A  CHURCH BUILT ON A DREAM

 A church will be built in Africa, dedicated to Saint Anthimus of Chios, due to a dream dreamt far, far away in the United States of America!  How this event came to be will be looked upon by some as the product of divine intervention.  It all started when one person read a book about the life and times of Saint Anthimus of Chios.  After the book was finished, it was placed back on a shelf but, in the mind of the reader, Saint Anthimus was never forgotten. 

As time passed, this person had a strange dream.  In the dream, he was in a very grotesque church building surrounded by very large, white statues that were frightening to look at and left a deep sense of fear within the individual.  He tried to back away from these statues, walking backwards in the darkness, very carefully.  All of a sudden, he felt something behind him that stopped him.  He extended his hand and felt a fabric, a cloth of some sort.  Turning around quickly, he saw Saint Anthimus of Chios standing in front of him.  The saint raised his right arm and pointed to a shrine containing icons of three saints.  In the center was Saint Anthimus of Chios; on his right was Saint Nicholas, the Wonderworker, and on his left side was Saint Andrew, the First Called Apostle.  As he looked at the shrine, he turned toward Saint Anthimus, who had a very peaceful expression on his face before he disappeared.  The man awoke from his dream and had a sense of confusion because he knew there might be a meaning to this dream.   

He began to consult various priests about what the meaning of the dream might be.  While they could not agree if the dream had any meaning at all, they felt that the dream itself might be a blessing.  Finally, through a friend, he contacted a spiritual father in Greece who, upon hearing the details of the dream, decided that Saint Anthimus wanted a church constructed in his honor and in honor of the Mother of God, the Panagia, the Voithitria (Helper).  The Panagia Voithitria was the icon that Saint Anthimus highly venerated and built a monastery for nuns, honoring the Panagia Voithitria on the island of Chios in Greece. 

The building of a church in the United States is a very complicated and a very expensive undertaking, and it looked as if this was an impossible dream.  The man visited a monastery, dedicated to the Aghia Skepi (Holy Protection of the Virgin Mary), in Pennsylvania.  At the monastery, he met a woman whom he had known through mutual friends from his original Greek Orthodox parish. During their conversation, she mentioned a priest in Africa who needed assistance in his missionary work in the country of Kenya.   

An idea was born!   BUILD THE CHURCH IN KENYA  

Upon returning from the monastery, he met a missionary priest who was on his way to Kenya to lead seminars at the Orthodox seminary in Nairobi.  Upon hearing the man’s vision, the priest offered to make the necessary contacts through the office of the Archbishop in Nairobi.  In addition, he had a contact with a local Orthodox church in New Jersey, dedicated to Saint Nicholas, who would help by establishing a separate fund for the reception of the donations.    

To broaden the outreach of this missionary ministry, it was decided that, since this church was supporting a school named in honor of Saint Nicholas in Kenya, the church to be constructed in honor of Saint Anthimus would be the village church.  The dream was now connected.  Saint Anthimus would be the village church near a school dedicated to Saint Nicholas, just as in the dream.  This village is located four hours from the capital city of Nairobi.   

As word spread of the project among the local Greek Orthodox churches in northern New Jersey, donations began to come in and the project even found its way to the island Chios itself, where the people of Chios decided to wholeheartedly support the effort.  God gave the dream; God has made the connections possible; God will use this church to touch the hearts of many who are in need of repentance and acceptance of the Savior, due to the intercessions of the Panagia Voithitria and Saint Anthimus.   

If you find it in your heart that Saint Anthimus of Chios and the Panagia, along with Saint Nicholas and Saint Andrew have a meaning to you as an Orthodox Christian, examine yourself and see if you can help this effort, either by contributing of your talents, time or treasure.   Please make all check donations payable to the:  

“St. Anthimus of Chios Building Fund”

c/o Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church

467 Grand View Avenue, Wyckoff, NJ 07481 

If interested in obtaining a paper prayer icon of St. Anthimus, please send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to the above address.   

Thank you for your participation in any way; please include this project in your prayers and pass the word to others, whom you feel might be of assistance in building this church.  Remember, to build a temple to the glory of Christ, stands as a blessing before the Lord and you will be rewarded!                         

“If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging!

If it is giving, give generously!

If God has given you leadership ability,

take the responsibility seriously!

And, if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly!”

Romans: 12:8