50th Assembly of the Diocese of the Midwest
Seattle, WA
October 31, 2011
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Christ is in our midst!
With the blessing of our Hierarch, His Grace, the Right Reverend Matthias, Bishop of Chicago and the Midwest, it was decided that the 50th Assembly of the Diocese of the Midwest this year will take place in conjunction with the 16th All-American Council. Since travel costs to Seattle for the AAC represent a serious challenge to many parishes, it was thought that additional travel for a separate Diocesan Assembly would be a prohibitive hardship.
Therefore, I would first of all like to direct you to the website of the 16th All-American Council at <www.aac16.org>. There you will find all crucial information regarding air flights, ground transportation, accommodations, registration, and schedules for the AAC.
Registration
The composition of delegates from each parish is made up of the assigned clergy and an equal number of lay delegates. One lay delegate is allowed from each parish not having an assigned priest. Further information may be found in the OCA Statute, Article 7, The Diocesan Assembly <www.oca.org/DOCstatute.asp?SID=12&ID=7>.
This year, there will be NO registration form and NO registration fee for the Diocesan Assembly. It is assumed that most parishes will be sending the same delegates to the Diocesan Assembly that they are sending to the All-American Council. Therefore, delegates will simply be accredited on the basis of the registrations for the All-American Council. N.B.: If a parish intends to send different delegates to the Assembly than to the AAC, it is their responsibility to notify the Diocese.
Schedule
The entirety of the Diocesan Assembly will take place during the day on Monday, October 31, 2011, in the Cedar Ballroom on the second floor. All delegates must arrive the prior evening, Sunday, October 30, in order to be able to attend the Assembly.
8:15 am – Assembly Registration opens
9:00 am – First Plenary Session convenes with opening prayers.
11:30 am – Break for lunch. Holy Synod meeting. AAC Registration (Grand Ballroom Foyer).
1:00 pm – Reconvene for Second Plenary Session.
3:30 pm – Diocesan Assembly ends. Dinner. Metropolitan Council meeting. AAC Registration continues.
6:00 pm – All-American Council begins.
N.B.: Registrants are responsible for their own meals. There are several restaurants in and around the hotel, including Tewada Thai (across the skybridge on the second floor) and Joey’s (across the courtyard from the hotel on the street level).
Materials
Minutes, reports, and forms pertaining to the Diocesan Assembly may be downloaded from <www.domoca.org/assembly.html>. In order to avoid charging a registration fee, printouts will NOT be passed out at the Assembly. All delegates are asked to review these materials online in advance, and print their own hard copies as necessary.
To submit a resolution, follow the directions given on the resolution form, which may be found on the web page mentioned above as well as mailed to all parishes along with this letter.
Elections
This year’s Diocesan Assembly will be a very abbreviated assembly in comparison to an assembly conducted on our Diocesan territory. Therefore, His Grace Bishop Matthias, with my cooperation and agreement and that of the Diocesan Council and the Deans, has made the following decision:
The 50th Assembly of the Diocese of the Midwest will conduct NO elections. The term of office for ALL Diocesan Council members and elected Auditors will be extended one additional year, and regular elections conducted at next year’s Diocesan Assembly in October of 2012.
For questions, please contact Philip Sokolov in the Chancery Office by phone at (312) 202-0420 or by email at <chancery@domoca.org>.
In Christ,
Archpriest John Zdinak
Chancellor, Diocese of the Midwest
