Prot. No. 206/2021

Unto the Most Reverend and Right Reverend Hierarchs, Pious Priests and Deacons, the Monks and Nuns, Presidents and Members of Parish Councils, Honorable Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Members of Leadership 100, the Day and Afternoon Schools, Philoptochos Societies, the Youth, Greek Orthodox Organizations, and the entirety of the Christ-named Plenitude of the Holy Archdiocese of America.

My Beloved Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The fires ravaging Greece have caused the communities of the Omogeneia across the oikoumene to muster their strength and their resources, and rush to the aid of the Greek People and Land. For when we see a house on fire, we do not stop to ask who started it, but hasten to assist in any way that we can. As an Archdiocese, we are responding to this need by offering our assistance, and are inviting every parish across America to generously support our Greek Orthodox brethren. Join us in providing aid to those who have lost their homes and possessions to these unprecedented infernos that are scourging the natural beauty of Greece, and those who are risking their lives fighting these fires. Together we can contribute to the much-needed longer term reconstruction efforts and spur economic revitalization.

Therefore, today — the very day on which we celebrate the “Little Pascha” of our Panagia, the Feast of her glorious Dormition — I am calling upon every parish across our sacred Archdiocese to take-up a special collection for this purpose. I ask that the Parish Councils forward the collected funds immediately to the Archdiocese, so that they may be deployed as expeditiously as possible. Furthermore, a portal has been created on the Archdiocese website, where anyone can make a direct donation to this noble cause. One hundred percent of your contributions will be given directly to those impacted most by the fires. An accounting of all funds raised for this purpose will be made public, so that every person of goodwill can see how their generosity has effectuated positive results on the ground in Greece.

May God, the Comforter, through the intercessions of the Virgin Mother of God, whose sacred Dormition we celebrate this day, send speedy relief to the people of Greece, and bring to an end this terrible inferno that continues to devastate our Ellada.

With paternal blessings and gratitude in our Lord Jesus Christ,
† ELPIDOPHOROS
Archbishop of America