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Greetings of Archimandrite Sergei, Abbot of the
Monastery of the Holy Transfiguration, New Valamo
Your Eminence, Archbishop John; distinguished hierarchs and members
of the clergy; beloved brothers and sisters in Christ!
I have the great pleasure and honour to welcome you most sincerely
on behalf of the Monastery of the Transfiguration of Our Lord and
the Lay Academy to this XVI General Assembly of SYNDESMOS at New Valamo.
This is the third time that the General Assembly has been held in
Finland. The first time was at
Punkaharju in 1964; the second time the Assembly was held at New Valamo
in 1980. A great deal of construction has taken place here since that
last occasion, including the hotel, library, icon conservation facilities
and education college for adults. At the same time the brotherhood,
with about ten members, has undergone many changes, and its average
age has been lowered somewhat. The monastery has become one of the
central places for Orthodox spirituality and culture in Finland. More
than 150,000 pilgrims and tourists visit it annually. This naturally
means that catering to visitors has become our
main source of livelihood.
I am delighted that the Monastery and Lay Academy have been able to
be of service to the Orthodox Church worldwide by hosting this General
Assembly, that we have been able to support in this way the important
work done by SYNDESMOS on behalf of Orthodox youth organisations and
theological schools. The theme of the Assembly, "Serve the Lord
in Unity" [Zephaniah 3:9, is an appropriate reminder to us that
unity is not a foregone conclusion, even among the Orthodox Churches.
Attitudes that are liable to weaken the unity of the Church and common
faith have spread lately in an alarming manner within some local Churches,
and there has been a desire to search for divergent factors rather
than unifying ones. By doing this, we are perhaps unconsciously allowing
the devil an
opportunity to sow seeds of fear in us, thereby detracting us from
Church unity and joint witness. Teachers of theological colleges also
bear a great responsibility for the attitude the clergy and other
church workers take with them in their future service. This will contribute
decisively to the an-swer
to the question of whether we will be able to "serve the Lord
in unity" in the coming years.
We have gathered here on the hill of the Transfiguration Monastery
on this bright summer day as if on Mount Tabor, to begin the XVI General
Assembly of SYNDESMOS. It is proper to recall the words of the Apostle
Peter on that occasion, when he said to the transfigured Saviour,
"Lord, it is good for us to be here" [Matthew 17:4]. I hope
that you will feel the same during this meeting.
I wish the General Assembly of SYNDESMOS, and all who take part in
it, success and spiritual happiness in the coming days. May this meeting,
like the previous ones, serve the cause of unity within our Orthodox
Church. Once again, welcome to the monastery.
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