Metropolitan Maximos and the Indonesian Mission

Metropolitan Maximos of blessed memory was a strong supporter of missions, especially in Indonesia.

When the first inquiries into Orthodoxy began in the mid-eighties, a young convert to the Church maintained an active correspondence with a group of young men in his country. It was Maximos who welcomed them to his metropolis in Pittsburgh, and on January 21, 1987, his feastday, he chrismated four candidates for the Holy Priesthood.

After spending the first few months in Pittsburgh to study English, hosted by the parish of Holy Cross, they were sponsored by the Greek Orthodox Board of Missions to study theology at the Holy Cross Seminary. Two of them, the first of the many converts to follow, are still actively serving as priests in Indonesia. Metropolitan Maximos emptied his pockets many times to assure that their mission would be fruitful. He also encouraged many other missionary efforts throughout the world, making this one of his priorities as a hierarch.

All of us at the Orthodox Christian Mission Center join in prayer for the repose of this beloved Hierarch who has done so much for missions and the Orthodox faith. May his memory be eternal!

Photo by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.