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Church and Society
Barbarians Among Us?
April 11, 2010 · Leave a Comment
Fr. Gregory Jensen The Rejection of Tradition On a post on my blog Koinoia (“An Editorial: Orthodoxy & the Public Square“), I wrote that whether or not I like Frank Schaeffer’s politics or his moral theology, or whether or not his support of abortion and gay rights are compatible with the tradition of the Church, the reality is that he is well within the mainstream of current Orthodox opinion in America. According to the PEW survey, the majority of Orthodox laity agree that abortion and gay marriage should be legal. It may surprise you, then, that the problem isn’t... [Read the full story]
Orthodox Unity
Locality, the Episcopate, and Canonicity: Reflections on the Recent Pre-Conciliar Meeting at Chambesy
September 27, 2009 · 2 Comments
By: George Michalopulos ABSTRACT: In previous essays posted on this forum, the present author analyzed the formation of autocephalous churches, the role of the metropolitan and its role within the episcopate, the canonical claims of existing patriarchates regarding primacy within the so-called Diaspora, and the current jurisdictional crisis within North America. As to the idea of a “diaspora,” certain issues need to be more fully developed. Specifically, which autocephalous church has the authority to evangelize within such an area? How is autocephaly to be proclaimed? Are parallel... [Read the full story]
Sanctity of Life
The Roots of Roe v. Wade
September 12, 2009 · Leave a Comment
By: Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon "Children are aborted in the flesh because…they are aborted in the mind." During this month, as in every January for the past thirty years, those Americans left with even the meanest vestige of moral instinct will reflect with disgust on the Supreme Court’s ruling in Roe v. Wade. Some of these citizens will also comment, as they should, that that 1973 judicial determination was an affront to humanity, a legal travesty, a distortion of the Constitution surpassing in sheer injustice even the Dred Scott decision of 1857. Some, recalling that the... [Read the full story]
Canon 28
Canon 28 and Eastern Papalism: Cause or Effect?
September 11, 2009 · Leave a Comment
By: George C. Michalopulos ABSTRACT: Orthodoxy today is at a crossroads in America and throughout the world. One of the great challenges facing us has to do with inter-Orthodox cooperation. Specifically, how are new mission fields identified? Which of the established churches evangelizes them? And how are they granted autocephaly? What is the purpose of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and by what authority does it claim primatial honors? More importantly, is there a difference between primacy and supremacy? The purpose of this essay is to evaluate the primatial claims of the Church of Constantinople... [Read the full story]
Media
Atheist Delusions: The Christian Revolution and Its Fashionable Enemies
November 20, 2009 · 1 Comment
By: George C. Mchalopulos Several years ago when I was young and impressionable, I happened upon the Charles Laughton version of The Mutiny on the Bounty. What struck me – as near as I can recollect—was the climax of Lieutenant Bligh’s trial. Though acquitted of the charges against him, the president of the tribunal condemned Bligh’s character by saying that the Royal Navy had erred in commissioning him as he was “no Christian gentleman.” I remember how devastated I was by the indictment of Laughton/Bligh, delivered as it was in the crisp, no-nonsense, upper-class... [Read the full story]
Press Releases
Christmas Appeal – 2009
December 18, 2009 · Leave a Comment
December 18, 2009 Dear Friend: Thank you for joining the rapidly growing number of people in the United States and abroad who have made the Web site and blog of the American Orthodox Institute a “must read” for news and analysis on Orthodox Christianity. One grateful contributer writes: “AOI is providing the kind of in depth analysis and commentary that is unparalleled in the English speaking world. We stand at a time of competing ideologies in the world, in America, and in the Orthodox Church. AOI has been a beacon of clarity, reason and faithfulness to Gospel principles in the... [Read the full story]
Recommended Reading
Manhattan Declaration and Signers
For more information see www.ManhattanDeclaration.org. Manhattan Declaration: A Call of Christian Conscience Drafted on October 20, 2009 Released on November 20, 2009 Preamble Christians are heirs... [more...]
Nationalism in Greek Orthodoxy
By: Sir Steven Runciman Excerpts from “The Great Church in Captivity: A Study of the Patriarchate of Constantinople from the Eve of the Turkish Conquest to the Greek War of Independence.” Sir... [more...]
Civilization Without Religion?
By: Russell Kirk A masterful essay on the dependence of civilization on religion. Russell Kirk - American Philosopher Sobering voices tell us nowadays that the civilization in which we participate is not... [more...]
Orthodox Leadership in a Brave New World
By: Fr. Johannes L. Jacobse Fr. Johannes L. Jacobse Almost thirty years ago Soviet dissident Alexander Solzhenitsyn delivered an address at Harvard University that still ranks as one of the most trenchant... [more...]
Conflicted Hearts: Orthodox Christian ‘Social Justice’ in an Age of Globalization
By: John Couretas John Couretas In the opening sermon delivered to an ecumenical gathering last year in Brazil, Archbishop Anastasios of Tirana and All Albania called on the assembly to promote "daring... [more...]
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Sanctity of Life
The Roots of Roe v. Wade
By: Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon "Children are aborted in the flesh because…they...
An Orthodox Perspective on Abortion
By: Fr. Joseph O’Brien The earliest specific written references to abortion...
The Fathers of the Orthodox Church on Abortion
The following represent the teaching of the Orthodox Church from the [early] second...
Death, Dying, and Euthanasia
By: Fr. Stanley Harakas Fr. Stanley Harakas The traditional definition of physical...
Human Enhancement and the Quest for Perfection
By: Fr. John Schroedel I spoke recently with a Greek Orthodox innovator in the field...
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Canon 28
Canon 28 and Eastern Papalism: Cause or Effect?
By: George C. Michalopulos ABSTRACT: Orthodoxy today is at a crossroads in America...
A Letter To The Ecumenical Patriarch Concerning The Situation Of The Diaspora
By: Patriarch Alexis of Moscow and All Russia 2005.02.01 Sourozh In our first issue...
Canon 28: Yesterday and Today
By: Fr. John H Erickson Introduction The Decree of the Fourth Ecumenical Council: A...
The Decline of the Patriarchate of Constantinople
By: St. John Maximovitch, Archbishop of Shanghai and San Francisco An excerpt from...
Canon 28 of the 4th Ecumenical Council – Relevant Or Irrelevant Today?
By: Met. Philip Saliba Met. Philip Saliba Talk given by Metropolitan Philip, Primate...
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