Fr. Eleftherios pulls down from the wall behind him a framed icon of St. George of Neapolis, a late 18th century martyr. The icon depicts a procession of bishops, clergy and worshippers leaving the ancient Christian province of Cappadocia. They carry the remains of the martyr-saint, and they form a long line that stretches out symbolically to Greece where they seek refuge from Ottoman persecution. Along the way, parishioners have dropped possessions – food, tools, pots – as they leave everything behind.
“They didn’t have many goods. They just had faith,” Fr. Eleftherios said. “History is repeated. Crisis then, crisis now.”
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