Fr. Emmanuel Hatzidakis

Fr. Emmanuel Hatzidakis Born: Chania, Crete, Greece, 1941 Education: Licenza - International Institute of St. Paul, Rome, Italy, 1965 BA - Classics - Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH, 1972 Graduate level studies in Classics at the University of Chicago, IL, 1973 M.Div. - Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, Brookline, MA 1989 In 2001, Fr. Emmanuel founded Orthodox Witness, a nonprofit organization dedicated to Orthodox Evangelism, particularly through the modern means of communication. Fr. Emmanuel brought several high-profile speakers to St. Louis for annual Orthodox Witness seminars. He established www.orthodoxwitness.org, and the group has published four books thus far: "The Heavenly Banquet: Understanding the Divine Liturgy", "Preaching Another Christ: An Orthodox View of Evangelicalism", by St. Theophan the Recluse, and two other translations, "The Garden of the Holy Spirit: Elder Iakovos of Evia", and "Papa-Dimitri: The Man of God". Fr. Emmanuel's second book: "Jesus: Fallen? The Human Nature of Christ Examined From an Eastern Orthodox Perspective", was published in 2013. Over the years, Fr. Emmanuel has written several original Christmas plays including: "Daniel and the Three Youths", "Prophecies Announcing Christ", and "Christmas Eve." Each play is highlighted with original Orthodox Christmas songs and carols (in English), which were written, arranged or composed by Fr. Emmanuel. He has also written a musical, "The Three Wise Men", with original music. Fr. Emmanuel has composed many original Orthodox Christian songs for the youth, and two Divine Liturgies. Books and CDs of these compositions are forthcoming.