On Wednesday, March 4, 2009, His Eminence Archibishop Demetrios, Primate of the  Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America will present a lecture entitled  "St. Paul:  Apostle of the Crucified and Risen Lord" at the Cathedral Center of the Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity.   His Eminence's presentation will conclude the Cathedral Fellowship's 2009 Pre-Lenten Lecture Series.

 

St. Paul is the fascinating figure born of Jewish parents and imbued with Hellenic culture whose powerful intellect, forceful personality and loving soul helped him to bring the words of Christ throughout the Roman Empire.  Dr. Bruce Beck, whose lecture opened the series, describes St. Paul as "the Apostle of the Nations and the glory of the Church," who proclaimed the Gospel which he likewise had received upon his conversion in Damascus.  At the center of this Christian proclamation to the eastern Mediterranean Roman world stood two pillars: 1) the crucifixion of Christ for our sins, and 2) Christ's resurrection on the third day.  Through his life, sufferings, and radiant epistles, St. Paul illumined us all about what it means to be a follower of Christ. This series of pre-Lenten lectures will explore the varied ways that St. Paul interpreted and preached the "Good News" of Christ's death and resurrection both for the building up of the Church and for the regeneration of every Christian."

 His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios was enthroned on September 18, 1999, in New York City, and as the Archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Church in America, is the religious leader of more than one and a half million Greek Orthodox Christian faithful throughout the United States.  He is a distinguished author and scholar who has long combined teaching and research with service to the Greek Orthodox Chruch.  He was born in Thessaloniki, Greece and in 1960 he was ordained a deacon and in 1964, a priest. Elected Bishop of Vresthena in 1967, he served as an auxiliary bishop to the Archbishop of Athens with the primary responsibility for the theological education of the clergy. From 1965 to 1971, on scholarship from Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, he studied New Testament and Christian Origins and was awarded a Ph.D. "with distinction", in 1972.

As a faculty member from 1983 to 1993 at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, MA he taught many of America's Greek Orthodox clergy.  His Eminence also taught at Harvard Divinity School as a Visiting Professor of New Testament.  He returned to Greece in 1993 to pursue full-time scholarly writing and research until his election as Archbishop of America.

This year's Pre-Lenten Lecture Series is presented under the spiritual leadership of the Rev. Dr. Frank Marangos, Dean of the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, and the theme was developed by Dr. Bruce Beck, Director of the Pappas Patristic Institute of Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, where he also serves as the Adjunct Associate Professor of the Interpretation of scripture.

The lecture series began on February 11th with Dr. Beck's lecture on "St. Paul and the Mystery of the Resurrection" and continued with the Rev. Dr. John Behr, Dean, and Professor in Patristics, St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary who spoke on "St. Paul and the Victory of the Cross."

Doors will open 7:00 PM and presentations begin promptly at 7:30 PM at the Cathedral Center, 337 East 74th Street (between First and Second Avenues) in Manhattan.   Refreshments will be served and the suggested donation is $10.

The Cathedral Fellowship seeks to promote friendship, spiritual growth, cultural awareness and philanthropy through a wide array of activities, including: Lectures and discussions on spiritual topics; Cultural events such as concerts, discussions on topics of cultural interest, and art exhibits; Dances and other social events; Classes for adults in Modern Greek and Greek dance; and The Cathedral Fellowship Bookstore. For additional information contact Dean Sirigos at csirigos100@aol.com.