Living Symbol of the Risen Lord
This was the advice given to me by the great missionary Archimandrite Yervasios Raptopoulos on the day of my shearing in a monk. It was that unforgettable morning when, at the end of the standing room, His Eminence Metropolitan Amfilochios of New Zealand made me a monk, giving me, at his own request, the name Fanourios. Father Yervasius was there because he had come to Fiji in those days to visit the prisoners, as he had previously done in New Zealand. A holy man. A man of sacrifice and sacrifice.
A true missionary, Father Yervasios.
It was the best blessing I got after my monasticism and my ordination as a missionary of the Eastern Orthodox Church on the boundaries of the Holy Metropolis of New Zealand. Although I have been involved in missionary work in Alaska, the Indies and Thailand, in the Fiji Islands of Oceania I found what expresses me completely.
The tropical climate, the simplicity and kindness of the inhabitants and most of all the ecumenical spirit of this local Church, where they work together, as I saw in New Zealand, where I was invited by the elder Metropolitan Amphilochios, to ordain me as Deacon and Priest, Clergy from Greece, Russia, Serbia, Romania, and churchgoers from these countries and locals from New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga. As Father Yervasios wished me, that I may be a living symbol of the Risen Lord and that I may welcome all the people with whom I come into contact to the love of the Lord and His Body, which is the Holy Orthodox Church. I hope that I will be able to live in Fiji, the place of my penance, in the Monastery of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, a life of blessedness, making use of my theological studies and my vocation as a monk and missionary. I hope that other Fijians will follow my example. I wish to see the children of the mission being dedicated to the Orthodox faith and spiritual work. That men and women are loved and that their lives are centered on the Holy Church. I am determined to support their faith through catechesis and preaching, but above all through the sacramental life. When God’s time comes, Fiji and other islands will form an ecclesial community that will stand the test of time and where the indigenous Christians will be able to read and sing the Holy Masses themselves, to indoctrinate newcomers to Orthodoxy, to paint their Churches and to support further missions in Oceania. The Elder teaches the indigenous believers and helps them with the cultivation of the land and other tasks to meet their material needs.
It is my desire and my fervent prayer that the Orthodox Churches and schools in this vast region of Oceania will grow and multiply, just as the orphanage and the great Church of the Holy Trinity in the beautiful suburb of Lautoka, Saweni, have already begun to be built.
With the blessings of Saint Fanourios and our Elder Metropolitan Amfilochios, I have found the desire of my heart, which is to serve God and His newly established Mission in Oceania.
Christ is risen!
Monk Fanurion
