Exhibition on Byzantium to be Held in Washington in 2013

March 29, 2011

ANA – MPA

A great exhibition on Byzantium will be held in Washington in 2013, featuring exhibits from three major museums in Greece (Byzantine and Christian Museum of Athens, Byzantine Cultural Museum of Thessaloniki and Benakis Museum) as well as Byzantine antiquities.

The exhibition will be presented in another U.S. State, currently under negotiation by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

The exhibition highlights the Hellenic character of Byzantium and will be structured on a chronological canvas, covering the entire Byzantine era (330 – 1453) and allows for a parallel development of specific issues of interest such as: the acceptance and integration of Ancient Greek Art, the contribution of Greek texts in the development of education, the codification of the Late Roman law, the position of women in Byzantine society, etc.

The exhibition aims to provide visitors a tour in selected centers of the Byzantine Empire, such as Thessaloniki, Athens, Thebes, Arta, Corinth, Mystras, Rhodes and Crete.

The course will be oriented by two decisive parameters for the character of the Empire; the Greek language as a means of culture and recollection and the dialogue of the Empirical leadership with church.

A twelve member scientific committee has been setup for the purpose of the exhibition, with the participation of the General Director of Antiquities and Cultural Heritage, the Director of Byzantine and Post – Byzantine Antiquities, the directors of all three museums and the director of EKEVYM, university professors, as well as other members of the Ministry.

The cost of the exhibition will be covered via sponsorship, one of which being OPAP, while the management of the funds will be performed by the scientific committee.

A Profile of Three Contemporary False Prophets

"For many shall come in My Name, saying, "I am Christ"; and shall deceive many" (Matt. 24:5).

"The Second Coming" will air on the National Geographic Channel on Wednesday, June 16 at 9PM.

Meet three men who believe the Second Coming has already occurred and that they walk the Earth as the Messiah. Pastor Apollo Quiboloy, the founder of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ in the Philippines, claims to have built a worldwide following of six million. Sergei Torop, a former Russian traffic policeman, is believed by thousands to be the literal reincarnation of Jesus of Nazareth. Then, David Shayler, a former British MI5 agent and whistle-blower, claims to be the Jesus soul incarnated as man.

Some people have a calling to grow up and achieve monetary and material success, others desire to help the world, and others believe that Jesus was the one and only savior of the world and their calling is to spread the Gospel. While many Christians are very strong with their faith, meet these three men who believe they have a serious relationship with Jesus.

1. Vissarion, "Jesus of Siberia"

Vissarion was in a construction unit of the Soviet army from ages 18 to 20. He took a job as a night shift traffic cop in 1985.

In 1991, with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Military was in total disarray. With their pay and self-esteem at rock bottom, many military personnel were at a crossroads of their lives, looking for something such as religion. It was during this transitional period that Vissarion and his followers first established the Church of the Last Testament in Siberia.

The birth of Vissarion's Church of the Last Testament was far from easy. In the 1990s, devotees were reported to have died, either by suicide or due to the harsh living conditions and lack of medical care.

Residents of the Abode of Dawn were plagued by ticks and other biting insects and many have been infected with Lyme disease. Vissarion’s ministry includes writing letters to people outside his following, with some including addresses to conservationists, former Russian President Putin, and even to the Muslim world.

2. David Shayler

Before he claimed he was the Messiah, David Shayler made several disclosures about MI5, Britain’s domestic secret service, leading to his eventual imprisonment.

In 2007, David Shayler claimed in an interview with a British news program that a psychic who channeled the spirit of Mary Magdalene had anointed him as the Messiah.

In July 2009, David Shayler revealed a new alter ego, one that claims the world will end in 2010.

3. Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy, Appointed Son of God

Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy was born April 25, 1950, in a small village in the foothills of Mt. Apo, in the Philippines. He was the youngest of nine children and claims to have heard the voice of God in dreams many times in childhood.

Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy claims to have started preaching in the 1970s, becoming so good he was dubbed "the preaching machine.”

On April 9, 2000 Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy began work at a college to operate within the grounds of his Jesus Christ compound in Davao City, Philippines. Today, Jose Maria College offers education from preschool, right through to college graduation, with Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy as President.

Source

Archbishop Ieronymos: "I Get Payed 2300 Euros Per Month"

"I get paid by the state with the amount of 2,300 euros per month. It is not enough for me, but I try to do what my grandmother told me, that in life I should stretch my legs to where I am able", says Archbishop Ieronymos in an interview with the program 'Πρωταγωνιστές'.

Stavros Theodorakis met His Beatitude Ieronymos II and discussed with him everything that has evolved over the past two years in which he is the head of the Greek Church.

Especially on the issue of taxation of the church and church property Ieronymos gives all the answers for the first time.

The cameras of the program followed the Archbishop of Athens for two 24-hour periods, at home, at church, on the streets of Athens and of course in his office.

Among the topics of discussion are: The separation of Church and State, his relations with the Ecumenical Patriarch and the Prime Minister, religious symbols in public places, the citizenship of immigrants, the name of FYROM, the European course of Turkey, the scandal surrounding Vatopaidi Monastery, the mosque in Athens, and his childhood.

This is extremely interesting interview and will be screened on the evening of Palm Sunday March 28, 2010 at 22.50 on MEGA.

Save the Department of Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies at King’s College London!!!

Dear Friends,

I have just read and signed the online petition:

“Save the Department of Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies at King’s College London” hosted on the web by PetitionOnline.com, the free online petition service, at:

http://www.PetitionOnline.com/sdbmgs10/

I personally agree with what this petition says, and I think you might agree, too. If you can spare a moment, please take a look, and consider signing yourself.

Best wishes,

John Sanidopoulos

Source

Edgar Allan Poe Finally Getting Proper Funeral

Jeff Jerome, curator of the Poe House and Museum looks over a replica of the body of Edgar Allan Poe, in Baltimore, Monday, Oct. 5, 2009. The Poe House will host a viewing of a replica of the body of Poe on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2009, followed by the funeral he never had on Sunday. (AP Photo/Rob Carr)

[It seems like in his bicentenniel, Poe is getting some of the respect he deserves. He is one of my favorite English speaking authors and last year this month I had the opportunity to visit his grave in Baltimore, so this is a thrill for me. See my previous posts here and here.- J.S.]

By BEN NUCKOLS
Associated Press
October 6, 2009

BALTIMORE – For Edgar Allan Poe, 2009 has been a better year than 1849. After dozens of events in several cities to mark the 200th anniversary of his birth, he's about to get the grand funeral that a writer of his stature should have received when he died.

One hundred sixty years ago, the beleaguered, impoverished Poe was found, delirious and in distress outside a Baltimore tavern. He was never coherent enough to explain what had befallen him since leaving Richmond, Va., a week earlier. He spent four days in a hospital before he died at age 40.

Poe's cousin, Neilson Poe, never announced his death publicly. Fewer than 10 people attended the hasty funeral for one of the 19th century's greatest writers. And the injustices piled on. Poe's tombstone was destroyed before it could be installed, when a train derailed and crashed into a stonecutter's yard. Rufus Griswold, a Poe enemy, published a libelous obituary that damaged Poe's reputation for decades.

But on Sunday, Poe's funeral will get an elaborate do-over, with two services expected to draw about 350 people each — the most a former church next to his grave can hold. Actors portraying Poe's contemporaries and other long-dead writers and artists will pay their respects, reading eulogies adapted from their writings about Poe.

"We are following the proper etiquette for funerals. We want to make it as realistic as possible," said Jeff Jerome, curator of the Poe House and Museum.

Advance tickets are sold out, although Jerome will make some seats available at the door to ensure packed houses. Fans are traveling from as far away as Vietnam.

The funeral is arguably the splashiest of a year's worth of events honoring the 200th anniversary of Poe's birth. Along with Baltimore — where he spent some of his leanest years in the mid-1830s — Poe lived in or has strong connections to Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Richmond.

With the funeral angle covered, the Edgar Allan Poe Museum in Richmond staged a re-enactment last weekend of his death. Those with a more academic interest in Poe can attend the Poe Studies Association's annual conference from Thursday through Sunday in Philadelphia.

Visitors in Baltimore for the funeral can enjoy a new exhibit at the Baltimore Museum of Art, "Edgar Allan Poe: A Baltimore Icon," which includes chilling illustrations to "The Raven" by Edouard Manet.

Baltimore has a decided advantage over the other cities that lay claim to Poe, notes BMA director Doreen Bolger. "We have the body," she said.

This week, that's true in more ways than one. Jerome said he's gotten calls from people who thought he was going to exhume Poe's remains and rebury them.

"When they dug up Poe's body in 1875 to move it, it was mostly skeletal remains," Jerome said. "I've seen remains of people who've been in the ground since that time period, and there's hardly anything left."

Instead, Jerome commissioned local special-effects artist Eric Supensky to create an eerily lifelike — or deathlike — mock-up of Poe's corpse.

"I got chills," Jerome said Monday upon seeing the body for the first time. "This is going to freak people out."

The body will lie in state for 12 hours Wednesday at the Poe House, a tiny rowhome in a gritty section of west Baltimore. Visitors are invited to pay their respects.

Following the viewing will be an all-night vigil at Poe's grave at Westminster Burying Ground. Anyone who attends will have the opportunity to deliver a tribute.

On Sunday morning, a horse-drawn carriage will transport the replica of Poe's body from his former home to the graveyard for the funeral.

Actor John Astin, best known as Gomez Addams on TV's "The Addams Family," will serve as master of ceremonies.

"It's sort of a way of saying, 'Well, Eddie, your first funeral wasn't a very good one, but we're going to try to make it up to you, because we have so much respect for you,'" said Astin, who toured as Poe for years in a one-man show.

The service won't be a total lovefest, however. The first eulogy will come from none other than Griswold.

"People are asking me, 'Jeff, why are you inviting him? He hated Poe!'" Jerome said. "The reason is, most of these people defended Poe in response to what he said about Poe's life, so we can't have this service without having old Rufus sitting in the front row, spewing forth his hatred."

Eulogies will follow from actors portraying, among others, Sarah Helen Whitman, a minor poet whom Poe courted after his wife's death, and Walt Whitman, who attended the dedication of Poe's new gravestone in 1875 but didn't feel well enough to speak. Writers and artists influenced by Poe, including Arthur Conan Doyle and Alfred Hitchcock, will also be represented.

Jerome expects to cry — one reason he won't be speaking. Even his rivals are impressed with the scale of the tribute.

"Annoyed as I am with Baltimore sometimes, I have to give them credit," said Philadelphia-based Poe scholar Edward Pettit, who argues his city was of greater importance to Poe's life and literary career. "Baltimore has done an awful lot to maintain the legacy of Poe over the last 100-some years."

_

On the Net:

Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum: http://www.ci.baltimore.md.us/government/historic/poehouse.php

Westminster Hall: http://www.westminsterhall.org/

Baltimore Museum of Art: http://www.artbma.org/

The U.S. Visit of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew

Archdiocese Launches Website Dedicated to Ecumenical Patriarch’s U.S. Visit

NEW YORK – His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America is pleased to announce the launch of the web site dedicated to the US Visit of His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew at http://www.usvisit2009.org.

The web site, which was built by the Archdiocese’s Department of Internet Ministries, features content that will be continually updated and expanded throughout the US Visit of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, known as, “The Green Patriarch”, (a name coined by former US Vice President Al Gore and adopted widely in the international media) is making an official visit to the United States from October 20 to November 6, 2009 in order to preside over the annual Religion, Science, and Environment Symposium and to celebrate the tenth anniversary of His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios’ enthronement as Archbishop of America.

During the visit of His All Holiness, the web site will feature live audio and video broadcasts from event venues, a running Twitter feed for real-time updates of the visit, daily blogs, audio and video podcasts, a dedicated YouTube channel, photogalleries, and opportunities for visitors to share their local communities’ questions, thoughts, ideas, and initiatives on the protection of the environment.

USvisit2009.org has an extensive focus on the Green Patriarch’s environmental ministry. Visitors to the site are able to engage His All Holiness’ uniquely spiritual position on the environment to learn about his environmental initiatives with a wide range of content including lectures, full-length videos, and games focusing on the Orthodox Church’s environmental theology and work.

On line visitors may tour the Ecumenical Patriarchate using the virtual reality component of the site while learning about the apostolic ministry and history of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. A schedule of events will enable users to find information about the upcoming environmental symposium and visit of His All Holiness. Facebook groups will enable users to share expertise, experience and ideas on greening local parishes, homes and communities.

His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is a recipient of the Congressional Gold medal (1997), and was also awarded the Sophie prize in 2002, a prestigious international award for achievement in environmental conservation and sustainability. He has been named in Time Magazine’s top 100 list of Leaders and Revolutionaries and was recently named as the top Green Spiritual Leader by Beliefnet because of His tireless work to raise awareness about the environmental crisis and encourage green initiatives among policy makers, communities and individuals.

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ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH BARTHOLOMEW’S VISIT TO THE U.S. WILL INCLUDE MISSISSIPPI ENVIRONMENTAL SYMPOSIUM AND VISITS TO NEW YORK, ATLANTA AND WASHINGTON D.C.


NEW YORK – His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew will arrive in New Orleans, on Oct. 20 to begin his Apostolic and Patriarchal Visit to the United States. The purpose of this, his sixth visit to our nation, is twofold: to convene and preside over the Eighth Religion, Science and the Environment (RSE) Symposium, and to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the enthronement of Archbishop Demetrios of America as the Primate of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.

His All Holiness, under whose high patronage the Religion, Science and the Environment Symposia take place, will lead a large and diverse group of theologians, scientists, policy makers, environmentalists, representatives of business and NGOs, and media for a five day Environmental Symposium entitled; “Restoring Balance: The Great Mississippi River.”

Since 1995, RSE has convened seven symposia to study the fate of the world’s waters, which cover seven-tenths of our planet’s surface. These assemblies of scientists, environmentalists, policy-makers and representatives of the world’s main religious faiths have established a vibrant environmental ethics movement. Underlying RSE’s strategies is a core belief that the analytical tools of science and the spiritual messages of religion must work in harmony if the earth’s environment is to be safeguarded. The symposia take place afloat, bringing participants – international and regional religious leaders, scientists, environmentalists, policy makers, media representatives and other prominent figures in politics and business – directly to endangered bodies of water. Previous symposia have been attended by heads of state, environmental ministers, ministers of economic affairs and prominent intellectual figures. (More information on the Mississippi symposium: www.rsesymposia.org)

Following the Symposium, His All Holiness will travel to New York City for a week-long celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the Enthronement of Archbishop Demetrios. It will commence on Oct. 25, with the Feast day Great Vespers of St. Demetrios the Myrrh-streamer at the Parish dedicated to the Great-Martyr in Merrick, NY. The next day, the His All Holiness will preside at the Feast day Divine Liturgy at St. Demetrios Cathedral in Astoria, NY. On the evening of the 26th, His All Holiness will preside at the 9th Annual Prayer service for the United Nations at the Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity. The service is sponsored jointly by the Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA) and the Standing Conference of Oriental Orthodox Bishops in America (SCOOCH). On Tuesday, October 27th, His All Holiness will meet with the Primates of SCOBA.

Later in the evening of the 27th, Fordham University will bestow an honorary doctorate in law to His All Holiness. In recognition of the Ecumenical Patriarch’s leadership in the fields of environmental responsibility, and interfaith and inter-cultural dialogue, Fordham is also presenting the initial volume of a three-part series of the major speeches of His All Holiness. Among all the festivities organized by Fordham, there will be a special opportunity for the students of the local Orthodox Christian Fellowship (OCF) to meet with and receive the blessing of the Ecumenical Patriarch.

On Wednesday, Oct. 28th, His All Holiness will have meetings with U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon at the United Nations, as well as with Jewish religious and lay leaders hosted by Rabbi Arthur Schneier, President of the Appeal of Conscience Foundation.

His All Holiness will also travel briefly to Atlanta, and celebrate an Ecumenical Doxology in the Annunciation Cathedral of the Metropolis. Following his return to New York City on Friday, Oct. 30th, he will attend a reception at the Museum of Biblical Art (MOBIA), which will be presenting a month-long (mid-October to mid November) exhibition in honor of His All Holiness and his environmental initiatives.

That evening, His All Holiness will attend a gala musical celebration at the famed Alice Tully Hall in New York, both in honor of his presence in the United States and in tribute to the decade of service of Archbishop Demetrios. Maestro Peter Tiboris will lead the Manhattan Philharmonic in a program and a special appearance by the Archdiocesan Metropolitan Youth Choir.

On Saturday, Oct. 31st, His All Holiness will address the Archdiocesan Council and meet with the National Board of Philoptochos. In the evening of the 31st, the Order of Saint Andrew, Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate will present their annual banquet in honor of the Ecumenical Patriarch. A special speaker for the evening will be the newly enthroned Roman Catholic Archbishop of New York, His Excellency Timothy Dolan.

On Sunday, November 1st, His All Holiness will preside at a Patriarchal Divine Liturgy with Archbishop Demetrios and all the Members of the Holy Eparchial Synod of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America at the Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in New York City. In a rarely seen occasion, he will personally conduct the investiture of the new Archons of the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle.

In the evening of November 1st, the Patriarchal Delegation leaves for Washington DC. While in the DC Metro Area, His All Holiness will mark his 18th year as Ecumenical Patriarch in a Doxology service at the Sts. Constantine and Helen Church in Annapolis, MD.

Throughout the first week of November, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew will meet with the highest leaders of our Nation: the President, the Vice President, the Speaker of the House, the Secretary of State, and the Majority Leader of the Senate. Both Vice President Biden and Secretary of State Clinton will host dinners in honor of His All Holiness.

Additionally, the Ecumenical Patriarch is scheduled to speak at the Brookings Institution (www.brookings.edu) and at Georgetown University in a joint event sponsored by Georgetown and the Center for American Progress (www.americanprogressaction.org). For more information on the Ecumenical Patriarch and his visit to the U.S. can be found online at: www.usvisit2009.org .

XVII International Ecumenical Conference on Orthodox Spirituality

XVII International Ecumenical Conference
on Orthodox Spirituality

THE SPIRITUAL STRUGGLE IN THE ORTHODOX TRADITION

Bose Monastery, Wednesday 9 – Saturday 12 September 2009

In collaboration with the Orthodox Churches

Bose, 2 September 2009

The 17th annual International Ecumenical Conference on Orthodox Spirituality will be held at the Bose Monastery on 9–12 September 2009. Organized in collaboration with the Orthodox Churches, the conference is an important occasion of discussion on fundamental themes of the spiritual life, those where the traditions of Christian East and Christian West intersect the deepest expectation of contemporary man.

This year’s theme, The spiritual struggle in the Orthodox tradition, touches the very center of a problem that is extremely relevant today: what prevents the human heart to love in freedom? How can the phantasms that inhabit it and condition the will be overcome? This is the art of the struggle against “evil thoughts”, as tradition defines those negative images, impulses, inclinations that disturb the “mind” by distracting it from the memory of God and pushing it into sin. To reread today the wisdom of the fathers means also to ask oneself a question still more radical, always present at the bottom of the transformation of modernity: What at its root is sin? What truly renders free or slave man’s conscience?

These questions will from the basis of the dialogue among theologians, scholars, and representatives, at the highest level, of the Orthodox Churches, the Catholic Church, and the Churches of the Reform.

The sessions will begin with an inaugural discourse by the prior of Bose, Enzo Bianchi, and a lecture by metropolitan Filaret of Minsk, patriarchal exarch of Belarus and president of the theological commission of the Patriarchate of Moscow, who will treat of the Biblical and theological foundations of the spiritual struggle. The final day will bring out its ecumenical importance and significance of modern man, in the talks of metropolitans Georges of Mount Lebanon of the Patriarchate of Antioch and Kallistos of Dioklea, delegate of the patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomeos I.

The four days of the conference, thus, hope to rediscover and render eloquent the practice of the spiritual struggle as it is interpreted in the tradition of the fathers and is lived today in the Orthodox Churches. It will thus be an occasion for examining the subject more closely and exchanging views in a fraternal spirit.

On the ecumenical plane especially significant is the presence of official delegations of the Churches of East and West.

As regard the Catholic Church, it is expected that cardinal Roger Etchegaray, vice-dean of the Sacred College, will be present; also archbishop Antonio Mennini, apostolic nuncio to the Russian Federation; mgr. Brian Farrell, secretary of the Pontifical Council for the promotion of Christian unity; fr. Milan Žust, S.J., of same Vatican department. Several bishops of the Bishops’ conference of Piedmont, among them its secretary, Arrigo Miglio, bishop of Ivrea, and Gabriele Mana, bishop of Biella and local ordinary, will speak during the sessions.

The Patriarchate of Moscow will be represented by bishop Amvrosij of Gatčina, rector of the Theological Academy of St Petersburg, who will head the official delegation, fr. Dimitrij Ageev and Aleksej Dikarev of the Department of external relations. Archbishop Zosima of Elista and Kalmykija and fr. Pavel Velikanov, representative of the rector of the Theological Academy of Moscow, will participate in the proceedings of the conference.

Among others who will take part there will be: bishop Evlogij of Sumy, archimandrite Kirill (Hovorun), and professor V. Bagrana (Ukrainian Orthodox Church); bishops Porfirije of Jegar (Serbian Orthodox Church) and Mark of Neamț (Romanian Orthodox Church), metropolitan Grigorij of Tărnovo and bishop Kiprian of Traianopol (Bulgarian Orthodox Church), archimandrite Iakovos (Bizaourtis), igumen of the Petraki monastery (Church of Greece), fr. Adam Makaryan (Armenian Apostolic Church), representing the Catholikos of All Armenians, Karekin II, fr. Zaccheus Ohanian (Armenian patriarchate of Constantinople), canon Jonathan Goodall (Church of England), representing the archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, Michael Nseir, delegate of the World Council of Churches in Geneva.

Among the numerous participants from twenty-one countries, we may note especially fr. Michel Van Parys, fr. Hervé Legrand, and Antonio Rigo of the Scientific Committee, fr. André Louf, fr. Vassilije Grolimund, fr. John Chryssavgis, fr. Andrew Louth; fr. Georgij Kočetkov, Anatolij Krasikov, and Alexej Bodrov from Moscow; Petros Vassiliadis, dean of the theology faculty of the University of Thessalonica; Spyridon Kontoyannis of the University of Athens, Nikitas Aliprandis of the University of Komotini, Gelian Proxorov of the Academy of Sciences in St Petersburg, Kostantin Sigov of Kiev, Vassilis Saroglu of Louvain-le-Neuve, Hugh Wybew of Oxford.

As the presence of numerous monks and nuns of Orthodox monasteries (Greece, Russia, Bulgaria, Romania, Mount Sinai, Georgia, Armenia), as well as from Catholic and Reformed (Belgium, France, Italy, Switzerland, Hungary) testifies, and as the scientific project of the conference intended, the Ecumenical Conferences on Orthodox spirituality wish to offer a space of brotherly encounter among the various Christian Churches, a space of communion and sharing of their multiform spiritual traditions.

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XVII International Ecumenical Conference