Lately, the Most Merciful God has merited us to live beautiful moments: the graduation of the new graduates of our Theological School, the seminars of priests, staff and young people organized in Kanaga and Bujimai, the organization of scientists in Kinshasa, the tours inside the Metropolis and the operation of the schools.
After the end of the academic year of the Orthodox University with a solemn celebration, which was attended by the Minister of Education responsible for higher education, the seminars began – first of all for the priests of the Kasai region, then for the clergy of the parishes in Kanaga, and finally the youth seminar in the Bujimai region. Indeed, all of them helped in the spiritual progress of our Church officials.
During the summer we were particularly engaged in preparing the new schools which were opened in various parts of the Congo. It was a great struggle to finish at least four classes and then to get them organized and operational. All of them were given the blessing of the opening and, thank God, everything began to function normally.
Everybody got tired. First in the struggle was St. Ignatius of Pentapolis, who, despite his old age, organized the seminars in Kanaga and fought for the building and operation of the school of Mikalayi, donated by St. He worked at the Mikalayi school, which was donated by the Metropolis of Xanthi. In this he was helped by some priests of Kanaga, as well as by the consecrated sisters from Greece who worked alongside him.
The Bishop and his colleagues worked on the organization of the youth seminar in Bujimai, the organization of the scientists, the reconstruction and operation of the schools in Gungu, Kikwit, Mbanza Ngungu, Bibua near the Ndjli Airport in Kinshasa, Kasangulu and the maintenance work in the Faculty of Theology and the School of Computer Science. Everyone was present, everyone worked with enthusiasm, and the joy of all was to see the schools filled with happy students after the arduous effort.
Immediately after the opening of the schools, the Bishop with his associates Fr.James and Fr.Claudius left for a tour of Goma, Bukavu, Ouvira, Kamila, 1540 km away from the capital, on the eastern coast of the Metropolis.
First stop in Goma, a town next to a volcano, with many signs of its last eruption. At the airport, the catechist Mr. Emilio was waiting for us with a delegation of the catechumen youth. It was a moving moment. Young people with a desire for Orthodoxy, without a priest, struggling alone. We talked for a while at the airport and arranged a meeting on our return from Uvira. The speedboat was about to leave, so we left for the port and they escorted us there. We boarded and sailed across Lake Kivu.
The lake is big, four hours with the speedboat we had to cross it. Beautiful! Reminds me of places in Greece. With the islands, the vegetation, the high mountains that loom around… it doesn’t look like Africa. And at the end, where we landed, Bukavu, a European-built town.
There we were met by a descendant and led to the hotel where we stayed overnight. In the morning the priest of Uvira, Fr. Dimitrios, arrived with Kosmas, a young man who had attended theology courses at the Orthodox University. All the previous day and night they travelled to come and meet us. 
We set off for Uvira via Rwanda. We preferred this road because it is safer; otherwise we would have had to travel for many hours over rough mountains on dangerous narrow roads. In Uvira, a town on Lake Tanganyika, the believers were waiting for us. There we have the Church of St. Basil and a school. The reception was warm, with Christians from Baraka and other parishes and villages.
It was already afternoon. At the praise service in the church the youth choir sang very beautifully. The people were happy, we were excited. Then we visited the schools and met with committees for information and resolution of issues.
In the morning there was a Divine Liturgy. They sang beautifully, everyone was happy. Then we met with the young people, had lunch and departed for the return journey, again by the same route. Overnight again in Bukavu and departure in the morning for Goma. There the nuns were waiting for us. They were gathered in a school belonging to one of them.
Several young people with their catechist; there is no priest, there is no church. They rent a classroom in a school and there they gather every Sunday to sing and read the New Testament, so that the catechist, who is also a catechumen, but who learned about Orthodoxy when he stayed for a while in Kinshasa, can talk to them about God and Orthodoxy. They have a desire to be baptized, a desire to have a priest, a church, a school.
We talked to them, we supported them, we told them to look for a plot of land, so that as soon as God helps and a donor is found, we can build their church and school. They invited us to talk to the children of the school where they rent. The children sang and thanked us for visiting them.
We left for Kinshasa with many thoughts, with much anxiety for all of them, with praise to God who keeps these young people close to Orthodoxy. We returned and continued the struggle.
During this period, the elder Chrysanthi Perissoglou came to us from Greece, who was engaged in the catechisms of the women, as well as in teaching Greek to a group of young people who had long been asking for Greek language lessons.
On Saturday 8 November, the feast of the Holy Archangels, the Church near the airport celebrated. The faithful from other parishes in Kinshasa gathered in buses. The children of the Holy Archangels School sat in their seats quietly and seriously.
First Divine Liturgy, the joy of all was manifested, the choir of St. Mark’s school did not stop singing, and after the end, singing.
Afterwards, we all gathered at the school, where speeches of thanksgiving to God and the donors were given by the president of the parish and the officials present.
We all remembered that a few months ago, on Palm Sunday, we had gathered here again, and after we sang a resurrection service, we celebrated the consecration and founded the school. And now, the school was built and is functioning with three classes of happy children.
Another new temple, another new school began to function in the heart of Africa, in Kinshasa, Congo. For this we praise God and thank the donors and pray for them.
From the Holy Metropolis
