ARCHPASTORAL GREETINGS TO THE NEWLY-ILLUMINED SERVANTS OF GOD IN THE PARISHES OF THE GOD-PROTECTED DIOCESE OF CHICAGO AND THE MIDWEST
BRIGHT FRIDAY
COMMEMORATION OF THE LIFE-GIVING SPRING – MAY 10, 2024
Beloved Sons and Daughters in Christ,
CHRIST IS RISEN! INDEED HE IS RISEN!
I wish to congratulate you, the Newly-Illumined Orthodox Christians throughout our Diocese, on the joyous occasion of your reception into the Orthodox Church. Having been called by the Lord Himself, you have made the journey to this moment in your lives and now find yourselves within the loving embrace of Christ’s Holy Church. We rejoice and give thanks to our Triune God for what he has done for you and within you.
I also wish to extend my gratitude to the Priests who have guided, taught, and supported you; to the members of your parish communities who have welcomed you; and to those who have served as your teachers, mentors, and sponsors. Their dedication to assisting you on your spiritual journey reminds us that the Orthodox Christian life—the life in which you now share—is experienced within a parish family which gathers together to worship, to love and serve its members, and to unite itself around the Eucharistic Table of the Lord. You are now welcomed to share fully in this life, rooted, as it is, in sharing in the Holy Mysteries of the Body and Blood of Christ.
Please know of my gratitude for each one of you. I rejoice that the Lord continues to add to the number of those being saved (cf. Acts 2:47). Also, be assured of my prayers for you, your families, and all those you love. May the Lord who has begun this good work in you bring it to perfection on the day of Christ Jesus (Philippians1:6).
With love in the Risen Lord, your Father in Christ and Fervent Intercessor,
