Dear friends of the Mission,
Hail in the Lord!
With God’s help we are well; thank God. I have just returned from the island of Nias, where I took a spiritual break for a few days. I rarely write to you, my brothers and sisters, because of my missionary duties here in Indonesia. Among other things, I would like to report to you on a few matters from our Orthodox mission here.
Our mission on the island of Nias has three parishes and a school. I don’t go there regularly because I don’t have money to pay the fare. I only go once a year. To go there and back I need 200 euros. It would be good to go there four times a year, that is, two to the community of St. Catherine and two to St. Paul and St. Martha, which your Brotherhood built for us.
In the village of Lae Rias we have five fields, which you helped us to buy. There, we have planted oranges, vegetables, peppers, eggplants. In each field there is a family working and living in it. At the moment there are two permanent huts for the families there, while in three fields we do not yet have a proper hut, only a plastic one. A hut costs 1,000 euros, so we needed 3,000 euros to house three families. It would also be good to get a milling machine, which would help us save a lot of the workers’ wages. A milling machine costs EUR 2 000.
On the island of Nias we have three communities. There we have appointed an Orthodox catechist to minister. The main problem is that a motorbike is required to move easily from community to community. A motorbike there costs around 2,000 euros.
Our Theotokos Hospital, to the construction and equipping of which your Brotherhood has contributed significantly, is functioning normally. It has 10 doctors and 20 nurses. Every beginning of the month, we have to pay their salaries. The main income is from the patients. If there are many patients, then we make ends meet for salaries and electricity. But if there are no patients, then my blood pressure rises. Who do I run to for help? So, my brothers, if you have the possibility, help us to raise a reserve of 15,000 euros so that we can deal with these emergencies. Of course, I know that this is a lot of money because of your financial straits, but even the smallest help will be important for us.
I have asked a lot of you and I have tired you with my many requests. Sorry for all this. I hope that our Lord Jesus Christ will bless you with His riches.
With many best wishes,
π. Chrysostomos Manalu
