Your Eminence, beloved brother in Christ,
Archbishop Spyridon of America,
Your Grace, beloved brother in Christ,
Bishop Anthony of San Francisco,
Distinguished guests,
Beloved children in the Lord,

Our heart is filled with a divine joy, and gratitude to the Founder and Builder of the Church, our Lord Jesus Christ, because He has brought us into your midst today.  What great joy and gladness!
We are deeply moved by your tokens of respect and devotion for our humble person and our honorable companions.  Your devotion to the common Mother of us all, the Holy and Great Church of Christ, the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, is well known to all.
We are touched by this reception, which you have so carefully prepared on our behalf.  We have been following closely the developments in this vineyard of the Lord.  Especially in this region of California, where the cultivation of the vine is an internationally recognized art-form, you bring pride to the Mother Church, for your cultivation and preservation of Orthodox tradition.
At this hour, when the day is done, we are tasting the fruits of your devotion.  And, through the abundant blessing of this table, we are assured of the finest qualities of your love.
In this moment of joy, when we partake of your fellowship, let us be filled with a spirit of thanksgiving to the Lord of Glory, for all the gifts that He has showered upon us.  On that note, we would address unto you a few words of encouragement and exhortation.
It is indeed fortuitous that today, our Holy Church honors a great Saint, Paul the Confessor, Patriarch of Constantinople.
But we want to underscore a simple truth: it is not only the many confessors, Patriarchs, Theologians and Martyrs who bear witness and a good confession of the faith, but the whole body of Christ, the body of believers.  For by the grace of the Holy Spirit, we are all members of the liturgical community.  We feed upon the Holy Body and the Precious Blood of our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ. All those saints and our brethren in heaven, all the faithful alive today throughout the whole Oikoumene, they all comprise the body of the Church, which we call the Body of Christ.
There are many simple, uneducated people who live out their lives in true faithfulness to God.  They accept tribulation with joy.  They are grateful to the Most High, for whatever He allows to happen to them.  Every event in their life, whether beneficial or difficult, is a cause for their thanksgiving and praise to God.  These are people of generosity and thankfulness.  They are true confessors.
They give joy to their families and strengthen their neighbors.  The entire Church considers them a radiant blessing and the joy of Paradise.
We must never think that we are alone.  “Our Savior has visited us from on high.”  What a company of Saints, Martyrs, confessors, overshadow us as Guardian Angels.  They protect us; they comfort us.  And how many people of this hospitable country, with whom you live and work — and are indeed themselves good people, — but indeed, how many of them have no awareness of the love and concern of God for them?
If we are grateful to God, if gratitude abounds in our hearts for Him, then we should be able to truly feel it.  We should feel that we are close to those Saints from days of old.  And we should accept His grace from the simple good people we find today.
If we confess our faith and make known our joy, let us be a source of comfort to all our brethren, those who are near and those who are far off.  If we share the consolation we find in our Holy Church, we shall increase our joy and we shall redeem our debt with God.  We shall become like our All-Good Heavenly Father, Who makes the sun to rise on all people.
Beloved brothers in Christ and dearest children,
Before this present banquet is finished, which you have offered to us and our synodia from your hearts; before our fellowship and our gathering is concluded, and we depart from this glorious city of San Francisco, we wish to express our warmest thanks to all of you, for the love you have lavished on us today.
And we desire, as the successor, by divine grace, of the Throne of Saint Paul the Confessor and Archbishop of Constantinople, who is celebrated today, to remind you of two basic truths which, we ask that you never forget.
First:  the most comforting and saving reality which we know and live in our Church, is that God is love.  He loves each and every one of us with a love that embraces the whole world.  God cares and is concerned with every person in pain or distress, as if they were the only person in the world.
And second:  if you have tasted this saving love of God in the Church, just like the Saint we celebrated today, give this love generously to others and confess it in your deeds and words.  And so, with gladness in your hearts and joy on your faces, share this one truth with everyone, that God is love.
May the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all, forever.  Amen.