The sole identity of the Orthodox Youth Movement is the life in Christ. Its sole constitution is to live by the Gospel. It thrives on love, fellowship and evangelization. This is what makes OYM a vocational movement animated by the Holy Spirit that dwells in Christ.
We exist in order to reveal the Lord and to be, with the other seekers, the leavened of the whole bread. We are servants who endeavor to permanently confess our sins and to be always repenting and to be the ambassadors of Jesus Christ in the world, always inventing new ways to introduce Jesus to the public.
This is how the founders wanted the OYM to be, with a divine inspiration. This is how we got to know its identity and how it must continue: a fellowship of people who consecrate themselves fully to God, and to Him alone, whether they are priests, monks, or lay people; a group of people who experience His love and feel His presence in His Holy Gospel, in the Eucharist, in individual and collective prayers, in the common life they lead and in serving humankind inside the church and everywhere in the world.
George Khodr, Albert Laham, Dimitri Qas’aa, Edward Laham, Michel Khoury, Marcel Morcos, Gabriel Saadeh, Gabriel Debs and others were the founding members .They were first schoolmates and then they studied law at the Saint Joseph University in Beirut. George Khodr, Gabriel Saadeh and Gabriel Debs were commissioned to draft the constitution of OYM. It was adopted and made public during a meeting held on the 16th of March 1942. The attendees of that meeting elected George Khodr as the OYM general secretary.
N.B. For more information kindly refer to our documentary: “I believe therefore I have spoken” produced my MJO Media.
Everything, The Orthodox Youth Movement does, is only a practical expression of its passion for Jesus Christ. Therefore, no obstacle, confrontation or vain glory can obstruct its mission or consecration according to the Lord’s calling.
The Orthodox Youth Movement perceives its pastoral vocation as a way to guide the parish to the field of the Lord, and considers that the authority of the Church is based on love, service, care and respect for the gifts bestowed by the Holly Spirit on each person. Based upon this belief, the Orthodox Youth Movement underlines the importance of an educated priest, as a foundation for the revival of the Church. This explains the special attention put on the Institute of Saint John Damascene established in 1970 at Balamand. Education is a focal point to the Movement, for it up-brings the person within the community of the body of the Christ. It is a way to exist and grow at the same time.
The movement’s institutions represent tools for the witness to the poor and needy, regardless of their religious affiliation. Their views regarding money stem form St Paul’s: “We seem to have nothing yet we really posses everything”. All the church’s belongings are at the service of the poor. The Movement is committed to the human cause in a spirit of justice and righteousness, because it believes that the Kingdom of Heavens begins here. The social commitment is not only a basic component of the spiritual life but also a prerequisite.
To complete the picture we need to speak about ecumenism. The movement perceives the ecumenical work, as an opportunity to broaden the Christian witness and to discover new brothers and sisters in Christ through joint work. It also stresses the need to bridge the gaps between all human beings, irrespective of their faith.
N.B. For more information kindly refer to our documentary: “I believe therefore I have spoken” produced my MJO Media.
The Orthodox Youth Movement is a spiritual movement that calls all the Orthodox believers to a religious, ethical, cultural and social renaissance.
OYM calls for the creation of a renaissance movement within the Orthodox Church. All the believers who uphold the cause of Jesus Christ in Antioch are part of the movement even if they are not official members of the OYM.
The OYM believes that the religious and cultural renaissance lies in honoring the religious obligations and knowing the church’s teachings; therefore, the OYM seeks to spread those teachings and to strengthen the Christian faith amongst the people.
The renaissance lies in the commitment to practice prayers and Holy sacraments and in acquiring the mind of Christ through the acquaintance with the Scriptures and the writings of the Church Fathers. OYM’s main concern is that faith be expressed in daily life through the renewal of the parish life, the society, and in the integrity of life, service and love.
The OYM seeks to create an Orthodox culture inspired from the spirit of Church.
The Church has an important role to play in the world. The awaited renewal is not limited to the “internal” ecclesial concerns; on the contrary, it entails the contribution of the church in shaping its civilization by developing a way of thinking, an art and a literature that reflect the uniqueness of Orthodoxy in its views of the world and the mankind.
The OYM refers to the global Christian values in dealing with social issues.
Caring for the poor, the oppressed and every needy is at the core of living the love through service. However, this does not cover all the church activity in the social field. The church must deal with all the social issues in order to put an end to poverty, injustice, and all kinds of oppression.
The Movement condemns confessional fanaticism; however, sticking to the Orthodox principles is a fundamental condition to strengthen religious life and to establish brotherly ties with the other Christian Churches.
The Orthodox vision of the relationships with others refuses any insincerity or syncretism. The schisms among the Christians are a shame that must be overcome so that the world may believe that Jesus Christ is the savior, without falling into another shame, i.e surrendering our firm belief in the divine, complete, and unchanged revelation as it was received by the Orthodox Church.
The OYM liaises with the international Orthodox youth, follows the teachings and tradition of the Universal Orthodox Church, and contributes to its ecumenical development and humanitarian mission.
The Orthodox Unity, that we mysteriously live in the Eucharist, needs to become a tangible reality in the world of mass communication and its numerous and accelerating changes. In raising this issue, the renaissance movement in the church of Antioch was a pioneer in the field of Pan Orthodox cooperation in the world.