With the blessing of His Eminence Mark and His Eminence Irenei, it has been decided to hold a pan-European conference of Orthodox youth of our Church from the 3rd to the 8th of September in 2026.

The important goals of this conference are to strengthen ties among the youth of the two dioceses, to reinforce their role in the life of the church, and to collaborate in the development of new youth projects. Such a conference is a unique opportunity for young people to unite in common prayer and spiritual work.

A small hotel in a Catholic monastery in the countryside near Florence was chosen as the venue. During the five days of the conference, participants will be able to:

▪ Learn a lot from spiritual conversations

▪ Gain useful skills and friends during master classes and group projects

▪ Ask clergy members questions that are important to them

▪ Enjoy the Italian countryside and visit landmarks of Christian culture

▪ Participate in services at the beautiful Church of the Nativity of Christ and Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker in Florence.

The event is being organised by a committee consisting of representatives from various youth groups from both dioceses. Most of the committee members already have successful experience in organising All-Diaspora and/or diocesan conventions.

Our committee intends to develop a programme for the conference that is as spiritually enriching and fulfilling as possible. At the same time, we want to make it accessible to all representatives of our youth. It is important to us that everyone who aspires to live a truly orthodox life can participate. After all, our youth and our young families are the future of our church. Any financial support for the project from you, as benefactors, would help us to hold the conference in its entirety as planned, and to bring down the participation fee to a more affordable price.

Your contributions will go directly toward:

▪ Accommodation and meals for participants during the conference

▪ Transportation costs, including local travel and transfers

▪ Conference materials and merchandise, such as workbooks, gifts, and T-shirts

▪ Fees and road expenses

▪ Emergency fund to assist participants in unforeseen circumstances

▪ Subsidising the participation cost for all participants

You can register for the conference following this link: https://roj-deutschland.de/veranstaltung/eu-conference/

You can also follow us on social media: https://www.instagram.com/eu.orthodoxyouth

If you are interested or would like answers to any additional questions about the conference, please contact us.

Yours in Christ,

The European Youth Organising Committee