Forging New Relationships – Building up the Church in Mexico
While visiting Mexico City, OCMC staff met with Metropolitan IGNACIO to discuss various mission initiatives to support the
Archdiocese of Mexico, Venezuela, Central America and the Islands of the Caribbean Sea.
The three primary goals at the Orthodox Christian Mission Center are to bring people to Christ, help establish the Church, and share Christ’s love, and recent meetings between OCMC leadership and three presiding Orthodox hierarchs in Mexico are necessary first steps to forge relationships to help in accomplishing all three goals. Fr. Martin Ritsi, Executive Director of OCMC, accompanied by Missionary Director, Fr. Rob Spaliatsos, and Projects and Grants Manager, Ms. Santhe Loizos, traveled to Mexico City to meet with newly-elected Metropolitan IAKOVOS of Mexico (Ecumenical Patriarchate), Metropolitan IGNACIO of Mexico, Venezuela, Central America, and the Caribbean (Patriarchate of Antioch), and Archbishop ALEJO of Mexico City and Mexico (Orthodox Church in America) to explore how to work collaboratively in helping to build up the Church in the respective dioceses. While OCMC has long worked in Guatemala with the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s Metropolis of Mexico, Fr. Martin was asked to participate in His Eminence IAKOVOS’s enthronement and later discussed first-hand OCMC’s past involvement and possibilities for future collaboration.
Initial meetings with His Eminence ALEJO revolved around the future placement of OCMC missionaries Michael and Carlyn Pak in this missionary diocese once Michael finishes his education at St. Tikhon’s Seminary this spring, as well as other areas where collaboration might occur. While meeting with His Eminence IGNACIO, the group was able to visit the site where OCMC will support the building of a new parking lot that will produce income to support the missionary activities of the archdiocese in 9 countries. In both cases, the new relationships being formed are already leading to ways to build up the Orthodox Church and bring people to Christ.
To learn more about OCMC’s worldwide efforts go to OCMC.org., and click below to explore if you too have a mission calling like the Paks, click below to see how you might serve in places like Uganda, New Zealand, Fiji, and elsewhere
May Gifts, One Body, For the Glory of God!
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The following photos were captured during OCMC's visit to Mexico City in March 2024. Those taken at the Enthronement of His Eminence IAKOVOS of Mexico were published by Orthodox Times. Click here to see related article and additional photos.
