Cameron (South Africa), 2 June 2011

Dear Mr. President and in Christ Ascended, dear companions of the work of love of the Mission, “Rejoice in the Lord always!” Our recent telephone communication, Mr. President, was for me a consolation and hope for the continuation of our work. As I explained to you, the difficulties are too many. We are struggling to keep our Holy Diocese and our presence here as Orthodoxy (something totally unknown) with dignity and vitality. We have a long way to go. What we need from you is to keep us in your prayers, because where obstacles and dead ends arise, the grace of the Lord comes and breaks them all down, opening all roads and all doors.

The House of the Episcopate

I would like to inform you that we have already acquired a building which we have transformed into a Holy Diocese, an office and a council room for our collaborators, where you are welcome to collaborate and study our work. It is a very good and organized house, because we cannot be here among the Catholics, the Anglicans and the Hindus who are a great power, (in fact just opposite the Diocese is the central Hindu Mosque, towering majestically !!!) and we cannot be at a disadvantage and be ridiculed. We need to assert ourselves in all ways especially in this country, which is a small Europe in the heart of Africa.
So here in the Diocese, we converted the garage of the house into a Chapel, the First Chapel of the Holy Diocese, where we celebrate the Divine Liturgy. The basic and essential thing is to have the Divine Liturgy every Sunday and for people to start attending because they are not at all used to going to Mass.

Field for indoctrination

Also, I want to tell you, from my personal experience, that all the “Orthodox” here of the nationalities, Greeks and non-Greeks, urgently need catechism and re-evangelization, because they are not in touch in terms of spiritual cultivation. Think of the work we have to do, my dears! I will bring you in Thessaloniki a photo album with photos of the house, because you as a Brotherhood are “The first great benefactor of the new I.Diocese”, who, together with His Beatitude our Patriarch, offered this house to be the base and the basis for the organization of our missionary work.

Need for a Holy Temple

Our great difficulty is that we have not yet found a plot of land to start the construction of our first Orthodox (and Cathedral at the same time) Church. Very expensive land, “fire” compared to Greece. They changed everything in the country and nothing is close. Life very expensive. We pray, we try and search, we talk to people and companies all the time and inform ourselves about the market and the existing plots in the city, and we wait. For now we will continue to operate in the small Chapel in the Episcopal Chapel (car garage). On Sunday 19 June (All Saints’ Day), upon invitation, I will be celebrating the Mass at the Church of St. Photios (Paralia) in Thessaloniki. I sincerely thank you for your as always practical and brave support to our effort and I look forward to our upcoming personal meeting at the Convention Hall.

With much love of Christ and the blessings of diabolical
+ Botswana Gennadius