FLORENCE, SC – Many Christians – Greek Orthodox and otherwise – say they would like to read the Bible on a regular basis, but often simply don’t have the time to do so, and throughout their busy schedule day in, day out, week in, week out, forget to make the time.
But Rev. Athanasios Haros, priest at the Transfiguration of Our Savior Greek Orthodox Church in Florence, has a 21st century solution regarding the Ancient religion, the Florence newspaper the Morning News reports.
Rev. Haros’ approach, at first glance, appears conventional enough: the Bible Study group meets every Wednesday for an hour. Currently studying the Book of acts, “we’re following St. John Chrysostom, his sermons from the year 400,” Haros told the News. “we read his sermon, we’re reading the Scriptures, and we’re making it contemporary.”
Contemporary, indeed, not only in substance but in process. Although the study yields about ten live attendees per live session – not an uncommon number for Greek Orthodox weekly Bible studies on weeknights – there are four to five times more people who attend online, thanks to live streaming on the Internet. According to the news, the online audience includes people from various states, as well as from foreign countries.
“This online community that has started, they’re having a chatroom discussion about what I’m saying,” Haros told the News. “We’re having a discussion in the room for what I’m saying.” He says he tries to incorporate the online viewers’ questions into the live discussion, thereby ensuring balanced participation and integrating the two types of attendees.
Finally, even if the convenience of online participation is not conducive to some potential attendees’ schedules, the Bible Study sessions are captured on video and available on YouTube for future reference.
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