Latest News and Articles

Registration Begins for OCF College Conference 2009 on September 20th

Fishers, IN – September 16, 2009

Registration for 2009 College Conference opens Sunday, September 20^thand runs through December 1^st. “Building Community” (II Corinthians 13:14) is the chosen theme for this year’s conference. Identical conferences will run simultaneously from December 27-31 in two locations: the Antiochian Village in Bolivar, Pennsylvania and the Diakonia Center in Salem, South Carolina.

OCF is honored this year to announce that His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah will be the keynote speaker at the Antiochian Village. Additionally, The Very Reverend Father Jon Braun will be delivering the keynote addresses at the Diakonia Center.

Registration is $325 for students and $375 for alumni. Included in the registration fee are transformative keynote addresses and inspiring workshops, social events, a dinner/dance, memories and friendships that will last a lifetime as well as lodging and meals.

Space is limited so register early. Some scholarships are available. Please visit www.ocf.net or call 1-800-919-1623 for more information.

For additional information contact:

Kelli Phillips

Program Director,
Orthodox Christian Fellowship
kelli@ocf.net
www.ocf.net

College Student Sunday + September 20, 2009

ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP
“Keeping our College Students Connected to the Church”
OCF COLLEGE STUDENT SUNDAY 2009

A discussion of College Student Sunday on the OCN Now podcast

Fishers, IN – September 16, 2009

Since 2003, the Hierarchs of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA) have designated the Sunday following the Elevation of the Holy Cross as OCF College Student Sunday. They ask all faithful Orthodox Christians in North America to call to mind and prayer our college students. We invite you to read the 2009 SCOBA College Student Sunday Encyclical at www.ocf.net/css.

OCF’s mission is to help Our Youth discover that it is communion with God, through life in the Church, which gives real meaning and significance to life.

Orthodox Christian Fellowship is Our Campus Ministry. It exists to come alongside families and parishes to provide solutions. OCF provides curricula, educational DVDs, service learning encounters and an interactive website that help our students apply their faith in their daily lives. On a program level, OCF offers large-scale, transformative opportunities annually, such as College Conference and Real Break.

Currently, we have 270 local college/university chapters in the United States and Canada. Together these individual chapters represent the backbone of the OCF ministry and Our Future of the Orthodox Church in North America.

Audio Available of Department of College Ministry Presentation at Archdiocese Convention

Click here to listen to the presentation from Ms. Cathy Abraham at the general assembly of the 2009 Archdiocese Convention.

More audio from the 2009 Convention is available from Ancient Faith Radio.

Real Break trip to Constantinople

Read daily progress reports here.

Ft. Lauderdale, FL OCF (Orthodox Christian Fellowship) is pleased to announce another Real Break trip to Constantinople. Real Break Constantinople serves God and other people while participating in the life of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. His Grace Bishop SAVAS, the newly appointed Director of Church and Society of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, will lead the group assisted by the Rev. Mark Leondis the National Youth Director for the GOA and Chairman of the Board of Orthodox Christian Fellowship and the Rev. Dr. Christopher T. Metropulos the Executive Director of OCN (The Orthodox Christian Network) and the Pastor of St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. The Real Break Trip to Istanbul, Turkey begins on March 14, 2009.

The group consists of 22 participants from five different Orthodox Christian jurisdictions. The college students from around the country are traveling to Constantinople to receive the blessings of His All Holiness and refurbish a church and a cemetery that has fallen into disrepair. Fr. Kevin Scherer, Executive Director of OCF commented, "OCF is honored to have the opportunity to assist the Ecumenical Patriarch in his efforts to restore and maintain the parishes of his ancient see. This Real Break trip in particular provides our students with a transformative perspective into both the past and the present struggles of our Church. The participants will work hard in a very short span of time."

Orthodox Christian Fellowship Launches New Web Site

Fishers, IN – March 6, 2009

Orthodox Christian Fellowship (OCF) has designed and created a brand new website, www.ocf.net, using the very latest technology to connect with the world's most powerful social networking engine known as Facebook. OCF is one of the first websites to utilize the new technology called Facebook Connect. Facebook Connect allows external networks such as OCF.net to gain access and share information. This new website connects every local OCF chapter in North America, and establishes an online community for each of our students without competing with Facebook. The website allows the individual user to interact with one another and each of our programs in a very dynamic way. Students can upload and download media, blog, view podcasts and provide regular feedback and commentary. Clergy, youth workers and parents can find articles and curriculum. It provides our ministry an excellent platform for community and communication. Visit us today at www.ocf.net!

Metropolitan JONAH Loves OCF!

Click here to hear Metropolitan JONAH of the OCA share his thoughts on OCF, spirituality during college, and monastic vocations.

University of Illinois Orthodox Christian Student Living Center

Imagine a college dormitory with icons on the walls, incense lingering in the air, and the sounds of studying, prayer, and fellowship alike. Such a place exists!
At the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign, the Orthodox Christian Student Living Center provides such an on-campus home away from home. Open since 2004, the first such Center in North America has hosted dozens of students as residents and as a meeting place for members of the local OCF. For more details and contact info please visit http://orthodoxalumni.com/ .

This particular form of campus ministry is one that we envision spreading to *all* college campuses. The Center does face challenges, but with God's grace and the prayerful support and donations of the faithful, this ministry endures and grows. Would you please consider lending your support so that we may help plant seeds of future Orthodox residences? Especially, please inform all high school seniors and UIUC students you know that this opportunity is available to them. The board of directors of the Orthodox Christian Alumni Association thanks you.