Divine Compassion III Conference on Women: Healing, Authority and Ministry in Orthodox Spiritual Tradition

Prof. James Skedros, Professor Evangelia Amiridou, Prof. Kyriaki FitzGerald and Prof. Helen Theodoropoulos listen to the afternoon seminar “take-away” comments shared by Conference participants.

Prof. James Skedros, Dean of Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology offering welcome remarks on the Conference.

Group photo of attendees of the Divine Compassion III Conference, “Divine Compassion, Women and Healing, Authority and Ministry in the Orthodox Spiritual Tradition” co-sponsored by Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology and the Greek Orthodox School of Theology at HCHC.

Saint Catherine’s Vision – 16/11/15

USA:  Saint Catherine’s Vision (SCV) presented Divine Compassion Conference III :  Divine Compassion and Women: Healing, Authority and Ministry in Orthodox Spiritual Tradition on Saturday, November 7th at the Archbishop Iakovos Library Learning and Resource Center of Hellenic College Holy Cross School of Theology.

Dr. Helen Creticos Theodoropoulos, a graduate of Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology presently serving as Adjunct Professor of Theology at St. Savas Serbian Orthodox Seminary and Dr. Evangelia Amiridou, Associate Professor of Church History of the Aristotelian University School of Theology in Thessaloniki, Greece, offered the keynote address and keynote response, respectively.

This Conference was presented by Saint Catherine’s Vision (SCV), and co-sponsored with Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, and the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Boston.

SCV is an international, Pan-Orthodox fellowship of women theologians together with ordained and lay servant-leaders engaging contemporary issues within the life of the Orthodox Church, blessed by the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America.

Prof. James Skedros, Dean of Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, served as Host and Moderator for the event. Prof. Kyriaki FitzGerald, Adjunct Professor in Theology at Holy Cross and SCV Executive Director offered an introduction to the conference topic and brief history of SCV’s progress to date.

Three afternoon seminar presentations engaging Divine Compassion, Women and: 1) Healing, 2) Authority and 3) Ministry were offered by co-authors of SCV’s upcoming book Encountering Women of Faith: The Saint Catherine’s Vision Collection, Volume III.  During the seminars, co-authors offered highlights from their research engaging the lives of women saints. A fourth optional seminar was presented just after the official close of the Conference for persons interested in taking part in SCV’s ongoing “diakonima” discussions regarding “Divine Compassion and Human Trafficking”.

Expressing a personal note of appreciation for the invitation to explore this unusual topic, Prof. Theodoropoulos surveyed the inter-relationship of the “three-in-one” Conference theme engaging Women and: Healing, Authority and Ministry from an Orthodox spiritual perspective. She described how Healing-Authority-Ministry are experienced as a kind of living “helix”. Experientially for the Christian, reconciliation and healing in Christ typifies the initial step for the believer.  Dr. Theodoropoulos then explored how a believer’s authentic authority is founded in and expressive of this reality.  The final step in this on-going, life-long cycle leads to a response in service or ministry for the glory of God.  Prof. Amiridou’s response to the keynote offered an examination of Divine Compassion (theion eleos), stressing how the extension of the “eleos” of God is always personal and intentional to His creation. For human persons, the greater the reception of Divine Compassion also calls for a reciprocal deepening of receptivity, openness (and hence, greater personal vulnerability) and perhaps, most of all: trust on behalf of the believer.

For further information, please visit SCV’s website, www.saintcatherinesvision.org and co-sponsors: Hellenic College-Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, www.hchc.edu and the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Boston, www.boston.goarch.org

Video footage and photographs from this event will be posted on Saint Catherine’s Vision website soon.  For further information about SCV’s initiative “Divine Compassion and Human Trafficking” visit: http://saintcatherinesvision.com/collaborative-work/divine-compassion-and-human-trafficking.

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