Archbishop Elpidophoros of America convened a virtual session of the Holy Eparchial Synod of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America on Thursday April 14, 2022. At the center of discussion where the swiftly-approaching Clergy-Laity Congress, Hellenic College Holy Cross, and the continuing process of redrafting the Archdiocesan Charter.
With regards to Clergy-Laity, which kicks off on July 3rd, the Archbishop expressed his gratitude to the Metropolitans of the Synod for their assistance in organizing both the Congress and the Centennial Jubilee that will bring together thousands in New York from July 3-7, 2022.
The Metropolitans’ support has been and remains critical as preparations move forward for the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Holy Archdiocese. With an eye toward the future, the Synod officially opened the search for the location of the 2024 Clergy-Laity Congress.
Promising developments from Hellenic College Holy Cross were key items on the table as the hierarchs reviewed a report submitted by the institution’s president, Mr. George Cantonis.
The buzzworthy highlights include news of dramatic reduction in the school’s total debt—by over 75%—since Cantonis was seated shortly after the enthronement of Archbishop Elpidophoros of America. Some might call it miraculous—in the last three years HCHC has managed to reduce its deficit from 20 million to 4.7 million dollars. Moreover, the Synod was delighted to learn that the institution’s accreditor, the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE), approved a fully online Master of Theology (ThM) degree program for Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology.
After years of plight acutely related to finances and accreditation, the reports of renewal at HCHC heartened the Eparchial Hierarchs—but not without giving them pause. According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center that compiles data from colleges and universities throughout the U.S., institutions across the nation are seeing the largest two-year enrollment drop in the last 50 years.
“Enrollments are not getting better; they’re still getting worse,” said Doug Shapiro, executive director of the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. “Far from filling the hole of last year’s enrollment declines, we are still digging it deeper,” he added. Hellenic College Holy Cross has certainly not been immune to pandemic enrollment decline effectuated by COVID-19.
Notably, seminarian enrollment numbers are down. The Eparchial Synod recognized that collective coordination is necessary, and resolved to take action to increase the number of seminarians in order to return enrollment to pre-pandemic numbers.
As far as old business, the Synod revisited previous discussions concerning the new Archdiocesan Charter which will not be complete any time before Clergy-Laity. “The time between now and the Clergy-Laity Congress in July of this year is objectively insufficient to complete the process of a new charter,” Chief Secretary of the Holy Eparchial Synod, Bishop Athenagoras of Nazianzos, recorded in the Synodal Communique.
During this lengthy discussion, the Synod stressed the need to engage dialogue and participate in public discussion with the Archdiocese’s various stakeholders, clarifying that the Ecumenical Patriarchate, who is spearheading the redrafting process, is expected to name a joint committee for the drafting of the new charter, just as it did in the past when the present charter was being drafted.
The Metropolitans also called on each other to refrain from “inflammatory statements and disruptive conduct that could compromise the unity of the Church.” Finally, in the interest of order and concord, the Eparchial Synod affirmed its previous commitment to compliance with the administrative status quo. All policies and regulations of the Holy Archdiocese remain in force until the completion of the redrafting process.
The Synod agreed that the issue of the Charter redrafting process will remain a permanent item on the agenda of regular sessions until the procedure is completed.
Additional items discussed were the resignation of the Archdiocesan Youth Safety Compliance Director, Fr. Earl Cantos, to whom the Synod expressed gratitude for his service, and the question of dispensation for ordaining “permanent deacons” as priests.
Regarding the latter issue, a permanent deacon is a clergyman trained through a special program under the direction of the Holy Eparchial Synod and the Faculty of Holy Cross. The program is intended to provide parishes with trained deacons who can assist with the liturgical and pastoral needs of a community and give those called to serve the Church as deacons the opportunity to be trained and tested as they discern their calling.
But the program is designed specifically to train individuals for the diaconate, not for the priesthood. Indeed, the program requires candidates to agree that they will not seek later ordination to the priesthood.
With the blessing of their hierarch, individuals with a calling to the priesthood are directed to enroll in the Master of Divinity degree program at Holy Cross, which is the charter of the Archdiocese names as the preferred training program for priests.
Notwithstanding this, the Synod decided that such requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis. If a majority of the synod agrees then the request may be granted, provided that the candidate to be ordained a priest will serve only small communities in need on a part-time basis, and with the stipulation that those priests ordained in this way will not later take up full-time duties as heads or assistants of larger communities.
The session ended in the spirit of brotherly love and the members of the Synod exchanging wishes for a meaningful Holy and Great Week and blessed feast of the Lord’s resurrection.
Source: Orthodox Observer
