D. Panagos photos
The Holy Blessing Service and the Cutting of the Ribbon
Ceremony
ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. - The new Orthodox Christian Mission
Center's Archbishop Anastasios and Archbishop Demetrios
Missionary Training and Administration Building was
dedicated during the two-day festivities of May 20-21.
The new building was named in honor of Archbishop Anastasios of
Tirana, Durres, and All Albania and Archbishop Demetrios of
America, who lead the ceremonies. The Aghiasmos (Holy Blessing)
service was held under a tent at the entrance of the new building
and with intense rain trough out the festivities. Archbishop
Demetrios presided over the service along with Archbishop
Anastasios and Metropolitan Jonah, the leading hierarch of the
Orthodox Church in America (OCA).
[ Click this link
for PHOTOS ]
"This day is very significant for Orthodox Christians; this new
missions building is a witness to Orthodoxy, because Orthodoxy is
always offering herself to everyone; and this is a visible sign of
this very character of Orthodoxy: to share, sharing what we have
with all the people of the world," said Archbishop Demetrios
speaking about the new building and added: "This place is also
important because it is a product of a pan-orthodox unity and
cooperation, the faithful working together in the spirit of
promoting the Gospel and the faith, which is a basic function of a
true Christian. Our gratitude belongs to the people who made this a
reality."
Archbishop Anastasios said that "the dedication of this building is
a milestone for all Orthodox missions and the evangelization of
God's People," and added that "it is impossible to think of a
dynamic Orthodoxy without world wide missionary work."
About 300 people attended the blessing ceremony under a strong
downpour. They were hierarchs of SCOBA or their representatives,
from all Orthodox jurisdictions in America, the board of directors
and staff of OCMC, missionaries and Mission Team members,
benefactors and donors to the successful capital campaign which
provided funding for the project, and Orthodox clergy and laity
from throughout the country. Earlier in the morning of May 21,
Metropolitan Alexios of Atlanta presided at the Archieratical
Divine Liturgy in Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church of St.
Augustine.
Archbishop Anastasios brought as a gift, a small silver reliquary
containing relics of Saint Kosmas Aitolos, known for his missionary
work in the 18th Century. Metropolitan Jonah of the OCA also
brought a small container with relics of Saint Innocent of Alaska.
Archbishop Demetrios presented to the OCMC board an icon of Saints
Cyril and Methodios.
The new 12,000 square foot building, which is now the headquarters
of OCMC, is located near Interstate 95 just north of St. Augustine,
on a wooded twenty-acre site. It has two floors which include space
for worship, training and meeting rooms, overnight accommodations
for visiting missionaries and mission team members, a kitchen, and
administrative offices and work areas. State of the art technology
infrastructure is installed throughout, to support communications
with OCMC's Missionaries around the world.
The facility is the first permanent building designed, constructed,
owned and operated by a SCOBA agency. The Orthodox Christian
Mission Center (OCMC) is the foreign mission and evangelism agency
of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the
Americas (SCOBA). It has missions in many countries like Albania,
Romania, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Argentina, Uganda, Indonesia and
others. OCMC traces its origins back to the early 1960's to the
Lenten Self-Denial Club of the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church
in Lancaster, Pa., which soon became a Greek Orthodox Archdiocese
Missions Committee and then a Missions Center in St. Augustine. In
1994 It transformed into a SCOBA program and took today's
form.
The Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the
Americas consists of the following members: Archbishop Demetrios,
Chairman - Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America; Metropolitan
Philip, Vice Chairman - Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese
of North America; Metropolitan Christopher, Secretary - Serbian
Orthodox Church in North and South America; Metropolitan Nicholas
of Amissos, Treasurer - American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese
in the USA; Archbishop Nicolae, Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese in
the Americas; Metropolitan Joseph, Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox
Church; Metropolitan Jonah, Orthodox Church in America;
Metropolitan Constantine, Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA;
Archpriest Alexander Abramov, Acting Representative of the Moscow
Patriarchate in the USA; Bishop Ilia of Philomelion, Albanian
Orthodox Diocese of America.
For photos of this event visit: http://photos.goarch.org/main.php?g2_itemId=2636
