With the blessing of the chairman of the Synodal Department for Youth Affairs, Bishop Seraphim of Istra, an international online meeting was held on February 13, marking the beginning of the celebration of International Orthodox Youth Day, observed on the feast of the Meeting of the Lord.
The meeting opened with an introductory address by Bishop Seraphim, who spoke about the connection between the youth celebration and the event of the Meeting of the Lord, and shared his personal experience of youthful struggle with doubts and of being established in the faith.
Representatives of Poland, Italy, Germany, Argentina, Moldova, the USA and other countries spoke about the life of their youth organizations under long-term quarantine restrictions. Participants were shown photo and video materials illustrating the life of Orthodox youth in different parts of the world, as well as creative performances broadcast live during the conference.
The Youth Department of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA was represented by its chairman, Priest Julian Ryabtsev, who said that despite the temporary impossibility of holding large events, such as the Youth Day celebration, weekly youth meetings had resumed in the parish hall of St. Nicholas Cathedral since August of last year, and two youth Liturgies had been celebrated, in Church Slavonic and English, preceded by a series of preparatory talks. A young parishioner of the Cathedral, Nikolai Ali, performed classical guitar pieces live during the conference.