His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros

Remarks, Blessing and Close at the Opening of the Exhibit

“The Good Shepherds: Metropolitans and Rabbis in the Face of the Holocaust”

The Maliotis Cultural Center

March 10, 2022

Brookline, Massachusetts

 

(Opening Remarks and Blessing of Table)

Mr. George Cantonis, President of Hellenic College and Holy Cross,

Mr. Drake Behrakis, Chairperson of the Maliotis Cultural Center,

Honorable Consul General of Israel to New England, Mr. Meron Reuben,

Honorable Consul General of Greece in Boston, Mr. Stratos Efthymiou,

Mr. Solomon Asser, President of the American Friends of the Jewish

Museum of Greece,

Mr. Robert Likind, Director of the American Jewish Committee of New England, our Presenter this evening,

Your Graces, Reverend Fathers Students and Faculty,

Dear Friends All,

 

I want to congratulate and express my abiding gratitude to the Jewish Museum of Greece, the Maliotis Cultural Center, and our Hellenic College and Holy Cross, for offering us this remarkable and most timely exhibition: “The Good Shepherds: Metropolitans and Rabbis in the Face of the Holocaust.”

In this present moment, when Europe has been shattered once again by a tyrant’s bloodthirsty pursuit of violence and war, we need these heroes – Jewish and Christian alike – to remind us of what is best in our shared humanity.

Yesterday, I prayed at the Saint Volodomyr Cathedral in New York City with Christian and Jewish leaders for peace in Ukraine. I saw the strained faces, and the tear-stained eyes of those suffering here, on account of the unimaginable ordeals taking place across the ocean.

But, in reality, they are not unimaginable. We have seen this before. There are still living witnesses to the unthinkable barbarity of the Shoah. And we must say together as one human family: “Never again!”

The brave rabbis and clergy who came together and found a way to preserve life, even as they preserved the human spirit and their God-given dignity, are calling us to follow their example. They were good shepherds of their flocks, who were willing to lay down their lives for the sake of their sheep.[*]

This evening, let us open our minds and hearts to be inspired by their courage and their determination. Let us each vow to do what we can to save life, because as we save just one, we save ourselves as well.

We come here tonight to honor their memory, and to share a common meal in tribute to their bold heroism.

But I ask us all, as we sit down to our repast in the comfort of the peace and freedom we enjoy in this blesséd land, to connect deeply with these heroes. Let us drink in their stories and feed ourselves with their brave goodness in the face of evil.

Therefore, I ask us all to rise and let us pray:

 

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, Who brings forth bread from the earth.

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, Who creates the fruit of the ground.

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, through Whose word everything comes into being.

We come together in brotherly love and mutual respect to give thanks for these Good Shepherds who inspire us with their courage and compassion.

We honor their memory and pray that we may be worthy of their legacy.

And we ask You to bless the food and drink of tonight’s fellowship.

For You alone are Holy and the Sustainer of life, and to you we ascribe all glory, honor and worship, now and forever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

        

 

(Closing Remarks)

         I want to thank all of our distinguished guests and the members of our communities who came together for this special commemoration and event this evening.

         As we depart, let us recommit ourselves to the goodness and heroism of these Good Shepherds, whom we laud in this most significant exhibition of the Jewish Museum of Greece.

         Let us take from their examples, what they would share with us most eagerly – their unyielding devotion to the truth of our shared humanity, and their undying dedication to defending every precious human life.

         In the face of unspeakable evil, they stood with every fiber of their being to save the most vulnerable, those targeted by the irrational hatred of the “other.”

         They did not bend their knee before any other than God, and their resistance – a non-violent resistance – still moves us today with their individual and corporate acts of heroism.

         They even conspired together – Christians and Jews – to save their own. And remember, to “conspire” means to breathe together, not just whisper.

         May we all learn to breath together in a fraternity of love and acceptance, and so bring to our broken world the healing and compassion that it so desperately needs.

         Thank you and good night.