Online Webinar via Zoom Live-stream (register below to receive link)

Fr Ted Paraskevopoulos (D.Min. ‘24) will present his doctoral research in a webinar entitled “‘A Failure to Die’: Countering Death-Denying Culture through Orthodox Catechism,” at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 7, 2024. Director of the Doctor of Ministry program, the Very Rev. Sergius Halvorsen will give introductory remarks.

Fr Ted introduces his research as follows:

The first half of this presentation will explore the presence and effects of death-denying culture on Orthodox Christians, and how a death-denying worldview sometimes affects adult catechumens. The data presented will show that an improper understanding of death can result in the conversion of “non-Orthodox secularists” into "Orthodox secularists,” instead of true disciples.

The second half will explore some possible remedies to this problem by proposing a methodology for Orthodox catechesis that is rooted, not in the denial of death, but rather in its embrace, as it is experienced through the sacramental life of the Church.

Join us for this thought-provoking and edifying presentation on the appropriate Orthodox Christian approach to death and dying.

This webinar will be open to the public for online attendance. To attend the webinar, register at the link below. There is no entrance fee, but donations are much appreciated and will directly benefit St Vladimir’s Seminary.

Registration is closed.

About the Speakers

Fr Ted Paraskevopoulos

Fr Ted Paraskevopoulos, D.Min.,  has been serving in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Canada since 2006 where he was ordained a deacon and served the communities of St Nicholas and Prophet Elias. It was at Prophet Elias that Fr Ted was ordained a priest, and then was sent to his first community of St Demetrius in Winnipeg, Manitoba. After serving for six years in Winnipeg, Fr Ted returned to Toronto and assumed the leadership of Sts Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church, where he continued to serve until March 1, 2023, when he assumed his current position of parish priest at the community of Prophet Elias Greek Orthodox Church in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.

Holding a bachelor of theology from the Patriarchal Toronto Orthodox Theological Academy, Fr Ted received his Master of Arts in Theology and his Doctor of Ministry from Saint Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary. Fr Ted taught Pastoral Theology at the Orthodox School of Theology at Trinity College, University of Toronto from 2015-2018 and has been the Professor of Pastoral Studies at the Patriarchal Toronto Orthodox Theological Academy from 2014-present.

Fr Ted is married to his wife, Joanna, and has three children; twins Katerina and George, and a younger son Angelo.

 

The Very Rev. Sergius Halvorsen

The Very Rev. Sergius Halvorsen (M.Div. ‘96; Ph.D., Drew University, 2002) is Assistant Professor of Homiletics and Rhetoric at St Vladimir's Seminary and serves as director of the Doctor of Ministry Program. In addition to teaching homiletics and rhetoric, he also teaches courses in Christian education and the sacred art of narrative. Fr Sergius is a priest of the Orthodox Church in America, he is attached to Holy Transfiguration Church in New Haven, CT, and has contributed to a number of "Archangel Voices" recordings. He currently lives in New Haven, CT, and serves part-time as a chaplain at Yale New Haven Hospital. He loves gardening, hiking, biking, and reading biographies and fiction.

About the Doctor of Ministry Program

The Doctor of Ministry degree at St Vladimir's Seminary enhances the practice of ministry for ordained and lay ministers in the Orthodox Church. The program integrates enhanced competencies in pastoral analysis with skills necessary to lead students to an advanced understanding of the nature and purposes of ministry. Working in communities of teachers and learners, the students gain deeper knowledge about the practice of serving others in Christian love as they grow in spiritual maturity as ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The D.Min. program at St Vladimir's Seminary provides priests, chaplains, and other pastoral professionals with advanced knowledge and skills in order to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to those who are suffering. Integrating doctoral-level academic work with pastoral spirituality, this program will help you to acquire and refine the skills to minister to those whom God has called you to serve. Please consider joining us in a doctoral program that will give you an opportunity to foster deep and lasting friendships as we engage in work that contributes to authentic spiritual and pastoral renewal. The next D.Min. cohort will commence in Fall 2024.