Τhis morning the sanctification rite was held for the initiation of the new training programs of the Pastoral Training Institute at the Cultural Center of Holy Archdiocese of Athens in Rouf. Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece attended the event.
Deputy Director of the Institute Archim. Theologos Alexandrakis presented the objectives and the programs of the Institute regarding the training of the clergy. These are 20 training seminars, of which 11 are funded by the NSRF, while the remaining nine are funded by the Institute. A total of 732 people will participate; namely, 283 people will participate in NSRF programs and the remaining 449 in self-financed certified programs.
The Archbishop expressed his joy at the realization of this program, but also his satisfaction with the response of this effort, given the high number of participants.
“These seminars and these meetings are of high importance for many people. We do not have the same problems, nor we will deal with them in the same way, because everyone has different gifts. The point is to take advantage of those seminars according to our talents to help people or to be able to deal with people who have problems. Pastoral theology is a difficult task, so we need the appropriate equipment,” the Archbishop noted.
One of the main objectives of the Institute’s mission is the development of cooperation with both the Holy Metropolises and other religious and non-religious organizations. In this context, a cooperation agreement with the Orthodox Academy of Crete is signed, following a decision of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Holy Synod of the Church of Crete, which provides for the implementation of training programs at the 15 Metropolises of Crete, the Dodecanese and the Patriarchal Exarchate Patmos.