At the Parish of Saint Irene Chrysovalantou in Tanzania, a teacher, Jovin Balyabileba, was interested in Orthodoxy, and after a period of learning, comtemplation and catechism, Orthodoxy won him over.
Last year he expressed his admiration for the Orthodox Church, which he deemed as “the true Church of the Apostles” and said that he wanted to become Orthodox. Fr. Stefanos performed the catechism and Jovin became an Orthodox Christian.
On the Feast of Saint Irene Chrysovalantou, on July 28, when the Parish was celebrating the Feast, he came, he received Holy Communion and spoke about the immense joy he was feeling. He asked to learn Greek and study Theology. Catechumens from two missionary communities attended the service.
During the Divine Liturgy, His Grace Bishop Chrysostomos Bukoba and Western Tanzania spoke about the life of the Saint, which is “an example of love for Christ the Savior.” Following the Divine Liturgy, he met the children of the Parish and the young people who set some goals, like to gather once a week to study the Holy Bible, to cultivate the fields of the Church and to bring electricity to the Church building.