33rd Annual Greek Festival Saint Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church More Details ( Click Here ) We are the Greek Orthodox Church under the auspices of The Greek Orthodox Metropolitanate of New Jersey, of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, that are under the spiritual supervision of The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, ( Istanbul, Turkey ), the late Byzantine Capital until 1453. Our mission is to serve the religious and social needs of our parishioners and promote the Eastern Orthodox Faith and Greek Heritage of the founders of the Church. We serve the faithful in the towns of Union, Elizabeth, Millburn, Scotch Plains, Springfield, Kearny, Clark, Mountainside, Linden, Basking Ridge, Hillside, Lyndhurst, Florham Park, Caldwell, Roselle Park, Sayreville, Whippany, Short Hills, Colonia, Edison, Summit, Berkley Heights, Hasbrouck Heights and Bloomfield. We have different programs for the different needs and for all ages in our community. The eastern or Greek orthodox Church is one of the original Churches of Christianity, which was founded on the Day of the Pentecost in Jerusalem in 33 A. D. Ten days after Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven, He sent His Holy Spirit on the Heads of His Disciples, which according to the description at the Acts of the Apostles, stood like burning tongues. Since that Day Orthodox Church has kept unbroken the Holy Tradition of the Church given by Jesus Christ and His Disciples. Later he accepted the Decrees of the Seven Ecumenical Synods, which were convened by the Church in order to solve religious, dogmatical questions. The decrees of the Seven Ecumenical Synods are infallible. Christianity started in the Holy City of Jerusalem in the East and with the ages expanded around the world. During this development, due to different ideology and point of views and politics, the unity of the Church began to split into different denominations. The Holiest Cities for early Christians are considered to be Jerusalem, Damascus, Rome, Alexandria and later when the Eastern Roman Empire was established in Byzantium - Constantinople. Constantinople became the Capital of the Byzantine Empire and became the center of Christianity. The universal language in these first centuries was Greek and the Gospels except St. Matthew were written in Greek. The first three centuries of Christianity went through severe persecution, but it came out victorious and the truth dominated the universe.