Metr. Saba Encourages Teen SOYO During Midsummer Meetings

LIGONIER, PA — Leaders from Teen SOYO and the Antiochian Women gathered at Antiochian Village from July 24–26 for the biennial Midsummer Meetings, where Metr. Saba encouraged participants to deepen their faith while highlighting new opportunities for ministry and charitable outreach across the Archdiocese.

During an extended question-and-answer session with Teen SOYO members, Metr. Saba reflected on this year's Parish Life Conference theme, "You shall be to me a royal priesthood and a holy nation" (Exodus 19:6). He emphasized that every Orthodox Christian shares in the Church's royal priesthood through prayer, spiritual growth, and witnessing Christ to others. Encouraging the teens to study the faith and cultivate a vibrant spiritual life, he said doing so would prepare them to answer questions about Orthodoxy with wisdom and confidence. At the conclusion of the session, he presented each participant with a small icon of the Theotokos and opened the reliquary of St. Raphael of Brooklyn for veneration.

Metr. Saba also met with the Antiochian Women, commending them for raising more than $907,000 during the final year of their Widowed Clergy Wives Endowment Fund campaign, bringing the fund's value above $2 million. He encouraged the organization to launch the new St. Simon of Cyrene Fund, which will assist clergy facing burnout, illness, or other hardships requiring temporary leave from ministry.

The Antiochian Women also announced a new Shared Act of Mercy benefiting Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry. Metr. Saba thanked the organization for its continued commitment to charitable service and encouraged members to persevere in their ministries with Christian love and compassion.

Previously, the UOJ reported that Metr. Saba reflected on the legacy of St. Raphael of Brooklyn.