Hellenic College Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology

Not to be confused with Hellenic College of London.

Hellenic College Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology (HCHC) is an Orthodox Christian liberal arts college and seminary in Brookline, Massachusetts. Its mission is to educate individuals for life and service in the Orthodox Christian community; this includes men preparing for the priesthood of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese and other Orthodox Christian entities, as well as men and women for leadership roles in the church or within secular society. HCHC includes a graduate school of theology (seminary) for clerical training and education, and several undergraduate and certificate programs in business, education, literature, and other secular professions.^[4] The institution was founded in 1937 as Holy Cross Theological School in Pomfret, Connecticut, but was moved to Brookline, Massachusetts in 1947.^[5]

Hellenic College
Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology

Former names	The Greek Orthodox Institute Holy Cross Theological School
Motto	Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ λόγος
Motto in English	In the beginning was the Word
Type	Private
Established	1937 (1937)
Accreditation	NECHE^[1] ATS^[2]
Religious affiliation	Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America
Chairman	Archbishop Elpidophoros of America
President	George M. Cantonis
Undergraduates	46
Postgraduates	80^[3]
Address	50 Goddard Ave , Brookline , MA , 02445‑7496 , US 42°19′1.53″N 71°7′44.54″W / 42.3170917°N 71.1290389°W / 42.3170917; -71.1290389
Campus	Urban, 59 acres (24 ha)
Website	hchc.edu
Location in Greater Boston area

History

Archbishop Athenagoras of America soon after his enthronement became convinced that a seminary was needed in America to prepare American born man for the priesthood. At the 1936 Clergy-Laity Congress, he announced that the school would open next year in Pomfret, Connecticut, on an estate owned by the Archdiocese, bought for a song during the Great Depression.^[6] The establishment of the seminary in Pomfret was a bold experiment, fraught with difficulties. Fr Demetrios Michaelides, who entered the Holy Cross in the 1937, remembered: "The first year was very hard. We were isolated. Being the first class of the start of the seminary was a challenge. The school had very little money, which was a hardship for all. There was not much money for food or books or other supplies. People from Boston and Worcester would bring food for us."^[7]

In 1966, College of the Holy Cross expanded its undergraduate division into a full four-year liberal arts college named Hellenic College, which opened in 1968.^[8] Hellenic College Holy Cross is the only fully accredited Orthodox Christian college, seminary, and graduate school of theology in the Western Hemisphere.^[4]

 

Chapel of the Holy Cross, Hellenic College

Academics

Hellenic College offers programs leading to the Bachelor of Arts degree.^[9]

Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology offers graduate programs of study leading to the degrees of Master of Divinity (M.Div), Master of Theological Studies (M.T.S.), and Master of Theology (Th.M).^[10]

Accreditation

Hellenic College has been accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education and Holy Cross School of Theology has been accredited by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada since 1974.^[11] Holy Cross is also a member of the Boston Theological Interreligious Consortium.^[10]

Campus

Hellenic College is located on a 59-acre (24 ha) campus in Brookline, Massachusetts just outside Boston on the former Weld estate.^[12] It is notable for having been the longtime practice site of the Boston Celtics.^[13]

 

Archbishop Iakovos Library, Hellenic College

Summer programs

• "Crossroad" is a ten-day, vocational exploration program for Orthodox Christian high school graduates and rising seniors. Two sessions are held on the HCHC campus each summer.
• The "Pappas Patristic Institute" is a seminar based program that focuses on readings in the Early Church Fathers. This program is geared towards undergraduate and graduate students.^[14]

Notable people

Notable faculty

• Georges Florovsky
• John Romanides
• Nomikos Michael Vaporis
• Maximos Constas
• George L. Parsenios

Notable alumni

• Archbishop Nikitas (Lulias) of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain
• Metropolitan Philip (Saliba) of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
• Metropolitan Evangelos (Kourounis) of Sardes, titular bishop of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
• Metropolitan Gerasimos (Michaleas) of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco
• Metropolitan Isaiah (Chronopoulos) of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Denver
• Metropolitan Methodios (Tournas) of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Boston
• Metropolitan Nicholas (Pissare) of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Detroit
• Metropolitan Savas (Zembillas) of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh
• Bishop Andonios (Paropoulos) of Phasiane, auxiliary bishop and Chancellor of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America
• Bishop Demetrios (Kantzavelos) of Mokissos, auxiliary bishop and Proistamenos of the St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine
• Bishop Dimitrios (Couchell) of Xanthos, titular bishop of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
• Bishop Kyrillos (Abdelsayed), auxiliary bishop for Christian Education and Dean of St. Athanasius and St. Cyril Theological School in the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Los Angeles, Southern California, and Hawaii^[15]
• Demetrios Constantelos
• Emmanuel Lemelson of Massachusetts of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Boston^[16]

Interments

• Archbishop Iakovos (Koukouzis) of America
• Bishop Gerasimos (Papadopoulos) of Abydos
• Metropolitan Silas (Koskinas) of New Jersey

References

1. "Hellenic College, Inc. - NECHE". New England Commission of Higher Education. from the original on 2021-10-09. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
2. "Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology". Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada. from the original on 2022-02-16. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
3. "Hellenic College - Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology". National Center for Education Statistics. U.S. Department of Education. from the original on 2022-03-04. Retrieved 2022-03-04.. Data from Fall 2020.
4. "Why HCHC?". Hellenic College Holy Cross. from the original on 2022-01-08. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
5. Krindatch, Alexey D. ""American Orthodoxy" or "Orthodoxy in America"? Profiling the Next Generation of Eastern Christian Clergy in the USA". Hartford Institute for Religion Research. Hartford International University for Religion and Peace. from the original on 2019-02-14. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
6. "The Pomfret legacy" (PDF). Together again: Hellenic College Holy Cross alumni magazine: 13. Spring 2017.
7. "The early struggles at Pomfret" (PDF). Together again: Hellenic College Holy Cross alumni magazine: 22–23. June 2012.
8. "Hellenic College Wins $2 Million Grant From Lilly Endowment To Establish Center For Theological Study Of Vocation". Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. 2002-12-02. from the original on 2017-05-22. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
9. "HCHC School Catalog:Part II — Hellenic College" (PDF). Hellenic College Holy Cross. p. 10. (PDF) from the original on 2022-01-08. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
10. "Member School Degree Programs". Boston Theological Interreligious Consortium. from the original on 2022-01-13. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
11. "DaPIP | Location Profile". Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs. U.S. Department of Education. from the original on 2022-03-01. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
12. "Weld Family". Jamaica Plain Historical Society (published 2005-04-14). September 2019 [1991-02-XX]. from the original on 2022-02-09. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
13. Kreig, Andrew (1982-04-24). "Celtics Notebook: Celts, Awaiting Playoffs Foe, Commune in Religious Setting". Hartford Courant. Vol. CXLV, no. 114 (Daily ed.). p. 68. Retrieved 2022-03-04 – via Newspapers.com. The world champion basketball team meets every morning at the Hellenic College and Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology.
14. "Summer Programs". Hellenic College Holy Cross. from the original on 2022-01-08. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
15. Samaan, Moses (2016-06-20). "Bishop Kyrillos | Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Los Angeles". Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Los Angeles, Southern California, and Hawaii. from the original on 2021-10-29. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
16. "Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Lemelson". MetroWest Daily News (published 2014-06-16). 2014-06-06. from the original on 2022-03-04. Retrieved 2022-03-04.

External links

• Official website