Despite the great catastrophes after the deadly explosions in the port of Beirut, the Greek Orthodox Church of Agios Dimitrios managed to “survive”, while the BBC talked about the hope that this development gives rise to.
According to the British network, this temple is less than a kilometre away from where the Beirut explosion took place.
Father Youil Nassif describes the images he saw entering the church. Despite the great damage that the central aisle had suffered, proceeding to the sanctuary he found something incredible. This place was almost intact, while the candle in the Holy Table remained lit.
“You can call me naive, but I felt it was unbelievable. I felt like it was a message from God saying ‘I will be by your side, we will rise up,'” Father Nassif told the BBC.
Describing what happened that day, he says: “I left the church with my children twelve minutes before the explosion. We were heading home when it happened, so I reached home, left my children there and went back to the church to check what happened. When I arrived, I was shocked.
The church was destroyed. I continued my way to the altar. When I entered the altar, I was surprised, as it was untouched. You can see the pictures, you can see the video. The holy chalice was intact, you can see the Holy Bible, you can see the oil lamp that did not move. You can see the relics of the Saints and the instruments… even the glass was not broken.”
As the priest says, in times of crisis we search for signs from God. “I felt as if it is a sign,” he argued, urging all believers to pray.
Source: tanea.gr