Graduation Doxology for St Andrew’s Theological College in Sydney

On Friday, 28 February, at the Cathedral of the Annunciation of Our Lady in Sydney, a Doxology Service was celebrated by His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia, upon the graduation of the students of Saint Andrew’s Theological College.

During the moving service, the Archbishop also awarded certificates of completion to the students of the Byzantine Music School, who successfully completed the four-year course of study. At the request of the Archbishop, degrees were also awarded by: His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim of Sevasteia, Their Graces, Bishop Iakovos of Miletoupolis and Bishop Christodoulos of Magnesia, Chief Secretary of the Holy Eparchial Synod, Archimandrite of the Ecumenical Throne, Christophoros Krikelis, Chancellor of the Holy Archdiocese, and Mr. Ioannis Mallikourtis, Consul General of Greece in Sydney. Also present was the Sub-Dean of the Theological College, Assoc. Professor Philip Kariatlis, along with members of the teaching staff, Teachers of the Byzantine Music School, as well as relatives and friends of the graduates.

His Eminence, during his address, first referred with pride to the work of the Byzantine Music School, which he founded just a few months after his arrival in Australia, foreseeing the great need to prepare those who will play a decisive role in the worship of the local Church, ministering at the sacred chanting stands, alongside the clergy and Bishops in all sacred services.

Then, addressing the graduates of the Theological College, he congratulated them on the successful completion of their studies and emphasised the crucial supportive role of the Faculty and other staff of the College, as well as their families. Furthermore, he expressed the Church’s hope that the knowledge and wisdom they acquired during their studies will guide them, illuminating the path towards the joy and fullness of the Kingdom of God, both in the present and in the future.

Moreover, the Archbishop and Dean of Saint Andrew’s Theological College reminded us that Theology is not simply an academic pursuit. “It is not simply ‘‘discourse’’ about God, acquired solely through study and scholarly research, but rather, something infinitely greater,” he emphasised and continued: “The careful and critical study of the Scriptures, together with that of the rich Patristic and Liturgical traditions clearly showed you, that, quintessentially, theology is a gift “coming down from the Father of lights” (James 1:7) which, therefore, brings us before the very presence of our Lord; namely, before the inexpressible mystery of God’s love. Indeed, this encounter with the living Christ, made possible through the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit within the world throughout all time thereafter, is the reason why we say that theology is the very gift of God’s revelation; indeed, that very same revelation that was given to the apostles of Christ.”

At another point in his address, His Eminence recalled that Theology, as a gift of the Holy Spirit, ultimately grants the human person genuine and experiential knowledge of God. “In this way, you were often reminded that theology is not only informative, but also formative and in the end, a transformative experience.,” he emphasised. He urged the graduates, in the context of the ministries they will undertake in the future within the Church, to have as their main concern to give the faithful a living testimony of the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ in the world and of His future kingdom.

Finally, Archbishop Makarios stressed that in order for Theology to remain genuine, “it has to bring us before the sweet fragrance of Christ’s future kingdom in the here and now.” Quoting an inspired speech by His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, he pointed out that otherwise Theology “will remain a lifeless and spineless human creation… fill[ing] up our libraries with intellectual dissertations, which may be excellently argued but hardly able to inspire the human soul towards the life-giving and life-saving love of God.”