A Quest for Reform of the Orthodox Church. The 1923 Pan-Orthodox Congress: An Analysis and Translation of its Acts and Decisions

It is with pleasure therefore that we welcome the publication in an English translation of the acts and decisions of the 1923 Congress, prepared by the Reverend Dr. Patrick Viscuso, an expert in canon law. He deserves our thanks and commendations for the initiative to translate into English a difficult text from the original Greek. In his substantial and excellently researched introduction, Father Viscuso provides the background to that Congress, discussing the difficult international climate of the times, the uncertainties and dangers that the Church faced following World War I, the Russian Revolution, the rise of Turkish nationalism, European politics and national aspirations, all of which affected the lives of millions of Orthodox Christians in Europe and the Near East.

The Reverend Dr. Patrick Viscuso is a Professor of Canon Law at the Antiochian House of Studies and the Pastoral School of the Diocese of Chicago and Mid-Atlantic, an Orthodox canonist, and a priest of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. His doctorate in historical theology from the Catholic University of America concentrated on Byzantine and Oriental canon law, patristic studies, and church history. He also holds a Master of Divinity from Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology and a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University. He is the author of numerous scholarly articles and five books.