Metropolitan Cleopas of Sweden gave an interview to Nikolaos Kitsios, Head of the radio programme of the Holy Metropolis of Sweden, and spoke about the Holy Metropolis of Sweden and all Scandinavia, which despite the situation, continued its pastoral work silently.
Metropolitan Cleopas said that the pandemic could be examined and interpreted in a positive and a negative way. The positive side of the pandemic is as follows: “The Orthodox Church teaches that Christians should not selfishly pursue their own interests, but to serve their fellow human beings by taking care of their own health and, above all, the health of others.,” he said.
“All the measures taken by the Church to combat the pandemic were taken out of pastoral sensitivity in the context of the ecclesiastical economy. Despite any negative criticism towards the Church, which was accused of indifference and social intolerance, the measures did not aim at abolishing canonicality,” he pointed out.
He also spoke about a very important issue, that is the “instrumentalisation” of the Sacrament of Holy Communion in order to marginalise the Church in modern society and to serve other interests.
“Let us, my brethren, treat the pandemic as a mystery in our lives, let us ponder on the situation in order to appreciate more the beauty of our lives, our relationships. Therefore, we will become more human and we will deem the situation as a test thatGod sent to us,” he stressed.
He also referred to the news of the Stockholm Orthodox Cathedral and of the other parishes, where a number of ordinations were performed throughout the year.
“The day after Christmas”, he said, “two of our clergymen visited me and gave me the most beautiful Christmas present. They told me that a new parish was scheduled to be built in an area two hours away from Stockholm.”
He also spoke about the “Internet Ministry” which is a modern method of communication between the Church and the faithful. “I would say that it is a way of communication for people all ages, especially during this period, when social distancing must be observed, due to the pandemic,” he added.
In addition, he referred to the interior renovation and restoration of St. George’s Orthodox Cathedral in Stockholm. “It was the first restoration in the history of the cathedral since it was built in 1890, that is 130 before.
The external renovation took place last year, from the 15th of August to the 25th of November 2019. The internal renovation started on the 30th of May and ended on the 30th December 2020,” he pointed out.
The Metropolitan of Sweden assumed the entire cost of the internal and external renovation of the Cathedral since the budget of the Cathedral was not enough due to the pandemic.
Finally, Metropolitan Cleopas stated that he was very optimistic about the new year: “This year comes to an end but life goes on, he said.
“It remains for all of us, Your spiritual children, to pray to our Lord. We pray for health, strength, enlightenment and for You to continue your pastoral work,” the journalist said. “I wish all of you a Happy New Year,” the Metropolitan of Sweden responded.
