Articles and Letters - St. Phoebe Center

TOPICS IN THIS SECTION:

The Female Diaconate: History, FAQ’s & Apologetics
Physical Evidence for Deaconesses
Conferences, Communiques & Recommendations for Revival of the Female Diaconate
Women Deaconess Saints
Ritual Impurity, Sexism & Theological Misunderstandings
Deaconesses in the Oriental Church

THE FEMALE DIACONATE: HISTORY, FAQ’S & APOLOGETICS

Deaconesses Untheologically Blocked
by Petros Vassiliadis, Director of the Masters Program in Orthodox Ecumenical Theology (MOET) at the International Hellenic University

Towards a Reasoned and Respectful Conversation About Deaconesses
by the St. Phoebe Center for the Deaconess Board: Ann Marie Mecera, President; Caren Stayer, Ph.D.; Gust Mecera; Teva Regule, Ph.D.; Carrie Frederick Frost, Ph.D.; Helen Theodoropoulos, Ph.D., published on Public Orthodoxy, April 17, 2018

Finnish Translation: Kohti perusteltua ja kunnioittavaa keskustelua naisdiakonaatista
Greek Translation: Προς μια τεκμιριωμένη

Women’s Gifts and the Diaconate, Carrie Frederick Frost, Ph.D.

The Letter on the Ordination of the Deaconess, Rev. Deacon Nicholas Denysenko

Women and Christianity, Ioannis Petrou, from the Conference “Deaconesses, Ordination of Women and Orthodox Theology,” Thessaloniki, Greece, January 2015, English translation

Men and Women in the Service of Christ,” Rev. Archdeacon John Chryssavgis, from the Conference “Deaconesses, Ordination of Women and Orthodox Theology,” Thessaloniki, Greece, January 2015, English translation

Womens Access to Diaconal Ministry and Prospects of Revival in the Orthodox Church, Ann Marie Mecera, Istina Journal, September 2022, English translation

Myth-busting: The Truth About Deaconesses in the Orthodox Church

Deaconesses, The Ordination of Women and Orthodox Theology / Response by Prof. Emeritus Evangelos Theodorou

Archbishop Serafim of Zimbabwe and Angola Visits Orthodox Christian Student Community at Harvard Divinity School with the Orthodox Observer and Harvard Divinity School Orthodox Christian Student Community

The Place of the Woman in the Orthodox Church and the Question of the Ordination of Women
Theodorou, Evangelos. “The Institution of Deaconesses in the Orthodox Church and the Possibility of its Restoration.” Trans. V. Rev. Prof. Stanley Harakas, In The Place of the Woman in the Orthodox Church and The Question of the Ordination of Women. Ed. Rev. Gennadios Limouris. 1st ed. Katerini, Greece: Ecumenical Patriarchate–Tertios Publications, 1992, pp. 207-208. (A collective volume of proceedings of the Ecumenical Patriarchate Inter-Orthodox Theological Symposium, Rhodes, Greece, 30 October – 7 November 1988.)

History and Future of the Female Diaconate: A Paper Prepared for Archbishop Spyridon

Female Deacons in the Orthodox Church, Valerie Karras, Ph.D.

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PHYSICAL EVIDENCE FOR DEACONESSES

Byzantine Basilica with Graves of Female Ministers and Baffling Mass Burials Found in Israel From Haaretz by Ariel David

Narthex of the Deaconesses in the Hagia Sophia, Neil K. Moran

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CONFERENCES, COMMUNIQUES & CALLS
FOR REVIVAL OF THE FEMALE DIACONATE

The Final Communique / At the Conclusion of the International Theological Conference: “Deaconesses, Ordination of Women and Orthodox Theology”

Major Conferences that have explored the Female Diaconate in the Orthodox Church

Addresses (from Pat. Bartholmew and Pat. Ignatios) and Reports from Istanbul (1997) and Damascus (1996) Conferences for Orthodox Women

Calls for Revival of the Female Diaconate