This is the place where the Orthodox Christian Education Commission (OCEC) held the Orthodox Institute Southern States. Along with my friends Gigi and Adam loaded up the car and drove down to Vicksburg Friday evening. The conference was only a two day event, Friday night with an address by Father Daniel Kovalak and then Saturday for the teacher training course. Apparently they have some sort of battlefield or something like that in Vicksburg, we didn't have time to see it.
Gigi and I learned so much about teaching, i.e. teaching Vacation Church School this summer (and in Gigi's case, teaching Church School on Sundays.) The training was intense, but incredibly worth it. The Vicksburg people were super nice, we even made a new friend Misty, she was the sweetest person ever!
The conference was held at St. George Orthodox Church, it is a pretty old church. Especially considering that it in the heart of the south. Needless to say there aren't too may Orthodox churches in the deep south. It's over 100 years old and St. Raphael of Brooklyn even visited many years ago.
Even though Orthodoxy is something like 2,000 years old, it's nice to find Orthodox churches with a deep sense of history. St. George's has originally catered to a largely immigrant population when it was first built, nowadays they have a very interesting mix of converts and "cradle Orthodox." The photos of the parishioners from long ago are so cool. I was very intrigued by this church if you can't tell.
Anyway, we had a great time. We bonded, we learned, and now we're tired!
P.S.- across the street from the church was "The Nappy Roots Hair Salon," I'm definitely going back to get my hair did.
P.P.S.- I think I want to take up photography, any ideas?
1 comment:
Vicksburg is where I was born! Funny to me your meeting was there...did you enjoy the casinos (hah!)?
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