SUMMARY OF THE FINDINGS OF ORTHEO MEET 2016

June 25, 2016 - Sopana Academy

ORTHEO MEET 2016

“Ministry and Mission of the Church Beyond the Borders”

23-25 May 2016

Jointly sponsored by Orthodox Theological Seminary, St Thomas Orthodox Theological Seminary

and Sopana Orthodox Academy

Venue : Mar Baselios Dayara, Njaliyakuzhy, Vakathanam, Kottayam

 

 

     Respected Achen, Deacon/ Dear Brother, Sister.

 

It has been a blessed occasion for us to come together under the guidance of Holy Spirit at the Mar Baselios Dayara for three days of prayer and mutual exchange of ideas during the Ortheo Meet 2016.

 We thank you sincerely for your prayer and concern for this conference jointly organized by The Orthodox Theological Seminary Kottayam, St. Thomas Orthodox Theological Seminary Nagpur and Sopana Orthodox Academy. The Participants registered their appreciation for the presentations and the solid discussion that followed.

We are attaching a brief report by Dr. John Kunnath and also a summary of the findings with practical suggestions to be forwarded to the Holy Synod by kind permission of His Holiness The Catholicos.

We humbly seek your continued support for this process of  prayerful reflection regarding the future ministry and mission of the Church.

 

 

 

 

            Fr. O. Thomas                                                    Fr. Bijesh Philip                                                         Fr. K.M. George

 

 

Copy of attachments to:

  • The members of the Holy Synod.
  • The members of the managing committee.
  • The office bearers of the spiritual organizations.

SUMMARY OF THE FINDINGS OFORTHEO MEET

23-25 May 2016

Jointly sponsored by Orthodox Theological Seminary, St Thomas Orthodox Theological Seminary

and Sopana Orthodox Academy

Venue: Mar Baselios Dayara, Njaliyakuzhy, Vakathanam, Kottayam

 

  1. In his very inspiring inaugural address H. Catholicos Baselios MarthomaPaulose IIproposed the following as desirable:

 

  1. Assigning a Bishop full time for the supervision and co-ordination of the new forms of Ministry outside the regular parish ministry and new ways of Gospel outreach as envisaged by the Malankara Orthodox Church.
  2. Engaging in pastoral and missionary tasks those who completed Divyabodhanam and Satyajyothi courses.
  3. Organizing ‘vocation conferences’ for those young people who aspire to join the seminary or to serve the church full time in other ways to find out their calling, motivation and commitment for new ways of ministry and mission.
  4. Raising a central fund for the implementation of alternate forms of ministry and mission.
  1. From the Participants:

In a sustained discussion through various sessions of the Ortheo Meet 2016 the following main suggestions emerged in a search for identifying some of the important alternate ministries apart from regular parish work, and on how to motivate and send the students who complete the seminary course to take up the challenge of new pastoral and missionary ministries. For example:

  1. Ministry to the diaspora or those Orthodox faithful who live outside the traditional Kerala boundaries.
  2. Ministry to the students and youth in metropolitan areas outside Kerala. (Campus Ministry).
  3. Cyber Ministry to reach the new generation (New Social Media like Facebook, Watsapp, Twitter. FM Radio and other Audio-Visual Media)
  4. Dialogue Ministry involving inter-faith and inter-church relations and collaboration.
  5. Ministry to the differently abled, senior citizens, to migrant workers etc.
  6. Translation Ministry making available our liturgical books in the regional languages of India.
  7. Ministry to the world of Art, Music and Culture.
  8. Orientation for Exam and Career guidance.
  9. Counseling ministry like Pre-Marital Counseling, Family counseling, Hospital Ministry etc.
  10. Ministry of De-addiction, AIDS rehabilitation, Prison Ministry etc.
  11. Linking seminary training, ordination and Mission. Sending of new deacons and young priests to the mission fields for at least 2-3 years rather than sending them directly to traditional parishes.
  12. Continuing Education programs for the clergy and leadership training for both clergy and laity by using resource persons from among the highly placed and competent members of the Church in various walks of life.

 

We are forwarding these proposals from the conference to the Holy Episcopal Synod, office bearers of spiritual organizations, members of managing committee and others.