Oakleigh Grammar hosts the Second National Meeting of Orthodox Christian Studies Teachers at the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese National Schools Event

With the blessing and initiative of His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia, on Thursday 4th of May 2023, the Second National Meeting of Orthodox Christian Studies Teachers of our Holy Archdiocese took place at Oakleigh Grammar in Melbourne. This blessed gathering took place as part of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese National Schools Event. On behalf of His Eminence, His Grace Bishop Silouan of Sinope, chaired the meeting. His Grace was accompanied by His Grace Bishop Kyriakos of Sozopolis, Chaplains, Principals and Teachers of Orthodox Christian Studies from Orthodox Schools around Australia.

The session commenced with the Paschal prayer and an opening address from His Grace Bishop Silouan. Upon conveying the heartful pastoral prayers, aspirations, and gratitude of His Eminence Archbishop Makarios to all attendees, His Grace addressed the importance and centrality of the Scriptures in teaching our young people. He encouraged teachers to live out the Scriptures in order to guide our students on the path of their encounter with God. Quoting the words of St Tikhon of Zadonsk who said, “If an earthly king wrote you a letter, would you not read it with joy?’ referring to the fact when we read the Scriptures on our own and with our students a real encounter takes place where:

• The Bible is God’s personal letter sent specifically to myself and to us as a communion of believers, that is, the Church.
• The words are not intended for others, far away and long ago, but they are written particularly and directly to me and to us, here and now.
• Whenever we open our Bible, we are engaging in a creative dialogue with the Saviour.

His Grace further encouraged our classrooms to be a place of joy and discovery and for us as teachers to have our hands outstretched in prayer just as the Holy Mother of God in the icon of the Platytera ton ouranon (Broader than the Heavens).

As we move forward, we use the words of sacred Scripture to continue to cultivate an Orthodox phronema with Christ and our students at the centre. We look forward to meeting once again in the near future to be able to continue the good work that has begun for the benefit of our children and the Glory of God.

At the conclusion, their Graces Bishop Silouan and Bishop Kyriakos thanked their hosts for their hospitality and had an opportunity to visit the classrooms of Oakleigh Grammar.