Dear Brother Archons and Friends of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate:

Saint Paul tells us that “God did not give us a spirit of fear” (2 Timothy 1:7), and His Beatitude Patriarch John X of Antioch and All the East, as well as the Greek Orthodox Christians of Damascus, has just given us a stirring and inspiring example of this.

On Sunday, July 20, 2025, the Feast Day of the Glorious Prophet Elias, His Beatitude celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Church of Prophet Elias in Dweila, a village on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria. Energized and empowered by the Spirit of the Lord, His Beatitude and the Greek Orthodox faithful did not fear to gather once again in this church just four weeks after a suicide bomber entered it during the Divine Liturgy and detonated his explosive vest, murdering at least twenty-two people and injuring another 63.

Inside the church, visible signs of the atrocity that took place on June 22 can still be seen. Military and paramilitary groups that have been targeting Christians as well as Druze are still active in Damascus, and so the faithful who live there are under ongoing threat. One parishioner of Prophet Elias church said that for more than three months, the Christian community has endured “threats, persecutions, nighttime abductions, and murders of community members have become a daily occurrence.”

Nevertheless, hundreds of Christians gathered in the church as His Beatitude preached, according to Proto Thema, an inspiring and insightful message of “unity, resilience, and hope.”

The courage this demonstrates is nothing short of awe-inspiring. Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ tells us, “You are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14). That is exactly what the faithful at Prophet Elias church are. Let us, in all our endeavors to support and protect the Ecumenical Patriarchate and religious freedom for all people, strive to emulate them.

Yours in the service of the Ecumenical Patriarchate,

Anthony J. Limberakis, MD
Archon Grand Aktouarios
National Commander