Below we publish the report of the Board of Directors of our Fraternity for the year 2010, written by our President Mr.
Dear Brothers, With God’s help and the blessings of Fr. With the blessing of our Metropolitan Anthimos of Thessaloniki and the Patriarchs of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and the Patriarch of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, Mr. Theodore II, our Brotherhood continues its spiritual, moral, material and important, in our opinion, assistance to the Orthodox missions around the world, both in those countries under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and in those countries of Africa under the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa. We give thanks and praise to God as we see that Orthodoxy is constantly spreading and many of our fellow human beings around the world are coming to know Christ, being baptized and living the new life in Christ. We praise God as we find that the sowing of the seed of evangelization among the peoples of Africa and Asia continues and the labours and sweat of the missionaries and their collaborators are not wasted. In this blessed effort of our Church, God also claims us to become accomplices and collaborators and to serve together our Brotherhood, the Church of Christ, in a spirit of selfless love, sacrifice, obedience and humility. In the administrative report of the Brotherhood for the year 2010, we will refer in particular to the main activities of the Brotherhood and actions of the Board of Directors to achieve the objectives of the Brotherhood.
1. Cooperation and assistance with I.Metropolises, Dioceses and missionary teams for specific projects
Α) Ecumenical Patriarchate
- We helped the Metropolis of Korea to restore damage from natural disasters and to equip the library with books.
- The Metropolis of New Zealand for the repair of the Church and the purchase of land for a missionary centre in Fiji.
- The Calcutta-India missionary team, under the responsibility of nun Nectaria, for equipping and organizing the ophthalmology clinic, for soup kitchens and for work at the new orphanage for boys (fencing, gating, equipment).
- The missionary team Indonesia-Medan with Fr. Chrysostomos Manalos in charge for the extension of the 3rd floor of the Theological School for the Church of St. John the Baptist.
B) Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa
- We supported the Metropolis of Uganda for the construction of a High School in Ngombe, which is almost finished. For the completion of the Church of St. Constantine and Helen, for the opening of a well, for the P.Papadimitrakopoulos Clinic in the Bombo Archdiocese.
- We supported the Metropolis of Irinople (Tanzania) for the construction of two Holy Churches of St. Nektarios and St. Anthony.
- We supported the Holy Metropolis of Nigeria for the construction of St. Christopher’s Church and for the purchase of land in Benin.
- We supported the Metropolis of Central Africa for the construction of a hostel at the Theological School and for the purchase of a car and a kindergarten – Primary School in Kisangani.
- We assisted the Branzaville missionary team for St. Demetrios Church, for missionary outreach in Imfonto in North Congo and for an orphanage in Ilise.
- We helped the new Diocese of Burundi-Rwanda for the new missionary center with St. Demetrios Church, a school and a fenced plot of land.
- We assisted the missionary team of Sierra-Leone in completing the works of the high school, the St. Eleftherios Church, the Church of the Resurrection of the Lord, the clinic and the priest’s house in the village of the disabled.
- We assisted the Diocese of Madagascar for the completion of two projects: the High School and the Church of St.Macrina and Magdalene.
- We helped the Holy Metropolis of Accra (Ghana) to complete the projects we had started the previous year in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
- Financial assistance to the Metropolis of Zimbabwe for the completion of the missionary work of St. George and the purchase of another plot of land next to it with a building for a primary school.
- Financial assistance to the missionary team of Malawi for the purchase of land, fencing and construction of the Church of the Resurrection of the Lord.
2. Mission Container
This year also continued through the Brotherhood’s section in Filiro, the sending of containers to the missionary teams with various items: clothing, food, equipment, ambulance, medical supplies, medicines, etc. 2 containers were sent to Madagascar, 3 to Sierra Leone, 2 to Burundi, 1 to Congo Branzaville and 9 to Romania.
3. Soup kitchens – wells
We also sent money for soup kitchens and wells, according to the wishes of the donors. For example, in Uganda, Sierra Leone and Tanzania, Madagascar, India.
4. Educational Adoption and Baptism Education Programs
We started educational adoption programmes in Uganda-Zimbabwe-Ghana-Ghana-Sierra Leone, Nigeria. The programme of baptisms continues and we sent for baptisms in Indonesia as well.
5. Student aids – scholarships
And this is an area we try not to neglect, applying the word of the Lord: “let him who comes to me not be cast out”. We granted a scholarship to Simon Forcades from Cuba to study at the Faculty of Theology and we give various small grants to other students from abroad who are in need.
6. Promoting the work of the Foreign Mission.
Among the main concerns of the Board is the promotion of the work of the Foreign Mission and the Brotherhood. This is done:
- the publication of the magazine, which is improved year by year by the publication and distribution of promotional material for the project on CDs, postcards, etc.
- With the publication of spiritual brochures
- With the promotion of the Brotherhood through television. Every year we arrange for the ET3 crew of the programme “True Scenarios” under the journalist Mr. Nikolaos Aslanidis to go to the missionary countries and make relevant projections. The year before last we went to Cameroon, last year we went to Sierra Leone and this year we will go to Madagascar. These screenings have been very well received and have had beneficial results for the visibility of the Foreign Mission and our Fraternity. Too many have come to know our Brotherhood through the broadcasts.
7. Other activities
The Board continues the established and stable activities of the Brotherhood such as the congregation every second Sunday of each month with a gathering of members, donors and friends here in the hall and the daily operation of the Brotherhood office for the service of donors. To this end, the Brotherhood has hired two new employees on merit so that the Brotherhood office will be open all week morning and afternoon to serve donors and to conduct all Brotherhood business. Thank you President Vaios Prantzos
