Certain Missionary Enterprises of a Few Orthodox Churches by Fr. Dr. Bijesh Philip
Traditionally Orthodox Churches give priority to the sanctification and deification of the faithful and thus emphasizes the importance of worship. Life of these churches further prove that bringing the blessing of God to the world or the ‘liturgy after the liturgy’ is also an important task of the Church. This short writing may open a window to a few selected compassionate acts of a couple of Orthodox Churches representing both the Oriental and Byzantine Orthodox families. We focus on only a few mission activities owned by these churches in different parts of the world which help us to have just a taste of the Churches’ attempt to address various issues the world is facing today. The Orthodox, while praising God for the development of various missions as mentioned in this, it is also necessary to admit with humility that they have not fully achieved an action corresponding to the conviction of the Church that she is the sanctifying and liberating g presence of Christ in History.
Malankara Orthodox Church’s service to the poor and the HIV/AIDS patients
Casteism, Communalism Corruption and poverty continue to be the major issues India is facing even today. Malankara Orthodox Church, the ancient church in this land, is committed to serve the marginalized here. Bishops like Pathros Mar Osthathios took much initiative in 20th century to empower the dalits in Kerala. The church is running various centers for the poor kids to stay and grow in different parts of the country. Leadership of St. Thomas Mission, Bhilai was instrumental in launching many welfare schemes and services in a lot of villages in Makkodia near Ittarsi, M.P. Attapadi mission focuses on the poor tribals of Attappadi in Palakkad district of Kerala near. Many training and rehabilitation centers for the mentally challenged and the otherly-abled mushroomed under the auspices of the church towards the end of 20th century. The Church has contributed tremendously to the education in India. The Church has a glorious tradition of responding to alleviate the miseries of the victims of natural calamities. As part of the rehabilitation work, houses were built for hundreds of victims of Orissa Cyclone and Jabalpur Earthquake.
St. Gregorios Daya Bhavan in Kunigal near Bangalore, one of the latest achievements of the Mission Board of the Church is commendable. Dayabhavan has developed a response on three dimensions to the malaise of HIV/AIDS in society_ Awareness, Rehabilitation and Care and Support. The centre has a Multi-disciplinary team dedicated to work in the field of HIV/AIDS. They provide palliative care, Counseling, Medical management, Nursing care, personal care and Nutritional support. The centre has adopted children who are affected by HIV/AIDS and provide them hope in life. They are pursuing their education in nearby school. For providing health care to the economically backward people living around Dayabhavan, a Free health clinic was started at Dayabhavan premise. The dedicated work of Dayabhavan to build up confidence in such patients to lead a quality life and the palliative care extended to them are well appreciated by a lot of people. In India where still poverty is deep and the stigma attached to the HIV/ADS is very intense, the mission of Dayabhavan is a remarkable venture in the mission of the Malankara Orthodox Church.
Coptic Orthodox Church’s service to the poor and the HIV/AIDS patients
More than 95% of Egypt’s Christians belong to this Egyptian Orthodox Church which was established by St. Mark the evangelist in the middle of 1st century. The church has 33 monasteries with 1000 monks and six convents in Egypt, the cradle of Christian monasticism. The church is rich in its mission especially among the poor.
Many rural clinics were opened by the church to provide affordable and accessible health care treatment and establish basic training programs aimed at disease prevention and infection control. The Coptic Nursing Homes provide basic medical care, medication, public health education and HIV testing and awareness training to the poorer rural communities. Mobile clinics solve the problem of lack of transportation for the rural people. For example, the Coptic Mobile Clinic in Mongoolee, Zambia serve thousands of people there who have no medical care for hundreds of kilometers. The mobile clinic provides free doctor consultation, free treatment, free medication and voluntary counseling and testing for HIV/AIDS. In severe cases, the critical patients are brought to the Coptic hospital in Lusaka for further treatment.
Coptic Hope Center is a comprehensive HIV/AIDS clinic in the industrial area of Nairobi where thirty thousand factories function. Hope Center provides training to the factory workers, students, teachers, slum dwellers, and leaders of the society.
Youth Centers of Armenian Orthodox Church
Armenia became the first nation in the world to declare Christianity as the state religion. The ancient Orthodox Church in Armenia is very active in various mission activities. Inter Church relations Department of the Church play a significant role not only to strengthen relationship with other Orthodox churches but also to establish ties with the various Protestant and Catholic churches. The Christian Education Center(CEC) which was formally established in 1996 give leadership to the catechetical teaching and also evangelization. The CEC staff creates and implements public events, radio broadcasts and television programs, lectures and other informative events, prepares and improves educational carriculam and textbooks for Sunday School, public schools and higher educational institutions. Mission through the youth centers of the church is worth mentioning.
During the Communist rule, Youth Palaces were constructed in Armenia to spread the doctrine of the communist party and atheism to the children of Armenia. When these were abandoned after the collapse of the Soviet Union, as per the request of the Orthodox Church, the government allotted these buildings to the church for another mission. These centers named as Youth Centers serve as a learning base, vocational training center and social gathering place and attract a lot youngsters. Clergy, deacons and seminarians became part of the teaching family. In addition to the Christian education, these centers serve as places for the youth to explore their artistic talents, gain professional skills and to interact with each other. In these centers they can have elective classes for: embroidery, lace making, knitting, carpet making, artistic knitting, cloths modeling, doll making, painting, miniature art, ceramic art, wood work, sculpture, journalism, songs and dances, orchestras and bands, musical instruments, karate, judo, computer courses etc. These centers are open Monday through Saturday from 2 to 7 pm.
Evangelization of the Russian Orthodox Church especially in Alaska.
Russian Orthodox Church, which is the second largest local Church after the Roman Catholic Church has around 730 monasteries, five theological academics and 75 theological schools for about 140 dioceses today. Among the various missions of the Church, the evangelization in Alaska is worth mentioning.
A team of monks from Valaam Monastery in Russia came to the shores of Alaska in 1794 with an ardent desire to share with the natives the love of God. Based in Kodiak in Alaska, they started their mission and there was a sudden response from the locals and many embraced the church. St. Herman the leader of the group, after fifteen years, moved to Spruce Island to pursue a more hermit-like life. He built a church and a cell and in short time started an orphanage and school for the people in the island. St. Herman passed away on Nov.15th, 1836 and was declared as the first Orthodox saint of North America in 1970. His holy relics are in the church of the Resurrection in Kodiak, Alaska.
St. Innocent was another evangelist who was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church. He lived with his family in Alaska for about three decades from 1820. He formed alphabets to a couple of local languages and translated Bible and liturgical books into those languages. He was instrumental in building many churches and schools in Alaska. This ardent naturalist studied the land, customs and traditions of the people and gracefully conveyed the Gospel with compassion and meekness. Later on he became head of the Russian Church. He and his friends trained the natives not only in spiritual and religious matters but also practical, secular subjects such as mathematics, carpentry, agriculture and animal husbandry.
After Alaska was purchased by US, there was merciless approach to Americanize the natives of Alaska. Their culture and Orthodox tradition of Christianity were attacked and churches were destroyed. However a thriving Orthodox diocese continues to exist in Alaska with approximately hundred clergy and parishes, pilgrimage sites, a local bishop and a seminary dedicated to training Alaskan clergy.
Ecological Mission of the Ecumenical Ptriarchate
The Ecumenical Patriarchate is the honorary and spiritual centre of the Orthodox Church throughout the world, tracing its history to the earliest Christian communities founded by the Apostles of Jesus Christ. The present patriarch in Istanbul(Byzantine name is Constantinople) H.H. Bartholomew is also known as ‘Green Patriarch’.
Ecumenical Patriarchate consistently organizes various programmes to address the environmental challenges. Initiatives of the late Patriarch Dimitrios for a sustainable environment was prophetic. He declared September 1st as a day of supplication for the preservation of God’s beautiful creation. His messages warned about the destructive consequences of abusing the environment. H.H. Bartholomew continues this mission today vigorously. He organized five environmental seminars at Halki . He also established the Religious and Scientific Committee, which has organized six international, interfaith and interdisciplinary seaborne symposia to date: Patmos and the Mediterranean (1995), the Black Sea (1997), the Danube River (1999), the Adriatic Sea (2002), the Baltic Sea (2003), and the Amazon River (2006). For example in 1999 he organized an expedition through Danube river with scientists and theologians in ship and enlightened thousands who gathered in many major European cities where people gathered to see them.
Let us listen to a passage from his message delivered on September 1st, 2008: “ …even as people’s awareness of the environment crisis grows, unfortunately the image presented by our planet today is the opposite. Especially disturbing is the fact that the poorest and most vulnerable members of the human race are being affected by environmental problems which they did not create. From Australia to the Cape Horn of Africa, we learn of regions experiencing prolonged drought, which result in the desertification of formerly fertile and productive areas, where the local populations suffer from extreme hunger and thirst. From Latin America to the heart of Eurasia, we hear of melting glaciers, on which millions of people depend for water supply.
Our Holy and Great Church of Christ, following the footsteps and example of the late Ecumenical Patriarch Dimitrios, is working tirelessly to raise awareness not only among public opinion but also among responsible world leaders. It achieves this by organizing Ecological Symposia that deal with climate change and the management of water..”
The collaboration of science and religion at these Symposia organized by the church in different parts of the planet is aiming at the development of an environmental ethic. Emphasis of such an ethic is that the use of the world and the enjoyment of material goods must be Eucharistic, accompanied by doxology toward God. This ecological mission seeks to contribute to the worldwide efforts to address this global issue today.
An Evaluation to Evolve Progressively
There should be more initiative take up peacemaking in a fragmented society as an important mission of the church. This could be achieved through divinely inspired efforts for justice and harmony through inter religious dialogue. Joining hands beyond the boundaries of religions to address the challenges of the world should be an important aspect of mission. A vision of mission which will consider both inter religious dialogue and evangelization as two sides of the same coin of mission is essential. As worship is an important task of the Church, mission should also be considered as important responsibility and both can mutually prepare and enrich. These visions need to be reflected in the life of individual members as well as parishes and the Church as a whole. The usual trend of the Orthodox Churches is to focus much on the sanctification of the faithful and thus to contribute to the purification of the world. However more initiatives need to be taken to purify the world by an active prophetic intervention to overcome the issues of corruption, caste system, poverty and related issues, environmental pollution and drastic climate change etc. Both the philanthropic acts and commitment to a just and peaceful world should go hand in hand in the vision and practice of mission.