On Thursday, September 24, the hierarchs and clergy of the Coptic Orthodox Church under our beloved father, His Grace Bishop Serapion, the Armenian Apostolic Church of America under His Eminence Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian, and the Syriac Orthodox Church under His Eminence Archbishop Clemis Eugene Kaplan convened for a joint celebration of the Mystery of the Eucharist followed by a spiritual meeting.
The event, which took place at St. Mary and St. Athanasius Coptic Orthodox Church in Northridge, commenced at 10:00 a.m. with the concelebration of the Divine Liturgy. Although the Coptic Liturgy according to St. Basil was celebrated, the service featured several chants and hymns from the Armenian and Syriac churches. After the celebration of the Divine Liturgy, the Coptic presbyter Father Kyrillos Ibrahim of St. Marina Coptic Orthodox Church in Irvine delivered a wonderful presentation on the Holy Cross and its veneration in the Coptic Orthodox Church. The joint meeting concluded with an agape meal in the church hall.
We thank God for the blessing of this ecumenical concelebration and fellowship among clergy of sister churches sharing in One Faith for the glory of His Name. The Diocese thanks all of the clergy from the different churches and parishes who attended and especially the clergy and servants of St. Mary and St. Athanasius church for their hospitality in arranging the event.
The audio of Fr. Kyrillos’s lecture on the Holy Cross is now available here.
