Blessing of the Mississippi River

The mighty Mississippi River was blessed yesterday by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew along with several other clergy.  You can see pictures of yesterday's service here.


Here is a short little video on YouTube from yesterday's Blessing of the Waters.

Live Broadcast of the Green Patriarch

At 11am (Eastern) today, you will be able to watch a live broadcast of the patriarch's address to the Religion, Science, and Environment (RSE) Symposium.  Patriarch Bartholomew has been a part of  RSE symposiums in the past also.  The symposiums are held on major world rivers because of the extreme importance of water.  This symposium will be focusing on the Mississippi River.

A wonderful video has been made available (for free - it's normally a $20 video) on the web.  It does a wonderful job giving a background about Patriarch Bartholomew as well as his efforts for helping the environment.  I encourage all of you to take advantage of the opportunity to not only watch the live address above but also watch the following video - "The Green Patriarch".

At this time, it is exceedingly trendy to be “eco-friendly”.  As Orthodox Christians, we need to put into perspective why it is important to be protectors of the environment and not just follow the current fad because “it’s the thing to do”.  God created the earth and he put us here to be stewards of the earth.  As stewards of the earth, we have to be aware that sometimes our actions can contribute to the destruction and polluting of the beauty of God’s Creation all around us.  There are steps each one of us can do to change our own lifestyles and homes.  Just as the average person could not go out and run a marathon tomorrow – making your home environmentally friendly is not going to happen overnight.  There are habits we have – that we may or may not even recognize yet – which will take some time to break.  Take small steps in changing.  Begin the walk towards becoming eco-friendly and with time you’ll be running the marathon yourself.

Here are some discussion questions to think about while watching the film (link above) - "The Green Patriarch".  After the show, talk with your family and friends about your thoughts and what you’ve learned from the documentary.  Talk about the changes you want to make in your own home.

Discussion Questions:

1.    1.   Who is the “Green Patriarch”?

2.    2.    How did he earn the title of Green Patriarch?

3.    3.    Why does the patriarch say it is a sin not to care for the environment?

4.    4.    What is the goal of the patriarch by having symposiums with scientists and religious leaders together?

5.    5.    Where does the patriarch take the symposiums?

6.    6.    How can a massive movement to save the earth occur?

7.    7.    There’s a need for leadership with the environmental crisis.  Why is it important for it to come from religious leaders?

8.    8.    What was the declaration the Patriarch and Pope signed?

This is truly an important and historic visit for the patriarch to the United States!

Patriarch's Arrival in the U.S.

Here's a short little clip of Patriarch Bartholomew arriving at the New Orleans airport.

Visit of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew

Photo by:  Nikolaos Manginas

The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople will be arriving today in New Orleans.  He will be visiting several places in the U.S. including Louisiana, New York, Georgia, Maryland, and Washington D.C. as well as being part of a symposium on the Mississippi River discussing ways to improve the environment.  You can follow his itinerary here.

My husband and I were very blessed to get to meet him on a pilgrimage in 2007.  He talked a little about his efforts to help the environment and the importance of being stewards of God's Creation.  I'm sure his schedule was extremely full and we all knew how fortunate we were to receive 30 minutes of his time at the patriarchate.  (There were about 25 of us that went on this pilgrimage through the Youth Department of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese.)

Here's a glimpse of our trip:

Locally, the patriarchate is referred to as the Fener or Phanar.  Our bus driver dropped us off on a main street where our first hint that we were close to the patriarchate was a small shop selling icons.  This sticks out quickly in Istanbul where the population is dominantly Muslim.  We start to walk up a side street towards a walled in courtyard.  Some of the locals are trying to sell knick knacks to us while others are staring at us.  We're not quite sure if it's a curious stare or an intruding stare.  As we approarch the stairs to walk up to the door of the courtyard, we notice a door in front of us that has been permanently locked. 

We quickly learn that one of the past patriarchs, Patriarch Gregory V, was hung in front of this door in 1821 by the Turks.  The door is welded shut to this day in memory of the patriarch.  

Here is the door from inside the courtyard -

There are many buildings situated close together once you enter the courtyard.  Nothing as glamorous or large as something you find at the Vatican but there is a humble beauty and peace washing over you as you glance around. 

This is the exterior of the Basilica of St. George -

Inside, we venerated the relics of St. John Chrysostom and St. Gregory the Theologian as well as the relics of other saints.

These are the relics of St. John Chrysostom on the left and St. Gregory the Theologian on the right.

Our group was escorted into a large room where we waited to see Patriarch Bartholomew.  We watched and listened as he sat and talked to us.  Afterwards, we were permitted to look around in a couple of rooms before walking out to the courtyard again.

During the pilgrimage we visited many churches and historical spots.  Among one of our favorites was Agia Sophia (the Chuch of Holy Wisdom) in Constantinople.  The first time you visit Agia Sophia, you are just overwhelmed with the immensity of the church.  I stood there and imagined what it would have been like to attend a Divine Liturgy here hundreds of years ago.  Clergy numbered in the hundreds during the church's prime.  It must have been absolutely amazing!

    Walking up to Agia Sophia

     A glimpse of the narthex

Nave of the Church  (There was construction on the dome.)

This is the upper level of the church.  

Today, you can see the impact the crusades, Muslims, and tourists have had on the church over the centuries.  In this picture, you can see the painted walls with the ornate byzantine style decorations done by the Muslims.  Muslims do not believe in having pictures in places of worship and covered all the icons in Agia Sophia with plaster and paint when they converted the church into a mosque.  The mosque has since been turned into a museum and some of the icons have been uncovered for the tourists to see.  This icon in particular has been damaged primarily by tourists.  Now...you can't get up close and touch it because there is a rope "wall" in front of the icons.  But previously, tourists would take a mosaic as a souvenir of their visit to Agia Sophia.

This is an example of the damage the crusaders left on Agia Sophia. The cross was plucked from the walls of the church when the crusaders came through and plundered Constantinople in the 1200's.

Here's an example of the impact the Muslims had on the church.  This small portion of wall has had the plaster removed and you can catch a glimpse of the gold tile mosaics under the plaster presumably with icons from the church's days as an Orthodox church instead of a mosque or museum.


Some of the damage and wear & tear of the church is probably from earthquakes as well since some of the other churches we visited in Constantinople had earthquake damage - especially on the ceilings and domes.


Overall, Agia Sophia was a place of awe and beauty.  I still can't shake the feeling and impression I was left with on my first visit there.

The Green Patriarch

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew has been nicknamed "The Green Patriarch" for his extensive work initiating environmental awareness and response.  Some of his most well known work has been the environmental symposiums he has held around the world with both religious leaders and scientists alike.  In October of this year, Patriarch Bartholomew will be visiting the United States.  He has various meetings and appearances scheduled across the U.S. and will also be holding another Environmental Symposium on the Mississippi River.  A wonderful website has been put together to give further information to everyone about the Patriarch's visit.

Becket Films put out a phenomenal short film about "The Green Patriarch".  I purchased it about six months ago when I was developing my Vacation Church School Curriculum.  It was well worth the $20 I spent to purchase it but I just discovered you can view it on the above website for free.  If you'd like to learn more about the patriarch - here's the perfect opportunity.  Here's a direct link to the video.

(Picture used with permission)

My husband and I were blessed to go Constantinople in 2007 with a group of friends, Father Mark, and Bishop Savas.  During the trip, we visited the patriarchate, Agia Sophia, Chora Church (Museum), and many other places.  At the patriarchate, we were greeted by Ecumenical Patriarchate Bartholomew.  He is a very sweet and sincere man.