About Family Ministry
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For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthered with might through His spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. – Ephesians 3:14-19
The mission of The Center for Family Care of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America is, in the words of His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios, “both to affirm the importance of the family as a blessed gift of God and to address the specific needs of families as they try to live in a very challenging culture and world. As Orthodox Christians, we know that each and every family needs to be connected to the Church—a place where true relationships with God and one another are nurtured and sustained. Thus, through this program we will be working to bring more aspects of our faith into the home and to bring more families into the Church.”
Is it parents living with 2.5 children in suburbia or is it the single person living alone in the heart of a bustling city? The answer would be both and every other combination you can imagine. Family can be defined many ways, but, in essence, it is as a group of individuals who are connected either by affection, kinship, dependency or trust. Each of us has an immediate family whether we are close to them or not. This family can include parents, guardians, spouses, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. In addition, we all have people that play a very important role in our lives—our family of friends. But there is one more family that we often overlook—our church family. As members of the Orthodox Christian Church, we are members of the Body of Christ. God is our Heavenly Father and we are His children. Oftentimes, we forget our life-sustaining parent and only remember Him when we attend church on Sundays.
During the course of our lives, each of us goes through many different phases. Below are recognized stages of individual and family life. Please note actual ages may vary considerably from one stage to another. Within each of these periods, much growth and development take place.
| Stages of Life | Stages of Family Life Cycle |
| Stage 1: Infancy (Birth to 18 months) | Stage 1: Independence |
| Stage 2: Early Childhood (18 months to 3 years) | Stage 2: Coupling |
| Stage 3: Preschool (3 years to 5 years) | Stage 3: Families with Young Children |
| Stage 4: School Age (5 years to 12 years) | Stage 4: Families with Adolescents |
| Stage 5: Adolescence (12 years to 18 years) | Stage 5: Empty Nesters |
| Stage 6: Young Adult (18 years to 35 years) | Stage 6: Retirement and Senior Living |
| Stage 6: Middle Age (35 years to 55 years) | |
| Stage 7: Late Adult (55+ years) |
In his keynote address at the 2002 Clergy-Laity Congress in Los Angeles, His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios presented a bold, new initiative for the Greek Orthodox Church in America. He announced that the Church would begin an intense effort of focusing on the needs of families. His Eminence stated that, “Our vision and our objective in this instance is to create, with the help of God, a Center for Family Care that will be a model institution for the advancement of healthy, happy, and dynamic Orthodox families, and for the full incorporation of interfaith marriages into the life of each and every Parish.” To support this vital ministry, the Archdiocese would create a Center for Family Care that would develop programs and resources to address questions and issues related to all areas of family life while also making available trained counselors to assist families in crisis. Additionally, the Center would coordinate seminars and other educational opportunities for the family throughout our Archdiocese. All of these resources will be offered to our parishes so that the families within each community become, in the words of His Eminence, “the object of constant attention, care, and assistance.”
Shortly after the Congress, Archbishop Demetrios formed the Archdiocesan Roundtable on the Family. This group of clergy, marriage and family specialists, physicians, and other professionals immediately started working to build this ministry so that it will reach every family in every parish and assist us in offering our faith to families throughout America. 2005 was declared the “Year of the Family,” but focus on the family did not cease with the passing of that year. Rather, it set the stage for a new focus in the ministry of the Archdiocese—a focus on our families. The Center for Family Care is taking steps toward this effort. Still in its infant stages, much has been accomplished, but there is much more to come.
In 2005, several part-time staff members were added to the group of dedicated volunteers that had been diligently working for the center since its inception. In 2006, the first full-time staff member was added permitting more means for expansion. In 2008, we welcomed another full-time staff member. As this center has the potential for such a large range of services, it is now developing a long-term plan for the future while continuing to create resources that will be immediately available for families. As we grow, our scope will branch out so that we will have resources and services for all Orthodox Christian families in every part of the family life cycle. We look eagerly toward the future of this ministry and continue to ask for your prayers and feedback as we develop.
