UPCOMING EVENTS
Orthodox Christians and the Rights Revolution in America
Rev. Dr. Anthony Roeber
Thursday, February 27, 2025
12:00 pm ET/9:00 am PT
So much of American law and policy is predicated on the concept of “rights,” derived primarily from western thought. Does our Orthodox tradition have anything to contribute to the American conversation on this topic?
Fr. Anthony’s presentation will provide an overview of the objective and content of his book, Orthodox Christians and the Rights Revolution in America. His book engages the difficult question of how Eastern Orthodox people have selectively used some modern notions of rights but rejected other aspects of modern secular liberal thought. At the same time, it alerts the Orthodox to their inherited notions of “rights,” sometimes referred to as “prerogatives,” “honors,” “privileges,” and so on that remain contested both among hierarchs and in controversies between clergy and laity that have at times resulted in lawsuits in secular courts. Fr. Anthony attempts to provide a way to distinguish various kinds of rights claims before engaging the Orthodox chronological engagement with internal and external rights claims in North America. He then grounds these issues in the global context of Orthodox debates over rights and compares Orthodox North American assessments with Catholic and Protestant approaches.
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Rev. Dr. A. G. Roeber |
Speaker: The Rev. Dr. A. G. Roeber, Emeritus Professor of Early Modern History and Religious Studies, Penn State University, is currently Professor of Church History, St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary. Born in Paonia, Colorado, he began his graduate work at the University of Denver and completed his Ph.D. at Brown University. He has taught at various universities in North America and in Germany. His Palatines, Liberty, and Property was the 1993 co-winner of the American Historical Association’s John H. Dunning Prize for the best book on any aspect of American history in a two-year period. He is a past president of the Orthodox Theological Society in America and most recently Co-author of Changing Churches (2012); co-editor, Oxford Handbook of Early Modern Theology (2016) author, Mixed Marriages: An Orthodox History (2018); editor, Human v. Religious Rights? (2020), and author, Orthodox Christians and the Rights Revolution (2024).
Please RSVP for this Zoom event with the link below and share this with anyone who might be interested.
PAST EVENTS
OCAN Men's Fellowship Hour
Watch for our next Men's Hour!
The legal profession is not only challenging, but can also be isolating. Join OCAN's Spiritual Advisor Fr. David Khorey and other men attorneys from around the country for a time of encouragement, fellowship, and spurring each other on in the faith through the practice of law.
Friday, Feb. 7th
Newport Grill Seafood Restaurant
OCAN board members and other Orthodox attorneys in Wichita, Kansas enjoyed a great get-to-know-each-other seafood dinner. Active, retired, and non-practicing attorneys, law students, and spouses are all welcome to OCAN events! Thanks to Psa. Nicole Sultani for hosting this fun evening. If you would like to sponsor an event in your city, please let us know so we can help.
Watch for our next scheduled Coffee Hour
The legal profession is not only challenging, but can also be isolating. Join women attorneys from around the country for a time of encouragement, fellowship, and spurring each other on in the faith through the practice of law.
Confidentiality of Confession
IN THE ORTHODOX CANONICAL TRADITION,
AND ITS LEGAL CHALLENGES
In a majority of U.S. states, clergy are considered mandatory reporters of child abuse. Generally, such laws have carved out an exception for information clergy learns during Confession. In recent years however, multiple states have removed, or made efforts to remove, this exception. This webinar will explore the canonical support and rationale for the confidentiality of Confession in the Orthodox tradition. An understanding of this will allow an evaluation and hopefully a response to these legal challenges.
Speaker: Archdeacon Justin Bosl earned his J.D. from the University of San Francisco School of Law after studying philosophy at Franciscan University of Steubenville. For nearly 19 years he was a trial lawyer and shareholder at Kazan, McClain, Satterley & Greenwood in Oakland, California representing injured workers and consumers in toxic tort litigation. In 2023, he resigned from the firm to focus full-time on serving the Church. He graduated from the diaconate program at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology and holds a M.Div. from the Antiochian House of Studies. He is currently enrolled in the Th.M. program at Holy Cross. He serves as the Archdeacon of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco as well as the chair of the Metropolis Legal Committee and serves on a variety of boards and committees for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese and Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops. He and his wife have four children and live in the San Francisco Bay Area.
If you missed the webinar or wish to share it with others, click below for the recording and presentation slides.
OCAN board members enjoyed some great meetings and dinner with other Orthodox attorneys this year. In July, OCAN members gathered in Alaska. Then, in September, we met in Washington, D.C. On November 8th, an enjoyable meal and networking in Chicago allowed us an opportunity to meet other attorneys in a variety of practice areas and Orthodox jurisdictions. We all look forward to future meetings.
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Alaska in June |
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Washington, DC in September |
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Chicago in November |
DISCLAIMER OF ENDORSEMENT
The Orthodox Christian Attorney Network is committed to serving as a forum for attorneys of various backgrounds to come together and explore how to live out our Orthodox Christian faith in our careers. The views or opinions of any speakers, panelists, or moderators are their own and do not necessarily state or represent the views of the Orthodox Christian Attorney Network. Any reference to any persons or organizations does not constitute or imply any endorsement, recommendation or approval of such persons or organizations, including their mission, activities, products, or services.