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December 2020 Newsletter

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18 December 2020

Dear Fathers and Friends

Greetings from the OTSA Executive Committee. We are thankful and pleased to share with you that those who were able to attend our Annual Meeting this year expressed thanks “for designing and implementing such a wonderful conference”… “such a rich and engaging meeting”… and “the OTSA conference was fantastic; you all really pulled off something wonderful in spite/because of the technology!”

Annual Meeting: On November 12-14, 2020, OTSA members gathered for our first virtual Annual Meeting, and the first Florovsky lecture in webinar format. The extraordinary circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated creative thinking in running a meeting that kept members safe but still enabled us to engage in meaningful discussion and social connection.

The theme of the meeting was Theological Anthropology, with challenging and thoughtful papers that clustered around the areas of spiritual life, theosis, moral action, gender and human rights, racism, disability, and embodied identity. Several of the papers will be posted shortly to the OTSA website. Access the meeting page for a more detailed summary or the meeting, a list of the papers presented along with abstracts, and a few screenshots.

Florovsky Lecture: This year, the Very Rev. Fr. Michael Plekon, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Sociology, Religion and Culture, The City University of New York-Baruch College offered the Florovsky Lecture via webinar format. He spoke on “Community as Church, Church as Community: Death and Resurrection in the Parish Today.” An extended and lively question and answer session followed his remarks. Attendance was significantly higher than usual, and, per our mission, included many members of the public. You can view the lecture on the OTSA Annual Meeting web page or view it directly here.

Business Meeting: At our Annual Business Meeting, we reviewed the many initiatives undertaken by OTSA in 2020, discussed the Assembly of Bishop’s new proposed structure for its relationship with Orthodox associations including OTSA, and were very pleased to welcome nine new members. Let us briefly introduce these new members to you:

  1. Philip Dorroll received his PhD in Religion from Emory University.  He is Associate Professor of Religion at Wofford College in Spartanburg, SC, with a focus in Islamic theology, Orthodox Theology, and Orthodox Christian-Muslim relations.
  2. Bohdan Hladio is an Orthodox Priest active in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Canada, serving in many capacities, offering a popular column, and active in inter-Orthodox and ecumenical projects.
  3. Sarah Riccardi-Swartz recently completed her PhD in Anthropology from New York University, and her work sits at the intersection of sociocultural anthropology and Orthodox Theology. Her multiple articles reflect interests and expertise that range from fields as diverse (but interrelated) as digital studies, globalization, poverty, disability, and gender and sexuality.
  4. Jeffrey S. Lamp received his PhD in New Testament Studies from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and an M.S. in Environmental Science from Oklahoma State University. Both fields are represented in his work at Oral Roberts University, Tulsa OK, where he is Professor of New Testament and Instructor of Environmental Science.
  5. Elias (Elliott) Dorham is currently a DMin candidate at St. Vladimir’s Theological Seminary and is a Deacon in the Greek Melkite Catholic Church. He seeks to engage the broader Orthodox academic arena with the voice of pastoral experience. (Associate Member)
  6. Claire Koen is pursuing her PhD in Judaism and Christianity in Antiquity from Fordham University. She is hoping to expand her participation in Orthodox academic and community life. (Associate Member: pre-ABD)
  7. Philip Seetone is Instructor in Theology at Newman University, Wichita, KS and a Roman Catholic priest who serves an Eastern Catholic parish. His classes include Eastern Christian history and spirituality, and he hopes to expand his understanding and connection with the Orthodox community and faith. (Associate Member)
  8. David Smith received his PhD in New Testament studies from Duke Divinity School, and is currently visiting Assistant Professor of New Testament at Duke. An Anglican, David hopes to foster relations among Orthodox, Catholics, Anglicans, and the wider Christian world. (Associate Member)
  9. Gabrielle Thomas received her PhD in Historical Theology from Nottingham University. Recently relocated to the US from the UK, Rev. Gabrielle, is lecturer in Early Christianity and Anglican Studies at Yale Divinity School. An Anglican, she is actively engaged in interrelations between the Anglican and Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches. (Associate Member)

At our business meeting, we also reelected the slate of officers who served for 2020, to continue through 2021:

Teva Regule, President
Fr. John Jillions, Vice President
Fr. Gabriel Rochelle, Treasurer
Fr. Tony Vrame, Associate Treasurer
Helen Theodoropoulos, Secretary

Church and the Academy Blog: We have a new excellent blog post for our “Church and the Academy” blog, “Academic Freedom”, written by Fr. John Jillions. This is a continuing blog, and we encourage members to offer their thoughts on this subject.

Dues Reminder: At the end of the year, it is common to wrap up loose ends—one of which is often the paying of dues that have slipped past our attention over the year. This would be a great time to cross that task off your list and pay the dues for 2020 and would greatly assist OTSA in its continued work. We thank those of you who are current in your dues, and offer thanks in advance for those of you completing that task now.  You can pay dues online.

Best wishes to all for a beautiful and blessed celebration of the Nativity of Our Lord. May 2021 be healthy and happy, and a time of reconnection and renewal.

Respectfully submitted,

Teva Regule, PhD, OTSA President
Helen Creticos Theodoropoulos, PhD, OTSA Secretary

An Argument for Engaging Secularism in Dialogue

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Dcn. Nicholas Denysenko
Emil and Elfriede Jochum Professor and Chair, Valparaiso University
(Download essay as pdf)

In the midst of a rapid surge of controversial social issues emerging like wildfires throughout the world, Orthodox Christians in the academy are confronting a dilemma. How should they respond to the force of social changes pressing upon the world? Should intellectuals engage ideologues of vastly different perspectives in dialogue? Or is it safer to protect the Church from ideas that might afflict the body of Christ? 

Certainly, there is no consensus on how theologians should respond. Adopting a defensive posture to resist and fight against external ideologies is one reaction to fear. Drawing deeply from the intellectual tradition is a better response, as it has the capacity to contribute to the common good and repel variants of political extremism.

The Church needs to respond with a twofold strategy consisting of inquiry and dialogue. This strategy includes dialogue with secular humanism.

Let us begin with an example of the value of a dialogue with secular humanism. This approach is essential because secular humanism—or the catch-all category of secularism—is the usual villain identified by Christian cultural warriors. Orthodox tend to depict secularists as a large and anonymous community of sociologists, politicians, and technocrats who push for modernity and progress by eliminating religious institutions. For some, secularism is a catch-all term for anyone promoting progressive initiatives that challenge the Church’s core values.

It is somewhat misleading to categorize progressives who do not endorse religious values and traditions as secularists. Secularism originated as a concept of time, a focus on the present, and therefore, the this-worldly perspective. The tendency to dismiss the transcendence of time in God led theologians like Alexander Schmemann—whose critiques of secularism are oft-quoted—to define secularism as the “negation of worship.”

What Christians seem to truly fear about secularism is how it has evolved from its origins as a concept of time into a spirit described by Belgian theologian Joris Geldhof as “opposed of any claim made in the name of something transcendent of this world and its interests.” The problem seems to be the anthropocentric tendencies of secularism, especially those that pursue initiatives exclusively for human progress and flourishing and leave no space for religion at the table of public discourse. Geldhof observes that secular critique has made it “no longer possible” to talk about heaven and earth at all.

Geldhof is one of many influential voices who favors Christian engagement with secularism. He states that Christian liturgy occurs in a space where heaven and earth are one, bringing God’s reign into the present as the Church continues on its journey to heaven. In other words, the kingdom of God is not indifferent to secular agendas.  

Jaroslav Pelikan strongly encouraged robust Christian participation in dialogue on difficult public issues. In a commencement speech at Wittenberg University in 1960, Pelikan reminded graduates of the value of inquiry into all topics, including the natural sciences. He noted that the pioneers of the natural sciences had delivered a necessary chastening to the Christian intellectual tradition by reminding us that life is always a process of becoming.

Our expanded understanding of the natural world, the universe, and humanity was empowered by the Holy Spirit, whom he described as the “agent of change and the ground of variety.” Feting the “new insights” of secular studies, especially the social sciences, Pelikan illustrated the value of engaging them instead of dismissing them as antithetical to Christianity:

Instead of panicking at these insights and trying to evade them, as much of Christian thought has done, we need to recognize their validity and their limits as guides to human thought and behavior. What if these insights shake our stereotypes of what men are or puncture our clichés about how men act!   

Pelikan suggested that the Christian intellectual is always a learner, and a member of a community of learning that is willing to reflect critically on its own presuppositions.

The Orthodox academy can make a substantial contribution toward resolving ominous global problems. Consider the impending catastrophe of water scarcity, which is a reality for billions of global citizens. The Orthodox liturgical tradition reveals and proclaims water as God’s precious gift to the world—so precious, that God uses it as an instrument of our salvation, over and over again. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew’s commitment to protecting the environment is well known. Imagine the prophetic message Orthodox theologians could send to governments and corporations if we marshaled our intellectual resources to show that water is God’s gift, and that the world’s response should be to preserve and share the divine gift equitably.  

We are capable of harnessing our intellectual tradition to critique dangerous secular ideologies as well. No voice demonstrates the power of Christian dialogue with secularism more powerfully than the Czech priest Tomáŝ Halik, a former political prisoner and dissident of the Communist era. Halik provides multiple examples of populists who capitalize on fear in developing narratives that oppose the initiatives of so-called elitists. He writes that populist narratives appeal especially to frustrated people, especially those longing for a strong sense of group identity—which they find in communities that demonize the “outside world.”

Halik appeals to the Christian intellectual tradition—including universities and churches—as society’s “immune system” that prevents dangerous political ideologies from infecting communities. He appeals to learning in community through critical thinking and engagement as the path to healthy public discourse and the repudiation of extremism.

Orthodox theologians and leaders are at a crossroads today. One can draw from the new populism that demonizes secularism and make churches and educational institutions into outposts that defend the faith from enemies. This popular approach runs the risk of alienating the Church from the world and its troubles.

The alternative is to reboot the vocation of the Orthodox intellectual tradition and re-enter the arena of public discourse in a spirit of self-reflection, inquiry, and confidence that God is making all things new (and not just new things) by the power of the Holy Spirit. God grant us the courage to overcome our fear and meet the challenges of our time with wisdom.

Sources:

Geldhof, Joris. Liturgy and Secularism: Beyond the Divide. Collegeville, MN; Liturgical press, 2018.

Halik, Tomáŝ. “Society’s Immune System Against Extremism is Failing.” https://www.timeshighereducation.com/opinion/societys-immune-system-against-extremism-failing. Accessed February 8, 2021.

Pelikan, Jaroslav. “A Portrait of the Christian as a Young Intellectual.” http://thecresset.org/Pelikan/Pelikan_June_1961.html. Accessed February 8, 2021.

Schmemann, Alexander. For the Life of the World: Sacraments and Orthodoxy, rev. ed. Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1988.

Academic Freedom

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Fr. John A. Jillions
(Download essay as pdf)

…Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
–2 Cor. 3:17

In the age of “fake news,” the freedom to explore truth and reality is under threat everywhere. Of course, our age isn’t unique. Ever since the serpent beguiled Adam and Eve with lies about God, the Father of Lies has been sowing tares to pollute, obfuscate, confuse, distract, and set people at enmity. Freedom—hand in hand with critical evaluation of the truth—must be vigorously defended in our universities, seminaries, and churches.  Scholars, clergy and faithful should be able to explore questions and express their conscience without fear of retribution.

I can compile quite a list of anecdotal evidence that academic freedom is being torpedoed in all parts of the Orthodox world. Scholars censored, side-lined or expelled for their research, writing, teaching, associations and conference attendance. Writers, clergy, and teachers who self-censor for fear of retribution from bishops, administration, trustees, donors who might question and criticize teaching and research and threaten to cut off financial support or employment. Faculty discouraged or explicitly forbidden from collaborating with “liberal” institutions, publications, or websites, or from pursuing topics deemed too controversial. Lay scholars reluctant to be ordained over anxiety about losing their academic freedom in the ecclesiastical establishment, knowing that clergy often are forbidden from expressing their views. OTSA members could surely compile their own portfolios of evidence.

Within Orthodox contexts it is those labeled “progressives” or “liberals” who have the most trouble exercising academic freedom. But Orthodox scholars—especially those who identify as conservative—who teach and do research in non-Orthodox institutions can also face serious constraints on their academic freedom from their superiors, colleagues and institutions. Here too there is plenty of anecdotal evidence that scholars who dare to express their Christian views could face reprisals, and could face serious limits on their research and promotion possibilities should they pursue areas of research not deemed politically correct.

In both cases it takes courage to stand one’s ground.

Jesus and Prophetic Freedom

One of the remarkable facts about the Bible’s place in the institutional life of Judaism and Christianity is that it enshrines the prophetic tradition as an entire category of bold communal criticism, renewal, and reform. The prophet can call the community to do better, to return to its vocation, or to leave its comfort zone and head into unfamiliar territory. This prophetic teaching, in both Old and New Testaments, is undomesticated, messy, and unpredictable, and our Lord Jesus Christ continued this raw prophetic tradition. Indeed, it was his relentless questioning of the received tradition that pushed religious leaders to call for his crucifixion.

From the very beginning of his ministry one can find illustrations of Jesus’ courage in speaking the truth freely. According to the Gospel of Luke, the hometown crowd in Nazareth at first “wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth.” But then it turned ugly and he called out their religious exclusivity.

And he said, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s hometown. But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the land; 26 yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. 27 There were also many lepersin Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian. (Luke 4:24-26).

Jesus had hit a nerve, and “all in the synagogue were filled with wrath,” driving him out of town to throw him off a cliff (Luke 4:30).

Jesus persisted in speaking his mind despite criticism, rebuke, and attempts to silence him. His enemies were constantly on watch to see if he would break the rules. And when he did, “they were filled with fury and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus” (Luke 6:11). Jesus didn’t ask permission to speak the truth, and thus demonstrated time after time that freedom is taken, not given.

No prophet, martyr, or saint was ever shut down for being too polite and obedient. As Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote, “We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.”[1] Similarly, academic freedom only becomes an issue when someone in authority doesn’t like what you said or wrote or are researching. Or with whom you’re collaborating. (But as Dr David Bradshaw pointed out at the 2020 conference of the Orthodox Theological Society in America—OTSA—it doesn’t have to be authorities who object: it could be colleagues, students, church members or online commentators named and unnamed).  And at that point you have to decide whether your integrity allows you to back down, or if it’s an issue of consequence that requires you to stand your ground.

Jaroslav Pelikan on Academic Freedom

Throughout his book The Idea of the University: A Reexamination, Jaroslav Pelikan underlines that communal life is at the heart of the academy, and that this community cannot be sustained without freedom of inquiry and intellectual honesty. “What is needed is the skill and art of holding views strongly and yet of respecting views that are diametrically opposed.”[2]

This ideal ought to apply equally in the Church, which was the model for the university as a learning community. “The university is, in God’s good world, the principal community through which human rationality can examine all existing communities, families and structures—including itself, but also including the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church—and thus can help them to become what they are.”[3]

But in the polarized world that increasingly infects the church, finding such a forum for an exchange of ideas is becoming difficult. Even the term “dialogue” is now often dismissed as a covert attempt to convert. Thus “dialoguing” with those whose position you must vehemently deny can only pollute you and the hearers; hence, to allow their execrable views into the space between you is dangerous and irresponsible, especially if there are any “little ones” listening in.

Rod Dreher: Listening to those who disagree

Is there any way to get beyond this standoff and bring people of opposing views within the Orthodox Church together, in an atmosphere that gives oxygen to both freedom and truth? I’ve been surprisingly encouraged by an approach I heard from an unexpected voice: conservative columnist Rod Dreher, in a 2018 presentation at St Vladimir’s Seminary on “How To Listen to Those Who Disagree.” He made the point that American culture has become “emotivist,” i.e.,  “If I feel something is true, then it is true.”And this makes it difficult or even impossible to engage someone simply by using arguments based on logic. He admitted that over many years as a combative opinion journalist, he built his career on argument. But as he came to appreciate this deep emotivist current, he realized that he had to take a step back to better understand where others were coming from. One first needs to listen empathetically to understand why the other believes what they believe. This may not bring one side over to the ideas of the other, but it’s not designed to do that. It’s meant to facilitate the sharing of personal experiences that lead to hard-won convictions about these ideas.

Whether or not minds are changed, that kind of engagement with one other in an atmosphere of freedom and truth is vital for a healthy higher educational institution, especially in the Church. Metropolitan Kallistos Ware says that a college is a place for the cultivation of wonder and the pursuit of truth, both of which require freedom in order to flourish.

Wonder can be evoked but not compelled; and truth, as Christ observed, makes us free (John 8:32). In any university it is our task to bear witness to the value of freedom, and to resist all that erodes or diminishes our liberty. If I am asked by my students at Oxford, ‘What are you trying to teach us here?’ then perhaps my best answer is to say no more than this: ‘We want you to learn to be free.’[4] “We want you to learn to be free.”  That would be a striking addition to any Orthodox school’s values.

This is an abbreviated version of “Academic Freedom,” The Wheel, 21/22 (Spring/Summer 2020), 51-58.

[1] Martin Luther King, Jr., “Letter From a Birmingham Jail,” in I Have a Dream: Letters and Speeches that Changed the World, ed. James M. Washington (San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1992), 90, 87.

[2] Jaroslav Pelikan, The Idea of the University: A Reexamination (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1992), 48, 55.

[3] Pelikan, 67.

[4] Kallistos Ware, “A Sense of Wonder,” in The Inner Kingdom, Yonkers, NY: SVS Press, 2000, 73.

November 2020 Newsletter

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Dear Fathers and Friends,

Greetings from the OTSA Executive Committee. Our Annual Meeting is rapidly approaching and we want to encourage you to register and to let you know the details of the conference, which promises to be excellent. 

  • Registration: Register NOW. Deadline: Wednesday, Nov. 11, 5 pm EST. Registration is FREE to members in good standing, which means you must be current in your dues. If necessary, you can add your dues to the cart with registration. For non-members and inactive members, the registration fee is $30.00. There is no fee for those with complimentary or provisional membership. Register for the meeting here.
    You will receive confirmation of your registration, and, during the week of the meeting, you will receive by email the Zoom link to the Conference as well as information about the Business Meeting.
  • Conference Program: The latest version of the program outline as well as longer version of the program with abstracts is available at the 2020 Annual Meeting page.
  • The meeting will be virtual, via ZOOM. The theme of the meeting is Theological Anthropology, and we have a wide range of papers and a panel presenting on that topic, offering a variety of perspectives, promising lively and insightful discussion. We also have a panel on the timely topic of the relation of the Academy and the Church, arising from the blog OTSA has sponsored. We will have the opportunity to pray together, reflect on crucial topics, renew acquaintances and friendships, and make new ones.
  • Breakout sessions: Although we will be meeting virtually this year, we hope to foster as much of the positive value of an in-person conference experience as possible, including time to network with friends and colleagues. Your input is especially important in organizing the breakout sessions, which is where we can continue the conversation more informally, and build friendships. Would you like to arrange a dinner meeting with a friend?  Time to chat with a colleague? Please let us know if you would like to make reservations for a “dinner table” during the Thursday and Friday dinner hours; the thematic “lunch tables” on Friday at lunch- and whether you want to host a thematic table; and the social gatherings on Thursday and Friday evenings after the presentations. Send us the names of your party and we can set up a breakout group for you. Email Teva: teva@mit.edu or Helen: helen60076@yahoo.com.

  • Annual Business Meeting: Our annual business meeting, which will take place at the annual meeting after lunch on Friday, is open to full members in good standing. The agenda will include reports from the president and treasurer; discussion regarding our plans for incorporation; review and discussion of the new structure between the Assembly of Bishops and its various affiliated or associated organizations – including OTSA; evaluation of special funding projects; the presentation of candidates for membership; a possible Spring seminar/webinar; and the topic and location of next year’s annual meeting. Members in good standing will be sent the proposal from the Assembly of Bishops for review on Saturday, November 7th, so, if necessary, please pay your dues by midnight November 6th.
  • Florovsky Lecture: Attached is a flier for the Florovsky lecture, which we urge you to share widely, as it is free and open to the public. The speaker is Fr. Michael Plekon, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Sociology, Religion and Culture, The City University of New York-Baruch College. The title of the lecture is “Community as Church, Church as Community: Death and Resurrection in the Parish Today.” Registration for the Lecture is separate, available here.
    After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
  • OTSA Small Grants: OTSA provides seed money and/or small grants for Orthodox initiatives. Those interested in applying for a grant should provide a proposal, which includes a short description of the project/initiative (~300 words), information about the requesting organization, and the funding request amount. The deadline for application for grants for this year is November 6, 2020.
  • Academy and the Church Blog: Our newest post is by Fr. Michael Plekon, “Prayer in the Classroom.”
    Please consider offering a post to this blog, which is ongoing. We will address the topic further at a panel at the Annual Meeting.
  • In Memoriam: We are deeply saddened by the recent passing, on November 2, of one of our long term members, Metropolitan Maximos (Aghiorgoussis), formerly of Pittsburgh. Metropolitan Maximos was born in Chios in 1935, attended the Patriarchal Theological School of Halki, and received his PhD at the University of Louvain, Belgium. From 1966 to 1979 he was Professor of Systematic Theology at Holy Cross School of Theology, serving also during his tenure as President of Hellenic College and as Academic Dean of Holy Cross. He was consecrated as Bishop (and later elevated to Metropolitan) of Pittsburgh, and served there from 1979 until 2011, when he retired due to health reasons. He was a beloved professor, spiritual father, hierarch, colleague, and servant of the Lord. May his memory be eternal.

Respectfully submitted,

Teva Regule, PhD, OTSA President
Helen Creticos Theodoropoulos, PhD, OTSA Secretary

Prayer in the Classroom

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Fr. Michael Plekon
Professor Emeritus, Sociology, Religion and Culture
City University of New York–Baruch College
(Download essay as pdf)

In over forty years teaching at The City University of New York and elsewhere, I’ve had numerous, powerful experiences of prayer.  In honors courses on writers and their spiritual journeys we read several of Sara Miles’ books about ministry in San Francisco. We also read about the houses of hospitality set up in the early 1930s in New York and Paris by Dorothy Day and Mother Maria Skobtsova. This was no stereotypical exercise in hagiography. Rather, following the accounts of these women, also Mary Oliver, Barbara Brown Taylor, and the searing memoirs of Mary Karr and Mira Bartok, students amazed each other and me with their willingness to share equally striking situations with which they were living.

One student began her reflection to the class by apologizing that she had not been raised with much religion. In the course we had encountered Karr and Bartok’s accounts of tortured childhoods with emotionally ill, severely dysfunctional parents. Karr was often asked, “How is it that you are alive today?” The student could have stuck to the text but chose to do a mini-memoir of her own life at home. As a girl, she was never praised or encouraged. She was also expected, no matter her schoolwork and job, to help with cleaning, cooking and the like. She did very well in school and was admitted to one of the city’s most prestigious high schools. With the decline of her grandmother, home became a nightmare. Asian culture demanded that an elder be cared for at home, by the family. The student described how her grandmother with dementia would wail and scream through the night. Care of this afflicted soul was women’s work, this the student and her mother never got a full night’s sleep. Eventually the student’s mother needed treatment herself, but no allowance was ever made for the student’s school and work obligations.

Continue reading “Prayer in the Classroom” →

October 2020 Newsletter

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19 October, 2020

Dear Fathers and Friends,

Greetings from the OTSA Executive Committee. We are excited to announce the schedule and registration link for the upcoming Annual Meeting, and to share a few other important things with you.

  • The 2020 Annual Meeting: The schedule and registration for our Annual meeting on November 12-14 are now available. The outline of the schedule is attached to this email. A more detailed conference schedule with the paper abstracts will be available here on the 2020 Annual Meeting page on our website shortly.
  • Registration is FREE to members in good standing, which means you must be current in your dues. For non-members and inactive members, the registration fee is $30.00 Register for the meeting here. Once registered, a ZOOM link (and credentials) will be sent.
  • If needed you can add your dues to the cart when registering.
  • There is no fee for those with complimentary or provisional membership.
  • The meeting will be virtual, via ZOOM, for the first time. Understanding that this format brings with it new challenges as well as benefits, we have incorporated into the schedule a variety of ways for us to engage in theological discussion, thoughtful reflection, and friendly conversation. The theme of the meeting is Theological Anthropology, and we have a wide range of papers and a panel presenting on that topic, offering a variety of perspectives, promising lively and insightful discussion. We also have a panel on the timely topic of the relation of the Academy and the Church, arising from the blog OTSA has sponsored. We will have the opportunity to pray together, reflect on crucial topics, renew acquaintances and friendships, and make new ones.
  •  Our meeting is set up to enable multiple small breakout sessions. Your input is especially important in this. Please contact Teva to schedule a “dinner conversation” during the Thursday and Friday dinner hours (between 6:00 and 7:00 pm), and identify those with whom you would like to “dine.” In addition, we have thematic discussion groups set up for Friday lunch; let us know if you would like to be part of a particular thematic “lunch table” or if you want to host a thematic “table” at that time. Finally, we have the opportunity for socializing in small groups on Thursday and Friday evenings after the formal programs of the meeting; please let us know if you would like us to set up a group for you and your party. Email Teva: teva@mit.edu or Helen: helen60076@ayhoo.com.
  • Florovsky Lecture: A separate registration is necessary for the Florovsky Lecture, which will be in webinar format, free, and open to the public. This year the speaker for the Florovsky Lecture will be Fr. Michael Plekon, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Sociology, Religion and Culture, The City University of New York-Baruch College. The title of the lecture is “Community as Church, Church as Community: Death and Resurrection in the Parish Today.” Register in advance for this webinar. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
  • OTSA Small Grants: OTSA provides seed money and/or small grants for Orthodox initiatives. Through these grants, OTSA seeks to help and support the mission of Orthodox associations and initiatives with the greater purpose of building up the body of Christ. Those interested in applying for a grant should provide a proposal, which includes a short description of the project/initiative (~300 words), information about the requesting organization, and the funding request amount. The deadline for application for grants for this year is November 6, 2020.
  • Academy and the Church Blog: Our newest post is by Crina Gschwandtner, “Keeping the Tradition Alive Today.”
    Please consider offering a post to this blog, which is ongoing. We will address the topic further at a panel at the Annual Meeting.
  • Meeting between OTSA Officers and Archbishop Elpidophoros: On October 9, Archbishop Elpidophoros (Chairman of the Assembly of Bishops), Bishop Irinej (Chairman of the Committee for Agencies and Endorsed Organizations), staff from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese and the Assembly of Bishops, and current OTSA officers met via ZOOM to discuss the relationship between the Assembly of Bishops and OTSA. We reviewed the history of OTSA and the ways in which it has worked in collaboration with the Assembly of Bishops. We then explored ways in which OTSA can provide assistance to the hierarchs, and to the entire body of the Church, through its work of the exploration and examination of theological issues and areas of concern to the faithful today. His Eminence saw OTSA’s contribution to this study as important and beneficial, and encouraged our work. We hope to meet again to discover ways to implement these efforts.
  • In Memoriam: We are saddened at the loss of our colleague Virginia Kimball, who reposed on July 18, 2019. A member of the Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church in Lowell, MA for many years, Virginia was also the president of the Ecumenical Society of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the United States and a past president of the Mariological Society of America. May her memory be eternal.

Respectfully submitted,
Teva Regule, PhD, OTSA President
Helen Creticos Theodoropoulos, PhD, OTSA Secretary

Keeping the Tradition Alive Today

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Crina Gschwandtner
Professor of Philosophy, Fordham University
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How do we help young people as they struggle with questions of gender, identity, and sexuality? How can the church intervene positively on behalf of racial justice? How can unfair economic structures be challenged? How should we understand the liturgical roles of women today?  How might we reconcile our fast-paced, technologically advanced culture with the Byzantine embrace of order and static structure? How shall we grapple with change in a tradition that values stability and antiquity?

How do we honor icons and relics without sliding into superstition? How can we reconcile prayers for healing and practices of anointing with making use of contemporary medicine? How do we evaluate new medical advances, especially surrounding the beginning and end of life? How can we respond to environmental devastation with a theology that emerged in the context of paganism? How do we think about community and society today beyond ethnic and national boundary lines?

These and many other pressing questions do not go away just because we find them difficult. In most cases these questions simply did not pose themselves to the ancients. In other cases our situation and worldview have shifted so radically that patristic answers no longer apply or satisfy. We do not and cannot live in the fourth century.

Faithfulness to the tradition cannot mean adopting the scientific and cultural worldview of the patristic age. We need to live today and confront the questions that our present society poses to us, as the fathers themselves did for their own time. This calls for careful and deep theological thinking about what the tradition means today, within the current worldview.

We actually have plenty of precedent for rigorous thinking and argument in the tradition. Syriac homilies and poetry are full of debates and disputes, many of which have entered liturgical texts. Basil of Caesarea and Gregory Nazianzen went to Athens to be trained at the most prestigious philosophical school of the day. All three Cappadocians, as well as many other patristic thinkers, draw extensively on Greek philosophy in their writings, while being profoundly engaged in church life.

Maximus the Confessor was not only steeped in philosophical learning, but made creative use of it in his own highly original writings. John of Damascus preceded his summation of the “Orthodox faith” with a series of “Philosophical Chapters” that succinctly state all the learning of the day. Even his more theological discussions draw extensively on broader philosophical knowledge, as filtered through Nemesius of Emesa and Maximus.

More recently, Sergei Bulgakov, Nicolai Berdyaev, and Paul Evdokimov discussed with scholars from many different backgrounds in Paris in the early 20th century. Alexander Schmemann, John Meyendorff, and Vladimir Lossky participated in gatherings and discussions with people from various Christian traditions throughout New York City.

Every generation must make the tradition its own in new ways. Otherwise the tradition will die. This always entails shifts, adjustments, even developments. We cannot pretend that nothing ever changes or to condemn all new positions outright simply because they are new. Nor can we dismiss real questions by hiding behind an emphasis on mystery and transcendence. Appeal to mystery cannot become an excuse for sloppy thinking.

If Orthodoxy is true, substantive, or meaningful, it must be able to stand up to questioning and critique. If we are unwilling to think deeply about our positions or to support them with substantive argument, our children and others may well suspect that they are fragile or untenable. Argument is not the only path to truth, but it is an important one. Such debate must be conducted in charity, with honest listening to other positions. A refusal to think or dialogue is merely hiding one’s head in the sand.

Genuine academic freedom means being able to discuss even controversial topics in an atmosphere of generosity and hospitality. It means being able to engage deeply and openly with colleagues in the academy who come from all possible religious and non-religious backgrounds. It means drawing on the most up-to-date and relevant research for the topic in the most rigorous and transparent ways possible, even if such research comes to conclusions others find unpalatable or threatening.

If we are unwilling to converse with anyone who thinks differently, we remain insular and cannot welcome newcomers. Suppression is never a healthy way of engaging with ideas. The sort of virulent response that results when, for example, questions about homosexuality or the ordination of women are raised, even when no particular position is advocated, does Orthodoxy no service. Condemning those who ask them provides no answers to anyone and does not strengthen anyone’s faith.

Orthodox scholars need to be able to engage in dialogue with Christians of all confessions and with agnostic and atheist scholars of their respective disciplines without being maligned or crucified on the blogosphere. They need to be able to publish and think without fear of being accused of heresy or dismissed as no longer sufficiently orthodox.

Eschewing the best academic learning available—whether philosophical or scientific—or simply rejecting it out of hand makes us reactionary and blind. That does not mean jumping on every bandwagon or automatically adopting every new academic fad. New approaches and theories should be carefully examined. But it does mean that contemporary Orthodoxy must be open to creativity, to change, and even to originality. New questions require new answers.

Orthodox places of learning have an obligation to sustain safe spaces of genuine open inquiry and to foster rigorous and creative theological thinking with the best academic tools of the 21st century. Seminaries, the ecclesial hierarchy, parishes, and Orthodox academics together must undertake the task of thinking through what it might mean to live the tradition today, within the present reality, faced with contemporary problems.

Academic freedom promotes an environment where we can think deeply theologically, where we can try out ideas creatively, where we can support and listen to each other, where we can experiment with ways of thinking through the tradition in light of contemporary challenges—and where such thinking is heard and taken seriously, including within the daily life of parishes. Only in such a way will we be able to keep the tradition alive and meaningful today.

September 2020 Newsletter

Posted on by OTSA Administrator

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Dear Friends and Fathers,

Greetings from the OTSA Executive Committee.

We would like to update you about the fall meeting and provide important links to the projects we have undertaken.

  1. The Pandemic and Holy Communion Survey and Webinar: Our previous letter explained that, given the unusual circumstances of the pandemic, and the diversity of thought and parish practices regarding the manner of worship in the pandemic, OTSA sponsored a survey on this topic. The survey went out to all the clergy of Orthodox Churches that are members of the Assembly of Bishops, and we had an excellent response with over 600 clergy participating. In addition, OTSA organized a webinar entitled “The Coronovirus (COVID-19) and Communion Practice in the Orthodox Church,” which ran on August 22, with presentations by Orthodox faithful who are distinguished scientists and theologians. The online symposium drew over 100 participants. The full report and summary of the survey, and the video of the webinar, along with summaries, slides, texts of the presenters, and opening and closing prayers, are now posted to the OTSA website.
    As part of our ongoing dialogue, we invite responses (< 1000 words) to the webinar, which we will also post. Please send responses to secretary@otsamerica.org.
  2. The Church and the Academy blog project: Our blog project reflecting on issues of academic freedom affecting Orthodox educators and writers begins with the first posting to the OTSA website, “Can We Talk? The Church and Her Academy in the Dialogue of Liturgical Renewal” by Fr. Stelyios Muksuris.
    We plan to post the essays one at a time at intervals, and will run the blog for an extended time. We encourage members to continue to submit short essays (<1000 words) on the topic. The author’s identity could be confidential if requested in order to enable honest expression. These essays may be cross-posted at Public Orthodoxy, subject to their required parameters and timeline. Please submit your essayto secretary@otsamerica.org.
  3. Update on Annual Fall Meeting 2020: As we mentioned in our previous newsletter, the speaker for the Florovsky Lecture will be Fr. Michael Plekon, Ph.D.,Professor Emeritus, Sociology, Religion and Culture, The City University of New York-Baruch College. The title of the lecture is “Community as Church, Church as Community: Death and Resurrection in the Parish Today.” Fr. Plekon has recently published a new book, The World as Sacrament: An Ecumenical Path toward a Worldly Spirituality, which has been reviewed by Adam DeVille, accessed at https://iota-web.org/2020/08/24/michael-plekon-the-world-as-sacrament/

    CALL FOR PAPERS AND PANELS (Deadline for Proposals: Sept. 15, 2020). The annual meeting will be virtual this year, held on Nov. 12- 14, 2020, Thursday   afternoon through Saturday afternoon. This year’s theme is Theological Anthropology, and we encourage you to submit a proposal for a paper or a panel presentation that explores this timely and significant theme. However, we also welcome papers on other topics, especially those of current concern. Requirements for the proposals include an abstract of less than 250 words and an abbreviated CV of the presenter(s). Presenters of papers have 20 minutes to give their paper and an additional 10 minutes for Q&A. The length of panels will be determined by the number of papers and the schedule of the meeting. Please send the proposals to the OTSA secretary, Helen Theodoropoulos, at secretary@otsamerica.org or helen60076@yahoo.com. All presenters must be members in good standing.
  4. DUES: Thank you to those members who are current with their dues. If you have not submitted them, please take a few minutes to do that. We are operating at a deficit and your contributions will make a difference. The membership year starts January 1 and runs through December 31. Any member who has not paid their dues for three (3) consecutive years is considered inactive and can be removed from membership.  However, we would much rather keep you involved in the society!  If your membership has lapsed and you would like to return it to good standing, you can also pay for past years on the OTSA website. You can pay online at the Pay Dues page. If you prefer, you can pay by check; please contact our Treasurer, Fr. Gabriel Rochelle, for further information: gabrielcroch@aol.com.

We look forward to the dynamic dialogue ahead.

Respectfully submitted,

Teva Regule, PhD, OTSA President
Helen Creticos Theodoropoulos, PhD, OTSA Secretary

Can We Talk? The Church and Her Academy in the Dialogue of Liturgical Renewal

Posted on by OTSA Administrator

Fr. Stelyios Muksuris, PhD, ThD
Protopresbyter, Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh
Chair and Professor of Liturgical Theology and Languages, Byzantine Catholic Seminary
(Download essay as PDF)

In the midst of the horrific Covid-19 pandemic, it would appear that humanity has entered into what many persons have labeled a “new norm.” Governments, societies, and communities have been making constant adjustments in policies and procedures not only to keep people safe but also to somehow maintain a sense of functionality without betraying the comfort levels of past generations. During this disconcerting time, the Church has likewise been facing unprecedented challenges in her own right with regard to liturgical practices,[1] requiring her to make swift, time-sensitive decisions for the welfare of her flock.

One of these areas has been the manner of the distribution of holy communion, whose discussion has flooded various social media platforms and has seemingly generated an array of controversial stances, leading to further angst and divisiveness within communities. While the Church, in her sensitivity to mitigate the dilemma, has offered textbook and politically-correct resolutions to address the communion issue, it seems she did not pursue consulting the expertise of liturgical scholars within the Academy, clergy and laity. Several of my colleagues felt compelled to commit to writing their own assessment of this dire situation and to offer their own recommendations,[2] on the basis surely of the availability of historical precedent, feasibility, and plain common sense. Unfortunately, there was no open dialogue, no tête-à-tête with the academic community. Nevertheless, albeit generally unsolicited and out of a sense of personal integrity (φιλότιμο) and love for our Church, several of us proceeded to express our thoughts and ideas and publish them online. Our continuous hope is to set into motion the synergistic process of informing and reforming,[3] which ultimately leads to balanced, thoughtful, and judiciously considered decisions.

Continue reading “Can We Talk? The Church and Her Academy in the Dialogue of Liturgical Renewal” →

August 2020 Newsletter

Posted on by OTSA Administrator

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14 August 2020

Dear Friends and Fathers,

Greetings from the OTSA Executive Committee.

We have a few important and interesting projects underway to which we want to draw your attention, and an update regarding the annual fall meeting.

  1. The Pandemic and Holy Communion Survey: As the country moves in fits and starts to various stages of opening, our Orthodox Churches have had to reflect on and make decisions about the manner of worship under the circumstances of Covid-19. There has been some diversity of thought about what is best, and some diversity of practice. OTSA teamed together with Alexei D. Krindatch, former Research Coordinator for the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America, to conduct a survey of Orthodox clergy regarding Communion distribution practices and the reality of parish life during the pandemic. This survey went out to all the clergy of Orthodox Churches that are members of the Assembly of Bishops, and we had an excellent response with over 600 clergy participating. Both the full report and the executive summary of the survey and report, entitled “Holy Communion during the Pandemic in American Orthodox Parishes” can be accessed and downloaded here.

  2. The Pandemic and Holy Communion Webinar: OTSA is also co-sponsoring a symposium on the topic of the survey with presentations by both scientists and theologians. The webinar, The Coronavirus (Covid-19) and Communion Practice in the Orthodox Church will occur on Saturday, August 22 from 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm (EST).

    Register online (https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_48SgGf1IRxy-9ZpNE-Xc_A)

    Please share and distribute the PDF flier.

  3. The Church and the Academy blog project: As reported in our recent update from July 13, we are initiating a blog project reflecting on issues of academic freedom affecting Orthodox educators and writers. We encourage members to submit short essays (<1000 words) on the topic, to be posted on the OTSA web site and on Public Orthodoxy. While the editor would know the authors of these blog posts, the author’s identity could be confidential if requested in order to enable honest expression. Please submit your essay by Sept. 1, 2020 to secretary@otsamerica.org.

  4. Update on Annual Fall Meeting 2020: The speaker for the Florovsky Lecture will be Fr. Michael Plekon, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Sociology, Religion and Culture, The City University of New York-Baruch College. The title of the lecture is “Community as Church, Church as Community: Death and Resurrection in the Parish Today.”

    In addition, we would like to remind you about the details of the meeting: Date: Nov. 12-14, 2020, Thursday afternoon through Saturday afternoon. Location: Virtual, via ZOOM. This year’s theme is Theological Anthropology, and we encourage you to submit a proposal for a paper or a panel presentation that explores this theme. The topic lends  itself to a wide range of studies, including- but not limited to- consideration of issues of race, ethnicity, gender, and social and/or economic status.

    Requirements for the proposals for the papers and panels include an abstract of less than 250 words and an abbreviated CV of the presenter(s). Presenters have 20 minutes to give their paper and an additional 10 minutes for Q&A. The deadline for proposals is Sept. 15, 2020. Please send the proposals to the OTSA secretary, Helen Theodoropoulos, at secretary@otsamerica.org or helen60076@yahoo.com.

  5. We would like recognize and highlight new publications by our members. Please send to the secretary information about recently published volumes and we will share it with our membership.

  6. We have several members for whom contact information is missing or no longer active. We would be very appreciative of our members’ assistance in locating current contact information for these “lost” members. If you have emails or other contact information about any of the following members, please send the information to the OTSA secretary, secretary@otsamerica.org. These are the members for whom we do not have current contact information:
    • Fernando Arzola
    • Fr. David Eckley
    • Fr. Nick Triantifilou
    • Richard Barrett
    • Fr. Michael Massouh
    • Fr. Gregory Wingenbach
    • Fr. Stephen Plumlee

  7. DUES: Please take a few minutes to submit your dues. We are operating at a deficit, and your contribution will make a difference. You can pay online. If you prefer, you can pay by check; please contact our Treasurer, Fr. Gabriel Rochelle, for further information: gabrielcroch@aol.com.

  8. Please encourage colleagues and friends who meet our membership criteria to apply for OTSA membership. We are initiating new projects, energizing our relationship with the episcopacy, and interfacing more actively with Orthodox scholars here and throughout the world, and this is the perfect time for new members to find value in our work and add to it.

  9. Finally, we remember with abiding respect and affection these members who have recently reposed:
    Fr. Stanley Harakas (1/2020). Fr Harakas was a well-known author offering several publications on Orthodox ethics and theology. For decades, beginning in 1966, he was professor of theology, with a specialty in ethics, at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, and for many years also served there and at Hellenic College as Dean. In addition, Fr. Stanley pastored several parishes in Massachusettes and Florida.
    Fr. Anthony Coniaris (3/2020). Fr. Coniaris pastored St Mary’s Greek Orthodox Church in Minneapolis for 39 years. He founded Light and Life Publishing Co. for the publication and distribution of Orthodox materials, was a prolific and popular writer who       authored over 75 books pamphets, and was Adjunct Professor of Homiletics at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Seminary.
    Fr. Joseph Allen (8/2020). Fr. Joe Allen was director of Theological and Pastoral Education of the Antiochian Archdiocese, and founder of the Antiochian House of Studies. He taught Pastoral Theology at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology and St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary. He authored several books on Orthodox theology and, for over 50 years, pastored St. Anthony Church in Bergenfield, New Jersey.

    May their memory be eternal!

Respectfully submitted,

Teva Regule, PhD, OTSA President
Helen Creticos Theodoropoulos, PhD, OTSA Secretary