Started in 1983, the Oratorical Festival welcomes the youth of the Greek Orthodox Church in North America to speak on preselected topics each year.
The children start at the parish level in the Junior Division (7-9 grade) and Senior Division (10-12 grade). A finalist from each division for each parish move on to the Metropolis level and in turn those finalists (9 juniors and 9 seniors) move on to the Archdiocese/National festival.
The 2009 Archdiocese Oratorical Festival was co-hosted by the parishes of St. George in St. Paul and St. Mary in Minneapolis, Minnesota on June 12-14. Archbishop Demetrios of America and Metropolitan Iakovos of Chicago, along with other special guests, finalists and their families spent the weekend in worship, fellowship and fun centered on the oratorical offerings of the kids.
The following speeches represent the best of the best of our youth in the Archdiocese.
Junior Section |
Senior Section |