2020 Youth Conference

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On Saturday January the 25th, with the blessings of His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia, Oakleigh Grammar, together with the Greek Orthodox Parish and Community of Sts Anargiri Oakleigh, hosted the first Youth Conference in over a decade for the Archdiocesan District of Melbourne.

 

With over 250 delegates aged from 14–30 in attendance, our Conference Centre and grounds of our School were a buzz with joy and conversation, as young people engaged with each other in a spirit of fellowship and understanding. The topic, ‘Change – how do we navigate ourselves in a diverse world?’, was unpacked with care by each of the speakers. Delegates particularly enjoyed His Eminence Archbishop Marakrios’ presentation – The Cross Stands While the World Turns (please see an abstract of the presentation below).

 

The Conference was organized by a group of young people aged 16-30, who imbued their voice into the conference preparations and deliberations. Overall, the conference was a great success. It was great to see our students past and present be involved. Special mention to Jonathan Daoulas of Year 9 for his media skills, and Alexander Logan and Evie Starakis for their leadership and hard work in preparing.
Students from our School Community are encouraged to register for the upcoming conference held on Saturday March the 14th, at St John’s College in Preston, with the topic ‘Let your Light Shine’. Please see Mrs Spanos or Mr Damatopoulos for more details. Transport is being arranged from Oakleigh Grammar.

 

“Change is part of the experience of this world, affecting nature, society, and our personal lives. Change can be both positive and negative. But as our society changes rapidly and becomes more and more diverse, we can be faced with critical challenges that can and do affect us personally: technological advancements without examination of their ethical or ecological consequences, and alterations to God-inspired morals and truth. This talk addresses the nature of change as positive and negative, as well as the rapid changes that take place in today’s society. It aims to offer a balanced view arguing that in order to navigate this diverse world we need the stable spiritual treasures of the Church—the self-sacrificial message of the cross of Christ which stands while the world turns, while it changes. Only then can we ourselves be transformed spiritually by grace, and in turn help to change the world around us; adopting the good and neglecting the bad from our ever-changing society from an Orthodox Christian point of view.”

 

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