SCOBA Re-institutes Inter-Orthodox Campus Ministry Effort

The Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA), at its meeting on December 14, 2000, officially adopted the Orthodox Christian Fellowship (OCF) movement as the official campus ministry effort under its auspices. A proposal was submitted by the Department of Campus Ministry of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese, the Departments of Youth and Young Adult Ministries of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese and the Orthodox Church in America, to the hierarchs and was unanimously and enthusiastically approved.

The first visible result of this decision will be the establishment of a North American office for OCF, offering support, resources and coordination for the 150 campus-based OCF’s currently in existence. The office will be initially located at the Patriarch Athenagoras Orthodox Institute (PAOI), located at the University of California in Berkeley, and will begin operations in early February. The Institute has received a three-year grant from the Leadership 100 Foundation of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America to create and develop inter-Orthodox resources for national campus ministry.

The major responsibilities of the OCF office will include the following:

• Coordinating and supporting the established OCF chapters

• Helping to establish new OCF chapters where local interest, support and resources are present

• Facilitating inter-campus interaction through regional and North American conferences, retreats, as well as philanthropic and social activities

• Maintaining the OCF mailing list, publishment of a official OCF newsletter and maintaining an up-to-date website

• The development of long-term funding through foundations, private donations and the support of OCF alumni

>SCOBA will oversee OCF through the reestablishment of the Campus Commission, a SCOBA committee comprised of representatives from each SCOBA jurisdiction. The Campus Commission last met in the early 1970’s.“It’s been years since we’ve seen this degree of cooperation between all canonical jurisdictions in the area of youth ministry,” said the Reverend Mark Leondis, Director of the Department of Youth and Young Adult Ministries of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. “This could have a huge impact on our young people who are struggling to keep their faith in the spiritually challenging environment of the modern day college campus. It’s an incredibly exciting time and we’re thrilled with the level of support we’ve received from our hierarchs.”

Contact Information:

Orthodox Christian Fellowship

2311 Hearst Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94709
Tel: (510) 704-8981
Fax: (510) 841-6605
Website: www.ocf.net