FRIENDSHIP FROM AFAR ERASES DISTANCES
Dear fellow Compatriots,
We thank the Almighty Lord that the hurricane Henri created less problems than its anticipated catastrophic effects, and we pray that the issues unleashed by the forces of nature do not become critical in the future.
A story in the Catholic World e-newsletter about Raymond Cardinal Burke, who is gravely ill, recently caught my attention and moved me deeply. Its title was: “When someone from afar understands you, the distance disappears as if you are neighbors.”
After reading this article, I called a friend of mine in Lebanon and asked how they were coping with the situation. As soon as he tried to respond to my question, I felt that he was going through an agonizing experience for he was feeling a lump in the throat. Tears burst and he was finally able to say, that after waiting for three and a half hours in line in 950 of heat to get two gallons of fuel, had to leave empty handed because as soon as his turn came the distributor announced that he had run out of fuel. A few minutes later I saw a videoclip on Facebook about a driver in his mid-sixties who had died of a heart attack after waiting in line in his car for almost three hours.
While sharing the grief of all these news, I find a little comfort in what the article I mentioned above says: “When someone from afar understands you, the distance disappears as if you are neighbors.” For I am grateful to all our parishioners and friends who, welcoming the appeal of His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, opened their hearts. As of today, a total of $26,635 dollars has been raised toward the Lebanon Relief Fund.
May God bless us all with health and positive spirit to reach out to our brothers and sisters and be a beacon of Hope in their despair.
Archbishop Anoushavan
Prelate