With the blessing of His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae, from NOVEMBER 2020, the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas will carry out an EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM for at least 12 months, aimed at religious education of believers and in-depth understanding of the truths of the faith.
This project is addressed to the faithful of the Metropolia and will take place exclusively in the virtual environment on EVERY THURSDAY of the MONTH, starting with 7.00 PM EDT (US East Coast time).
I. On the FIRST THURSDAY of each month, starting with December 3, 2020, Fr. Dr. John Downie from St. Michael’s Parish in Southbridge MA will hold a BIBLE STUDY program in ENGLISH, starting with the book of Revelation. Father John Downie obtained his doctorate in theology at the Faculty of Orthodox Theology “Justinian Patriarch” in Bucharest, Department of Biblical Studies, doctoral thesis entitled “The relationship between Father and Son in the Gospel according to St. John” under the coordination of Fr. Prof. Dr. Constantin Coman. The general structure will be: a series of 12 months, with about 2 chapters per study, also ranging from 45 minutes to 1.5 hours as time. Is the book of Revelation relevant today? Is it possible to understand it? Can we know for whom it was written and why? What is the meaning of its mysterious symbols? These are some of the questions that will be answered if you participate. The Bible study lesson will take place on the ZOOM portal https://us02web.zoom.us/j/3570604649.
II. On the SECOND THURSDAY of each MONTH, between November 2020 and October 2021, several priests of our Metropolia will present CATECHESIS belonging to the catechetical program implemented by the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas called ”THE WAY”.
With the motto: “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No one comes to My Father except through Me” (John 14:6), the catechetical project “The Way” is a Christian catechetical unit, an introductory course for parishes meant to initiate the audience with notions and aspects of life specific to the Orthodox faith. The Way is one of the names that designated the Christian faith in the New Testament.
Where does the Course come from? From the Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies, affiliated with the ancient University of Cambridge.
Who is the course for and what was it designed for? The course called The Way is addressed to all people aged between 18 and 80 who have completed high school, but also to all those interested in seeking the Truth that for us is Jesus Christ. The Way was written by 18 presenters of the catechetical course who, after a careful critical evaluation by all team members, was sent for approval to the episcopal supervisor, His Eminence Metropolitan Kalistos of Diokleia.
What does the course look like and how is it structured? The module consists of 12 sessions, being implemented with a 2-hour session.
The first catechism lesson, The Search for Faith will be on November 12, 2020. The complete program of all catechesis can be found here. The catechesis will take place on the ZOOM portal https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83232676956.
III. On the THIRD THURSDAY of the MONTH starting with November 19, 2020, at 7.00 pm EDT, Protosynghellos Ieremia Berbec, abbot of St. Demetrios the New Monastery of Middletown, NY, will hold a SPIRITUAL EVENING. Father Ieremia was installed on Saturday, October 24, 2020, abbot of St. Demetrios the New Monastery in Middletown, New York, by His Eminence Nicolae, the Romanian Orthodox Metropolitan of the Americas. The abbot holds a doctorate in mathematics from the University of Berkeley, California, where he studied from 2002 to 2007. The mathematics department of the institution is among the top 10 in the world. Father Ieremia was part of the community of Putna Monastery for 13 years. The arrival in Middletown, NY was made with the blessing of Father Archimandrite Melchisedek, the abbot of Putna Monastery, Archbishop Pimen of blessed memory, and HE Archbishop Calinic of Suceava and Radauti. The father was also a disciple of Father Arsenie Papacioc and has a degree in theology and recently a master degree from the “Dumitru Stăniloae” Faculty of Theology in Iași. The spiritual meeting will take place on the YOUTUBE portal below and will have two parts: a short introduction / presentation of a topic followed by a dialogue with questions and answers.
- The title of the first series of themes is: “The fulfillment of the Law and the prophets – About Christ, from the prophets”, with the following themes:
- “If you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote about me” (John 5:46).
- “That all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses, in the Prophets, and in the Psalms concerning me” (Luke 24:44).
- Isaiah – The Evangelist of the Old Testament. “There shall come forth a rod from the root of Jesse” (Isaiah 11:1).
- Isaiah – The Old Testament Evangelist. The Servant of the Lord – Ebed Yahweh;
- “That the light may not be extinguished in Israel” (II Kings 21:17) – The messianism of the ancient rabbis;
- The Messiah was to come until the fall of the Second Temple in 70 AD (Daniel 9: 24-27).
NO REGISTRATION REQUIRED! Access directly the YOUTUBE portal. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNW3XJKbIVtvxhrS46gx9Jg
IV. On the FOURTH THURSDAY of each MONTH, starting with November 26, 2020, Fr. Ștefan Drăgoi from St. Mary’s Parish in Norfolk, Virginia will present a BIBLE STUDY program in ROMANIAN LANGUAGE, starting from the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew. Depending on the importance and complexity of the topics of each chapter, the study will consider 3-6 chapters and will last 1h-1h½. There will be a question and answer session at the end of each meeting. The first lesson will be introductory, but the first three chapters will also be covered. Several sources will be used such as: New Orthodox Bible Study, Collection of Church Fathers and Writers, vol 23, Homilies on Matthew, Saint Theophilact of Bulgaria, Interpretation of the Holy Gospel of Matthew, BibleWorks, and other online sources. Father Ștefan Drăgoi obtained his bachelor’s and master’s degree in theology at the “Justinian Patriarch” Faculty of Orthodox Theology in Bucharest and, since September 2019, he has been a priest at St. Mary’s Parish in Hamptons Roads / Norfolk, Virginia. Bible Study will be conducted on the ZOOM portal https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83232676956.
For any additional information please contact Father Daniel Ene, the coordinator of this project, by email at frdanielene@gmail.com.
Fr. Daniel Ene,
Diocesan Secretary and Dean of New York, New England, and the Eastern USA
Chaiman of the Education Commission of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas
English 
Română