St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival

March 14th 9AM-2PM District Level Event at our Church!

Congratulations to the youth who competed in HAGOC’s St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival on February 8, 2026:

Senior Division (grades 10-12):

Marianna Drapas, 1st Place

Junior Division (grades 7-9):

Mark Wenzel, 1st Place

Ben Joiner, 2nd Place

Elena Wenzel, 3rd Place

Honorable Mention (alphabetical by last name): Peter Karalis, Eliana Louh, and Penny Pappas

Elementary Division (grades 4-6; the Elementary Division is not judged/Local level only):

Max Maalouf

All of our participants did commendable work: learning more about their faith and sharing inspired words with our parish! Thank you for making this year’s festival a big success!

Additional thanks go to: Fr. Thomas and Pres. Elizabeth, for their help organizing this year’s festival and their steadfast dedication to developing & caring for HAGOC youth; the festival judges – Jack Dulgarian, Maria Plevrakis, and Paris Economou – for lending their insight & time in support of HAGOC youth; and the participants’ parents/families, for all they do to encourage & guide their children’s religious education.

The next level of competition is District, to be held right here at HAGOC on March 14! Best wishes to Marianna from the Senior Division, and Mark and Ben from the Junior Division, as they represent our parish at the District competition.

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(A) What is the St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival?

An annual competition program in which Orthodox Christian youth prepare and deliver short speeches on a variety of compelling religious topics as a way to explore their faith, inspire others, and develop important leadership skills.

(B) Key Dates

•             End of Day January 7: This is the deadline by which participants in the junior division (grade 7-9) and the senior division (grade 10-12) must submit the official St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival participation form for 2026 at https://religioused.formstack.com/forms/sjcof_participant_2026. Instructions for submitting the form are below. Note: submitting the form requires that the participant select a topic from the official list of speech topics for 2026, which are also provided below.

•             End of Day January 7: This is the deadline by which elementary division participants (grade 4-6) must email their speech topic to ashleydjoiner@gmail.com (see elementary speech topics below). The elementary division is not judged and is local level only. Elementary participants should NOT submit the official St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival participation form -- an email to Ashley is all that is necessary.

•             Between January 8 and February 1: “1-on-1s” with the Festival Team are available by request for Junior & Senior participants. 1-on-1s may be held in-person or virtually, and can cover speech research, writing, editing and/or delivery -- whatever is most helpful for the participant. To request a 1-on-1, email ashleydjoiner@gmail.com. 

•             End of Day February 1: This is the deadline by which you must email your final speech to ashleydjoiner@gmail.com. Ashley will forward to Father Thomas for his review. Junior & Senior speeches must be formatted as follows: Double-spaced; Speech topic included at the top of the first page; Participant’s name, address, parish name/location and division (junior or senior) in the top right corner of the first page. Elementary speeches do not need to be formatted in any specific way.

•             February 7, 1:00pm-3:00pm: Dress rehearsal at church for all participants. Attendance is strongly encouraged! Participants will practice delivering their final speeches from the podium with the mic, and the Festival Team will provide final advice/tips.

•             February 8, after liturgy: Local festival, held at HAGOC. Qualifiers proceed to the District festival.

•             March 14: District festival, held at HAGOC. Qualifiers proceed to the Metropolis festival.

•             May 2: Metropolis festival, held at St. George in Bethesda, Maryland. Qualifiers proceed to the National festival.

•             June 12-14: National festival, held at St. Nicholas in Northridge, California.

(C) Instructions for Filling Out the Official Participation Form for 2026

By End of Day January 7, Junior & Senior participants must submit the official St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival participation form for 2026 at https://religioused.formstack.com/forms/sjcof_participant_2026. In addition to information about the participant (e.g., name, contact information, grade, school), the form requires the following information.

o             Parish name: Holy Apostles Greek Orthodox Church

o             Parish address: 25350 Poland Road, Chantilly, VA, 20152

o             Parish priest: Father Thomas Manuel

o             Parish chairperson: Ashley Joiner

o             E-mail of parish chairperson: ashleydjoiner@gmail.com

o             Metropolis in which your parish is located: New Jersey Metropolis

o             Division: choose Junior if in Grades 7-9; choose Senior if in Grades 10-12

o             Topic number: choose number that corresponds with your speech topic - must choose from official list of speech topics for 2026

(D) Official List of Speech Topics for 2026

Junior division (grades 7-9): Junior speeches must be between 3-4min. All speeches must start with this greeting: "Reverend Father, Esteemed Judges, Ladies and Gentlemen and Fellow Speakers – Good Morning." The timer starts after you finish this greeting. Visit https://www.goarch.org/oratorical for tips & resources on the Junior topics.

• Junior topic 1: Select a hymn that is chanted in the Divine Liturgy and explain its meaning and theological significance.

• Junior topic 2: Choose a Saint who was a child or young person. How did their faith influence their life, and what can we learn from them.

• Junior topic 3: Who is the Ecumenical Patriarch, and why is he significant in the Orthodox Church today?

• Junior topic 4: Choose an Old Testament story (such as David and Goliath, Daniel in the lion’s den, or Joseph and his brothers) and explain how it teaches us important lessons that apply to young people today.

• Junior topic 5: Select a major Orthodox feast day and explain why we celebrate it and how participating in this celebration deepens our understanding of Christ and our faith.

Senior division (grades 10-12): Senior speeches must be between 4-5min. All speeches must start with this greeting: "Reverend Father, Esteemed Judges, Ladies and Gentlemen and Fellow Speakers – Good Morning." The timer starts after you finish this greeting. Visit https://www.goarch.org/oratorical for tips & resources on the Senior topics.

• Senior topic 1: Pick a common icon type that is found in Orthodox churches (for example Christ Pantocrator, Virgin Hodegetria, the Resurrection icon) and explain its meaning and theological significance.

• Senior topic 2: Why is the feast of Pentecost important and what does the story of Pentecost teach us about the Holy Spirit?

• Senior topic 3: Saint John frequently contrasts light and darkness in his Gospel and letters. Choose one of his teachings about light (such as “God is light” or Christ as “the light of the world”) and discuss how this imagery helps us understand our Christian calling and witness.

• Senior topic 4: Throughout history, Orthodox Christians have faced persecution for their faith, from ancient martyrs to modern confessors. How does the witness of martyrs, both ancient and contemporary, strengthen and guide the Church today?

• Senior topic 5: Orthodox funeral services speak of death as “falling asleep” and emphasize the hope of resurrection. How does Orthodox teaching about death and eternal life influence how we live and how we care for the dying and grieving?

(E) Speech Topics for the Elementary Division (grades 4-6)

Choose one:

• Tell us about your favorite story from the Bible. What happens in the story and why do you like it? What does it teach us about God or how we should live?

• Describe something you love about your Orthodox church. It could be an icon, a special service, the way it looks, or how it makes you feel. Why is this special to you?

• Choose a saint you’ve learned about and tell us why you think they were special. What did they do that showed their love for God? How can we be like them?

• Share an Orthodox tradition that your family celebrates, such as a special holiday, blessing, or custom. How does your family celebrate it and why is it important to you?

• Choose an icon from your church and describe what you see in it. Who is shown in the icon and what story does it tell? What do you learn from looking at this icon?

*FYI that Elementary speeches are generally ~1-2min long.

(F) 1-on-1s and Dress Rehearsal

Junior & Senior participants: Not sure how to begin researching your speech topic? Looking for feedback on speech writing, editing and/or delivery? The Festival Team is here to help! “1-on-1s” with the Festival Team are available by request between January 8 and February 1, and can be conducted in-person or virtually. To request a 1-on-1, email ashleydjoiner@gmail.com.

Additionally, on February 7, 1:00pm-3:00pm, we’ll hold a dress rehearsal at church for all participants. Attendance is strongly encouraged! Participants will practice delivering their final speeches from the podium with the mic, and the Festival Team will provide final advice/tips.

(G) Questions?

Contact Ashley Joiner at ashleydjoiner@gmail.com.