Dear friends of the Mission, It is with joy that I write to you praising the Almighty Creator, because after centuries He has illuminated Colombia and Venezuela with the light of Orthodoxy. When His Eminence Metropolitan Athenagoras first came to our region, Orthodox in Colombia were only Greek immigrants and other believers from the traditionally Orthodox nations. The first thing His Eminence understood was that this treasure should not be limited to those born into the Orthodox Church, but should be accessible to all who wanted to taste the true and genuine Christian teaching. Little did our Metropolitan know that this effort would be echoed by us Colombians, who for years, despite our many sins and weaknesses, have been searching for a window to find the source of the true faith that would open our eyes beyond the rationalism that blinds Western theology.
Our request to receive God’s response to the genuine message of the Gospel came with the establishment of the Holy Metropolis of Mexico. His Eminence did not know what mission he was undertaking in these countries, which know of Christianity, but with misinterpretations stemming from rationalistic attitudes and human inventions that turn people away from the teaching of the Gospel. Such a mission needed a bold call and vision. Missionary work up to that time was being done only on the African continent. In Latin America, Orthodoxy was something unknown, remote and confined to the East. With patience and perseverance the Metropolitan opened the door giving us the opportunity to know and recognize that Orthodoxy is not a national Christian denomination but the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church of Christ.
With the help of fine people and associations, such as the Brotherhood of Orthodox Foreign Mission, who have lovingly supported this work from the beginning, today in Colombia and other Latin American countries, people are becoming Orthodox. Your love and patience, as our older brothers and sisters in Christ, is great… There are not a few mistakes we have made over the years, but little by little we are maturing. It is not easy for us to find the necessary liturgical items here, so I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for the recent large donation of amphorae and vessels that you have made to us, enabling us to properly offer our worship to the immaculate and ineffable God. A thousand thanks to you all. With respect and love in the Lord,
π. Timothy Torres
