The Saint John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival, established by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Department of Religious Education in 1983, is an incredible opportunity for our Greek Orthodox children and teenagers to think about, research, write and speak publicly about their faith. Public speaking is a valuable skill that is beneficial throughout one’s life and professional career. Through this Festival, the Church provides a supportive and nurturing environment for our young people to become confident public speakers, and simultaneously give them the opportunity to learn about their faith. This is the second year that the Festival will also offer poetry and essay divisions. Junior and Senior Division participants may choose to prepare a poem or write an essay on one of the topics.
Every community in the Metropolis of San Francisco should plan for participation in this program, and host their parish festival before April 1, 2015. District Festivals will take place throughout the Metropolis in April. The Metropolis Oratorical Festival will be held on Saturday, May 9 at Saint Nicholas Ranch and Retreat Center in Dunlap, CA.
This year our Metropolis is very proud to host the Archdiocesan Oratorical Festival which will be held June 5 – 7, 2015 at Saint Anthony Greek Orthodox Church in Pasadena, CA. We are honored to welcome His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios who presides at the National Oratorical Festival each year.
Parishes should encourage their young people to write a speech, or a poem, or an essay. It is hoped that through this festival our young people will have another opportunity to learn about their Orthodox Christian Faith and Way of Life while they prepare and deliver their presentations.
As a Church we are deeply concerned about the religious education of our young people, and the Oratorical Festival provides a wonderful and interactive educational opportunity for our youth. Therefore, every community should embrace the Festival for the benefit of our youth. Information packets will be sent to all communities to assist in organizing parish festivals. Links for 2015 Oratorical Festival Manual, the list of official topics, and supporting information about the Festival, can be found: www.religioused.sanfran.goarch.org/oratorical. Please see the Promotional Flyer attached. For more information or assistance, or if you would like this flyer personalized for your parish, please contact Dr. Eve Tibbs at religioused@sanfran.goarch.org, or Johanna Duterte at jduterte@sanfran.goarch.org.