Metropolitan Herman to present honorary Doctorate to Albanian Archbishop Anastasios
His Beatitude, Metropolitan Herman, Primate of the Orthodox Church in America and President of Saint Vladimir Orthodox Theological Seminary here, will present an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree to His Beatitude, Archbishop Anastasios of Tirana, Durres, and All Albania during a two-day symposium on Missions to be held at the school on Thursday and Friday, February 27-28, 2003.
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Dean John Erickson will join Metropolitan Herman in formally receiving Archbishop Anastasios on Thursday afternoon. At 6:30 p.m., the hierarchs will attend Vespers in the seminary’s Three Hierarchs Chapel, after which Archbishop Anastasios will deliver the symposium’s keynote lecture, “Rediscovering our Apostolic Identity in the 21st Century,” in the Metropolitan Philip Saliba Auditorium. The presentation of the honorary degree is slated to take place at the conclusion of the lecture.
Archbishop Anastasios is the foremost Orthodox missiologist in the world today. He has dedicated his life to reviving missionary interest and consciousness within the Orthodox Church, and has made many scholarly contributions to the field of missiology. He has served on the mission field in East Africa and Albania, and has been a leading advocate for Orthodox Christianity and mission within ecumenical circles.
Other speakers and topics during the two-day symposium include the Rev. Luke Veronis [“Challenges Facing Modern Missions”]; the Very Rev. Constantine Nasr [“Renewing the Spirit of Missions in the Local Parish”]; Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko [“Mission and Philanthropy”]; and the Rev. Michael Nasser [“Youth and Mission”].
In addition to Metropolitan Herman, it is anticipated that His Eminence, Archbishop Demetrios of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, will be present for the lecture.
The symposium is open to the public. For further information, schedule, and registration fees, visit the seminary web site at www.svots.edu.