LEWISTON — The rich, multicultural tapestry and essence of community in the city is often a welcoming energy for people of faith. For more than a century, the city’s Greek Orthodox community has built not just a thriving spiritual home, but a sanctuary where diverse cultures find common ground.

A church that began with Greek immigrants has evolved into a lively medley of faith, culture, love and respect.

For Father Anastasios Bendo, serving his community is more than a vocation — it’s a spiritual calling that began in his youth and goes back nearly two decades.

“When I first came to Lewiston, I was a foreigner,” Bendo said. “But I received love and support from the people here, not just from the Greeks, but from everyone in the church. (It’s made me) appreciate Lewiston as a city and for the kindness of its people.”

Bendo, born and raised in Albania, grew up in a country that was under communist rule until 1990 and was the only completely atheistic state in the world, where practicing any faith was extremely difficult.

“Prayer was done completely in private (and) I was always wondering about God because my grandmother was a believer, while everyone else was taught that God does not exist,” Bendo said, adding that despite the oppressive environment, his grandmother’s unwavering faith became his guiding light. “She was a beacon, an example of how to live a life of faith, how to believe in God, and how to serve God.”

Bendo would light candles and pray, not just for himself but for others, and his love for God developed through those quiet acts of devotion.

“I began believing in a God of love and a love for people,” he said. “It was a beautiful thing to me because at a time when leisure was limited, and social media did not exist, I found purpose in life. The purpose, for me, was clear from my grandmother: to find God, to serve God, and to serve the people.”

In the years following the fall of communism in Albania, Bendo was called to serve. As a young man, he joined a group of university students on missions to remote villages in Albania, where they spread the word of God and provided support to those in need.

“We went to really poor areas, into the mountains, where people were not only without God, but were also left with nothing because of communism,” Bendo said. “And we saw this spark of kindness and love within them.”

Their work also took them to the cancer and psychiatric wards of hospitals, orphanages and prisons. Bendo said they spoke with people who had little hope.

“We went to orphanages, and we took the children out to offer good friendships, good food,” he said, adding that those experiences profoundly shaped his faith. “The real meaning of life is to serve God and, through that love of God, to share it with others. All people are good, created in God’s image, and they are meant to be loved by us.”

Bendo’s path to the priesthood was not a deliberate pursuit — he didn’t even consider it as his purpose in life. “Originally, I wanted only to serve. It came out during the years as a calling,” he said.

In 2009, after nearly a decade of dedicated service, he was ordained as a deacon. Four years later, he was ordained a priest, serving under the guidance of his bishop, a man who had served in Africa and was a “living example” of how to share God’s love.

Bendo’s connection to Maine is a love story, according to the priest and his wife, Georgia Bendo. In 2004, Georgia, an American from the South, moved to Albania to work with the Orthodox Christian Mission Center. There, she worked as a teacher and later became the director of a private school run by the Orthodox Church. It was in Albania that she met Bendo, who was working with the church’s youth group at the time. The couple’s connection grew, and they married in 2008.

Both remained deeply involved with the church, Bendo becoming ordained a priest in 2013. In 2022, after much prayer and reflection, the couple decided it was time to return to the U.S. to continue their mission of faith.

Maine felt like a natural fit, Georgia said. Her family had long summered in Mount Vernon, and it was in Lewiston that they found a community ready to embrace them. When they arrived, they discovered there was an opening for a priest at the local Greek Orthodox church, a clear sign to them that this was where they were meant to be.

“This was our church when I was little, our summer church,” she said, adding that she grew up in North Carolina but boasts a long, 300-year family history in Maine. “So, every time Father (Anastasios) and I would come back as a couple, especially with a couple kids, we would be here at this church. (Parishioners) came to know him as a deacon, then as a priest, and then we started realizing that it was a good time for our family to move back to the United States. It seemed really logical coming back to our family here.”

Bendo said Lewiston’s diverse population has created a unique and supportive environment for the church.

“This church was opened by Greeks 100-something years ago and there’s just such a beautiful Greek culture,” he said. “But they’ve opened up to so many other people — we have Ethiopians, Ukrainians, Albanians, Romanians, Lebanese. There are just so many different cultures and backgrounds just within one church and it’s a really nice, good feeling.”

The couple said they are committed to their community, which was inviting from the beginning and supportive all along.

“Lewiston has created that sort of culture that you can feel welcome in any setting,” Georgia said.

“The people here in this parish — they’ve helped numerous people, including us, to feel at home,” her husband added, “(and) once you are here, you are part of the family.”