Another Look at Repentance - Melkite Eparchy of Newton

News from Around the EparchyOur Lady of Perpetual HelpRaises Money for Children in LebanonWorcester, MAOn Friday, March 20, 2012 OurLady of Perpetual Help Churchheld its 42nd Annual LentenCharity Supper for Orphans andChronically Ill Children in Lebanon.Bishop Nicholas J. Samra was the guestspeaker. He intrigued 150 attendeeswith his talk entitled “Our Churches ofAntioch: Opportunities & Challenges.”He also prayed Vespers for LazarusSaturday with the rest of the congregationin the church before the supper.Upon entering the supper hall, eachattendee found appetizers on the tables.They included vegetables cut upJulienne style, olives, hummus, babaghannouj, and pita bread. The maincourse was fresh baked cod with breadcrumbs, served with green beans intomato sauce and a wonderful ricepilaf. Wine was available for purchaseand dessert consisted of a yellowLenten dessert cake.Bishop Samra began his talk withsome history of the Melkite Church. Hementioned that the churches of concernhere are of Antioch, and that even yearsago, the Church was ecumenicallyminded. He pointed to the time whenthe Melkites were in union with Romeand the Orthodox Churches. Theyslowly separated when Roman missionariescame to the area and attractedsome of the existing Christians, therebyputting a strain on the original churchand causing a rift in relations.In 1995, there was an initiative toreunite the Melkites and Orthodox.Bishop Samra said that even thoughnothing solidified, the Melkites todaysee no problem with formally unitingwith the Orthodox, while simultaneouslybeing united to Rome. He encourageda new approach in our ecumenicalthinking and efforts. It’s not about whowill win over the other one, or aboutthrowing stones at each other. It’s aboutunderstanding differences.Bishop Samra pointed out some situationsof agreement already. For example,Melkites give Communion to anOrthodox when they willingly come forit. Although the Orthodox do not giveMelkites Communion, Melkites respecttheir practice. Another example relatesBishop Nicholas J. Samra and Deacon Elias at VespersGeorge Russell, a newly elected city councilman,presents the community with a gift tocommemorate the start of Eastern ChristianityAwareness Month in Worcester, MA.to marriage. Melkites say it is acceptablefor a Catholic-Orthodox couple tomarry in an Orthodox church. So thereis some overlap.Bishop Samra referred listeners totwo books. The first was The Courageto be Ourselves, Archbishop JosephTawil’s 1970 Christmas Pastoral Letter,in which the Archbishop says we mustgo back to our Orthodox roots. He suggeststhat this has to happen at thegrassroots level, not solely by the hierarchy.The two Churches need toexplore things in common and talkabout how we love one another, insteadof focusing only on what is not inagreement. The second book BishopNicholas mentioned was his ownSteward of the Mysteries, in which severalof his talks and presentations arecompiled to provide insight on Mary,the Mother of God, as the image of theChurch, ecumenism, Church growth,the holy mysteries, stewardship, andseveral other topics.At the end of the talk, Mayor JosephPetty’s Representative, George Russell, anewly elected city councilor, presentedthe bishop with a key to the city ofWorcester and a plaque commemoratingthis April as the first month of the city’seffort to increase awareness of EasternChristianity. The official label isAwareness of Eastern Christianity Month.For 42 years, this Lenten Supper tradition,this meal of charity, has beenorganized with the help of the greaterWorcester community, especially, butnot only, the Lebanese-Syrian community.It has had a profound effect of givinghope to children in orphanages anda chronic care facility in Lebanon. Thisyear, with 100 percent of each donationgoing directly to these facilities, OurLady of Perpetual Help raised $8500for them. †Kathleen Laplante submitted this article. She isa parishioner at Our Lady of Perpetual Help.32 SOPHIA • Summer 2012