Youth Month
October each year in the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America is celebrated as Youth Month. During this month teens help int he Church by singing int he choir, chanting, reading the epistles, taking the collections, hosting the coffee hours, etc.
Youth Month History
by Paul Murray and Fr. Joseph Purpura
His Eminence
Metropolitan PHILIP established Youth Month in the late 1960s. This program did
not originate in a specific parish, but rather was started at a parish level in
the Antiochian Archdiocese, as directed by his Eminence. Youth month was
established as a means to allow teens greater participation in the life of the
Church, especially in Liturgy. It was able to do so by having the teens read
the epistles, take the collections, sing in the choirs, chant, usher, and
similar duties during the month of October. The motivation of the Metropolitan
to establish this program was that he wanted teens to participate more in the life
of the Church. Throughout his Ministry, he has always had a great love for the
youth of the Church and wanted to engage them and keep them committed to a life
in Christ. Youth month spread quickly across the Archdiocese, and the clergy
adopted this method of involving the youth in the Church. Now, it is more
common for teens to sing, chant, and read epistles than when the program
originated, showing that Youth Month, the efforts of Metropolitan PHILIP, and
the Camps of the Archdiocese were successful in engaging the youth in the life
of the Church. Since the establishment of this program, other organizations
have also had a month designated to raising awareness of their efforts, such as
September as Fellowship Month, December for the Order of St. Ignatius, and
March as Antiochian Women Month.