More than 100 delegates from across Ireland and Britain will gather in St Nicholas’ Collegiate Church this weekend, for the Romanian Orthodox church’s annual Youth Congress of Nepsis, which this year takes place in Galway.
The congress, which takes place tomorrow, Saturday, and Sunday, aims to empower young people to live and better understand their Orthodox faith, while engaging in intercultural dialogue. The theme is ‘The Icon or the Sacred Image. A Compared Theology’. The Orthodox faith regards an icon as a projection of God, and a person should aim to become an icon of God in society. The talks will cover themes such as the origins of icons, methods of creating icons, and how to understand them.
The main speaker at the congress will be Fr Ioan Emil Jurcan, from the Faculty of Theology in Alba Iulia, Romania. Bishop Ignatie, Assistant Bishop for Spain and Portugal and Metropolitan Iosif’s representative for UK and Ireland, is also a guest.
The Romanian Orthodox community in the west of Ireland has for some years now been worshipping in St Nicholas’, sharing it with the Church of Ireland congregation. The conference will be in Romanian, but translation facilities can be provided.
