The Ecumenical Patriarchate is the
foremost ecclesiastical centre of the
Orthodox Church throughout the world,
tracing its history to the Day of
Pentecost and the early Christian
communities founded by the Apostles of
Jesus Christ. According to tradition,
the "First-Called" of these Apostles,
Andrew, preached the Gospel around Asia
Minor, the Black Sea, Thrace and Achaia,
where he was martyred. In 36 AD, he
founded the Church on the shores of the
Bosphorus in the city known then as
Byzantium, later Constantinople and
today Istanbul. St. Andrew is the Patron
Saint of the Ecumenical Patriarchate;
his Patronal Feast is celebrated on
November 30.
The title "Ecumenical Patriarch" dates
to the sixth century and historically
belongs to the Archbishop of
Constantinople. As Archbishop of
Constantinople-New Rome, Ecumenical
Patriarch Bartholomew occupies the First
Throne of the worldwide Orthodox
Christian Church, presiding in
historical honor and fraternal spirit as
"first among equals" of all Orthodox
Primates. These include the ancient
Patriarchates of Alexandria, Antioch and
Jerusalem, as well as the more recent
Patriarchates of Moscow, Serbia,
Romania, Bulgaria and Georgia. Beyond
these, the Ecumenical Patriarch has the
historical and theological
responsibility to initiate and
coordinate common activity among the
Orthodox Churches of Cyprus, Greece,
Poland, Albania, the Czech Lands and
Slovakia, Finland, Estonia, and
Ukraine, as well as various Archdioceses
and numerous Metropolitan dioceses
throughout the world, such as in Europe,
America and Australia. Moreover, he is
responsible for convening pan-Orthodox
councils or meetings, facilitating
inter-church and inter-faith dialogues,
while serving as the focal point and
primary spokesman for Orthodox Church
unity as a whole. Transcending national
and ethnic borders, the Ecumenical
Patriarch is spiritual leader to 300
million Orthodox Christians
worldwide.
Born Demetrios Arhondonis in 1940 on the
island of Imvros (today, Gökçeada, Turkey),
His All-Holiness Bartholomew was elected in
October 1991 as the 270th
Archbishop of the 2000-year-old Church
founded by the Apostle Andrew. His formal
office is Archbishop of Constantinople-New
Rome, and Ecumenical Patriarch, a historic
title dating to the sixth century.
A citizen of Turkey, the Ecumenical
Patriarch received his elementary and
secondary education in Imvros and Istanbul.
After completing undergraduate studies at
the historic Theological School of Halki, he
pursued graduate studies at the Pontifical
Oriental Institute of the Gregorian
University in Rome (Italy), the Ecumenical
Institute in Bossey (Switzerland), and the
University of Munich (Germany). His doctoral
dissertation, submitted to the University of
Athens (Greece) was in the field of Canon
Law, and he was a founding member of the
Society of Canon Law of the Oriental
Churches.
Ordained to the Diaconate in 1961 and to the
Priesthood in 1969, he served as Assistant
Dean at the Theological School of Halki
(1968–72) before his appointment as Personal
Secretary to the late Ecumenical Patriarch
Demetrios (1972–90) as well as election as
Metropolitan of Philadelphia (1973) and,
subsequently, Metropolitan of Chalcedon
(1990).
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew holds
numerous honorary doctorates, from
prestigious academic institutions throughout
the world, including the universities of
Athens and Thessaloniki, Patras and Ioannina
(in Greece), Georgetown and Yale (in the
USA), Flinders and Manila (in Australasia),
London and Edinburgh (in the United
Kingdom), Louvain and Moscow, as well as
Bologna and Bucharest (in Europe). He speaks
contemporary Greek, Turkish, Italian,
German, French and English; he is also
fluent in classical Greek and Latin.
* * *
The role of the Ecumenical Patriarch as the
primary spiritual leader of the Orthodox
Christian world and transnational figure of
global significance has increased
exponentially during the tenure of His
All-Holiness. He has exchanged numerous
invitations of Church and State dignitaries,
and addressed many national parliaments. He
has been invited to speak at the European
Parliament, the United Nations, UNESCO, and
the World Economic Forum.
The personal experience and theological
formation of the Ecumenical Patriarch
provide him with a unique perspective on
ecumenical relations, interfaith dialogue,
and environmental issues. He has worked
tirelessly for reconciliation among
Christian Churches and championed
reconciliation with the Roman Catholic
Church, the Anglican Communion, and other
confessions, through theological dialogues,
bilateral consultations, and personal
encounters to address issues of common
concern. He served on the Executive and
Central Committees and Faith and Order
Commission of the World Council of Churches,
delivering the keynote address for the
council’s 70th anniversary.
He has co-sponsored international peace
conferences, as well as meetings on the
subjects of racism and fundamentalism,
bringing together Christians, Muslims and
Jews for the purpose of advancing greater
cooperation and mutual understanding. He has
advanced Christian-Muslim relations in such
places as former Yugoslavia, advocating for
peace-building measures to diffuse global
conflict in the region, while supporting
many traditionally Orthodox countries
emerging from decades of wide scale
religious persecution and oppression behind
the Iron Curtain. Moreover, he has initiated
international meetings and theological
conversations with Muslim and Jewish leaders
in an effort to promote mutual respect and
religious tolerance on a global level,
proving a pioneer in interfaith encounters
and traveling to Muslim countries rarely
visited by Christian leaders.
Perhaps no other church leader has ever
brought environmental issues to the
forefront of his personal attention and
institutional action. He has organized
international, inter-faith and
inter-disciplinary symposia and summits to
address ecological problems of the world,
earning him the title “Green Patriarch” and
prestigious international awards. His
efforts to promote religious freedom and
human rights, his initiatives to advance
religious tolerance among the world’s
religions, together with his work toward
international peace and environmental
protection, have justly placed him at the
forefront of global visionaries as an
apostle of love, peace and reconciliation.
Finally, in 1992, His All-Holiness convened
a Synaxis (assembly) of Orthodox Primates,
the first ever in a series of six assemblies
to date, bringing together the world leaders
of the Orthodox Churches to deliberate on
matters of common concern. He also presided
over the historic restoration of the
Autocephalous Church of Albania and the
Autonomous Church of Estonia. Most recently,
after a vacuum of almost an entire
millennium, he convened the Holy and Great
Council of the Orthodox Church in Crete
(2016). In January 2019, he granted
autocephaly to the Church of Ukraine.
Within the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical
Throne, he was the first patriarch to summon
a meeting of all bishops throughout the
world, which have assembled regularly since
1992. He has presided over such historic
events as the 150th anniversary
of the Theological School of Halki, the
500th anniversary of the Greek Orthodox
Community in Venice, the 1000th
anniversary of Xenofontos Monastery on Mount
Athos, the 2000th anniversary
since the nativity of Christ in Jerusalem,
and the return of the holy relics of Saints
Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom
from the Vatican to the Phanar. In 2000, he
convened the first Clergy-Laity Congress and
the first World Youth Conference of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate.
* * *
In 1997, he was awarded the Gold Medal of
the United States Congress.
The Guardian recognized him as one
of the world’s leaders in raising
environmental awareness. And, in its
category of Leaders and revolutionaries,
Time Magazine named him as one of
the world’s most influential people.
His most famous catchphrases include:
•“War in the name of religion is war against
religion.”
•“For human beings to destroy God’s
creation, degrade the integrity of the
earth, and contaminate the planet’s waters,
land and air – all of these are sins.”
•“We have it in our power either to increase
the hurt inflicted on our world or to
contribute toward its healing. The choice is
ours.”
•“Human conflict may be inevitable in our
world; but war and violence are not. If our
age will be remembered, it may be for those
who dedicated themselves to the cause of
peace.”
•“Human rights belong to the essence of
religion, which inherently espouses and
promotes religious freedom and tolerance.”
Publications in English:
Encountering the Mystery: Understanding
Orthodox Christianity Today, New York: Image-Doubleday Books, 2008
In the World, Yet Not of the World:
Social and Global Initiatives, Fordham University Press, New York,
2009
Speaking the Truth in Love: Theological
and Spiritual Exhortations, Fordham University Press, New York,
2010
On Earth as in Heaven: Ecological Vision
and Initiatives, Fordham University Press, New York, 2012
Biography:
John Chryssavgis,
Bartholomew: Apostle and Visionary, Nashville, TN: Harper Collins, 2016
Feastday: 11 June