The 20th All-American Council

Synopsis

Originally scheduled to take place in 2021 per the triennial periodicity mandated by the OCA Statute, the 20th All-American Council had to be postponed for a year due to health concerns and Covid-19 pandemic restrictions.  The rescheduled Council convened from July 18 to 22, 2022 in Baltimore, Maryland at the Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor Hotel.  The theme of the Council was “Becoming Vessels of Grace”.

The first plenary session on Monday evening, July 18, was primarily devoted to the Address of His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon.  In his inspiring keynote speech, he defined the theme of the Council as follows “this theme reflects the concept of vocation: one’s calling by God to some sacred task or ministry.  But in a deeper sense, it is a theme that seeks to address a fundamental question we should all have: what does it mean to bear the Name of Jesus Christ?  What does it mean to be a Christian?”  He further elaborated on these thoughts and exhorted the Church as a whole, and each of us individually, to move forward in striving toward Christ. 

At the second plenary session the following morning, the Council heard the Metropolitan’s Report highlighting his archpastoral activities since the 19th Council four years earlier, especially in conjunction with the Covid-19 pandemic, and the relocation of the OCA Chancery and the Primate’s residence to the suburbs of Washington, DC.  The remainder of the session was devoted to pension matters, beginning with the Pension Board report, which engendered extensive discussion.  An amendment to the OCA Statute proposed by the Metropolitan Council mandating specific reporting requirements by the Pension Board to the Metropolitan Council and changing the process of selection of the Pension Board was not approved as it did not receive the required 2/3 majority vote for a Statute amendment.

The third plenary session on Wednesday morning opened with introductory remarks by Metropolitan Tikhon in which he expressed disappointment concerning the failed vote on the Pension amendment to the Statute and indicated that all possible measures would continue to be undertaken to ensure the long-term sustainability of the Plan.  A Statute amendment formally codifying the chancery administrative structure in effect since 2019 was adopted.  Fr. Alexander Rentel, Chancellor, Fr. Alessandro Margheritino, Secretary, and Andrew Smith, Treasurer, then presented highlights from their written reports.  After the report of the internal Auditing Committee, the Treasurer presented a resolution regarding funding of the OCA budget by dioceses for the next three years which would follow the funding patterns in place since the adoption of proportional giving at the 18th All-American Council.  The resolution was passed.  The plenary session concluded with a report on St. Tikhon’s Monastery from its abbot, Fr. Sergius (Bowyer). 

In addition to the usual plenary sessions, the 20th All-American Council featured four forums, which Council participants were strongly encouraged to attend and which were well received.  Tuesday’s forums were devoted to presentations from the Diocese of Alaska and the Thriving in Ministry grant-funded peer learning program to support clergy and clergy wives, while Wednesday’s were comprised of a presentation from the Diocese of Mexico and a panel discussion on addiction.

Opening the fourth plenary session on Thursday afternoon, Metropolitan Tikhon expressed his support for the initiatives presented by the Dioceses of Alaska and Mexico during the forums and personally pledged $10,000 per year for 10 years for each of the dioceses.  The Resolutions Committee had received a proposed resolution by which the Council would affirm the Church’s positions on same-sex relationships and sexual identity.  Inasmuch as matters pertaining to Church doctrine and morals, according to the OCA Statute, are not within the purview of the All-American Council, the Holy Synod responded by issuing, in its own name, a detailed “Statement on Same-sex Relationships and Sexual Identity” which was read to the Council by Archbishop Michael.  This was followed by the election of new Metropolitan Council and Pension Board members.  Fr. Thomas Soroka then reported on the activities of OCA Departments.  Two resolutions were brought before the Council.  One, to instituting an annual December Church-wide appeal to benefit the Diocese of Alaska Clergy Endowment, was adopted unanimously.  A second resolution, adopted nearly unanimously, condemned aggression in Ukraine and expressed unequivocal support for Metropolitan Onuphry and the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church.  The session concluded with reports from Fr. Chad Hatfield of St. Vladimir’s Seminary and Fr. John Parker of St. Tikhon’s Seminary and the announcement of the results of the elections conducted earlier in the session. 

The concluding plenary session of the 20th Council took place on Friday morning, July 22.  One last resolution was presented for the Council’s consideration regarding Pension Plan governance and accountability, and outlining measures for a more collaborative relationship between the Metropolitan Council and the Pension Board.  After discussion and amendment, the resolution was carried unanimously.  The nearly 140 Youth Observers at the Council then joined the session to deliver their youth statement and a video presentation of their activities throughout the week.  Three videos from the Polish Orthodox Church highlighting distribution of aid for Ukrainian refugees funded by the monetary donations collected by the OCA were shown, also.  After questions and comments from the floor on a variety of issues, Metropolitan Tikhon delivered concluding remarks exhorting the participants to carry the work and spirit of the Council forward to the Church at-large with and through Christ. 

In addition to the plenary sessions and forums, the following seminars took place during lunch breaks: Addiction, the Orthodox Church Capital Improvement Fund (OCCIF), Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry (OCPM), as well as a Clergy Wives Advisory Meeting.  The annual convention of the Fellowship of Orthodox Christians in America (FOCA) was again held in tandem with the Council, over the course of several preceding days.  As has been the custom recently, diocesan assemblies of some of the OCA dioceses were held just prior to the opening of the Council.  This allowed for the nomination of Bishop Daniel (Brum) by the Diocese of the Midwest Assembly and election by the Holy Synod to the recently vacated see of Chicago within an hour of the nomination.  This was unprecedented: it was the first time that a diocesan bishop was nominated by a diocesan assembly and elected by the Holy Synod in the context of an All-American Council.  A new, noteworthy aspect of this Council’s liturgical schedule were a liturgy celebrated by the hierarch and clergy of Alaska, another by those of Mexico and a third by those of the three non-territorial ethnic dioceses, all using their customs, chants and languages, witnessing to both the demographic diversity and the unity of the OCA. 

Arguably, the most substantial outcomes of the 20th All-American Council were the resolution addressing longstanding pension issues in an effort to resolve ongoing complex problems in order to safeguard this important aspect of care for clergy and lay workers going forward, and the concrete and meaningful response to financial needs of the OCA’s oldest diocese and its youngest diocese.  Overall, the 20th All-American Council was successful in ensuring continuity and administrative stability in the Orthodox Church in America in a peaceful and inspiring manner and, through the Council’s theme, providing spiritual perspective to our ongoing ecclesial conciliar life.

Plenary Session Minutes

Plenary Session 1