Each year around the Fourth of July, one church in the Eastern Dioceses hosts a Parish Life Conference, where the faithful can gather together for worship, organizational meetings, Bible study, luncheons, entertainment events, and the Bible Bowl & Oratorical competitions.
Bible Bowl
Each church has the opportunity to send one Teen and one Adult team of three individuals to compete in the Bible Bowl. Participants answer questions taken from the designate book, and score points for correct answers. The winning Teen team takes home a trophy, and will compete in a national competition. The winning Adult team just gets satisfaction. All participants take home a greater knowledge of God's word, since the best preparation includes both memory work and more in-depth study.
Bible Bowl encourages participants to read the designated book thoroughly and repeatedly, in order to learn well the content. The result of this intense study is not only a good Bible Bowl score, but the gaining of knowledge of God's Word, which will stay with the participants their entire life.
Oratorical Competition
The PLC also offers the opportunity for Teens to compete in an Oratorical competition. Two divisions are offered, Junior (ages 13-16) and Senior (ages 17-19). Participants present a speech of several minutes' length on the Conference theme. Strict criteria are required, and judges are found from outside the Archdiocese; one is usually a priest, to judge the theological aspects of the presentation, and the other two are often educators who have experience and expertise in English, speech, and presentation arts.
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Orthodoxy in America
