Our Goals
Education and Training
The Sankt Ignatios foundation was established primarily in order to provide education and training for the Orthodox churches in Sweden. The creation of a new folkhögskola was a statement of confidence in the power of education to enrich the life of the churches and also an affirmation of the role of the Orthodox churches within Swedish society.
In the original board of the Foundation, each of the four main Orthodox traditions active in Sweden was represented. The founding members were, His Grace Bishop Abakir, Hierarch of the Coptic Church, and also of the Eritrean Tewahedo Orthodox Church in Scandinavia, His Grace Benjamin Atas of the Syriac Orthodox Church, His Grace Bishop Dositej of the Serbian Orthodox Church, and His Grace Makarie of the Romanian Orthodox Church.
Co-operation
The second goal is to encourage greater cooperation and understanding between different Orthodox traditions, particularly between those Orthodox churches usually designated as ‘Eastern Orthodox’ (the former Byzantine imperial Churches, including those of Slavic, Hellenic and Georgian provenance) and those often designated ‘Oriental’ Orthodox churches (Coptic Orthodox, Syriac Orthodox and Tewahedo Orthodox). Sankt Ignatios is unique in being the only Orthodox institution in the world where students from all these tradition learn and study together on equal terms.
Coptic Orthodox and Syriac Orthodox students participating together in a master’s seminar at Sankt Ignatios.
Order of Sankt Ignatios
The third purpose of the Foundation is to recognise those who had made a special contribution to Orthodoxy or to scholarship in the area of Eastern Christian Studies. Each year the Foundation presents a medal, the Order of Sankt Ignatios, to a worthy recipient, chosen by the board.
For a list of recipients follow the link below
Professor Andrew Louth, at the Order of Sankt Ignatios event in Sigtuna in 2019
