Enthronement of Metropolitan Joseph & Patriarchal Visit Scheduled

September 2014 – The Self-Ruled Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America

It is with great pleasure that we announce that the events related to the Enthronement of His Eminence Metropolitan Joseph will take place during the weekend of December 5 through 7, 2014, at St. Nicholas Cathedral in Brooklyn, New York. The actual enthronement will take place in conjunction with Vespers on Saturday, December 6.

We will be greatly blessed by the presence of His Beatitude John X, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, who will preside during this weekend.

The details concerning the schedule for the weekend, the hotel accommodations, and the banquet information are still being finalized, and will be communicated to all of you as soon as they are confirmed.

Hotel Information and General Schedule Now Available for the Enthronement Weekend and Patriarchal Visit

Archpriest Thomas Zain, Archdiocese Vicar-General, writes on September 2:

Greetings to you and your families as we begin a new ecclesiastical year. Preparations are underway for the visit of His Beatitude, Patriarch John X and the upcoming enthronement of our new Metropolitan. As we finalize the schedule for the weekend and work out details for the banquet, I wanted to share with you the link to make your hotel reservations at the Brooklyn Marriott. The rate is $299.00 a night plus tax. The deadline for reservations is November 5, 2014. Further detailed information regarding the weekend and the banquet will be forthcoming sometime in the near future.

The following is the general schedule. Times and banquet information will be added in later in the month and we will post them on the archdiocese website as they are confirmed.

Friday, December 5th:

Great Vespers with Artoklasia in the evening for the Feast of St. Nicholas

Saturday, December 6th:

Orthros and Divine Liturgy in the morning for the Feast of St. Nicholas, Patron Saint of the Mother Cathedral

Great Vespers and Enthronement of Metropolitan Joseph in the evening followed by a gala banquet at the Brooklyn Marriott Hotel.

Sunday, December 7th:

Orthros and Patriarchal Divine Liturgy in the morning

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to email me at abounathomas@me.com or call me at 917.771.4120. The closest airport to St. Nicholas Cathedral and the Brooklyn Marriott is LaGuardia (LGA) and then JFK. You can also use Newark (EWR) airport, but will have to cross tunnels and bridges and pay tolls to get to Brooklyn. The Cathedral and the hotel are less than one mile from each other. The rate is available a little before and after the weekend (you can see on the interactive calendar) in case any of you want to enjoy all that New York has to offer during the Christmas season. The Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center will be lit earlier that week and the Radio City Christmas Show will be going on during that time if you are interested.

We also have a small number of rooms blocked at the Marriott Courtyard LaGuardia Airport Hotel for $99.00 a night plus tax. This might be an affordable option for those driving to New York as not only will the rooms be less expensive, but the parking will be more affordable. It is about 10 miles and a 15-45 minute drive to the Cathedral, depending on traffic. Saturday and Sunday morning should be very light traffic, but the evenings could be heavier traffic. Car service is also available from the hotel for a fee for people who might be sharing the cost of a room and transportation, still making it a more affordable option. To make a reservation at the Marriott Courtyard LaGuardia, please call the hotel directly at 718.446.4800. The room block is under the name “St. Nicholas Cathedral”. The deadline for this hotel is November 1, 2014 and the rooms are very limited. We were able to secure this great rate thanks to the generosity of the owner who is a parishioner in one of our deanery parishes.

Again, the link to make reservations at the Brooklyn Marriott is here.

We look forward to welcoming you to this historic event and weekend with our Patriarch and our new Metropolitan.

In Christ,

Archpriest Thomas Zain
Vicar-General
Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America

Source: