why God, who is the Good Shepherd and who loves His sheep and gives His life for them (cf. John 10: 11), can send them into the midst of wolves. Only with the heart can this be understood, for only the heart can truly comprehend the meaning and majesty of sacrifice."
Putting our pastoral mission in the context of the medical crisis (and not only), His Eminence concluded with the exhortation to maintain our verticality and courage in facing the waves of the times in which we live: "As we can see, the crisis continues, the social unrest as well. The answer of the priest and of the Christian in general can be none other than that of the Holy Scriptures: that we preach "the hidden wisdom of God, the mystery which God has ordained before the ages, for our glory." And if this wisdom does not please, does not fit the times, does not align with the rules and recommendations, let us make the right Christian choice for this life and for eternal life."
Metropolitan Nicolae then introduced Fr. Chad Hatfield, President of St. Vladimir's Seminary in NY State, who held the conference What is the future of the Orthodox Church on the American continent?"
Father Chad began by reminding everyone that in North America culture is increasingly moving away from the Judeo-Christian tradition. "We live in times of realignment within Christianity. There is a kind of false Christianity in this world, combined with the zeitgeist (spirit of the time)," the speaker said. Since 2000, Orthodox churches have begun to concern themselves more with defending their own turf (ethnic ghettos), forgetting about the missionary aspect. According to statistics, last year the percentage of those who declared themselves Christians fell for the first time below 50%.
The speaker, who recommended several books, identified three movements within the Orthodox churches: the Benedict option, which proposes that we regroup for a counter-offensive; St. Constantine's option, centered in Texas at St. Constantine's School, emphasizes the role of faith-based schools, which can place us in a much better position for confronting anti-Christian culture; the movement of the accommodists, which promotes the idea that Orthodoxy is too outdated and must be brought to the present (get on with the program), which would have a negative impact. Example is the Anglican Church, which experienced a dramatic decline, because of the "modern" innovations adopted. Fr. Chad then spoke about the challenges facing youth in general and especially during the pandemic, the most devastating being isolation and loneliness. He concluded his presentation with the recommendation of the book "The Eucharist" by Fr. Alexander Schmemann who, many years ago and somewhat prophetically, defined secularism as "the denial of worship."
A round of questions and answers followed, after which the two hierarchs thanked Fr. Hatfield for the competent and very interesting presentation.
On Saturday, August 28, at 12:00 (EST) the Pastoral-Missionary Conference was reconvened and, after the usual prayer, the participants listened to the video message addressed by His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel, who said: "The Romanian Orthodox Church showed great care for the Romanian Orthodox communities abroad, materialized by the establishment of new parishes and dioceses to meet the needs of Orthodox Romanians established temporarily or definitively outside Romania, particularly in the United States and Canada for the preservation of their religious, linguistic, and cultural identity. With deep parental love we urge the Romanian Orthodox living on the American continent to remain in constant contact with their loved ones left in the homeland. We, in particular, extend our appreciation to His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae and His Grace Bishop Ioan Casian, to the priests of the holy altars and to all members of the Romanian Orthodox communities on the American continent, for their pastoral and missionary work. We bless the works of the Clergy Pastoral and Missionary Conference of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas, and we pray to the Most Holy Trinity to give you all enlightenment and peace, joy and continued achievements in your pastoral and missionary work!"
Then followed the meditation of His Grace Ioan Casian: Mission and Christian purpose in contemporary times - to love and to be love.
His Grace began by bringing to the attention of all the Christian imperatives in our mission, specified by His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel in the message on the occasion of the Sunday of the Romanian migrants: The intensification of the pastoral and missionary work, of preserving and cultivating the Orthodox Christian faith, of the Romanian spiritual and cultural values; Preservation of religious, ethnic, linguistic and cultural identity; The appreciation of the family – made up of a man, woman and children – because it is blessed by God; the education of the younger generation in the spirit of love for God, the Church and the nation and the cultivation of essential Christian virtues: faith, hope and love for God and for others.
Then, Bishop Ioan Casian referred to the book authored by the worthy of remembrance, Archim. Vasile Vasilachi: "The threefold love of God, the Church and the Nation, in which "all the sublime ideal of life of all mankind and of each person is included." His Grace Ioan Casian then posed the question: "As a Church, as servants of the holy altars, what can we do in this turbulent ocean of our human history, surrounded by the conflicts, doubts, ideologies of all kinds that have spread everywhere?" The answer, - said the speaker – can be found only if we keep ourselves within the Church, which "has always been the ship in which all those who have sought God have found strength and shelter." His Grace then listed the priorities that the servants of the holy altars must have as their priorities: Evangelism in the new millennium; New biological and ethical trends; Freedom in an unfree world; Charity or caring for the needy; Sexual ethics and pastoral care; Religious pluralism in a globalized world. In order to meet and solve these problems, which have deep moral implications, His Grace Ioan Casian proposes to assume with all seriousness and responsibility the christic mandate: "The Orthodox Church, as a communion whose foundation is love, understands as its mission to invite the whole humanity to put into practice the divine love and peace, reminding each person of the dignity they have as bearers of the image of God and the invitation they received to become sons and daughters of God the Father. In order to fulfill our mission and purpose, one thing is needed from which all the others flow - to love and to be love."
His Grace Ioan Casian introduced of the second main speaker, Father IoanTeșu, professor at the Faculty of Orthodox Theology "Dumitru Stăniloae" in Iasi, who held the conference: "The contemporary family – between the ideal and crisis."
The presentation of Father Professor Teșu was a real lesson that penetrated the heart and soul of all the participants. Not only through the rich and generally known content, but especially through the spiritual and collegial way in which it was delivered. The best commentary on this conference can only be in the form of advice to listen to it again and again. Therefore, I prefer to raise the interest of those eager for a happy and long- lasting family, based on moral and spiritual values, by highlighting the main ideas of the conference:
- The family is a fundamental reality that we must consider. We humans were created for communion. The great French theologian Paul Evdokimov was right when he said that loneliness is the greatest suffering, precisely because we humans were not created to be alone, but for communion and to share our love.
- St. John Chrysostom says that a good friend is a second me. The wife is her husband's harbor and medicine of joy and happiness, and the man is his wife's anchor.
- Orthodox spirituality teaches us that in the life of a godly man, the wife represents the greatest blessing that God can offer him.
- The family is the altar of sacrifice for our selfishness.
Wounds and sufferings, not just challenges to the contemporary family:
- Having intimate relationships long before marriage. The statistics show that it is more difficult to establish families and that it happens later and later in life for various reasons.
- Birth control by contraception methods creates the aging of peoples; Europe is an ageing continent in a real demographic winter.
- Physical or emotional violence, the increasingly common cases of infidelity, which create an apocalypse of communication or loneliness in two.
- The abortion has reached some alarming figures.
- Divorce has implications not only for the two spouses, but especially for the children, who suffer the most.
- Bizarre practices, sexual behaviors and minority groups that are becoming more vocal.
Spiritual remedies:
- Love and appreciation, which help us maintain the peace and stability of the family.
- Empathetic or assertive communication, counteracting each heated discussion with five appreciative discussions (Gottman method).
- Quality time, actual time spent with your loved one, sharing the joys and sorrows together.
Referring to yet another American writer, the speaker recommended three principles that help strengthen the family cohesion:
- There is no plan B, that is, to focus totally on the present situation, without contemplating other possibilities or situations.
- The power of three words: What God says.
- The thought of the end of the marriage, meaning the retrospective analysis on the family that will be made in the last hour of life.
- Establishing our life on the foundation of Christian values: a godly lifestyle as authentic and profound as possible, which involves a constant program of prayer, rooted in the depths of our soul.
Father John gave us one last piece of advice: "whatever we do, let’s do it with love."
After the thanks addressed by our hierarchs, a segment of questions and answers followed.
As was done at the previous session, the participants were divided into four groups, in which discussions were held, the conclusions of which were then presented in plenary.
The Clergy Pastoral-Missionary Conference ended with the prayer to the Theotokos and the hope to meet as soon as possible in person, resuming our much-needed fraternal communion.
Fr. George Bazgan
