Greetings to all my beloved Orthodox Christians. I am Fr. Barnabas from Labasa, the second largest island in Fiji. I take this opportunity to convey to you how I found the truth in the Orthodox Church.
When I first met His Eminence Mr. Amphilochios on my island of Vanua Levu in the town of Savusavu, it was Saturday morning, June 18, 2010. When he visited me in my shop, he stood near my door. I thought he was an ordinary man, but then I saw that he was wearing an encyclical of our Lord Jesus Christ. I took him into my shop, I was very happy and my tears flowed when I shook hands with him. With his smiling face, he invited me out and we had a pleasant conversation. I managed to meet him again the following Sunday. It was a unique moment for me to pray together with a holy man I, who
until then I was a very strong Hindu and I didn’t want to become a Christian. One afternoon I invited him to my house to have dinner and meet my family. In all my life as long as I was a Hindu no one had ever visited my family. But what His Eminence did to visit us, even though I was not a Christian, was a touching moment for me and left me speechless. We had some conversations and later he asked me if I wanted to change my faith and become an Orthodox Christian. Something I easily discerned is that he is a man full of love and true faith.
Later he took me and my family to Greece, and then I was ordained a deacon in Rhodes at the monastery of Panagia Ypseni. We came to know what Orthodoxy is. It is a true faith and today I feel very proud to be an Orthodox Christian . When I see churches and monasteries, tears fall from my eyes and I thank our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for changing our lives into Orthodox Christians. Then after a week I was ordained a priest in the church of St. Gregory Palamas in Thessaloniki. It was a great day for my family and the people of my island of Vanua Levu. In my life I never thought that I could become an Orthodox priest, and I am very proud and want to thank our Lord Jesus Christ. I assure you that with God’s help and the blessing of His Eminence Amphilochios, I will bring more Orthodox Christians to my island, to the church of St. Athanasius and St. Nicholas in Vanua Levu. May the grace of our God and His infinite mercy be with you. I would like to thank His Eminence Archbishop Amphilochios for my ordination as Deacon, as well as the nuns and fathers at the monastery in Tharri, Rhodes. I would also like to give my heartfelt thanks to the people of Rhodes for the care and love they showed us during our stay on the island.
Finally, I would like to thank the people of the Orthodox Foreign Missionary Brotherhood in Thessaloniki for their great support during my ordination and throughout my stay there.
π. Barnabas Nair
