The Anatolian Genocide: Understanding Narratives Of Tragedy From An Orthodox Perspective

Fr Greg Christakos (D.Min. ‘24) presented his doctoral research in a webinar entitled “The Anatolian Genocide: Understanding Narratives Of Tragedy From An Orthodox Perspective,” on Thursday, April 11, 2024. Director of the Doctor of Ministry program, the Very Rev. Sergius Halvorsen gave introductory remarks.

In this presentation and discussion, Fr Greg talks about the trauma of genocide, in this case specifically of Orthodox Christians in Asia Minor in the waning days of the Ottoman Empire and the foundational time of the modern Republic of Turkey. After a brief, digestible history of that event, he discusses why as Orthodox Christians we should have an understanding of it as part of our history, regardless of our own ethnic background. Fr Greg then speaks about how we process narratives of trauma through the lens of Orthodox Christianity and how we use the various tools in our Orthodox toolkit to understand and move forward through such events.