“Volos Summer Institute” was held in Volos from June 24 to July 6, 2025 and was attended by 20 trainees from Ukraine, Georgia, England, Germany and India. The program, co-organized by the Volos Academy for Theological Studies and the International Orthodox Theological Association (IOTA), aimed to familiarize participants with the new socio-cultural challenges the Church faces, such as secularization, globalization, religious pluralism and the concept of an open society; to address central aspects of the Orthodox tradition, including doctrine, art and architecture, liturgy, anthropology and asceticism; to educate students on the organization and practices of local churches and parishes in today's secularized environment; to explore the characteristics and strategies for offering pastoral and psychological support to communities in times of crisis and war; and to encourage networking and exchange of experiences, including topics such as the Orthodox theological tradition, the ecumenical dialogue, faith and contemporary challenges, as well as the practical aspects of ecclesiastical ministry. The lecturers were leading scholars, both Orthodox and non-Orthodox, and in particular Metropolitan Job (Getcha) of Pisidia (Ecumenical Patriarchate), Metropolitan Grigorios (Papathomas) of Peristeri (professor at the University of Athens), Dr. Pantelis Kalaitzidis (Director of the Volos Academy for Theological Studies), Dr. Nikolaos Asproulis (Deputy Director of the Volos Academy), Prof. Gayle Woloschak (Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA), Rev. Prof. Vasilios Thermos (Supreme Ecclesiastical Academy of Athens), Prof. Ekaterini Tsalampouni (University of Thessaloniki), Prof. Paul Gavrilyuk (University of St. Thomas, Minnesota, USA), Rev. Prof. Cyril Hovorun (Huffington Ecumenical Institute, Los Angeles, California, USA), Prof. Katharina Kunder (University of Helsinki, Finland) and Prof. Pablo Argarate (University of Graz, Austria), while workshops were conducted by Rev. Prof. Andriy Dudchenko (Orthodox Academy of Kiev, Ukraine), Rev. Prof. George Kovalenko (Rector of the Open Orthodox University of St Sophia, Kiev, Ukraine) and Prof. Alexander Filonenko (Volyn Orthodox Theological Academy, Ukraine).

The Summer Institute offered participants an opportunity to come into direct contact, on the one hand, with the life and working ways of one of the most vibrant and modern metropolises in Greece, the Metropolis of Demetrias, which has been a crossroads of dialogue between cultures and religious traditions for many decades; and on the other hand, with the rich cultural landscape of Greece, with its centuries-old history. Making this acquaintance deeper, an excursion took place to the area of Aghia (church of the Dormition of the Holy Virgin in Aetolophos, reliquary of the church of Saint Anthony, monastery of Saint Panteleimon and church of the Holy Apostles in Aghia), while a second excursion to Delphi and the monastery of Saint Loukas in Steiri, Boeotia, was the conclusion of the program.