Sixty years of missionary ministry and service – people who loved their fellow man and put into practice the message of the Lord “Going forth, make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them the things which I have inspired in them” (Matthew 19-20).
This pearl of faith they did not keep it, they did not secure it only for their own benefit, but they shared it with people who longed to know the truth and the purpose of our existence on earth.
It gives us great joy and emotion, this anniversary, for the Sixty Years of the Brotherhood of Orthodox Foreign Mission, which has always been a help to the work of the Mission in Uganda, where it had its beginnings as “Friends of Uganda” with the late Archimandrite Archimands. With the help of Christos Papasarantopoulos, the great Greek Missionary in Africa, and Panagiotis Papadimitrakopoulos, a great benefactor of the Brotherhood, who so loved and offered to the missionary work of the Lord. We feel deep gratitude to the Brotherhood, which completes these sixty years of continuous presence and active action.
For us from Uganda, our great glory is our first Fathers, who gave the impetus for a beginning, a blessed beginning, of the Orthodox Mission to the Africans, as seekers of the Orthodox Mission and founders of our Church in Uganda. People local, indigenous people of the African continent, Fr. Spartas and Fr. Obadiah, who wanted to bring to their homeland the Word of the true God, the Word of the Gospel, the True Church. So God heard their prayers, as well as those who had to hear their pleas, so that they could staff the missionary echelons with people who left the comfort of their homeland. Disregarding their advanced age, they came, they sowed the Word of God, and today we all enjoy the fruits of their own spiritual sowing.
Sixty years of sacrificial giving and love, by all the members of the Fraternity, from the presidents to the boards of directors and all the members, who, in addition to family, professional and personal obligations, support our work.
How many people have lived out these sixty years of service, from the nourishment of the Holy Gospel that they have given and were refreshed by the hundreds of wells and boreholes with clean drinking water.
How many have tasted these sixty years of offering, the Sacred Body and Blood of our Lord, from the Holy Vessels that they offered and were satiated by the material goods that the love of these people sent from the overflow of their hearts.
Sixty years of uninterrupted support, then to one missionary team and one diocese, and today to three dioceses in Uganda.
Sixty years of presence in Uganda and our people here have been treated by volunteer doctors, educated by volunteer teachers, taught new ways to cultivate the land and improve livestock units.
I would not wish to dwell on it, because the works and the contribution of the people of the Brotherhood speak for themselves; we cannot hide them under “under the sodium”. Besides, the work which is being carried out, not only in the area of our Patriarchate of Alexandria and all Africa, but also throughout the world, is evident from the printed periodical publication “EXTERNAL IEPAPOSTOLI” and is the good testimony.
Here in Africa and in my country, Uganda, we are living the miracle: your love, your prayer, your offering, gives us strength, courage and perspective to continue our spiritual and humanitarian work.
Thank you. Know that your sixty years of presence keeps the candelabra lit and will continue to keep it lit in gratitude and prayer to all members who give and serve in your Missionary Fraternity.
†O Ginga and Eastern Uganda Silvestros
