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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

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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

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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

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July 13, 2020

Dear Friends and Fathers,

Greetings from the OTSA Executive committee. We hope you are well and keeping safe.

Although your executive committee has been rather silent these first few months of this very extraordinary year, we have been busy behind the scenes considering various ways in which OTSA can move forward and act.  Included in this letter are a recap of the 2019 Business meeting, and details for the 2020 Fall meeting. The circumstances of the times in which we live have altered how we do things, but not what we do, and why. Looking to construct a fall OTSA meeting that fosters the exchange of ideas, fellowship, and greater connections across the Orthodox academic community, in a way that is safe and accessible for all members, we have decided on conducting the fall meeting virtually, using the ZOOM platform. In addition, we are proposing a Blog Project on the topic of the Church and the Academy, and an in-person Spring 2021 meeting specifically addressing the Social Ethos Document.

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