Call to Action

September 25, 1995

At this moment, we are receiving from your blessed hands the results of the inestimable collected effort of the God-loving participants and speakers of this Symposium. And we are deeply moved by the same emotion, which permeates the liturgical celebrant of the Most High when he receives from the hands of the faithful who approach the church in order to offer the bread and wine, which are to be consecrated in order that their offerings might constitute immortal nourishment for the whole world.

Therefore, along with their Beatitudes and their Eminences the Presiding Hierarchs and your honorable persons, we hereby also bless these joyous fruits of your Symposium, which by God’s grace has drawn to a close. We express our congratulations and gratitude to you all for what has been achieved. We are certain that, from this point forward, your scientific and intellectual vigilance will remain the unswerving compass by which you will guide your colleagues and students to illumined and saving horizons.

During this official occasion, we wish to assure you, on behalf of the Church, that, aware as we are of the significance of your contribution of empirical work in all areas of Godly-inspired thought and science to the progress and welfare of the world, we shall not cease to pray for your good health and increasing achievement.

In closing, we wish to add one simple observation, which is already known to everyone, namely that the destructive deterioration of the environment is taking on multiple and threatening dimensions. Therefore, we must not be content with verbal protests, but we instead proceed to continuously stronger and more effective actions, each from their own part and position. For, pollution is dangerously spreading and rapidly increasing. Indeed, quite possibly and, God forbid, according to the calculations of the experts, quite probably, pollution will become impossible to control. We cannot remain idle.

May the enlightenment of the Paraclete always shine in your steps and in your actions within the course of your research and science, for your own benefit and for that of all your fellow human beings and the whole natural world.