Youth Department
The Ministry of the Youth of the Church
Diocesan Youth Department
The Diocesan Youth Department is chaired by the Very Reverend Archpriest Quentin de Castelbajac of the Parish of St John the Russian in Lyon, France, with the aid of many clergy and laypeople throughout the Diocese — and of course by the youth of the Church themselves. Youth activities are organised at every parish of the Diocese. This page reports the latest news of those activities as well as youth events organised at the Diocesan level.
The Dioceses organises several conferences, together with those of the ROCOR more broadly. These include our annual Diocesan Youth Conferences, the All-European Youth Conferences, and the All-Diaspora Youth Conferences. Read more on these conferences, below.
Latest Youth Department News Items
Orientation
‘The Church is the Future of our Children’
So wrote the saintly Metropolitan Philaret of New York, the third First Hierarch of our Russian Orthodox Church in the Diaspora, in his Law of God published in the 1930s. The Metropolitan’s words were an important inversion of the popular, but incorrect, phrase often heard then and still in our days: ‘The children are the future of the Church.’ As he emphasised to the flock, the future of the Church, just as her past and present, is Christ; it is Christ’s Church which is the future of our children, who will find in the Church the haven for their souls, joy in this life, and the entrance into the Eternal Kingdom.
For this reason, the Church ministers with tireless zeal to bring up her children in the love of God, His Law, and the faith and life of His Church. To this end, in 2020 our Diocese established a new Diocesan Youth Department, dedicated to coordinating the many activities for children and youth already being carried out in various ways across the parishes of our thirteen countries and multitude of languages.
The Diocesan Youth Department is chaired by the Very Reverend Archpriest Quentin de Castelbajac of the Parish of St John the Russian in Lyon, France, with the aid of many clergy and laypeople throughout the Diocese.
Conferences
The Annual Diocesan Youth Conference
The tradition of holding annual youth conferences in every Diocese of the Church Abroad is longstanding. In common with many other dioceses, ours organises its chief Diocesan Youth Conference each year, generally in the winter, and often around the time of the Feast of St Herman of Alaska (12 / 25 December). The annual Youth Conference is an opportunity for the youth of all the Diocese’s parishes — as well as sister Dioceses — to come together for 4-7 days of talks, excursions, social activities, Divine Services and prayers, workshops and masterclasses, and fun and fellowship with their faithful brethren. The Youth Conferences are always headed by clergy of the Diocese, with their main programme organised by the youth themselves. If you are aged 18-35, don’t miss these annual opportunities to forge lasting relationships with fellow Orthodox Christians and grow in your faith and life! See details of our December 2025 Diocesan Youth Conference here.
The All-European Youth Conference
Beginning in 2026, the Diocese will organise, together with our sister German Diocese of the ROCOR, an all-European Youth Conference to complement the Diocesan conferences of each. These amazing events are even larger than the Diocesan Youth Conferences, and bring together participants from an even broader region. You can read about the 2026 All-European Youth Conference, and register on-line, here.
The All-Diaspora Youth Conference
Finally, every 3-4 years the ROCOR hosts the longstanding tradition of its All-Diaspora Youth Conference, which takes place in different parts of the world and draws together youth from all the dioceses of the Church Abroad — from Europe, Canada, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, South America, and other regions.
Photos from youth events across the diocese
Copyright (c) 2010-2025, Diocese of Great Britain and Western Europe (ROCOR)
A Registered Charity in the UK (no. 1192243) – Policy Documents | Contact Orthodox England
Copyright (c) 2010-2025, Diocese of Great Britain and Western Europe (ROCOR). A Registered Charity in the UK (no. 1192243) – Policy Documents | Contact Orthodox England
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