Pilgrimage and Visit to the Detention Center of Amphissa
“When saw we Thee in prison and came unto Thee?” (St. Matthew 25:39)
† Saturday, September 6, 2026 (Old Style)
On Saturday, September 6, 2026 (Old Style), †Commemoration of the Miracle of the Archangel Michael at Chonai, with the blessing, participation, and guidance of His Eminence, Metropolitan Cyprian of Oropos and Phyle, the St. Philaret the Merciful Orthodox Women’s Guild made its twenty-fourth visit to the Detention Center of Amphissa.
Volunteers of the St. Philaret the Merciful Guild, together with Members of the Volunteer Association of our Holy Metropolis, worked together to gather and package the items of basic necessity that private individuals and stores had donated to the Guild, in order to offer them to 170 of our imprisoned brothers.
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After the customary prayers for the pilgrimage, our Most Reverend Shepherd used the travel time to speak about the Synaxarion of St. Lygere the New Martyr of Chiopolis—whose commemoration fell on that day—and about the approaching Feast of the Nativity of our Most Holy Lady.
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At the Detention Center, the Director, the Chief Warden, and their colleagues welcomed, as always, with great warmth our Most Reverend Shepherd and the rest of the group of pilgrims, and led them to the inner courtyard of the facility, where many of our imprisoned brothers had gathered.
Metropolitan Cyprian let our small family ensemble take the lead, and they sang songs from our folk tradition with children’s clear voices, accompanied by the lyra and the laouto, bringing joy and refreshment to the prisoners and their caretakers. Afterwards, the talented instrumentalists played several pieces, and some of our imprisoned brothers and visitors began a simple Greek line dance, while the others clapped along to the rhythm, some smiling, others visibly moved…
Both the prisoners and their caretakers expressed their gratitude for these moments of carefree joy: “Next time you visit us, we’ll tell you beforehand what we want to hear you play!”
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In continuation, after sharing a brief message of love and self-examination with our brothers, Metropolitan Cyprian went together with a number of the pilgrims into the visiting hall. There, he met personally, one by one, with our imprisoned brothers, whose faces showed both smiles and deep emotion. He embraced them with his fatherly love, and as the nuns chanted and the young people sang in turn, he distributed the prepared parcels with their small gifts — items of basic necessity, small icons, and prayer ropes — with the help of the volunteers.
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At the end of this blessed visit, our Most Reverend Shepherd and the group of pilgrims went on to Delphi, where, in the dining hall of the Nedymos Hotel, belonging to Ioannis and Chrysi Vasilias, they enjoyed a meal prepared by our volunteers, rejoicing in the fellowship of brethren in Christ whom they had known both for many years and more recently.
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A memento was given to the pilgrims, bearing a strong and timely message entitled “A Call to Participation in Concerted Orthodox Volunteerism.”
The group returned greatly benefited by the gifts of this pilgrimage, praying that the possibility of collective visits to the detention facilities may continue, to the spiritual profit of all..
It is worth noting that on the following day, the Sunday before the Elevation of the Precious Cross, after the Divine Liturgy, Metropolitan Cyprian spoke at length about our Lord’s forgotten commandment: “I was in prison, and ye came unto Me,” and urged the faithful to be stirred to action, that they might reap abundant spiritual fruits from the ministry to our imprisoned brothers.
