2012 Saint John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival

This Saint John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival, started by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Department of Religious Education in 1983, is an excellent opportunity for our Greek Orthodox children and teenagers to think about, research, write and speak publicly about their Faith. Public speaking is a very valuable skill and, through this Festival, the Church provides a supportive and nurturing environment for our young people to do so, and simultaneously the opportunity to learn about their faith! It also provides them with an avenue to meet some of their peers throughout the Metropolis and Archdiocese. The Parish, District and Metropolis Festivals offer certificates and awards. The Archdiocese Festival offers scholarships to the first, second and third place winners. Grades 7 – 9 participate in the Junior Division, and grades 10 – 12 participate in the Senior Division. The Oratorical Festival can also be offered on the parish level only for grades 4 – 6.

For Parish Festival Senior Division 1st Place Winners, Hellenic College now also offers a scholarship covering the first year of tuition and a discount for the next three years equaling approximately $65,000.
With so many wonderful opportunities for our young people, shouldn’t all of our communities be participating? Of course! And this is the hope and prayer of His Eminence Metropolitan Gerasimos, who presides at the Metropolis Festival held at Saint Nicholas Ranch and Retreat Center every year.

Therefore, it is time for all of our communities to begin organizing their own Parish Festivals, which should be completed at least one to two weeks before the District Festivals. The schedule for the District Festival is:

Pacific Northwest District

Co-Chairs: Mr. David Howard and Mrs. Marianthi Geokezas
Host Parish: Assumption, Seattle, WA
Date: Saturday, March 31

Northern California Bay Area District

Co-Chairs: Fran and Bruce Corcoran
Host Parish: Nativity of Christ, Novato, CA
Date: Sunday, April 1

Central Valley District

Co-Chairs: Rev. Jon Magoulias and Mrs. Denna Tsatsaronis        
Host Parish: Annunciation Church, Modesto, CA
Date: Sunday, April 22

Southern California District

Chair: Ms. Aristi Contos                                                                
Host Parish: St. Nectarios, Covina, CA
Date: Sunday, April 1

Southwest District

Co-Chairs: Deacon Drew Maxwell and Ms. Jeanette Hollander
Host Parish: St. Haralambos, Peoria, AZ
Date: Saturday, March 31

The finalists from the various districts will then participate in the Metropolis Festival which will take place on Saturday, May 5, 2012 at Saint Nicholas Ranch and Retreat Center in Dunlap, CA. A flyer is attached to assist in the promotion of this event. The Junior and Senior Division finalists will travel to Bethesda, Maryland for the Archdiocese Festival which will be held June 8 – 10, 2012.

For information on the Saint John Oratorical Festival and procedures on how to host a Parish Festival, please visit the Archdiocese Department of Religious Education website at www.goarch.org/archdiocese/departments/religioused/sjcof . For additional questions and assistance please contact the Metropolis Religious Education Committee Chair, Dr. Eve Tibbs, at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or 714-313-0186, or the Metropolis Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or 415-814-1186.