Holy Apostles supports the Cornell Orthodox Christian Fellowship (OCF), one of the most vibrant and active chapters in the Northeast Region. Our OCF chapter is under the umbrella of the National OCF, which is the official campus ministry organization of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America. We are a group of college students and young professionals from various ethnic backgrounds who gather regularly for Fellowship, Education, Worship and Service.    

During the semester, we meet at least twice per week, once for morning prayer and another for our weekly fellowship gathering, where we pray a short compline service, discuss relevant topics, and eat copious amounts of chips and salsa.

Each year, we host several lectures and bring world class speakers to campus. Past examples include:

• Fr. David Garretson: “Faith and Unions: Is there a basis for trade unions in Christian theology and history”
• Rita Madden: “Food, Faith and Fasting”
• Fr. David Smith: “Faith and Science: Exploring apparent conflicts between beliefs from faith and experiment”
• Archbishop Michael Dahulich: “Convictions of the early Christian Church”
• Dr. Elyse Semerdjian: “What lies beneath Grandma’s tattoos? Gender, Islamization, and the Armenian genocide”
• Mother Magdalena: “In search of solid ground: From new age hippie to Orthodox nun”
• Fr. Nicolas Kazarian: “East meets west: Eastern Orthodoxy without borders”
• Fr. Christopher Eid: “Christianity in the Arab world”
• Fr. Patrick Cowles: “Orthodoxy and the Old Testament”
• Archbishop Michael Dahulich: “Are you saved? An Orthodox Christian perspective”

We have also hosted and participated in several OCF retreats over the years, such as:

• “Relationships rooted in Christ” at St. Andrew’s Camp with Fr. John Malcom
• “Life in transition: Walking with God through all seasons” Ithaca Pan-Orthodox young adult retreat with Fr. Michael Marcantoni
• “Pre-Lenten young adult retreat” with the nuns of the Monastery of the Transfiguration in Ellwood City, PA

Past service projects include:

• IOCC health kit packing
• Feed My Starving Children MobilePack event
• Ithaca Advocacy Center donation drive
• Loaves and Fishes volunteering
• Music therapy at Cayuga Ridge nursing home

If you would like to get involved or get in touch with us, please contact our president, Radu Parvulescu, at rap348@cornell.edu.

Currently there is no active OCF at Ithaca College, but we welcome IC students and students from any of the other surrounding universities to join any of the meetings or events held by the Cornell OCF. Contact us if you'd like to get involved!