Bexley Hall, a seminary of the Episcopal Church in the USA

INTRODUCTION to EASTERN ORTHODOXY
through ST. PETERSBURG

Bexley Hall Episcopal Seminary at Trinity Lutheran Seminary Columbus, OH
January 12 - 24, 2009
(with options detailed below)

Leaders/Guides:	The Very Revd John R. Kevern, Ph.D. Dean of Bexley Hall Professor of Historical Theology
	Dr. Igor Tolochin University of St. Petersburg Professor of Semiotics

Synopsis

For M. Div. students

This is a “January term” travel course that yields a semester’s credit as a full-time course. The object will be to introduce Anglicans, Lutherans, and any others to the theology and liturgy of Eastern Orthodoxy. “Introduction” is the key word. There will be a few texts to read prior to the trip, but they will be short and accessible. Before departing for St. Petersburg, there will be some lectures by Dean Kevern to highlight key theological concepts, in addition to giving a cursory overview of the history of Russia, especially as it relates to St. Petersburg, the former Imperial capital, and arguably, one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Liturgically, the trip is timed to coincide with Russian Orthodox Epiphany (January 17th, since the Church in Russia retains the Julian Calendar). The timing avoids the General Ordination Exams (for Episcopalians). Of special interest to Lutherans will be the visit to the re-opened Lutheran seminary in the city (St. Petersburg is close by the Lutheran countries of Estonia and Latvia, and always had a goodly number of Lutheran residents.) We shall visit the most famous sacred sites of the city (St. Isaac’s Cathedral, the Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul, the Cathedral of Our Lady of Kazan, and the Monastery of St. Alexander Nevsky, inter alia). And we shall visit a country parish, Sablino, which has historic connections to the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio, and whose dynamic priest, Fr. Nicolai, the son of a priest who survived the Great Terror of Stalin, has rebuilt a total parish infrastructure in a village. And naturally, we shall see the most famous of St. Petersburg’s secular sites, i.e. the Winter Palace (home of the Hermitage Museum, perhaps the second greatest museum of Western art in the world after the Louvre); the Catharine Palace (the most famous of the summer palaces) at Tsarskoe Selo, and the tombs of the tsars in the Fortress of Sts. Peter and Paul. An optional one-day side trip to Novgorod (founding city of ancient Russia) is contemplated. There will also probably be a chance to attend a performance at the famous Mariinsky Theatre, home of the Kirov Ballet and Opera. Swan Lake was premiered here and is still regularly performed. Unforgettable!

For ALUMNI AND FRIENDS of Bexley Hall

You are most cordially invited to join this Bexley trip. St. Petersburg is still amazingly beautiful and intact, (despite the famous Siege of Leningrad), and the winter should not deter you! Attendance at the opening lectures in Columbus is not required, but you certainly welcome to come with no additional fee. We will arrange Columbus accomodation for you, if you wish. If you wish to meet with up with us directly in St. Petersburg on Friday, January 16th, you are welcome to do so. If you wish to fly with us from Columbus, we will book your air tickets with the students en bloc. If you wish to fly on your own and meet up with us there, that is fine too; we will see you at the hotel.

Note to PRIESTS

You only miss one Sunday at home with this trip.

TIME

Columbus Lectures by Dean Kevern at Trinity Lutheran: Monday through Thursday, January 12 - 15, 2009. 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Depart for St. Petersburg: Thursday evening, January 15, from Columbus via New York and Paris, arriving in St. Petersburg mid-Friday afternoon, January 16. Departure back to the States, via Paris: Saturday, January 24th, arriving the same day.

ST PETERSBURG - FRIDAY JANUARY 16 to FRIDAY JANUARY 23, inclusive.

OUR GUIDE

Professor Igor Tolochin, professor of semiotics at the University of St. Petersburg, will be our guide. We’re getting the best. Prof. Tolochin is young, a committed Orthodox believer, born in St. Petersburg, and very friendly to Anglicans. He was educated at Oxford, inter alia, and knows the Church of England and TEC up close. He has had a long relationship with the Diocese of Southern Ohio.

COST

Bexley Hall and Trinity Lutheran students - $2,500, plus regular course fee
Alumni and friends: $3,000 (this trip is partially subsidized for M. Div. students, and the above does not reflect the actual cost)
.Airfare: $1,000 round trip as of this time of this writing (4 June 2008); this is an estimation that will be firmed up just before mid-September.
Accomodation: We stay at the Hotel Anabel on the Nevsky Prospekt (St. Petersburg’s grand central avenue), with the attractive rate of 86 Euros x $1.55 x 8 nights = $1,066.00. Meals, transportation by coach within St. Petersburg, guide: $500.00. There will be two free nights in St. Petersburg when you’re “on your own”, but we will aid you in finding a dining venue, taxis, etc., given the fact of the Cyrillic alphabet and the language.

DEPOSIT (refundable until 1 September): $300.00

DEPOSIT DEADLINE for STUDENTS: 15 September 2008

DEPOSIT DEADLINE FOR ALUMNI and FRIENDS: 15 September 2008

CONTACT

Dean Kevern, or Paul Williams, Executive Assistant to the Dean.

I have bee'n to St. Petersburg three times before, and I can attest that it delivers!

The Rt. Revd John R. Kevern, Ph.D., D.D.
Dean and President of Bexley Hall