Ecumenical Patriarch greets Assembly 

HEINAVESI, FINLAND - His All-Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, sent greetings to the delegates of the XVI General Assembly of SYNDESMOS.
    The text of Patriarch Bartholomew's message follows:
    "Beloved Children in the Lord: We extend to you our paternal prayers and patriarchal blessings so that, during the SYNDESMOS XVI General Assembly, which is being held in the Holy Transfiguration Monastery in Valamo, Finland, each one of you personally may be strengthened to perpetuate the work of Christ and His Bride, the Church.
    "As we reflect on the theme of this General Assembly, "Serve the Lord in unity" [Zephaniah 3:9], borrowed from the words of the Prophet Zephaniah, we recall our pilgrimage to Antioch, the glorious city of martyrs and other saintly figures, made late last month with His Beatitude, Patriarch Ignatius of Antioch and of All the East, so that we might relive the days of our forbearers in the ancient, holy see where, as we read in the Acts of the Apostles, "the disciples were first called Christians" [Acts 1 l :26]. Throughout our sojourn we joyously experienced the unity of the faith in all its splendour and beauty.
    During our stay we also inaugurated the festive Jubilee celebration of the 2000 years since the birth of Our Lord and Saviour. We were thus reminded of things past and at the same time our mental flight carried us forward to the future and what is to come.
    We realised, dear spiritual children, that we are living in a crucial time. This is a sacred moment. It is a moment that is to be seized and lived to its full, God-given potential. There is a lot that remains to be accomplished, for the Lord requires much from us Orthodox because He has also given us much. As He says in the Gospel of Luke, "Every one to whom much is given, of him will much be required; and of him to whom men commit much they will demand the more" [Luke 12:48]. As you concentrate on planning and evaluating the activity of SYNDESMOS over the next week, we exhort you to deliberate "with patience, forbearing one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" [Ephesians 4:2-3]. Being united in oneness of mind and judgment we all may move forward in harmony and love serving the Lord.
    The spiritual gift of unity ultimately depends on our willingness not only to work together but to cultivate His love in our hearts, love that is exemplified in service and sacrifice, love that Our Lord showed us on the Cross. Our unity was bought at a price. We remind you of the words of the Holy Apostle Paul who wrote to the Christians in Ephesus, "He has brought us together into one body through the Cross" [Ephesians 2:1]. We believe that this unity is not static or monolithic, but has vast and we can even say youthful dynamism, just like yours. We must always remember the Cross of Christ as we patiently endure the temptations and trials set before us so that in enduring to the end we can proclaim with Christ, "It is finished!" [John 19:30]. Only then will our troubles, anxieties, and divisions be finished, put to death together with the enemy who tries to tear us apart.     Beloved youth of our Holy Orthodox Church! Let us remember that our unity is not something automatic and that our spiritual progress does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability. These God-given gifts only come through the tireless efforts, persistent work, and selfless sacrifice of dedicated people. Without toil even time itself becomes an ally of the primitive forces of old Adam struggling within each and every one of us, distancing us from Our Lord and from each other. Our unity and our spiritual progress ride on the shoulders of you, the Orthodox youth. We are relying on you. We are praying for you. And we are there to guide you and to assist you. We finally offer you, as our most powerful support and motivation, our love, simple and unconditional.
    May the grace of Our Lord, Jesus Christ, and the love of God the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, together with our paternal and patriarchal blessings, be with you all.