Mission and Outreach

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Dr. John Demakis, Director

Just before Christ ascended into Heaven, he gave the Great Commission to his disciples,  “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that things that I have commanded you; and Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matt. 28:19-20).

 In response to this Great Commission, the Community of Saint Katherine of Falls Church, Virginia set up our Mission and Outreach Committee (MOC).  Our mission is to participate in this Great Commission by helping to spread the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and his Holy Orthodox Church to all peoples of the world.  We acknowledge our responsibility to be local, national and global.

Our goals are to:

  1. Educate the faithful at Saint Katherine and in the greater Washington, DC area on the importance of missions as a responsibility of every Orthodox Christian. 
  2. Work closely with the Orthodox Christian Mission Center in Saint Augustine, Florida, to promote Orthodox missions throughout the world by:
    1. Sending missionaries into the field (both long and short term)
    2. Supporting current missionaries in the field through prayer and contributions
    3. Supporting indigenous clergy through the support a Mission Priest (SAMP) program.

The MOC fulfills these goals by:

  1. Holding bi-monthly meetings to coordinate all mission and outreach activities.
  2. Sending missionaries into the field (Russia, Philippines, Brazil, Guatemala, and Alaska.
  3. Preparing to send  mission teams from our parish to Mexico (2007) and Guatemala (2008).
  4. Praying regularly at each Divine Liturgy for our Orthodox missionaries all over the world.
  5. Participating in the Agape Canister program to collect funds to meet the needs of families throughout the world regardless of race, creed, or color. Supporting several indigenous clergy through the SAMP program.
  6. Hosting missionaries at Saint Katherine from around the world to help educate and involve our community in their ministries.
  7. Working with our Philoptochos to visit the sick and shut-ins.

If you would like to participate in the Saint Katherine MOC please contact John G. Demakis at 703-319-1610 (jgd11@erols.com) or Fr. Costa Pavlakos at 703-671-1515 (frcosta@stkchurch.com).