Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Xristos Anesti!
First and foremost, I pray that all of you are healthy and safe.
It has been weeks since we have gathered together, as one Christian family, in our beautiful Church of St. Athanasios. We are all restless from confinement in our homes and yearn to reconnect with our families and friends. Concern for the well being of all is on our minds and the uncertain challenges and changes of the future consume our time. For me personally, it has been difficult celebrating our beautiful Orthodox worship services in an empty Church. I never thought that I would have ever experienced something like this but find tremendous courage and strength knowing that you are all there in spirit and that our Almighty God has a tremendous plan for all of us.
My dear parishioners, we all must keep our faith in the Lord for He is All Knowing and All Wisdom. We must keep peace in our heart and mind so that we can better handle the coming days with all its challenges. Pray, pray the koboskini, read the Bible, listen to the hymns of our Church, read the lives of our Saints, make time for quiet time, ask your children to join you and participate in the virtual worship services. All these spiritual exercises can help us deal with the tremendous heaviness of these critical days. It is my fervent prayer that we soon are all together again Glorifying His Name in His Church and enjoying each other’s fellowship. May the Resurrected Lord protect us all.
With Love in the Risen Lord,
Fr. Anargyros
