00:00It's four in the morning when Father Spiridon calls the faithful to prayer.
00:07He's often alone in the little chapel, but he still wants the people in the valley below to hear the bells.
00:18I decided early on to become a priest and then a celibate monk.
00:23Since then, I've lived a fulfilling life filled with spiritual joy.
00:30The Monastery of the Virgin Mary on Amorgos has clung to a cliff 300 meters above sea level since the Middle Ages.
00:39Today it remains a pilgrimage site for visitors from Greece and abroad.
00:45But the Monastery and Father Spiridon are especially important to the 2000 islanders here.
00:52The Monastery provides a valuable service to Amorgos and the surrounding islands.
01:01We take on clerical and pastoral duties, especially on the islands where there are no priests.
01:08For many festivals and celebrations, a monk just has to be present.
01:13An icon of the Virgin Mary.
01:18Time and again, the island's villagers are drawn here to visit the monks.
01:25I don't know why, but on Amorgos, people still go to church and fast.
01:30Mainly because of the Monastery.
01:32Easter is especially popular.
01:34Either you see it as a really important site, or you are truly a believer and you like to come here to pray.
01:44Either way, it's a very important part of our lives.
01:52Spiridon entered the Monastery when he was 18.
01:54Now over 70, he is one of only two monks left, with no successors in sight.
02:01Surveys have shown that faith plays an ever smaller role in the lives of young people, and Greece is no different.
02:08But the monk has not given up hope.
02:13They will come.
02:15When our time is up, the Virgin Mary will send them.
02:18She always helps.
02:19Despite all the problems, we don't despair because God is with us.
02:26We just have to do our duty to the best of our knowledge and belief.
02:31In this tiny kitchen, Father Spiridon prepares whatever the Monastery's lands have to offer.
02:38Here, too, guests from all over the world are welcome.
02:42With no television or internet, this is how the monks hear the latest news.
02:46But Spiridon never feels alone up here.
02:53Our departed brothers are waiting for us in heaven and are still with us in spirit.
03:00Life in the Monastery goes on.
03:03Our duty is to celebrate Mass every morning and every evening.
03:08We don't need a group.
03:11We can do that alone, too.
03:12But every now and then, Father Spiridon is drawn back to the villages of his home island.
03:20First, down some stone steps.
03:23And then in the Monastery's car.
03:26He announces his arrival on the road, since there is no reception in the cloister.
03:31In the villages, he is often awaited eagerly, at least by the elderly.
03:36Like many Aegean islands, Amargos is suffering from an exodus of young people to urban centers.
03:45The islanders fear that one day, with the passing of the last monk,
03:50their sense of community and the income from tourists will disappear as well.
03:54The truth is that the monastery attracts visitors to our island.
04:04The place means everything to us.
04:08Father Spiridon attends weddings, baptisms, and funerals.
04:13As usual, he departs bearing gifts for the monastery from locals, and something to drink.
04:22The islanders know the monk likes to celebrate.
04:29I'm a sociable person.
04:31My community is important to me.
04:33I don't want to live like a hermit in a cave.
04:37But mostly, the Amorgians hear stories from Spiridon about life in the monastery.
04:43Stories that give them hope.
04:47I've met people with physical disabilities who climb the steep path supported by others.
04:53Even blind people.
04:55Their longing leads them to me, and they cry out for the Virgin Mary.
05:03And then, they're overcome.
05:07And I'm reminded of the devotion and piety that led these people to the monastery.
05:17But after a few hours, Father Spiridon is happy to be back home.
05:22Looking down on the world from above, from his cliffside monastery,
05:28where he is closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:33And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:34And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:35And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:36And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:37And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:38And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:39And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:40And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:41And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:42And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:43And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:44And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:45And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:46And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
05:47And he's closest to the heavens above Amargos.
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