Faith And Order Commission Meeting Held At The Western Diocese

The Southern California Christian Forum (SCCF) of the Faith and Order Commission held a meeting at the Zaven and Sonia Akian Conference Room of St. Leon (Srbots Ghevontiants) Armenian Cathedral on Thursday, October 13, 2016.

The esteemed guests of the SCCF were welcomed by Mr. Hayk Madoyan, the Ecumenical Officer of the Western Diocese. It had been mutually agreed upon by the Faith and Order members to discuss the topic of Chalcedonian Christology at length during the upcoming four meetings, the first of which was hosted by the Western Diocese.

Topics on the agenda included the Study of Oriental and Chalcedonian Christology. The “Agreed Statement” between the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches of 1970 and the Christology Agreed Statement between the Anglican and Oriental Orthodox Churches of 2014 were analyzed and discussed during the meeting.

Welcoming the members of SCCF’s Faith and Order Commission, the Diocesan Primate joined the discussion. In his remarks, the Primate noted of the willingness of the Western Diocese to host a larger ecumenical study group in order to find common ground toward realizing the ultimate goal of Church unity.

The event was an unprecedented one as members and representatives of the Oriental Orthodox, Evangelican and Catholic Churches as well as the Assyrian Church of the East gathered in one setting to further discuss and analyze Christological issues.

The Very Rev. Fr. Pakrad Dz. V. Berjekian, Vicar General was introduced to the esteemed guests by the Diocesan Primate. Fr. Pakrad will be joining the SCCF and will be representing the Diocesan Primate.

The next meeting will also be held at the Diocesan Headquarters on December 6, 2016.

About the SCCF

The Southern California Christian Forum (SCCF), formerly The Southern California Ecumenical Council (SCEC), is a regional body representing churches, denominations, related ministries and other ecclesiastical communities who cooperate to promote responsible and creative expressions of our Christian unity and witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Through ecumenical networks and inter-religious partnerships SCEC works to foster religious understanding, to advocate for social justice and to advance the well-being of all people. The Week of Prayer Service and the Faith and Order Commission part of the current work of the Forum.