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2021 Sunday School Teacher's Retreat at the Mor Ephrem Center, Paramus, NJ

Under the auspices of His Eminence Mor Dionysius John Kawak, the Educational Committee at the Archdiocese of the Syriac Orthodox Church for the Eastern United States hosted the US. Sunday School Teachers Retreat at the Mor Ephrem Center from Friday, November 12, to Sunday, November 14, 2021.

From the Western Archdiocese, representatives were:
Patricia Allaf
John Allaf
Jossline Frangoul

Teachers from all over the United States attended:

St. Peter Church – San Dimas, CA
St. Athanasius Church, Tampa, FL
St. Mark's Cathedral – Paramus, NJ
Church of the Virgin Mary – Paramus, NJ
St. Gabriel Church – Haworth, NJ
St. Ephraim Cathedral – Burbank, CA
St. Ephraim - Washington, DC

The theme for our 2021 retreat was "The Vine and the Branches" (John 15:1-11).

The day started with morning prayers and a spiritual speech delivered by His Eminence Mor Dionysius John Kawak. Workshops presented by Karen Muntzenberger, Patricia Allaf, and Ramona Malki about "How kids learn," "How to Pray," and "How to use our Sunday School Curriculum."

To conclude the fruitful and spiritual retreat, we gathered in the name of the Lord with Very Rev. Fr. Andrew Bahhi to study and reflect on the theme of this year.

The retreat ended with the Holy Liturgy Celebrated by His Eminence Archbishop Kawak assisted by Very Rev. Fr. Joseph Chamoun.

Malfonitho Patricia Allaf