Letter 1'

Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of New Zealand
Holy Church of the Dormition of Virgin Mary, Christchurch

Christchurch 20/6/2009
Dearest Brethren.
Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
With the Grace of God, the blessings of our Bishop of New Zealand H. E. Amphilochios and the help and permission of my home Bishop of Mytiline H. E. Iakovos, three months have already passed since my family and I came to New Zealand.
It is the love and concern of our Bishop towards our Church, towards all of you, which brought us here.
We have met and spoken with the most of you and I'm filled with joy every time I see your beloved faces during our Holy Services.
For those I've not met yet, I' m looking forward to meeting you and for that reason; I have started visiting many of you at your jobs or at your homes.
I would like us all to have unity in Christ and to strengthen our relationship with our Lord.
Therefore, we want you to have opportunities for prayer and Catechism, except of those we already have on Sundays and big Feast Days.
One of those opportunities is the service of the holy Paraklesis to Panagia, the Mother of God, who intercedes for us to her Son.
This prayer is followed by Catechism.
So all, you that are not occupied with a job are invited to come and pray together every Thursday 10.30-11.30 a.m.
For those that are working, I would like to hear from you if you are interested to make some time for an individual or a group prayer and Catechism.
Now about our beloved children and youth. Don't you think it is time to help them find their way to Christ, to help them open up their souls for Him to step in? Jesus said: “Let the children come to me.”
My wife presvitera Anastasia and I would be very happy if you could manage to find one hour every week for your children to come together to learn about the life of our Church. Our Treasure is right here! We just have to reach out to get it!
If you are interested in any of the above, please let me know. You can visit us, call us for a visit or phone us. My phone numbers are: Tel. 3554885
and 0210473894.
My e-mail address is: amphilochio@ yahoo.gr. Also, I would very much like to have your e-mail address to communicate personally with you.
With love in Christ.


Rev. Amphilochios S. Vasiltsotelis

HOW TO EFFECTIVELY DESTROY YOUR CHILD!

• From the time he is very young do not deny him anything. Give him whatever he wants, especially when he becomes stubborn and cries. In this way he will grow up believing that others owe him everything and that his rights are paramount.

• When he begins to swear, you should laugh. In this way you will show him that he is very clever!

• Never tell him that “That is naughty”! This is the old way of thinking. When he faces difficulties later in life and when something bad happens to him, he can rightly believe that society is treating him unfairly.

• You should always pick up after him – books, clothes, shoes… Never say to him: “Pick them up. Put them where they belong”! In this way he can believe that his mother is his slave and that everyone else is always responsible for everything.

• Let him see everything (especially on television) and let him read everything without ever guiding him. Your child is sharp and knows how to distinguish between things! In this way his education will be broadened!

• Never teach him anything spiritual. In front of him, mock faith, the Church, the priests and all who follow them. When the child grows up “He will choose for himself”.

• Give him lots of pocket money so that he never feels beneath others and so that “he never lacks what you lacked”. When he grows up, he will be certain that money will give value to people no matter how they came by it.

• Never say to him “Do this” or “Don’t do that” because in this way you suppress him, you do not respect his freedom and his character. You could also cause him…psychological damage! When he grows up he will believe that he can give orders in life but never obey them himself.

• Fight, swear, insult one another in front of him, shamelessly. (Don’t worry, no psychological trauma will come from this!). Later on, when he marries, it will seem natural to him to do the same.

• When he begins to become involved with eroticism and sexuality, you must close your eyes. Do not say anything, do not guide him, do not advise him. Let him do whatever he needs to do because “it is natural”!

• Always side with him in the presence of his teachers and neighbours. Never believe that “your little angel” can do anything wrong or mischievous. Swear at those who in a friendly and well-meaning manner mention anything to you. They are slanderers and are jealous.

* * * * * * * * *

• When you go to the police station, where he will have been taken because of theft, or drugs, shout out loud in front of everyone that he is a wicked child, a hooligan, that you sacrificed everything for him but could not control him. In this way, you will come out on top.

• Prepare yourselves for a life of pain and guilt. You will have it.

“E” ELEMENTS IN OUR NUTRITION

Every pre-packed foodstuff is accompanied by a label which contains information about the chemical composition and the methods of standardization and storage. Apart from the date of expiry which is also on this label and which we should systematically look for before we purchase the product, there should also be the constituents of the food in order of priority according to their weight. Apart from the ingredients there is also a note of the chemical additives, in other words the “E” (trace elements) which are used by the companies preparing the foods, for which there are indications according to the “Cheumont” Hospital Centre in France, as well as other research centres, that these chemical additives are harmful to our health.
They are usually added in small amounts and that is why they are recorded at the end of the list of contents. We need to stress here that most people have no particular knowledge of chemistry and so most of these words cannot be understood. The result is that most times we take no notice and simply place the product in our shopping baskets.
It is important for us to know that the more chemical additives are contained in food, the less beneficial it is for our health. These chemical additives are used to add flavour, colour or aroma to the food and even a longer shelf life. The “E” code has been instituted by the European Union to indicate the presence of an approved particular chemical additive. Independent of whether the “E” trace elements are approved by the European Union, the more products we use that contain the “E” elements, the more we burden our health, especially if we consume them on a daily basis. The catalogue below is indicative and we hope that it will make us all more careful us consumers: we need to look very carefully at the ingredients of the products to be sure that they do not contain “E” elements.

E 102: Tartrazine (Harmful - allergies)
E 104: Quinoline yellow (Suspicious. – Banned in the U.S.A.)
E110: Sunset yellow (Harmful – causes allergies)
E120: Cochineal (Harmful)
E122: Carmoisine (Suspicious – has many side-effects)
E123: Amaranth ( Very dangerous and a carcinogen)
E124: Ponceau 4R (Harmful)
E127: Erythrosine (Harmful – causes hyperactivity in children)
E131: Patent blue V (A carcinogen – causes allergies)
E141: Copper complexes of chlorophylls and chlorophyllins (i) Copper complexes of chlorophylls (ii) Copper complexens (Suspicious)
E142: Green S (A carcinogen)
E150: Sulphite Ammonia Caramel (Suspicious)
E151: Brilliant Black BN, Black PN (Suspicious)
E153: Vegetable carbon
E161: Lutein (Harmful to the liver)
E171: Titanium dioxide (Suspicious)
E173: Aluminium (Suspicious)
E180: Lithol Rubine PK - cheese coverings (side effects for kidneys and lymphglands)
E210: Benzoic Acid (A carcinogen – causes allergies and asthma)
E211: Sodium Benzoate (A carcinogen)
E213: Calcium Benzoate (A carcinogen – causes allergies and asthma)
E214: Ethyl p-hydroxybenzoate (A carcinogen – causes allergies and asthma)
E215: Sodium ethyl p-hydroxybenzoate (A carcinogen)
E217: Sodium propyl p-hydroxybenzoate (A carcinogen)
E220 & E228: Sulphur Dioxide & Potassium Hydrogen Sulphite (Cause headaches, nausea and asthma)
E:230 & 232: Biphenyl, diphenyl - Sodium orthophenyl phenol
Mainly added to fruits, especially to citrus fruits which is why we transfer the taste to foods from our hands as we clean them.
E239: Hexamethylene tetramine (A carcinogen)
E250 & E252: Very harmful to young children and prevent transfer of oxygen to the blood)
E259: (A carcinogen)
E280: Propionic acid (Banned in many countries)
E311: Octyl Gallate (Causes eczema)
E312: Dodecyl Gallate (Causes eczema)
E321: Butylated hydroxytoluene (Causes cholesterol)
E330: Citric Acid ( A Carcinogen)

A little old lady sighs and says

A little old lady sighs and says:
“Lord”!
A man next to her asks her:
“Have you ever seen the Lord”?
“Of course I’ve seen Him”.
“What kind of ‘man’ is He”?
“Good, kind-hearted, slightly-built, he feels our pain”.
The man understood that he was dealing with a clever old lady, but he did not give up.
He asked again:
“Have you ever seen Satan”?
“Of course I’ve seen Him”.
“And what is he like”?
“Exactly like you: well-fed, coarse, both in body and manners, and sarcastic”!
He got more than he bargained for. The little old lady was sharp.

POLLEN AND ITS BENEFITS

Pollen is a product which bees collect from various flowers which they themselves choose. When they visit the flowers pollen sticks to the bees. As they gather more and more pollen, the bees “comb” the pollen from their bodies. They add the tiniest quantity of nectar and honey and keep it in the “little basket” which they have on their legs so that they can transport it to their hives. For us to collect the pollen painlessly, we will have placed pollen traps at the entrance to the hives and as the bees enter the hive, they will pass a small opening and some of the pollen will fall from their legs into the trap.



ITS BENEFITS

Pollen is the richest natural source of protein, vitamins, essential amino-acids, hormones, enzymes and other useful ingredients for our nutrition.

So, pollen:

• Effectively raise iron levels and blood count
• Improves the appetite and so is prescribed for:

• Weakness and general feelings of being run-down
• Loss of weight
• Sluggish metabolism
• Memory loss
• Intestinal abnormalities
• Nervous breakdowns
• Assists those who have mild allergic reactions to gain steady immunity
• Aids in the therapy of prostate inflammation
• Aids mental operation, strengthens the contraction heart and has diuretic effects
• Aids those with cholesterol problems
• Diminishes and significantly lessens menopausal problems
• Protects the system from cerebral haemorrhage

HOW IT IS CONSUMED

Pollen should be taken every morning, shortly before breakfast and the suggested amount is one teaspoonful every day for about a week. From the second week the amount should be increased until the daily does is one tablespoonful.

It can be eaten as it is in dry form.

There are other ways too for those who do not like the strong smell of flowers which accompanies pollen.

Pollen can also be mixed with a little yoghurt and honey.

If you want to dilute it, add the required amount to some milk, tea, or juice and leave it for 10-15 minutes so that it can be diluted.

For best results the “treatment” should continue for at least 4-5 months, although the first signs of improvement in our systems are already apparent from the first month.