| Brothers and Sisters:
The Scripture urges us to come together in prayer in times of crisis and trouble. The Holy Orthodox Church faces such a time now. As you know, the government of Turkey has authorized that the Great Churchof Agia Sophia in Constantinople (Istanbul) be re-stablished as a Mosque. This is an affront to the Orthodox Church and its community and, by association, to all Christian churches for whom their temples are the center of their faith and life. It is desecration, pure and simple, and we must mightily lift up our prayers to Christ the High Priest and to His beloved mother, the Theotokos, for intercession. With this in mind, The Holy Synod of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America has designated this coming Friday, July 24, as a day of prayer for Agia Sophia, the Church of Holy Wisdom, and for our brothers and sisters, the Orthodox and all Christians in Turkey. To this end, the Akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos will be celebrated by live stream that day at 4:00 PM at St. George and throughout every churchof the Archdiocese of America. The link for the service is http://meetingslive.net/ Faithfully in the Lord, |
