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Orthodox Observer - February 1997
CHURCH & TECHNOLOGY
Bringing Orthodoxy to the Internet By Theo Nicolakis "Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation." (Mark 16:15) From the beginning, the Orthodox Christian Church has sought to fulfill this command of our Lord to "proclaim the good news to the whole creation." In the decades after Christ's death and resurrection, the Apostles spread the good news of the Gospel through- out the world, using the Roman Empire's expansive highway system. These roads were the connecting links of the empire that enabled people to travel from one city to another. While many of the roads built some 2,000 years ago still exist and, in some cases, still used, the ways that we travel and communicate have changed dramatically. Automobiles, airplanes, telephones, radios, televisions, fax machines, and computers have supplanted the ancient modes of travel and communications. Today, a new road or "superhighway" has emerged; and this road is once again changing the face of human interaction, record keeping, and communications. This new, "information superhighway" is the Internet, the world's largest computer network, linking together millions of computers in churches, homes, elementary schools, universities, government offices, and businesses. It is also the world's fastest growing market. Currently between 30 and 40 million users "travel" on the Internet and this number doubles almost every year. |For this reason, under the guidance and support of Archbishop Spyridon, who himself is computer literate, the Archdiocese has developed a world wide web site at: http:// www.goarch.org.
|Since his enthronement, Archbishop Spyridon has taken an active interest in expanding the Church's use of the internet site. The Archdiocese publishes news, press releases and an Internet edition of the Orthodox Observer; posts its telephone and parish directory on-line; created world wide web sites for each of its departments so their resources will be available to a wider audience; and supplies our priests with pastoral information including sermons and youth ministry sessions for their ministry. The Archdiocese has also established web sites for each diocese from Boston to San Francisco to reach the faithful at the regional and local level. In order to encourage and assist parishes in establishing their presence on the Internet, the Archdiocese has created pre-formatted templates, available at: http://www.goarch.org/ goa/parishes/parish_info.html. In addition to posting organizational information, the Archdiocese has also assembled one of the most exhaustive sections on the Orthodox Christian faith currently available. The entire book The Companion to the Orthodox Church and other select publications from the Religious Education and Communications departments, and other sources are now available on the Archdiocese site. Written by specialists in their fields, these articles cover all aspects of the faith, including Church history, the sacraments, saints' lives, worship, and contemporary issues. Additionally, the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople also has an internet site: http://www.patriarchate.org. This is a key source on the Patriarchate's history, mission, role, and current activities in world Orthodoxy, with a rich collection of official documents, press releases and news. Also included are descriptions of the historical sites in Constantinople such as the theological school of Halki, the Church of Hagia Sophia, monasteries, and others, and Patriarch Bartholomew's biography, encyclicals, interviews, speeches, plus a digital photo gallery. There also is a section about the Archons: http://www.patriarchate.org/ARCHONS. |Since the Archbishop's election, the Archdiocese has been disseminating official news, press releases, and encyclicals on its World Wide Web site. To inform clergy and laity about the events shaping world Orthodoxy, the site provides an Orthodox world news section. International news relating to the Church from a variety of sources is posted daily on the web site: http://www.goarch.org/worldnews. A computerized list-server disseminates news and press releases of the Orthodox Church via e-mail for free. Hundreds of individuals from around the world have already signed up for this service (instructions on how to subscribe to this service are available from the Orthodox World News web site). The provides the faithful around the world immediate daily access to the latest Orthodox world news. In fact, it was the Orthodox World News web page and listserver which carried the latest news and official statements after the bombing of the Ecumenical Patriarchate by Islamic terrorists on Sept. 29. While many individuals are just now discovering the Internet or "information superhighway," the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese is already there and ready to light the road ahead. Key web site addresses are listed in the right-hand column on this page.
The following are the major Greek Orthodox websites located on the internet. With the exception of the National Sisterhood of Presvyteres and Ionian Village, each "address" is linked to the Archdiocese web page. Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America: http://www.goarch.org Orthodox World News: http://www.goarch.org/worldnews Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople: http://www.patriarchate.org News on the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople: http:/www.patriarchate.org/NEWS Press Releases of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese: http://www.goarch.org/goa/press releases Orthodox Observer: http://www.goarch.org/goa/observer Guide to the Ecumenical Patriarchate: http://www.patnarchate.org/GUIDE_TO _PATRIARCHATE Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate: http://www.patriarchate.org/ARCHONS Archdiocese Departments: http://www.goarch.org/goa/departments Archdiocesan District: http://www.goarch.org/goa/archdiocesan Greek Orthodox Diocese of Atlanta: http://www.goarch.org/goa/atlanta Greek Orthodox Diocese of Boston: http://www.goarch.org/goa/boston Greek Orthodox Diocese of Chicago: http://www.goarch.org/goa/chicago Greek Orthodox Diocese of Denver: http://www.goarch.org/goa/denver Greek Orthodox Diocese of Detroit: http://www.goarch.org/goa/detroit Greek Orthodox Diocese of New Jersey: http://www.goarch.org/goa/new_jersey Greek Orthodox Diocese of Pittsburgh: http://www.goarch.org/goa/pittsburgh Greek Orthodox Diocese of San Francisco: http://www.goarch.org/goa/san_francisco Directory of Greek Orthodox Parishes: http://www.goarch.org/access/parish_direc-tory Orthodox Ministry ACCESS: http://www.goarch.org/access Lives of the Saints Calendar: http://www.goarch.org/access/calendar National Orthodox Christian Fellowship: http://www.goarch.org/access/ocf About the Orthodox Christian Faith: http://www.goarch.org/access/orthodoxy Orthodox Actionline: http://www.goarch.org/access/actionline IOCC (International Orthodox Christian Charities): http://www.goarch.org/access/iocc OCMC (Orthodox Christian Mission Center): http://www.goarch.org/access/ocmc National Sisterhood of Presvyteres: http://web.lemoyne.edu/pavlakos/nsp.html Retired Clergy Association: http://www.safari.net/kerkyra/clergy1.htm Hellenic Cultural Center: http://www.goarch.org/goa/hellenic Holy Cross Orthodox Bookstore: http://www.goarch.org/access/hcbks Greater Boston YAL: http://www. goarch.org/access/yal/boston Chicago YAL: http://www.corfu.com/yal Ionian Village: http://maple.lemoyne.edu/pavlakos/IV.HTML Boston Diocese Camp: http://www.goarch.org/access/bdc Camp Good Shepherd: http://www.goarch.org/access/camps/cgs
[ Orthodox Observer - Vol. 62, No. 1123 - February 1997 - p. 24 ]
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