Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens and All Greece.

HELBI

The first written message Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens and All Greece sent to his flock read: “With the help of the doctors and above all, of God, who called upon me to serve the Church with my entire being, I pray that I may soon embrace you all once more, and each of you in turn. I thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for the love and support they have shown me, above all for their prayers to the Lord. It is a balm to my soul, particularly at this difficult time. They give me strength,” he wrote. Two weeks after the archbishop was admitted to hospital, every day that passes, more and more of the faithful, young and old, from every walk of life, are showing their concern. We would all like to see him back at the pulpit, close to the young people and to all those who have need of the Church. In the intensive care unit of the Aretaio, the archbishop was visited by the president of Kathimerini SA, Aristides Alafouzos, accompanied by Kathimerini executive editor Alexis Papachelas, commentator Costas Iordanidis and religious affairs correspondent Nikos Papachristou, who reported back to us on the meeting. At the archbishop’s bedside were three of his closest associates: Thomas Synodinos, the archdiocese’s senior archimandrite, Metropolitan Theoklitos of Vrestheni and the director of the archbishop’s press bureau Haris Konidaris. Along with his good wishes, Alafouzos brought the archbishop a gift of some books and an invitation to Santorini for Holy Cross Day in September. The archbishop is dealing with his illness with optimism and humor, and looking forward to when he can be back with his flock and spend some time in the Cyclades which he loves so much.