(Painting by Caroline Lees donated to the Monastery )
“The world will awaken from the material lethargy from whose consequences it has suffered globally, and it will show forth love in action …” Archbishop of Sinai Damianos
Dear Friends of Mount Sinai Monastery, during this second year of the pandemic, the Monastery has fortunately partly opened, though services and the guesthouse are still closed to visitors.
Fr. John at his beloved St. Catherine’s Monastery
Sadly for the Fathers, one of the monks, Fr. Aaron, fell asleep due to COVID and another, Fr. John, due to other illnesses. Both were of course much beloved. And Fr. John, in the voice of the people who knew him, was a holy “fool for Christ,” whose few words reached souls in pain - when least expected - with exactly the wisdom each needed. We will be posting an article on him in the future.
As His Eminence, Archbishop Damianos said in his prior letter* on the pandemic,
“Despite the tribulation which the entire world is undergoing today, the love of God does not cease to visit the creature He fashioned according to His own image. The Orthodox Church thus holds out every hope that with our patience, this heavy trial, having passed, will leave behind immense spiritual profit. The world will awaken from the material lethargy from whose consequences it has suffered globally, and it will show forth love in action reflective of its primal worth, mutual support, and authentic peace between peoples.
“This begins with the inner peace that stems from reconciliation of the person with God, and by extension, with his neighbor and the natural environment in which God Himself placed him. This is where God gave him the command to love and work. Through sin, however, the human altered and finally turned this environment against himself; only through love will he pacify it.
“May God grant this by the prayers of all the Saints, especially the fathers and mothers of the God-trodden Mount Sinai who sacrificed themselves in the desert, through prayer and fasting, for the enlightenment and salvation of the entire world. Because the fervent supplication of one who prays with sacrifice has the power of nuclear energy to change its destiny. …”
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Damage to walls around the Burning Bush, before repairs done through your generosity
Your generous donations this year have again been critical in helping the Monastery, such as when rains early in the year led to the collapse of several structures, including parts of the wall surrounding the Burning Bush. As we noted before, the Monastery was already financially strained even before the pandemic.
As of December 4, 2021, FMSM had received $121,797 in donations for the calendar year. We have transferred $121,250 to the bank accounts of St. Catherine's Monastery.
The funds were sent for the following purposes:
- $52,750 for repair of the wall of the warehouses located behind the Burning Bush (damaged due to heavy rain), necessary maintenance and renovations of the monastic cells, improvement of the water supply of the gardens where vegetables are grown for food
- $5,500 for medicine and COVID testing and $6,400 for other medical expenses due to COVID
- $18,600 for daily expenses of the Monastery
- $38,000 for sealing of the Athens metochion roof
Donations to the Monastery can be made the following ways:
- through the FMSM's support page: https://www.mountsinaimonastery.org/support
Repairs in progress
- through your online shopping when you use Amazon Smile or iGive (please see the support page link for instructions)
- or by mailing checks made out to Friends of Mount Sinai Monastery (please see the support page link for the address)
Your full donations are sent to the Monastery, since FMSM's staff is volunteer and all expenses are paid for by board members.
Another way to help is to forward this to let your friends know!
We hope and pray that you and your loved ones stay safe and have a blessed Nativity Feast and Season!
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*Thoughts from His Eminence Damianos, Archbishop of Sinai and Abbot of St. Catherine's on the pandemic: https://www.mountsinaimonastery.org/news-blog/archbishop-message-pandemic-stjohnklimakos
-FMSM's Facebook page, which lets you see the many facets of the Sinai Monastery’ fascinating history, daily life and events: https://www.facebook.com/ForStCatherinesMonastery/
Prints of the painting above by acclaimed British artist Caroline Lees and other scenes from around the Monastery will be available for purchase in the future with a large portion of the proceeds going to the Monastery.