THE FELLOWSHIP OF ST. JOHN THE DIVINE   WORSHIP, WITNESS, SERVICE, FELLOWSHIP

The Fellowship, simply defined, is the service arm for lay ministry in the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese. Its purpose is to promote and support lay ministry in the parishes of our Archdiocese by offering programs that assist spiritual growth, provide leadership training for lay ministry, programs for young adults, and opportunities for outreach and humanitarian activities.

Participation in the Fellowship can truly include every parishioner 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). That is to say, we are all "ministers", or as it is better described, a "royal priesthood of believers".

With out a doubt, lay ministry is an essential part of parish life. The Parish Ministry Team Program of the Fellowship is designed to support lay ministry by providing training to parishes for the development of Parish Ministry Teams, as well as leadership and member training. Parish Ministry Teams are an effective way to address identified needs in the parish and provide opportunity for volunteer participation.

At the Archdiocesean level, the humanitarian programs which the Fellowship supports with special collections and contributions from parishes have been wonderfully successful. They include:

• Food for Hungry People
• International Orthodox Christian Charities
• Children's Relief Fund
• Mission Support
  

THE PARISH MINISTRY TEAM PROGRAM

And say to Archippus, "See that you fulfill the ministry which
you have received in the Lord" (Colossians 4:17).

What is a "Parish Ministry Team"?

A Parish Ministry Team (PMT) is a group of volunteers within a parish that is dedicated to serving Christ by assisting the pastor in ministering to the needs of the parish and larger community. Jesus teaches us to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. By His works, He has provided us with numerous examples and directives of how to love and serve. It is through our active participation on a PMT that we are "doers of the word and not hearers only" (James 1:22)

An essential element of this volunteer program is the motivation for doing it! As Christ has reached out to us, we must reach out to each other in love. Since we are created in the likeness and image of God, we are then created in and by His love. It is through His love that we move out of ourselves and toward each other. For "we are God's fellow workers" (1Cor. 3:9). All of us
are encouraged to use our God-given talents in His service.

The Goal of the Program: Total Parish Involvement.

The goal of the Fellowship's "Parish Ministry Team" program is Total Parish Involvement. St. Paul teaches us that "there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of working, but it is the same God who inspires them all in every one. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good" (1Cor12:4-7).

Parish Ministry Teams are in no way intended to replace already existing organizations within the parish - these too have their specific mission. Rather, PMTs are intended to bring parishioners together from throughout the parish and develop a common ministry through the sharing of their gifts. PMTs will allow parishioners of all ages to come together in a common focus.

Each of us has a special God-given gift and each of us is called to serve. As

Metropolitan PHILIP has stated, "Let us not waste our time in idle talk. Let us each see to our own ministries for the edification of the Church and in so doing glorify the Lord." Within the Parish Ministry Team, these different gifts of the Spirit are realized for the common good. "But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be servant to all. For the Son of Man also came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mark 10:43-45).

The Spirit enables us to live the Orthodox Faith in Christ through Worship, Witness, Service and Fellowship. v

*Posted on the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese
of North America website, March 25, 1999