THE BLESSED PROFESSOR OF THE THEOLOGICAL SCHOOL OF THE NATIONAL KAPODISTRIAN UNIVERSITY OF ATHENS, GEORGIOS GALITIS HAS SLEPT IN THE LORD

On Thursday, 15/28 July 2022, the elderly Professor Georgios Galitis slept in the Lord. The blessed Professor specialised in the New Testament and taught ecclesiastical education at the Theological School of the Kapodistrian University of Athens.

On Saturday, 17/30 July 2022, his funeral service was held at the Holy Church of the Dormition in Anthousa of Attiki, led by the representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, His Eminence Metropolitan Theodoritos of Laodikeia, with the co-prayer of Metropolitan Nikolaos of Mesogaia and Lavreotiki, their Eminences the Metropolitans; Chrysostom of Messinia and Chrysostom of Mani, at the presence of the departed’s daughters, Giouli, Peli and Lydia, his sons in law, Mr Paraskevopoulos, Mr Kyrvasilis and Mr Karakolis, his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, the representative of the Archdiocese of Athens, His Grace Bishop Philotheos of Oreon and the Professors of the Theological School of the University of Athens.

The obituary was delivered by the representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, His Eminence Metropolitan Theodoritos of Laodikeia.

The departed to the Lord, dearest friend and respected Professor, had been a collaborator and supporter of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem for a decade, an advisor in multiple Theological and Ecclesiastical issues and a representative in Inter-Orthodox and Inter-Christian Conferences, as per the detailed address below, of H.H.B. our Father and Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos, which was read by the representative of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Exarch of the Holy Sepulchre in Athens Archimandrite Raphael:

“Your Eminences, Holy High Priests,

In great sadness, we were informed about the blessed Professor of Higher Education Theology, pilgrim Georgios Galitis’ departure to the Lord.

We have had close ecclesiastical cooperation with the departed for many years. We held meetings since his teaching as a Professor at the Aristoteleion University of Thessaloniki and later at the Kapodistrian University of Athens whenever he attended the Church services at the Dependency of the Holy Sepulchre in Athens.

We are witnesses of the fact that the blessed Professor Georgios Galitis was governed by a deep faith in the Incarnate, Crucified and Resurrected Lord and by devotion to His Teaching in the Gospel and His Body, the Church. Having this faith as a compass, he became a genuine and tireless teacher of Orthodox Theology science. He presented this in interpretation in his multiple distinguished Theological writings and also presented it in Inter-Orthodox and Inter-Christian Conferences, as for many years, he was the representative of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem in the dialogue between the Orthodox and the Roman Catholic Churches and in meetings of the Orthodox Churches for the preparation of the Holy and Great Synod of the Orthodox Church in Crete.

He zealously fought for the unity of the Orthodox Churches through his writings in the edited by him magazine “Anaplasis” and worked with a great interest for the reopening of the Theological School of the Cross in Jerusalem.

God blessed him with longevity, pious children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren and fortified him with patience and endurance during his illness.

The Patriarchate of Jerusalem gratefully keeps the memory of the cooperation with him alive, and offers its deep condolences to his most pious wife, daughters, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and the other relatives, and prays from the Horrendous Golgotha so that the One Who has authority over the living and the dead, the Immortal King and Righteous Judge, our Lord God Jesus Christ, may give him rest in the land of the living, along with the righteous, and “lay up for him a crown of righteousness” (2 Tim. 4:8) and may comfort with His strengthening comfort all those who honour his memory by their presence in this funeral service.

Everlasting his remembrance!”

From Secretariat-General