We would like to continue contemplating on how Divine Providence is bestowed upon those who show mercy and consideration to the poor and the less fortunate. In the previous newsletter, we talked about the first part of this topic when we contemplated on David the Prophet's song to our righteous Lord: "You shall preserve me from trouble." (Ps. 32:7)

   In the second part of this great symphony of Divine Providence, our teacher David the prophet sings: "He guards all his bones; not one of them is broken" (Ps. 34:20). Truly we see that: "The Lord preserves all who love Him." (Ps. 145:20)… "Blessed is he who considers the poor. The Lord will deliver him in time of trouble. The Lord will preserve him and keep him alive." (Ps. 41:1,2)…"He guards all his bones; not one of them is broken." (Ps 34: 20)

   Let us examine some examples of individuals who have shown mercy and compassion to the less fortunate, and how the Lord guarded all their bones.

   Our kind-hearted teacher, David the Prophet, has shown love and compassion for the poor and the needy. He sings: "Blessed is he who considers the poor; The Lord will deliver him in time of trouble. The Lord will preserve him and keep him alive." David has experienced the Lord's protection and deliverance all the days of his life. The Lord has guarded all his bones as we see in the examples below:

· In 1 Sam.17, we read about the Lord's protection of David in his confrontation with Goliath.

· In 1 Sam. 19:1-7, we read about how the Lord, through Jonathan, has preserved him from Saul who sought to kill him.

· In 1 Sam. 21: 10-15, we see how the Lord has protected him from Achish, the king of Gath.

· In 1 Sam. 23 & 26, we read about how the Lord has protected him from Saul the King who has always sought to kill him.

· In 1 Sam. 30, we read about how the Lord has sustained David against the Amalekites, and how David has been able to completely crush them.

· In 2 Sam. 5, we learn how the Lord has protected David and helped him against the Philistines in the valley of Rephaim.

· In 2 Sam. 15-18, we see how the Lord has protected him from Absalom, his son, when he conspired against him.

   Then, it was no wonder that our Teacher David the Prophet would ceaselessly sing praises to the Lord all the days of his life saying: "Blessed is he who considers the poor; the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble"... "The Lord will guard all his bones; not one of them is broken."

   Our gentle hearted, St. Paul the Apostle, has also experienced God's love and endless protection because of the kindness and compassion he has exhibited towards the poor and the need. The Lord has guarded all his bones, and not one of them was broken.

· In Acts 23, we see how the Lord has saved him from forty Jews who have plotted to kill him. They have "bound themselves under an oath saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul." (Acts 23:12)

· In Acts 27, we learn about how the Lord has preserved Paul's life during his voyage to Rome. A tempestuous storm, called Euroclydon, arose. The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind, but God delivered St. Paul and we hear him eternally praise: "we gave way to it and were driven along." (Acts 27:15)

· In the Second Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, we witness how the Lord has preserved his life. He says: "Are they ministers of Christ?- I speak as a fool- I am more: In labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often... Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep." (2 Cor. 11:23-25) Truly we see how the Lord has preserved and delivered him… He has guarded all his bones... Not one of them is broken.

   Five years ago, one of the Bishops, who has been tender and compassionate towards the destitute and the impoverished, was on his way to a monastery at midnight. Suddenly as he was driving, the Bishop was confronted with a ravine and lost control of the car, which in turn rolled over four times. One of the passengers in the back seat said: "Instantly, the front windshield was separated from the car without being shattered. The Bishop was miraculously pushed forward without being injured by the steering wheel. I can not explain how this could have happened. The car then rolled over four times to the left side and was completely smashed". A few minutes later, that passenger got out of the back seat to look for the Bishop in the sheer darkness: "I was extremely exhilarated to find that he was safe and sound... I began to sing with our Father David the Prophet: 'Blessed is he who considers the poor; the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble'".

   This is a man who is filled with mercy and compassion. He has generously offered the poor and the destitute, firmly believing that he is only giving what God has already so bountifully given to him. On his way back to Zagazeeg from the monastery of St. Paula two years ago, he had a terrible car accident. At the outskirts of the City of Suez, a train suddenly emerged from a garage nearby and collided with his car with an immense force. Fortunately, the collision had only damaged the back half of the car. It was certainly Divine Providence who saved this brother, for had the train collided with the car a second earlier, he would have undoubtedly been the victim of a deadly collision. Brother A.G. miraculously came out of the undamaged part of the car safe and sound, bewildered and not knowing what had happened. Catching his breath, a hymn emerged from his heart saying: "Blessed is he who considers the poor; the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble"... "The Lord will guard all his bones; not one of them is broken."

Bishop Youannes

     His Holiness celebrated the feast of St. Antony the Great in St. Antony's Monastery in California on the 29th of January and returned to the Archdiocese from Feb. 4th-Feb. 11th.

     May the Lord preserve the life of His Holiness for many peaceful years to come. We ask that he remember us and the service before God.