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2011-12-25
His Em. Metropolitan John celebrates the Nativity in the church of St. Helen
The parish of St. Helen celebrated the solemnity of Christmas with joy and hope. His Eminence Metropolitan John presided over the Divine Liturgy with the con-celebration of His Grace the auxiliary Bishop Ignatius of Larissa. Fr. Paul Mourad and deacon George Araman participated in the service. The Church was full of the faithful who came to celebrate the Nativity of the Lord, the messenger of the peace and love.
The Divine Liturgy started with Matins which was well attended by the faithful. The service then continued with the Divine Liturgy. In his homily, the Metropolitan talked about the daily significance of the Nativity of the Lord for Christian living. The Lord who became incarnate in history should also be incarnate in our hearts. It is the incarnation of the Lord in our hearts that gives to the feast the concrete and the rightful meaning. It was fitting that the Lord was incarnate in the grotto at Bethlehem, but the complete and concrete meaning of Christmas is realized when every member of the faithful make of his own heart a grotto of peace, of humility, in which he receives the King of peace. Celebrating the Nativity of the King of peace, His Eminence mentioned the land in which the Master was born, the Middle East which suffers from problems and troubles still. His Eminence finished his homily and prayed for the good of Lebanon and Syria, wishing to all the faithful a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.
