As “a miracle that can only be explained spiritually,” he described Archbishop of America Elpidophoros the return to the monastery of Eikosifonissa of one of the oldest and best preserved Greek manuscript gospels in the world, written at the end of the 10th century, which was stolen from the monastery during the Bulgarian occupation in March 1917.

“The return of this particular manuscript to the Patriarchal and Holy Cross Monastery is a miracle that can only be explained spiritually,” said Archbishop Elpidophoros of America as a representative of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. “Personally, I think that this is the fruit of the prayer brethren of the First Monastery,” he added. As Elpidophoros pointed out, there are two categories of people who bought these manuscripts: “People who bought these manuscripts because they believed and respected the gospel, and out of respect gave a fortune to buy them, like Mr. Green from the Museum of the Bible and others, who saw them as an investment.” “Those who acted on the basis of faith in God, such as Mr. Green and the people in charge of the Museum of the Bible, were looking for a way to return the relics to their rightful owner. Others who saw values ​​in them, these people simply confirmed their involvement in a criminal act,” he stressed.

The Archbishop of America conveyed the assurance of the Ecumenical Patriarch that he would always be personally interested in the return of all stolen relics, while, as Elpidophoros said, His Holiness instructed that all the services of the Archdiocese of America be placed at the disposal of the Required Monastery and other stolen relics located in the United States are also being returned.

The 220 parchment gospel has been in the possession of the Museum of the Bible in Washington DC (MTB) since 2014 and was officially returned to the Holy Cross Monastery today in the presence of the Archbishop of America, President of the Museum Steve Green, MTB scholars, political and local government officials, high priests and a large number of people.

As part of the repatriation event, a doxology was performed and a protocol was signed on the presentation and receipt of the relic. The event was dedicated to the blessed Metropolitan of Drama, Mr. Pavel, who, as all speakers emphasized, made the greatest contribution to the return of the relics and fought for the return of all the stolen relics from the I. monastery.

The rector of the Dram diocese, Metropolitan Xanthiy Panteleimonas, stressed that September 29 is the day of remembrance for the victims of the Bulgarian occupation, but also an important day for the Holy Monastery, because today, according to him, the historical relic is returning to its natural place. In addition, he mentioned the Bulgarian occupations of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, which he emphasized devastated the region. During these periods, icons were stolen from the 1st monastery, namely 530 manuscripts and 470 relics, many of which date back to the 10th century. The relics, he stressed, went to auctions and ended up in private collections, for example, in the Museum of the Bible, which cooperates with the Ecumenical Patriarchate. “Fortunately, today there are still conscious people, and this does honor to the leaders of the museum, who return it to natural space,” Metropolitan Xanthi emphasized. “As the guardian of the Metropolis, I express my gratitude to the Ecumenical Patriarch, the representative of the Archbishop of America Elpidophoros and the president of the Museum of Abbess Antonini, as well as to those who worked for this purpose,” he noted and invited the Orthodox Bulgarians and E.E. act properly so that all the stolen relics of the First Monastery are returned.

In his greeting, Steve Green expressed gratitude for the cooperation with the Ecumenical Patriarchate and confidence that this step of the MTB strengthens the faith of Christians, and wished that this was a step that was imitated by other private and public organizations. Within the framework of the event, the scientific leaders of the MTB, representatives of the region and I. Moni spoke with a greeting.

The Evangelistarium was stolen along with other manuscripts and relics from I. Monya in March 1917, during the first Bulgarian occupation, and returned by the voluntary decision of the Washington MTB. This is the second successive handwritten relic returned to the historic monastery following the repatriation in 2016 of a ninth-century manuscript of inestimable historical value known as Codex 1424, which belonged to the Lutheran Divinity School in Chicago.

The event was attended by Metropolitan Hierofei of Zichna and Nevrokopi, as a representative of the Archbishop of Athens Jerome, Metropolitan Barnabas of Naples, the regional governor of Macedonia and Thrace Methios, a representative of the Minister of Transport Kostas Karamanlis. , representatives of local government and a large number of people.

Source: RES-IPE