ANTIOCHIAN WOMEN PRAYER
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
O Christ our God, we are all pledged to serve Thee with our whole being. Help us to continue to work for Thee through our Church without seeking praise, without seeking personal gain, without judging others, without a feeling that we have worked hard enough and now must allow ourselves rest. Give us strength to do what is right and help us to go on striving and to remember that activities are not the main thing in life. The most important thing is to have our hearts directed and attuned to Thee. Amen.
The Antiochian Orthodox Christian Women of North America was founded in 1973 through the vision of His Eminence Metropolitan Philip (Saliba) of Thrice-Blessed Memory and from that time up until the present day, it has been a beloved organization of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese. Our purpose is to develop among the women a spirit of Christian leadership, awareness, and commitment; to foster a genuine expression of love and service through works of charity; and to install a sense of fellowship and a deeper understanding of our Holy Orthodox Faith. We are a "Sisterhood Serving Christ Through Serving Others."
The Antiochian Women have chapters in all the parishes and dioceses but come together for communication and collaboration through the North American Board (NAB), which consists of officers, coordinators, and delegates from each diocese. We welcome women from the ages of 19 to 99 to join us in our ministry, remembering that EVERY woman in the Antiochian Archdiocese is an "Antiochian Woman!"
The Antiochian Women follows the structure of other organizations of the Antiochian Archdiocese, with member chapters at the local parish level, regional leadership - elected by delegates of the local member chapters—for each of the seven geographical regions established for the Archdiocese, and North American leadership - (the North American Board or "NAB") - elected by delegates of the regions to the meeting of the Antiochian Women coinciding with the biennial convention of the Antiochian Archdiocese.
History
The history of the Antiochian Women has been rich and varied. As the organization celebrated twenty eight years in July 2001, it had raised over $1,273,000.00 towards its annual Projects, funding humanitarian programs and projects of the Antiochian Archdiocese and participating in the preparation of a legacy for the generations to follow. It has encouraged a new generation of women to explore the fullness of their ministry in the Orthodox Church, and has established a network of retreats and symposia providing a forum for the development of fellowship and the deepening of faith.
Purposes
The purposes of the Antiochian Women are:
- To develop among women throughout the Antiochian Archdiocese a spirit of Christian leadership, awareness and commitment as taught in the Holy Orthodox Church.
- To foster among women throughout the Antiochian Archdiocese a genuine expression of love and service through works of charity, and
- To instill among women throughout the Antiochian Archdiocese and the community at large a sense of fellowship and a deeper understanding of the heritage and traditions of the Antiochian Archdiocese and the Orthodox Church.
The primary areas of focus of the Antiochian Women are represented on the North American Board by several standing committees, the coordinators of which are appointed by the president of the Antiochian Women. These standing committees are:
Religious: The Religious Committee promotes spiritual activities, including retreats and other special programs for women, adult education programs and special programs observing specific feasts and fasts of the liturgical calendar.
Humanitarian: The Humanitarian Committee promotes and encourages projects and programs of a humanitarian nature, drawing from the legacy of humanitarian good works performed by women in the parishes of the Antiochian Archdiocese throughout its history.
Project: The Project Committee has the responsibility of coordinating the raising of funds from women throughout the Archdiocese to benefit one specific fund-raising project adopted each year by the Antiochian Women.
Join Us
Participation in the Antiochian Women can truly include every woman in the Archdiocese in that we are all called to be members by our personal acceptance of the charge "take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you may fulfill it" (Col 4:17).
The Church of Jesus Christ consists of every person in it, clergy and lay people pulling together and working together. The Community of Christians is described in the Scriptures as "a priesthood of all believers". We are all ministers of Jesus Christ, whether men or women, ordained or lay, we are called to be ambassadors for Christ. Without exception, each and every one of us is called to serve our Lord and our church in ways that allow God's love to shine through us, for the benefit of others.
Your Antiochian Women's Organization, Tucson Executive Board is:
Anastasia Tsatsakis, President, psiloriti1@yahoo.com, 708.710.0677
Sara Korsikas, Vice President, ssswiokla@gmail.com
Kerry Barber, Secretary, kbarber49@gmail.com
Michele Ritchie-Moore, Treasurer, mgrizelda@aol.com