March 24, 2013

The Church: A Great Hospital


By Maria Mourza

The Fathers say that the Church is a great Hospital which is in operation around the clock for the past two thousand years.

A Hospital that operates for all.

For the insured and uninsured.

For the rich and for the poor.

For the known and unknown and for people who are marginalized.

A great Hospital which treats each disease no matter how deep, how infectious, and how deadly it is.

A great Hospital in which:

You enter sick and you leave in health, like the woman with an issue of blood.

You enter a persecutor and you leave an apostle, like Paul.

You enter a sinner and you leave a saint, like Saint Mary of Egypt.

You enter a wolf and you leave a lamb, like Saint Moses of Ethiopia.

You enter a corpse in decomposition and you leave risen after four days, like Lazarus!

Source: From the book Αντίδωρο by Μαρία Μουρζά (εκδ.Άθως 2011). Translated by John Sanidopoulos.