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Orthodox Observer - September 1997

After The First Year

An Expectation - a Promise - and a Challenge

A little more than year ago at this time, the Greek Orthodox of America received with jubilation the news that the Metropolitan of Italy, Spyridon, was elected by the Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate as Archbishop of America.

By Fr. George Papaioannou, Th.D.

This writer remembers with nostalgia the arrival of His Eminence on Sept.19 and his enthronement on Sept 21, 1996.

It was the first time in the 75 years of the Archdiocese that both archbishops, the former and the new, were present for the transition of authority.

The enthronement ceremony had all the ingredients of a human drama with a touch of the Divine. The jubilation and the Byzantine pageantry had helped raise the joy and emotion of their highest level. The new spiritual leader had become the symbol and the proclamation of a bright future for Greek Orthodoxy in America.

For those in attendance at Holy Trinity Archdiocesan Cathedral in New York on Sept. 21, and the hundreds of thousands of television viewers throughout the land, the enthronement of Archbishop Spyridon will remain an unforgettable event.

The transition from one leader to the other, from the old to the new, from the present to the future, from Iakovos to Spyridon, was done with unprecedented grace. A new beginning had just dawned for the Greek Archdiocese of America.

If the jubilation, the emotional applause at the enthronement was an indication of the future of the new archbishop, his chances for success were excellent. And indeed he was received by the people with open arms and moreover he had the backing and support of the ecumenical patriarch who had promised to protect and support his junior brother hierarch.

But things were not as rosy as they seem to be on the surface. No transition of leadership is easy, and the transition from Iakovos to Spyridon has not been without pain, obstacles and disappointments.

Being used to the style and other ways of Archbishop Iakovos for 37 years, it has not been easy for the clergy and laity to adapt to the style and ways of Archbishop Spyridon. During the first six months of his tenure Archbishop Spyridon observed and studied the conditions of the Archdiocese, visited the dioceses, consulted with the bishops and lay leaders, appointed key members of his staff and the new Archdiocesan Council and tried to define the roles of the various department heads and institutions.

In the second half of the first year, he initiated the first major change in a most central area of the Church's life: Hellenic College-Holy Cross School of Theology. It had been recognized by all familiar with Hellenic College Holy Cross that things were not going well with that highest institution of learning in the Hellenic Diaspora long before Archbishop Spyridon came into the picture. There were divisions and infighting, threats for legal suits, charges and counter-charges that had demoralized both the faculty and the student body.

When Spyridon took office he heard cries for some significant changes in both the administration and faculty. The archbishop exercised extreme caution appealing to all for cooperation; nevertheless, the power struggle continued. Finally, after the conclusion of the academic year, the archbishop felt that it was time to initiate the changes he had contemplated.

Those changes included the replacement of the president and the deans of the college, the School of Theology, and the reassignment of three priest-faculty members to parish ministry. Believing that the school needed episcopal presence and authority, the archbishop appointed Bishop Isaiah of Denver as president.

There are those who have questioned the archbishop's solution to the problems of Hellenic College Holy Cross. And there are those who support him, believing that his action was necessary to protect his archiepiscopal authority; the dignity of the Archdiocese, and to ensure the future of the school upon which depends the future of the Church in America.

It is hoped that Archbishop Spyridon will come out of his first major crisis of his young reign stronger in order to tackle and resolve the other problems facing the Archdiocese.

Since May 17,1922, when the Church in America was proclaimed an Archdiocese by Patriarch Meletios Metaxakis, the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America had come a long way. Not only has she served her own faithful very effectively but has helped advance the spirit of brotherhood among all races, nationalities, and creeds in the nation. Her archbishops have provided leadership and responded to the calls for help whenever they heard cries of despair at home and abroad. Some of them have been asked and given advice to presidents when they were to make decisions that would affect the peace of the country and the whole world.

The children and the grandchildren of the immigrant founders have progressed as no other ethnic and religious group both in the private sector and in the highest levels of government.

Neither the Church, however, nor her faith can rest on the achievements of the past. There is a need for a new vision, new horizons, and a new beginning.

The need for a new beginning Archbishop Spyridon saw when on the day after his enthronement, officiating his first Divine Liturgy in the Holy Trinity Cathedral in New York, challenged everyone in attendance, clergy and laity ―especially the bishops― to search together for a new beginning.

During that year that went by, since that new beginning, the Archbishop and the bishops have had ample time to acquaint themselves with each other, and study the problems facing the Church now and in the future. The time has come for them to begin solving those problems in a responsible and dignified manner.

The 1977 Charter provides that the archbishop and bishops share the duties and the rights in administering the Archdiocese and its institutions. There are some areas that the Synod spirit and activity is needed in solving the problems of the church.

First among these is the restructuring of the Archdiocese and the granting of a new charter by the Ecumenical Patriarchate that will be mutually satisfactory to the hierarchy and preserve the unity of the Archdiocese. The Church's hierarchs should work together in writing the charter, before it receives the seal of approval from the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

The second, equally important matter, is the election and assignments of new bishops to three Diocese of New Jersey, Atlanta, and Detroit. The faithful clergy of those dioceses deserve the spiritual leadership in the persons of duly elected bishops.

A third problem that needs to be dealt with extra care and attention, is the situation at Hellenic College Holy Cross. The situation that erupted in June will not be overcome easily. It is almost universally believed that it was the result of accumulated problems for a long time. The situation is a chronic one and it should be treated accordingly.

Finally, the relations of the Archdiocese with SCOBA (Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas), are at a critical point. The archbishop and the bishops should study the situation and resolve the existing differences and misunderstandings between the Archdiocese and the other SCOBA members peacefully, so that together they may work for the realization of the common dream which is the elimination of episcopal pluralism and the unification of all Orthodox branches into one Holy Orthodox Church in America.

That was the ultimate dream of the founder of the Archdiocese, Patriarch Meletios IV, 75 years ago when he said: "I saw the largest and best part of the Orthodox Church in the Diaspora, and I understood how exalted the name of Orthodoxy could be, if the more than 2 million people there were united under one church organization, an American Orthodox Church."

[ Orthodox Observer, Vol. 62 - No. 1133, September 1997, pp. 5, 31 ]