New York, NY – On Sunday, March 16, Hierarchs representing the membership of the jurisdictions of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA) will gather at the Greek Orthodox Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in New York City for the Divine Liturgy and the celebration of the Sunday of Orthodoxy.
His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios, Chairman of SCOBA and Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in America, will host the event and co-celebrate with Archbishop Nicolae of the Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese in America and Canada, Archbishop Antony of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA, Metropolitan Nicholas of the American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese in the USA, Bishop Mitrofan of the Serbian Orthodox Church in the United States and Canada, Bishop Antoun of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America, Bishop Seraphim representing the Orthodox Church in America, and Bishop Ilia of the Albanian Orthodox Diocese of America. His Eminence Metropolitan Nicholas will preach the homily, seminarians from Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology will chant the Matins, and the Cathedral Choir, directed by Dr. Dino Anagnost, will sing the hymns and responses of the Liturgy.
The historical significance of the Sunday of Orthodoxy dates to 787 A.D. when the Fathers of the Seventh Ecumenical Council of Nicaea decreed the restoration of the icons as a means for the spiritual growth and formation of the Christian ethos and character in the likeness and image of God and His Saints. In 843 A.D. when the veneration of icons was solemnly proclaimed at Saint Sophia Cathedral in Constantinople, clergy and monks came in procession and restored icons to their rightful places within the church. The Sunday of Orthodoxy is traditionally celebrated in Orthodox Churches worldwide on the first Sunday of Great Lent. Following the Divine Liturgy, the clergy lead the faithful in the procession of icons and a recitation of the Declaration of Faith.
The Hierarchical Divine Liturgy will begin at 10:00 a.m. The Cathedral of the Holy Trinity is located at 319 East 74th Street in Manhattan.