July Preaching Workshop

In July, clergy from Northern California gathered at St. Vartan Armenian Apostolic Church in Oakland for a day-long preaching workshop led by Fr. Lucas Christensen, Assistant Director of the Compelling Preaching Program at St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary.

Centered on the theme “Story in Preaching,” the workshop unfolded in four sessions. The opening session, “Story in the Liturgical Arts,” highlighted how narrative is woven throughout the Church’s liturgical expressions. The second, “Story in Patristic Homilies,” examined vivid examples from early Christian preaching that drew hearers more deeply into the liturgy. In the third session, “Story in Our Preaching,” participants engaged in practical exercises — testing new approaches and receiving constructive feedback. The final session offered clergy the opportunity to deliver their own prepared homilies and exchange valuable peer critique.

We thank Fr. Krikor Zakaryan for hosting the workshop at his parish. The module from this workshop has been added to our website. All clergy of the Eastern and Western Dioceses of the Armenian Church of America are welcome to register to access this material for free! Please reach out to Arpi Nakashian Bullockian, Chief Program Officer, at arpi@stnersess.edu for your code to waive the $500 fee, or if you have any questions.

Click here to view a short recap video from the Oakland session.

Building on this initiative, a two-day clergy seminar will be offered this fall in both New England and Los Angeles, CA.