Orthodox Christian Fellowship

Orthodox Christian Fellowship or OCF is the official campus ministry of the Orthodox Episcopal Assembly of North America, and was formerly under the Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA). OCF is a Pan-Orthodox campus ministry that supports local OCF chapters. Local chapters are made up of students and young adults within a college or university, or from different colleges and universities in an area. The mission of OCF is to support fellowships on college campuses, whose members experience and witness to the Orthodox Christian Church through community life, prayer, service to others and study of the Faith. OCF was previously headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts but in 2008 it moved to Indianapolis, IN. OCF provides a variety of thoughtful and innovative programming, including regional training, annual conferences, and domestic and international service learning projects to chapters on over 300 university campuses across the U.S. and Canada.

OCF has a rich history in North America that spans over fifty years. Following World War II, an Orthodox college student movement began to emerge. Individual campus groups were formed at various universities, including Columbia, McGill, and Penn State. Despite the momentum of this growing movement, there was virtually no interaction between the groups. Then, in the spring of 1965, SCOBA created its first national ministry, the Campus Commission. The purpose of this ministry was to oversee and coordinate these developing local fellowships.

James Couchell (now Bishop DIMITRIOS of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese) was appointed as the first Executive Director of the Campus Commission. He visited hundreds of campuses, helping to establish and grow local campus chapters. Over 100 chapters developed coast-to-coast during this time. The national programs included a quarterly magazine entitled Concern as well as annual retreats, which gathered at St. Vladimir's Orthodox Seminary and Holy Cross Seminary. These nationwide retreats were the predecessors of what have become the OCF College Conferences.

In 1971, the exciting growth of campus ministry came to a halt with the reassignment of James Couchell. Shortly after, a new director was appointed, funding from the archdioceses discontinued, and in 1973, the Campus Commission was forced to close its ministry. It's estimated that campus groups dwindled to less than fifty nationwide. Without any coordinated effort, successful campus ministry was inconsistent and sporadic at best. Although, the national organization of the Campus Commission ceased to exist, the spirit and mission of the organization was kept alive by individual chapters across the country.

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