www.byzcath.org Forums News & Events Church News Greek Orthodox lay person to head NCCC

������������ELENIE K. HUSZAGH IS INSTALLED AS NCCC PRESIDENT FOR

2002-2003
Oakland, CA -- Elenie K. Huszagh, Esq. of Nehalem, Ore., a longtime member of the Archdiocesan Council and first-generation Greek American, was installed Nov. 15 as 21st president of the National Council of Churches in the USA. Ms. Huszagh is the first Orthodox woman and the first Orthodox lay person to hold that office. The installation took place following a special service of vespers at Oakland's Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Ascension, with over 600 in attendance.

His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios traveled from New York to participate in the service. Before delivering the sermon, the Archbishop remarked that the "majestic service in this venerable church" marks "the changing of the guard at the National Council of Churches as for the first time a lay person from our Orthodox Church becomes the president." He pointed to Ms. Huszagh's high qualifications, in particular her "constant, indefatigable way of working and offering. She's always eager to assist."
The brief installation ceremony featured the passing of a cross and chain from the outgoing president to the incoming one. Ambassador Andrew Young of Atlanta, Ga., the NCCC's president in 2000-2001, placed the cross and chain around Ms. Huszagh's neck at the moment of the "declaration of installation."
"Elenie, you bring your training in law, your love as a mother and wife, and the history, heritage and wisdom that comes from this glorious and magnificent Greek Orthodox tradition," said the Rev. Young, a United Church of Christ minister.

The installation ceremony incorporated the reading of a message of "congratulations and fraternal greetings" from His All Holiness Bartholomew the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America falls under the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate.
Music was provided by the Oakland Bay Area Choir under the direction of Dr. Tikey Zes and by Ms. Anna Marakis Counelis, organist. Participants in the choir came from 11 area parishes.
Following the service, those assembled moved into a festive reception and banquet featuring Greek music and food. � Among special guests bringing greetings were the Roman Catholic Archbishop of San Francisco, William Levada, who noted the National Council of Churches' "historic role in ecumenical dialogue, common witness and action for justice" and the challenge of interreligious dialogue "as key for the peace of nations."

In her remarks at the banquet, Ms. Huszagh noted that "in all of recorded history and most likely before, people have divided themselves into an 'us' and a 'them.'" It starts early, she said. The first "us" is "our family," and "them" is everyone else. Nations also divide themselves into "us" and "them," usually considering "us" good, and "them" bad. Within nations, people of other races, religions and ethnicities also get defined as "them." "The National Council of Churches has never seen the world this way," Mrs. Huszagh said. "Our contribution has been to say that we are all created in the image of God."

She continued, "Anyone of us can become a 'them' for any reason at any time," recalling particularly the detention of Japanese Americans during World War II. "On September 11, a new 'them' entered our life. But these are shadowy figures, all over the world ? " Ms. Huszagh urged her listeners to reject making Muslims the new "them," saying, "No religion, including Islam, supports terror or killing. We Americans must not demonize them to justify whatever actions we might take. We must act to provide a more secure and peaceful life for all."

Ms. Huszagh will serve the NCCC -- the nation's largest organization in the movement for Christian unity, with 36 Orthodox and Protestant member communions comprising 50 million adherents in 140,000 congregations -- for a 2002-2003 term of office. As president (a part-time, non-salaried position, similar to chairman/chairwoman of the board), she will play a key role in leading and interpreting the NCCC's life and work.

THE ORTHODOX IN THE NCCC

The growth of Orthodoxy in the United States in the last century came at a time when the modern ecumenical movement was getting underway. The Orthodox have been an integral part of that movement, including at the NCCC, where today 11 of the 36 member communions are Orthodox (seven are Eastern; four from Egypt, Syria, Armenia and India, are termed "Oriental"); 24 are Protestant, and one is Anglican. Joining the NCCC at different times, all the Eastern communions had become members by 1966. Yet, Ms. Huszagh notes, it is in recent years that they have become more visible in the NCCC.
��"I'm pleased with the place of the Orthodox in the Council at this time," she says. "In the past, we perceived ourselves as marginalized and were so perceived by others, but, as the years went by, we contributed more broadly. We took our rightful place." By doing so, she says, "we bring something different to our country and to the ecumenical movement. The Eastern churches' view of the world and of reality is a benefit. We expand the choices available."

That view, she explains, is based on "a living continuity" with the Early Church that is unchanged by forces that shaped Western Christianity ranging from the Renaissance to the Reformation. Therefore, the Orthodox have a frame of reference that differs from that of the West and which is often described, in broad strokes, as more mystical and philosophical than legalistic.
It includes an emphasis on the mystery of God, a high place for worship as the joint work of the clergy and the people, and an approach that focuses somewhat less on the sins of humanity and Christ's atonement for them and somewhat more on the Resurrection of Christ and the possibility of the faithful in Christ to journey toward a mystical union with God.

These different "languages" of faith form a barrier that is being overcome with greater East-West contact. At a more mundane level, the growing visibility of the Orthodox at the NCCC and in other settings may simply reflect the fact that, unlike previous generations, most Orthodox in the U.S. today are American born and have grown up speaking English.

Such is the case in Ms. Huszagh's family. Her aunt who lived in Lowell spoke only Greek to the end of her 85 years, while her parents taught themselves English as young adults. She herself spoke only Greek until she entered kindergarten. "Then I learned enough in a week" to participate fully in learning and play, she says. After that, the goal was to maintain her ability in Greek, which she now speaks "reasonably well." She vividly recalls "as a child, I went to Greek school, which provided language instruction for many recalcitrant young children who attended after regular public school."
Increasing numbers of American-born members affected church life, too. "Services were entirely in Greek when I was growing up," Ms. Huszagh says. "However, since the late '60s and early '70s, the language issue has evolved. Today in many parishes the services are primarily and often entirely in English. There was no mandate for change, but each community seems to have dealt with language in an appropriate manner the object being to communicate and to serve the people."
Similar processes of assimilation have taken place among other Orthodox communities, including those of Russian, Ukrainian, Armenian, Arabic, Serbian and other ethnic roots. "Now all of us share the same language and can communicate with each other," Ms. Huszagh notes. At the NCCC, for example, a caucus that includes all Orthodox delegates to the NCCC General Assembly helps to insure an effective presentation of Orthodox concerns and perspectives to the larger body. The Assembly is the NCCC's highest policy-making body and is composed of delegations from all the member communions.

HUSZAGH'S CONTRIBUTIONS HIGHLIGHT ROLE OF LAITY IN THE GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH

Ms. Huszagh has more than earned the description "prominent member of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America," and has helped expand the role of women in her communion. In 1974, she was among five women who were the first women ever named to the Archdiocesan Council, a body composed of clergy and lay members that governs the temporal and financial affairs of the Archdiocese between the communion's Biennial Clergy-Laity Congresses. It also has an advisory role in the election of bishops and the Archbishop. She continues as a member of that body and has served the Archdiocesan Council in many capacities, including as vice-president from 1988-1990.
She also has been involved in recent negotiations concerning a new charter for the Archdiocese, which is part of the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. She was among delegates who went to Constantinople to discuss provisions of the new charter with members of the Patriarchal Synod, a weighty and sensitive responsibility given that the issue of the degree of autonomy of the American church has been widely debated within the communion for decades.

In other responsibilities, Ms. Huszagh has presided over plenary sessions of the Clergy-Laity Congresses in 1988, 1990, 1996 and 2000. And she has served as a senior advisor to Archbishop Iakovos (1994-1996). Among her many commitments at the diocesan level, she is legal counsel for both the Chicago and the San Francisco Dioceses.
In 1996, she was awarded the Medal of St. Paul, the highest honor that the Archdiocese bestows upon a layperson.
***************************************

Although a born New-Englander (not from Lowell, but from Boston), I am just tickled pink that this wonderful woman has been selected for the NCCC post.

Having lived in Virginia for the past 25 years, and having become an honorary Southerner, all I can say is: "Hot Damn! This is GREAT!!!"

How wonderful that a person's abilities (and not connections) are being used as criteria.

Let's pray for our sister that the Lord give her the insight, strength and wisdom to provide leadership. And may we recognize and acknowledge the contributions of EVERYONE who donates time, effort and money to evangelization.

Blessings! (Y'all!)

Wonderful news! God bless her in her work.

K.

AXIOS!

After the bombing of the WTC there was a joint prayer service in the Protestant National Cathedral in Washington. Seems every religious preference in America was represented except the Orthodox. After finding out that the Orthodox were excluded from the invitations sent out, I sent an inquiry to the priest who was in charge of issuing the invitations. I received a very short and curt reply. I forwarded it to an Orthodox friend in NYC who in turn forwarded it to this wonderful woman. Because of her bringing the email to the next meeting of NCC I received a copy of the following email sent by Bishop Christopher Epting (head of the Episcopalian delegation to the NCC) to the priest in charge of the invites -

From: cepting@episcopalchurch.org (Christopher Epting)
To: enquist@starpower.net ('enquist@starpower.net')


Dear Roy:



It is difficult for me to convey to you the embarrassment felt by me and,

through me, the entire Episcopal Church when it was publicly noted at a

recent meeting of the National Council of Churches that no invitation was

issued to any Orthodox Christian Hierarch to represent the six million

Orthodox Christians in the United States at the September 14 prayer service

at the National Cathedral. This was an oversight with enormous ecumenical

significance.



Moreover, your insensitive response to a Mr. Tallick's inquiry said that "it

was determined early on that it would be an interfaith event" and that "only

the three Abrahamic traditions were asked to provide that service to the

president and the nation." That was interpreted by many Orthodox to mean

that they are not considered members of the "three Abrahamic traditions."



Even if you meant that these great churches should have been content that

other Christian voices were there to represent them, your statement was

inadequate at best and damaging at most. A simple apology would have been

preferable.



I intend to convey such an apology to the Orthodox community from the office

of Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations of the Episcopal Church, and would

encourage the National Cathedral to do the same. I look forward to

receiving a copy of that apology.



Faithfully,



Bishop Christopher Epting

Deputy for Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations

The Episcopal Church U.S.A.

I later found out that the priest in charge was not Episcopalian but Evangelical Lutheran.

Orthoman