Orthodox Fellowship of the Transfiguration
The Orthodox Fellowship of the Transfiguration (OFT) first became a SCOBA endorsed organization in 2006. The Fellowship is pan-Orthodox and describes itself as “proclaiming the ecological mission of the Orthodox Church as the Reconciliation of All Things in Christ,” with a primary focus on relating Christianity to environmental issues in the U.S. and Canada as they also relate to global concerns. It is open to membership by Orthodox Christians who belong to canonical churches in North and Central America.
Program development and outreach with parishes, seminaries, groups and individuals are ongoing. OFT hosts a website providing information and a forum on Orthodoxy and the environment (now including a blog also available on Facebook and Twitter), and sponsors conferences and publications. In 2010 it organized with St. Tikhon's Seminary a conference on Orthodoxy and the Environment," audio files of which are posted on Ancient Faith Radio, and earlier organized a conference on the same topic at St. Herman of Alaska Seminary. It also has organized "Christ in the Wilderness" workshops at Yosemite National Park (2005 and 2011), Long Island (2007), Sharon MA (2005), and Mount Rainier (2005).
The OFT has published newsletters and developed a correspondence course on “The Virtues & Ecological Practice”, and is publishing in 2012 a guide to "Greening the Orthodox Parish." The OFT is located in Santa Rosa, California, the hometown of its executive director, Frederick W. Krueger, a pioneer in what is often called the "Creation Care" movement among U.S. Chirstians, and also national coordinator of the U.S. National Religious Coalition on Creation Care. The OFT office there houses a library of Orthodox creation-related resources for sharing of information.
The organization is overseen by a Steering Committee as well as by an Advisory Board. Fr. John Chryssavgis, a member of its Steering Committee, is advisor to the Ecumenical Patriarchate on environmental issues. Another member, Anne Glynn-Mackoul, is former executive chair and current member of the Board of Trustees of St. Vladimir's Seminary. Its advisory board includes Bishop Dimitrios of Xanthos and Bishop Illya Katre, and Fr. Chad Hatfield, Chancellor of St. Vladimir's Seminary.
From the OFT mission statement: “The Orthodox Fellowship of the Transfiguration exists to hallow God's Name 'on earth as it is in heaven' by seeking the transfiguration of creation through the activation of the Christian calling toward transfigured life. In the context of the liturgical life of the Orthodox Church, the Fellowship seeks to extend the transfiguring activity of the sacraments into all creation through ascetic practice, the keeping of the commandments and the acquisition of virtue, thus restoring the beauty and integrity of God's earthly temple.”
Current leadership
Steering Committee:
- Fr. Christopher Bender, Chairman
- Frederick W. Krueger, Executive Director
- Fr. Terence Baz, Treasurer
- Fr. Dr. John Chryssavgis
- Fr. Dn. Sergei Kapral
- Anne Glynn-Mackoul
- Fr. Robert Popichak
- Vincent Rossi
- Prof. Alfred Kentigern Siewers, Editor
- Mat. Robin Takahashi
Advisory Board:
- HG Bishop Dimitrios
- HG Bishop Illya Katre
- Fr. Chad Hatfield
- Fr. Alexander Karloutsos
- Dr. Juretta Jordan-Heckscher
- Natalie Kapeluck-Nixon
'Internet Ministry Consultants
- Steve Zydek, Internet
- Heather Zydek, Social Media
- Olesya Siewers, Web Content
