SOCHA Newsletter

This is the second issue of our SOCHA newsletter, first introduced last month. If you know of anything we should include in the next issue, or to offer any other feedback about the newsletter, please email me at mfnamee [at] gmail [dot] com.

WHAT’S NEW AT SOCHA?

• Today, August 15, is the last day to get the early-bird discount on your registration fee for the upcoming SOCHA symposium at Princeton. The symposium takes place on August 30 and September 1. For more information, see the symposium’s web page or send an email to florov@princeton.edu.
• The first issue of the Journal of American Orthodox Church History (JAOCH) will be launched THIS WEEK. The cost is $10. We’ll have lots more information in the coming days, so stay tuned.
• Things have been rather slow lately here at OrthodoxHistory.org, and for that, I apologize. A brief update on my personal research: As many of you know, my recent studies have been focused on Orthodoxy and the US civil courts. I’ve completed an initial paper on the subject. First, I review the history and existing rules used by courts. I then dissect those rules and (attempt to) demostrate why they don’t work, either constitutionally or in practical application to Orthodox cases. Finally, I propose an alternative approach which (so I argue) avoids the constitutional problems and also works better for the Orthodox Church. I’ll be presenting a short version of my paper at the upcoming SOCHA symposium, although (1) I may focus on the history and current rules rather than my proposed alternative, and (2) I won’t actually be presenting the paper in person. Unfortunately, circumstances prevent me from attending the symposium, so I’ll have a friend present the paper on my behalf. In addition to that short paper, I plan to submit my longer paper to a scholarly legal journal. So, yeah — that’s what I’ve been up to in terms of historical research.

IN THE NEWS:

• In last month’s newsletter, I mentioned the plight of Holy Protection OCA Cathedral in New York City. The cathedral community is in a fight with the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission, which is trying to have the cathedral declared a historic landmark against the wishes of the cathedral itself and its diocesan bishop. If the Commission is successful, the cathedral will be forced to get government approval for any changes to the church exterior (anything from replacing a broken window to adding an onion dome). They may also be forced to make “improvements” deemed appropriate by the city. This is an unacceptable infringement on the religious freedom of the cathedral community in the name of “historic preservation.” As I said last month, I’m (obviously) a huge supporter of preserving history, and so are the folks at the cathedral, but we don’t need the government telling us how to do it. Here is an update from Fr. Christopher Calin, dean of the cathedral: “The Community Board #3 voted 32 to 9 to endorse the Landmark District which would include our Cathedral and other houses of worship in the EV [East Village]. We are currently working with a Local Faith Communities group to find alternatives to the forced landmarking of our buildings and have a meeting scheduled for 9/12 with the Commissioner of the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) Tierney. There is support to NOT designate religious institutions as individual landmarks, but the well-funded and staffed preservationists are lobbying the LPC and city council members very hard.” We at SOCHA strongly and officially support the cathedral in its efforts to resist the coerced landmarking. In a future article, we’ll let you know how you can help.
• On August 31, 1963, a major gathering of thousands of Orthodox young people took place in Pittsburgh. It’s an event that we should eventually discuss here at OrthodoxHistory.org. The Orthodox Christian Laity organization (OCL) is looking for video of that event. Here’s a statement from OCL’s executive director, George Matsoukas: “Since December 2010, we have conducted a search that includes contacting most Archdioceses and various dioceses of all Orthodox Jurisdictions, individual hierarchs, clergy, laity and various archives, as well as CBS, looking for the 1963 ‘Lamp Unto My Feet’ Documentary of the CEOYLA Pittsburgh Festival. If you know anyone who has it, please contact me via ocladmin@ocl.org. We want to keep the memory alive of this great event. It is a shame that somehow the video tapes have disappeared. Thank you for your consideration.”
• A Russian expedition to Alaska began on July 16 and continues through the end of this month. From the article: ”During the expedition its participants will be collecting ethnographic material, writing an academic diary, questioning local people and describing the land.” The plan is to make a film and a school manual about Alaska for Russian students.
• Speaking of Alaska, on July 15 in Moscow, an event was held to mark the 270th anniversary of discovery of “Russian America.”
• On September 9-10, St. Theodosius OCA Cathedral in Cleveland will celebrate the 100th anniversary of its construction. The cathedral was founded in 1896, making it one of the oldest Orthodox parishes in the United States, and the current temple was built in 1911.
• Another centennial was celebrated in South Bend, Indiana, where Ss. Peter and Paul Serbian Orthodox Church was founded in 1911.
• The Secretariat of our Assembly of Bishops has begun a series of interviews with the hierarchs of the Assembly. The first five interviews, conducted by Fr. Josiah Trenham, are available on the Assembly website. Eventually, there will be interviews with every active Orthodox bishop in America. Over at the respected Orthodox blog Byzantine, Texas, the author had this reaction to the interviews: “Having listened to some of these talks, let me say they are not fluff. Fr. Josiah Trenham asks direct, probing questions and the bishops answer with great candor.”

NOTABLE LINKS:

• A video in memory of Fr. John Meyendorff was recently produced and is available on YouTube. Meyendorff, a longtime professor and former dean of St. Vladimir’s Seminary, died in 1992. He was one of the most influential theological writers in American Orthodoxy. To learn more, see this article from the St. Vladimir’s website.

 Matthew Namee, Editor