St. Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church
3655 Park Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92103
619-297-4165
Father Andrew Scordalakis
Sunday School
High School
Teacher: Anthony Kyriakidis
Our High School saint is St. Nektarios of Aegina.
Nektarios the Wonderworker though his eloquent sermons, generous alms deeds, holiness, meekness, and fatherly love, became a shining light and spiritual guide to many. St. Nectarios of Aegina's feast day is November 9.
What Each STUDENT Should Know
An Orthodox Christian should be well-informed about the rich content of the Orthodox Tradition. Being able to name, to retell, to identify, to list, and more are dimensions of what it means “to know” one’s faith. A Church school program should be able to transmit these concepts to its students. But “knowing the Faith” also involves being able to appreciate its content, to consider how it influences one’s life, to participate in it, and to respond to its call of commitment to faith in Jesus Christ and His Church. For example, what is the benefit of reciting the Lord’s Prayer in a classroom setting, and a teacher’s assessment that the student has memorized it, without praying the Lord’s Prayer at home and reflecting on the words themselves? The real curriculum for learning the Orthodox Faith is the life of the Church as experienced in a dynamic, faith-filled parish. Our education in faith is a lifelong journey. No Church school curriculum can include or teach everything. Any series of published textbooks is merely the first step of learning. Even in the best series, the authors, editors, and publishers make choices about what they believe most valuable for learners to achieve in a certain timeframe.
By the end of High School, the students are expected to Understand:
- The outline of the Divine Liturgy
- The meaning of the Memorial Service
- The books of the Bible (Old and New Testament)
- The 12 Great Feast Days
The High School curriculum for the 2010-2011 school year includes the text book, "The Way The Truth and The Life". Classroom participation is highly encouraged as we discuss lessons in the text and how they apply in modern society. There is a strong emphasis on Church History and how Orthodox Christianity differentiates itself from other Christian denominations. Additional topics form Gospel readings and current events are also discussed.
High School students are also encouraged to participate in Curriculum Enrichment for the church:
- Bible Bowl and History Tournament Dec. 3, 2011
- Oratorical Festival Mar. 11, 2012