Fr Andreas has been diagnosed with a particularly virulent form of cancer.
Despite the advanced state of his illness, Fr Andreas surprised his congregation at St Catherine’s last Sunday, when he appeared at the service in a wheelchair and spoke to the faithful at the end of the service.
He spoke in a in a weak voice that could barely be heard through the microphone.
But among other things he said: “I do not have a voice and I cannot speak. My life is fading and my days are few. I will soon die. I came here to this sacred place that I have served for decades so that I may see you all and to tell you that ‘I love you and thank you’ – especially my co-workers in the church. The poor, the teachers, the singers, the church committee members, all of them.”