In no particular order, as selected by the brain trust at In Good Faith world headquarters, and barring any unforeseen developments in the hours that remain. Comments?

Jewish Community Center opens on Saturdays, over objections of Orthodox community

Maryland priest becomes first lesbian Episcopal Bishop

Baltimore Hebrew University closes; reopens at Towson University

Muslims meet in Baltimore, denounce terror

Episcopal nuns join Catholic Church en masse

Catholic Diocese of Wilmington declares Bankruptcy

Death of Rabbi Mark Loeb

Towson Catholic High School closure surprises students, parents

Ecumenical Patriarch, head of Orthodox Christianity, visits Maryland

City Council passes first-in-nation regulations on faith-based crisis pregnancy centers

Atheists target Baltimore, ask: Are you good without God?

Posted by Matthew Hay Brown at 5:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

In the months since we started In Good Faith, we've attracted readers and commenters from all over the world. Ties to the Baltimore area will be helpful in spotting some familiar faces in the video above (the list appears at the end).

I wanted to take a moment to say a sincere thank you to all who have stopped by, and particularly to those who have joined in the spirited debate taking shape on these pages. During this holiday season, we wish the very best to everyone of every faith, and no faith at all.

I expect to be posting only lightly over the next few days as I take time off to spend with my family. As my father would say: Talk amongst yourselves.

Best,
Matt

Posted by Matthew Hay Brown at 5:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Dozens of people led by an Orthodox priest smashed a menorah in Moldova's capital on Sunday, using hammers and iron bars to remove the candelabra during Hanukkah, the Associated Press reports.

The five-foot-tall ceremonial candelabrum was retrieved, reinstalled and is now under police guard, according to the AP.

Police said they were investigating the Sunday attack but there was no official reaction from Moldova's Orthodox Church, which is part of the Russian Orthodox Church and counts 70 percent of Moldovans as members.

The Jewish community was thriving before World War II but there are now estimated to be just 12,000 Jews in the former Soviet Republic. Twenty years ago there were 66,000 Jews. Many emigrated to Israel.

The national government said in a statement that "hatred, intolerance and xenophobia" are unacceptable. The U.S. Embassy and the Chisinau city government also condemned the attack. City officials called on the church to investigate.

Jewish leader Alexandr Bilinkis called on the Orthodox Church to take a position over the priest's actions. The head of the church, Bishop Vladimir Cantarean, was at his mother's funeral in Ukraine on Monday and was expected to make a statement when he returns, the church said.

Posted by Matthew Hay Brown at 5:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew had issued his greeting and blessed the few hundred who had waited in the cold outside Ss. Constantine and Helen Orthodox Church in Annapolis – in Greek. He was stepping down from the platform when an aide said something in his ear. Bartholomew, the worldwide leader of Orthodox Christianity, returned to the microphone.

“I was told that I have to speak also in English,” he said. Laughter and cheers from a grateful crowd.

We had a story in Tuesday’s newspaper about the visit of Bartholomew, who as archbishop of Constantinople is first among equals among the 14 patriarchs of Orthodox Christianity. He celebrated the 18th anniversary of his enthronement with a doxology and a dinner at the Annapolis church.

It was his first visit to Maryland since 1997, when he made an appearance at the Cathedral of the Annunciation in Baltimore, and his first ever to Annapolis. In attendance were Archbishop Demetrios of America, the leader of the Greek Orthodox Church in the United States; Metropolitan Evangelos, who heads the Metropolis of New Jersey, which includes Maryland; U.S. Rep. John Sarbanes, the Greek-American Democrat from Baltimore County; and Cardinal William Keeler, the former Roman Catholic archbishop of Baltimore.

During his homily, Bartholomew said it was fitting to be celebrating his anniversary at Ss. Constantinople and Helen and in Maryland. A transcript follows, after the jump.

Continue reading "Scenes from Bartholomew's visit" »

Posted by Matthew Hay Brown at 6:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, the global head of the 300 million-member Orthodox Christian Church, arrived in New Orleans on Tuesday to begin his sixth visit to the United States.

Archbishop Demetrios of America welcomed him at Louis Armstrong Airport with Metropolitan Alexios of Atlanta, members of the local clergy, local officials, local Orthodox faithful and children dressed in traditional costume.

Bartholomew blessed the gathering and issued greetings:

From the Mother Church of Constantinople and the Holy and Great Church of Christ, the Ecumenical Patriarchate, we bring you greetings and blessings in the Name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

We give thanks to Almighty God for granting us a safe arrival here in New Orleans, a place to which we return with much hope and expectation. We return after nearly four years, when we came in the Winter of 2006 to share in the loss and pain of the courageous citizens of New Orleans and to witness the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.

We return to the place where the mighty Mississippi River nears its course into the Gulf of Mexico, and where the waves of the sea and the banks of the river overflowed. We return so that we might bear witness to the hope that is in you, the hope you have manifested through the rebuilding your lives and your community. We return in order to pray with you and to intercede with the Lord of creation, that the ‘flood of many waters shall not come nigh unto you again.'

We return to this historic and famed city, and call on your fellow citizens around the country to return here for themselves; whether to live or enjoy the unique offerings of New Orleans.

Continue reading "Bartholomew arrives" »

Posted by Matthew Hay Brown at 5:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, the global leader of the 300 million-member Orthodox Christian Church, will visit Sts. Constantine and Helen Church in Annapolis next month as part of his sixth visit to the United States.

Styled "The Green Patriarch," the ecologically aware Bartholomew has come to preside over the eighth Religion, Science and the Environment Symposium, to be convenved on Tuesday in New Orleans around the subject of "Restoring Balance: The Great Mississippi River." While in the country, he will also celebrate the 10th anniversary of the enthronement of Archbishop Demetrios of America as the Primate of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.

In Annapolis on Nov. 2, Batholomew will mark his 18th year as ecumenical patriarch in a Doxology service at Sts. Constantine and Helen.

"Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew's visit comes at a time of spiritual rejuvenation for our Holy Metropolis and his presence among us will inspire us to continue serving our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ with all of our hearts, minds, souls and strength," Metropolitan Evangelos of New Jersey, whose Metropolis includes Maryland, said in statement. "I am confident that all of our pious Orthodox faithful appreciate and realize the great honor that His All Holiness bestows upon us once again by visiting us during the his visit to the United States."

Posted by Matthew Hay Brown at 9:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: International, Orthodox Christianity, People