Services Provided by the Church
From The Peopling of Astoria, Queens
The Church plays a major role in the affairs of the local community. They
provide counseling for various other personal and family issues such as drug
and alcohol abuse, sexual promiscuity, abortion, and suicide amongst others.
The pastors in the church also counsel individuals who tend to lose faith in
the divine being and those who have other questions on the religion.
The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese has been following the current trends of
intermarriage betweens Christians and other ethnicities and religions.
Several research studies have been published concerning the issue of
intermarriages. As these research projects and Father George recount,
intermarriage can often be linked to family problems. According to the
studies published and personal accounts of the Priests at St. Demetrios,
intermarried couples have reported problems of detachment between themselves
and their spouse’s extended family. Differences in faith and cultural
upbringing can often be the cause of tension among newly married couples who
are not yet used to the customs, lifestyle and family of their spouse.
Counseling done on such couples revealed that they had regrets about
intermarrying because of the troubles caused by the differences in faith.
Because of this reality, the priests in the Church often counsel couples
that come to them with the proposal to get married in the church. After the
couple is counseled and there are still problems with the marriage, the
couples can receive counseling yet again before finalizing their divorce.
Another problem that rose from intermarriages was the question of which
religion the children of the couple would adhere to. If both parents were
equally religious, issues about the children’s baptism and church attendance
caused tension between the couples. Such questions of doubt and ambiguity
have also caused problems for the children’s well-being and his/her faith in
religion. Because the child faced conflicting choices and beliefs, he/she
often tended to distance him/herself from religion and God all together.
Among other services are initiation into the religion through conversions
and baptisms. The church baptizes individuals of all ages. The conversion
process is not an easy process and often takes several months. The
individual is first and foremost taught about Christianity and in particular
the principles of the Orthodox Greek Church. Assessment of the knowledge
imbibed is crucial in determining whether or not the individual will be
initiated into the faith. In addition counseling is also provided before the
final ceremony is performed.