The Society for Orthodox Christian History in the Americas
Symposium 2011
2011 SOCHA Symposium:
Pilgrims and Pioneers:
The Growth of Orthodox Christianity in 20th Century America
Friday, September 30, 2011
6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Princeton University
Saturday, October 1, 2011
8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Stuart Hall, Princeton Theological Seminary
This symposium examined some of the people and movements that contributed to the growth of Orthodox Christianity in 20th century America. We will pay special attention to the role of missionaries, immigration and conversion, the emergence of Orthodox theological scholarship in English, and Orthodox engagement in American civic and political life.
The event was co-sponsored by the Society for Orthodox Christian History in the Americas (SOCHA), the School of Christian Vocation and Mission at Princeton Theological Seminary, and the Fr. Georges Florovsky Orthodox Christian Theological Society at Princeton University.
Featured Lecturers
Fr. Demetrios J. Constantelos, Ph.D., D.D., is a retired presbyter of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, and the Charles Cooper Townsend Sr. Professor Emeritus of History and Religious Studies, and Distinguished Research Scholar in Residence at the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, Pomona, N.J. He is the author of numerous scholarly publications and the series editor of the collected works of Archbishop Iakovos Koukouzis, whose legacy of leadership in the public sphere Fr. Demetrios will discuss in his lecture.
Fr. Oliver Herbel, Ph.D., is the executive director of the Society for Orthodox Christian History in the Americas (SOCHA). In addition to a forthcoming book on St. Sarapion of Thmuis, Fr. Oliver has published several articles in peer-reviewed journals, mainly focused on American Orthodox history. He is currently editing his dissertation under the new title Creative Converts: How Intra-Christian Converts to Orthodoxy Imagine Their Conversions. Fr. Oliver’s lecture will focus on several Greek clergymen who served in the early Russian Mission.
Scott M. Kenworthy, Ph.D., is associate professor of comparative religion at Miami University, Ohio. He is the author of The Heart of Russia: Trinity-Sergius, Monasticism and Society After 1825 (Oxford University Press, 2010), as well as several book chapters and articles in peer-reviewed journals, mainly focusing on Russian and Russian American history. His lecture will examine the life and legacy of St. Tikhon Bellavin.
Paul Ladouceur, DPhil, teaches Orthodox theology and spirituality at Université de Sherbrooke (Québec, Canada) and Trinity College, University of Toronto. He has published a number of articles on modern Orthodox spiritual figures, mostly in French. His lecture will examine the contributions of Fathers Georges Florovsky, Alexander Schmemann and John Meyendorff to Orthodoxy in North America and beyond.
A list of the short papers that were delivered in the concurrent sessions is available here.
For more information on the Symposium, CLICK HERE.
