Having been Orthodox from the cradle, I've been exposed to the wonderful feeling of being able to offer and to receive hospitality from friends far away, planned ahead of time or on the spur of the moment, and it is this feeling of true homes from home that Egeria offers.
Among the many places I've had the joy of being entertained and taken into the houses of Orthodox people who I didn't know before I left home are Romania, Greece, South Korea, the USA, Canada, Germany and Montenegro, all of which are memorable experiences with images flooding back to me as I write.
And, as to how well Egeria would work, I can offer one example: Earlier this year, after Jenny had already started thinking about proposals for Egeria, she had a call from a friend of a friend who was coming to the UK. She put me and several other people in touch with them, and they threaded an itinerary between these contacts (luckily we all live in picturesque places).
So when it turned out that I was away for over half the time that Maximus was in Bath, it was no problem. We arranged to meet up when I was there, but before that, because I'd spoken to him plenty beforehand, I was able to call people in my church and make sure he was encouraged to stay for a meal afterwards, as well as encouraging him to myself, and I think that introduction really made a great difference to him and his party's stay.
There are so many other anecdotes I could add, but I think that for the sake of brevity I'd better end there. The possibilities of the Egeria network are pretty much endless, and with Jenny's wit, humanity and graphic design underlying it, I can only be sure that it will reach its potentials.
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Thank you, Ambrose!
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
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