On Monday, February 27/ March 11, 2024, the Divine Liturgy was celebrated at the Horrendous Golgotha by the Elder Secretary-General, Archbishop Aristarchos of Constantina, with the Archimandrites, Stephen, Ieronymos, Makarios, Claudios, Christodoulos and Dionysios, Priest Athanasios, Archdeacon Mark and Hierodeacon Simeon. The chanting was delivered by Hierodeacon Dositheos and Priest Ioannis as the service was attended by monks, nuns and members of the Church of Jerusalem.

After the Divine Liturgy, the fortieth-day memorial service of the blessed Holy Sepulchre Archimandrite Theodoritos, Hegoumen of Katamon was presided over by His Beatitude our Father and Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos, with the participation of Metropolitan Isychios of Kapitolias, the Archbishops Aristarchos of Constantina and Isidoros of Hierapolis, Hieromonks and Hierodeacons of the Patriarchate, who prayed for the repose of his soul in the land of the living along with the holy and the righteous, where they enjoy the light of the three-sun divinity.

From Secretariat-General

On Sunday, February 26/March 10, 2024, the commemoration of the Holy Martyr Porphyrios, Bishop of Gaza, was celebrated by the Patriarchate in the Holy Monastery named after him in the currently afflicted city of Gaza.

On this feast, the whole Church, especially that of Jerusalem, remembers that Saint Porphyrios, originally from Thessalonica, came to the Holy Land and was ordained a Priest and then Bishop of Gaza. At the imperial command, he destroyed the last stronghold of the national idolatry in Gaza and consecrated a Holy Church along with the Christian presence in Gaza through the centuries.

In this Monastery, the Patriarchal Commissioner His Eminence Archbishop, Alexios of Tiberias, with the Hieromonk Sila, celebrated the Divine Liturgy for the feast, under the prayerful participation of approximately four hundred members of our flock. These are the asylum seekers who receive all the accommodation and hospitality and are saved by divine providence from the war, victims of which there were eighteen people; may the Lord rest their souls in the land of the living.

From Secretariat-General

Following the order of the Triodion, the Patriarchate dedicated Saturday, February 25/March 9, 2024, as a day of prayer for the repose of souls.

To this end, on Friday afternoon, in the Monastic and Patriarchal Church of Saints Constantine and Helen, the Canon for the departed was chanted and a memorial prayer was recited, led by His Beatitude, our Father and Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos with the prayer for the repose of the Holy Sepulchre Patriarchs of Jerusalem, High Priests, Priests, monks and nuns who have been sleeping in the Lord for centuries.

On the morning of the Saturday mentioned above, a Divine Liturgy was celebrated by the Priest Ioannis, with the concelebration of Fr George Baramki, under the care of the Managing Director of the Patriarchal School, Elder Dragoman Archimandrite Matthaios in the Cemetery of Holy Zion. At the end of the Liturgy, His Eminence Archbishop Aristarchos of Constantina held a memorial service and Trisagia for the departed Holy Sepulchre Fathers who are buried there, and the Priests Farah Bandour and George Baramki also held Trisagia for the departed members of our Orthodox flock.

From Secretariat-General

On Friday, February 10/23, 2024, the Patriarchate celebrated the feast of the Holy Hieromartyr Charalambos in the Holy Monastery, which is adjacent to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on the north and near the Gate through which the Lord passed to Golgotha, which is also known as the 8th Station of Via Dolorosa.

On this feast, the Church remembers that Saint Charalambos was a priest in Magnesia in Thessaly and martyred as a confessor of Christ during the reign of Severus and ruler of Magnesia Lucian in the year 198.

Saint Charalambos is venerated by the faithful as the saint who protects from the plague and other infectious diseases.

Saint Charalambos was honoured in the above-mentioned Monastery with Vespers on Thursday afternoon and the Divine Liturgy on Friday morning, presided over by His Eminence Archbishop Theophanes of Jerash, with Archimandrites Philoumenos and Amfilochios, the Presbyter Charalambos Bandur and HierodeacoDositheos. The chanting was delivered by Hierodeacon Simeon and the students of the Patriarchal School of Zion, in the presence of members of the Greek Consulate General in Jerusalem, nuns and monks and lay members of the Church.

Before the Holy Communion, His Eminence preached the Divine Word on the holiness, martyrdom and antiquity of the Holy Martyr Charalambos in the Orthodox Church, as well as his protection for the Orthodox believers.

During the Divine Liturgy, the Holy Monastery was visited by H.H.B. our Father and Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos with Holy Sepulchre Fathers for veneration.

The Patriarchal and Episcopal entourages and the people were offered a reception by the zealous guardian of the Monastery, Archimandrite Kallistos.

From Secretariat-General

On Friday, February 3rd/16th 2024, the Patriarchate celebrated the feast of the commemoration of Saint Simeon the God-receiver in his Holy Monastery in West Jerusalem near the Monastery of the Holy Cross.

On this holiday, the Church honours Saint Simeon the God-receiver, as he especially ministered in the mystery of the Meeting of Jesus in the Temple, when he recognized Him as the Saviour and exclaimed: “mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, And the glory of thy people Israel” and asked to depart from this world: ” now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word”, (Lk. 2, 29-32).

For this feast, His Beatitude our Father and Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos officiated the Divine Liturgy in the above Church, with concelebrants their Eminences, Metropolitan Kyriakos of Nazareth, the Archbishops Aristarchos of Constantina, and Methodios of Tabor, Holy Sepulchre Hieromonks,  with first in rank the Elder Dragoman Archimandrite Mattheos, the Archimandrites Claudius and Ieronymos, Vassian of the Russian Spiritual Mission to Jerusalem (MISSIA), Priest Simeon, Archdeacon Mark and Hierodeacons Eulogios, Dositheos and others. The chanting was delivered by Fr Hanna Awad-Antoniou, the Patriarchal School Students and Mr Fadi Abed Al Nour, in the presence of the Consul General of Greece in Jerusalem Mr Dimitrios Angelosopoulos and the prayerful participation of monks, nuns and members of the Greek Parish.

Before the Holy Communion His Beatitude delivered the following Sermon:

“Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel” (Luke 2,29-32), the Elder Simeon exclaimed.

Beloved Brethren in Christ,

Reverend Christians and pilgrims

The Holy Spirit, Who was with the righteous and pious Simeon has gathered us all today in this holy place where the Saint’s tomb lies, to honour his sacred commemoration in joy, and to celebrate the Meeting of the baby Jesus and our Lord and God and Saviour Christ in the Temple.

The Elder Simeon is distinguished among the rest of the holy prophets and people of the Holy Bible because he was deemed worthy to receive in his arms the “salvation of God”, namely Christ, that is why he says: ““Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel” (Luke 2,29-32).

Interpreting these words, among the established Fathers of the Church, Saint Cyril of Alexandria says: “It was prepared for Christ even before the beginning of the world, and it was revealed in the end of times”. Zigavinos says: “You (God) has provided the salvation before all, so that it may be visible to all”. Origen marks the wholistic nature of the salvation, saying: “This which they saw is the salvation not only for the Jews but for the whole world…before the face not only for one nation, not only for Israel but before the face of all the peoples”.

Indeed, “the salvation of God”, whom the righteous Simeon’s eyes saw, refers to the wholeness of the salvation of the human race. And this is so, because “the salvation of God” is no other than the mystery of the Divine Providence, namely the Incarnation of God the Word, as the God-bearing Church Fathers explain. “He called salvation the Incarnation of the Only Begotten Son”, Saint Theophylaktos says. “Salvation does the Bible call the Christ of God”, Saint Basil the Great says. And according to Saint Athanasios the Great, “salvation means the incarnate presence of God the Word”.

Moreover, the prophetic words of the pious Simeon, “A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel” (Luke 2,32) testify that the Incarnate God the Word, through the pure flesh of the Ever-Virgin and Theotokos Mary is the presence of the divine light in the world of ignorance and idolatry. That is why the psalmist proclaims: “In Thy light shall we see light” (Ps. 36,10). The Lord clearly says in His preaching, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8,12). “Christ is the light of the nations because He was bound to enlighten with His teaching the nations that lay in darkness”, Origen says. “He became light to those who were in darkness and deluded, and had fallen into the devil’s hand”, Saint Cyril of Alexandria says. “Being a light to light the Gentiles and those blinded by fallacies; he calls revelation the ability to see again clearly; to the glory and prosperity of Your people Israel. Glory to them was the sprouting from them according to the human nature. Indeed, His redeeming incarnation enlightened the nations with the knowledge of God and virtue, while it glorified the Jews because He became a native to them (PG 129,893A), Zigavinos says.

Moved by the Holy Spirit, the Elder Simeon told Mariam, the mother of Jesus, “Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against” (Luke 2,34). Interpreting this word, Saint Cyril of Alexandria says: “Emanuel is laid by God the Father a chief cornerstone, elect, precious (c.f. 1 Peter, 2,6). But those who believed in Him were not put to shame; whereas the unbelievers who did not manage to see this mystery in Christ, fell and were crushed. God the Father said again: “Behold, I lay in Sion a stumbling stone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed” (Romans 9,33, PG 72,505B).

Indeed, my dear brethren, since Christ, the Son and Word of God the Father came into the history of man, He became the reason for the fall and the rise of many; fall to those who did not believe in Him, and rise for those who accepted and believed in Him. That is why up to this day Christ remains “a sign which shall be spoken against” (Luke 2,34). That is what Saint Paul also means when he says, “Notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is preached” (Phil. 1,18). According to Saint John the Evangelist, this precisely “is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil” (John 3,19).

To our question, what is that which prevents people from seeing the light of truth, namely Christ? The answer is, two things; on the one hand, it is the free will of man, and on the other, man’s evil deeds. For this the God-inspired Apostle Peter says: “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness” (1 Peter 2,24). This means that no one can rely on Christ as the Saviour unless he has abandoned sin and lives with “righteousness”.

The way to be free from sin is our encounter with Christ according to the righteous Simeon’s example, who “received Christ in his arms” (c.f. Luke 2,28). Our Holy Church calls us to this cause through the hymnographer’s voice: “Come let us as well, with songs inspired by God, go together to meet Christ and let us receive Him Whose salvation Simeon hath now beheld” (Vespers, Sticharon 3). “Let us pay heed so that the Lord will not find us asleep”, Athanasios the Great says.

Our meeting, my dear brethren, with our Saviour Christ is always feasible within the Church, through prayer and the cultivation of the virtues of humility and repentance, especially through participation in the sacrament of the Eucharist, where the one who has a clear heart is vivified and deified on the one hand, and sees through the eyes of the soul the salvation of God, that is, Christ, on the other. Amen. Many peaceful returns!”

Before the Dismissal, His Beatitude blessed the boiled wheat and held a Trisagion on the completion of nine days since the departure of the blessed Hegoumen Archimandrite Theodoritos, who served for forty-five years with devotion to the Holy Monastery and this Greek Community.

After the Divine Liturgy, Hierodeacon Simeon and nun Maria, who devotedly served the departed father Theodoritos for many years, hosted a reception for the Patriarchal Entourage and the congregation.

From Secretariat-General

On Thursday, the 2nd/15th of February 2024, the Patriarchate celebrated the Despotic feast of the Meeting of the Lord in the Temple:

1. In the Patriarchal and Monastic Church of the patrons of the Patriarchate Saints Constantine and Helen, presided over by H.H.B. our Father and Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos with the attendance of the High Priests and Priests of the Brotherhood.
2. At the Holy Monastery of Panagia Sayda Naya, near the Patriarchate in the Christian quarter.

On this feast, the Church remembers that our Lord, the Creator and Giver of the Law on Mount Sinai to the Prophet Moses, observed this Law, being brought as an infant in the arms of His parents to the Temple of Solomon, when Simeon the righteous received Him in his arms, thus becoming “God-receiver” and recognized Him as the Christ, saying: ” Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel” (Luke 2, 29-32) thus confessing the incarnation of Christ.

On this occasion, Vespers was held in the evening and the Divine Liturgy in the morning in the above-mentioned Monastery, presided over by the Elder Secretary-General, His Eminence Archbishop Aristarchos of Constantina, with concelebrants the Archimandrites; Ieronymos and Makarios, the Presbyters Fr. Farah Badur and Father Nikolaos Kulinsky, Hierodeacons Eulogios and Dositheos. The chanting was delivered by the Secretary of the Holy Synod, Hierodeacon Simeon and the Patriarchal School Students in Greek and by Mr Rimon Kamar and his assistants from Saint James Cathedral. The service was attended by monks, nuns, pilgrims and members of the parish of Saint James the Brother of God, in the presence of the Greek Consul Mrs Anna Madika and other members of the Greek Consulate General and the wife of the US Consul in Jerusalem.

Before the Holy Communion, His Eminence preached the divine word about the ecclesiological and theological interpretation and significance of this feast (see video).

During the Divine Liturgy, His Beatitude visited the Monastery for veneration with the Holy Sepulchre Fathers.

The Patriarchal and Episcopal Entourages and the congregation were offered a rich reception by the Abbess, nun Seraphima, who has renovated the Holy Monastery and maintains it as a functional Spiritual Centre.

From Secretariat-General

On Monday, January 30/February 12, 2024, the Patriarchate celebrated the feast of the Three Hierarchs, Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, and John Chrysostom.

On this feast, the Church honours the Three Hierarchs as teachers of the faith, defenders of the decision of the First Ecumenical Council on the one essence of the Son with the Father and the teaching of the Divinity of the Holy Spirit, and the Virginity of the Mother of God. The three Saints were authors of a multitude of theological writings explaining the Holy Bible, and great teachers, “the three greatest luminaries of the Three-sun God”, as their apolytikion says, who drew the boundaries between Christian teaching and ancient Greek philosophy, mainly through the writing of Saint Basil to the young, “ὅπως ἄν ἐξ ἑλληνικῶν ὀφελοῖντο λόγων “.

This common feast was established in the 11th century by the Church under Metropolitan John to resolve a dispute between the faithful Vasiliites, Gregorites, and Johnites about which of the three Hierarchs is greatest.

In their honour, a Divine Liturgy was held in the Holy Trinity Church of the Patriarchal School of Zion in the morning by the Chairman of the School Board and Elder Sacristan, His Eminence Archbishop Isidoros of Hierapolis, with the co-celebration of the Archimandrites Claudius, Amfilochios, Fr Nektarios, Archdeacon Mark and Hierodeacon Dositheos. The chanting was delivered by Hierodeacon Simeon and the students, as the service was attended by the School teachers, the parents of the students, nuns and believers from Jerusalem, in the presence of the Greek Consul Mrs Anna Mantika.

After the Divine Liturgy, the Elder Dragoman and Managing Director of the School, Archimandrite Mattheos hosted a rich reception for the Episcopal entourage and the congregation in the School’s event hall.

From Secretariat-General

On the occasion of the feast of the three Hierarchs, Vespers was held in the evening and the Divine Liturgy on the day of the feast, on Monday, January 30/February 12, 2024, in the Holy Church of Saint Basil in the Old City of Jerusalem, where a part the relics of Saint Basil the Great is kept. The services were led by Archimandrite Filomenos, under the chanting of Fr Ioannis and Hierodeacon Alexander with the attendance of faithful of Jerusalem, monks, and nuns, under the care and hospitality of the Elder Hegoumen Kamarasis Archimandrite Nektarios.

From Secretariat-General

Kufr Sumei, Western Galilee

The Holy Land

February 10, 2024

His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III, Patriarch of the Holy City of Jerusalem, presided over a divine liturgy at the newly inaugurated Church of Saints Constantine and Helena in the village of Kufr Sumei, on Saturday morning, February 10th.

His Beatitude was accompanied by His Eminence Metropolitan Kyriakos of Nazareth, and His Eminence Archbishop Aristarchos of Constantina as they were warmly welcomed by the local community of the village, including a large number of sheikhs of the well-known tribe. Head of the Kufr Sumei local council, Mr. Yasser Ghadhban and members of the council welcomed the Patriarchal envoy along with the heads and members of the local pastoral councils of the Diocese of Akko. The Greek Consul in Haifa, Mr. Kostas Zenovius, and His Excellency the Consul of the Russian Federation, Mr. Dr. Amin Safiya, were among the attendees of the liturgy with a large gathering of local Christians from the cities and villages of Galilee.

Following the Divine Liturgy, His Beatitude gave a speech highlighting the necessity of preserving the cohesion between brothers of the same family, that is the church, the warm and safe home that brings together believers and unites them on the rock of love and harmony, stressing the preservation of the good social fabric in the village of Kufr Sumei.

Later at the church hall, The patriarchal representative in the city of Acre, Archimandrite Silwanos Hanouneh, opened his speech by welcoming His Beatitude and Their Eminences to the village of Kufr Sumei, congratulating the parish and expressing his satisfaction with this reconciliation that took place today after many decades. He then presented the head of the local council of Kufr Sumei, who delivered a moving speech expressing his joy at this event, singing the words of Jesus Christ about love and unity, “That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.” (John 17:21). 

Then Mr. Bassam Nasser also welcomed, with ultimate joy, the honorable delegation and the attendance, congratulating the parish on this achievement that they had long awaited, thanking everyone who sought and worked to make this day happen. Later, Mr. Youssef Nasser, continued, citing the words of Jesus Christ about harmony and unity, which brought together the joyful celebration with the blessing of His Beatitude and the tireless efforts he made to reach this blessed moment. Mr. Youssef Nasser and his sons played a major role in supervising the construction of the church.

Soon after the speeches, everyone was invited to a meal offered by the parish in honor of His Beatitude and the accompanying delegation. Warmth and joy filled the room, depicting thus the true symbol of the good parishioners who followed the words of the Lord, praise be to Him: “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First, go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.” (Matthew 5:23).

His Beatitude’s Sermon before the Holy Communion follows below:

“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” (Psalm 133,1), the psalmist proclaims.

Beloved Brethren in Christ,

Reverend Christians,

The grace and peace of God has gathered us all in your beautiful town of Kufr Smea to celebrate the Holy Eucharist and thus declare in the common Chalice of the sacred body and blood of our Saviour Christ our ecclesiastical communion and unity.

We do this according to the fatherly advice of Saint Paul to the Ephesians: “I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling” (Eph. 4,1-4).

Stressing the idea of unity, Saint Paul says that God the Father “gave him [Christ] to be the head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all” (Eph. 1,22-23). “Ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular” (1 Cor. 12,27), “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit” (1 Cor. 12,13) he writes to the Corinthians.

Moreover, realizing the danger and the unexpected malice of division, the wise Paul urges the Corinthians again in fervent love: “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment” (1 Cor. 1,10).

Indeed, my brethren, the schisms and the hatred tear apart the Church in various places, which is our Christian community, resulting in competing groups that contradict the fact that the Church is the body of Christ. Moreover, the schisms and the divisions oppose the mission of the Church in the world. And the mission of the Church is no other than the witness of Christ’s love. According to Saint John the Evangelist, the quarrels and divisions tarnish the testimony of the Church for Christ, since Christians are recognized as disciples of Christ by their mutual love. “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples if ye have love one to another” (John 13,35).

According to Saint Paul, the division is the body of Christ, the Church, reveals the works of the flesh, which feed sin (c.f. Gal. 5,19). On the contrary, the unity in Christ of those who believe in Him is the fruit of the Holy Spirit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law” (Gal. 5,22-23).

“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” (Psalm 133,1), the psalmist says. Yes, my dear brothers and sisters, the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church in general, and the Church of Jerusalem in particular are the dwelling place of God. “Rejoice, Holy Zion, Mother of the Churches, dwelling place of God”, Saint John of Damascus proclaims.

And the Church is the dwelling place of God because the “great mystery of reverence” was given to it. Moreover, in the Church and through the Church we receive “the fruit of the Holy Spirit” (Gal. 5,22). For this, the blessed Paul says in his letter to Timothy: “These things write I unto thee, hoping to come unto thee shortly: But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Tim. 3,14-15). And in detail, I write these to you to let you know how one should live and behave in the house and family of God, that is, the Church of God, Who is a living God. And the Church is another pillar and strong foundation, which upholds the truth.

This “house of God” is also the Rum Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and dwellers in it are the pious members of its Christian flock, who live in the Holy Land.

In other words, the Patriarchate has proven to be the feeding mother, who, as the Scripture says, found its people in a desert land, and in the waste-howling wilderness; it led them about, instructed them, it kept them as the apple of its eye (c.f. Deuteronomy 32,10). And the chief and finisher of our faith is Jesus Christ (c.f. Hebrews 12,2), Who says, “And him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6,37).  

For this reason, we have been gathered and called upon today, all of us, in your respected community, my dear brothers and sisters, to declare Christ’s love to one another, and the unity of “a good profession before many witnesses” (1 Tim. 6,12), namely, the unity of faith and the communion of the Holy Spirit.

The God-inspired advice of Saint Paul also calls us to the same cause: “But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him” (Col. 3,8-10). In other words, the ultimate goal of the one who puts on the new renewed man is to progress in the perfect knowledge of God, Who is the redeeming truth. “To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth” (John 18,37), “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8,32), the Lord says.

How, therefore, my brethren, can we be free, when we carry in our hearts only hatred and malice against our fellow citizens, especially against our brothers and sisters in Christ? For this reason, Christ urges us: “And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses” (Mark 11,25).

Indeed, today’s liturgical gathering of clergy and laity and the members of this community is a sacred work of action. Because, as Saint Paul preaches, “For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God, and approved of men. Let us, therefore, follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another” (Romans 14,18-19).

In conclusion, we would like to thank those who strove in zeal for the construction of this marvellous Church, Mr Yusef Nasser and his sons, and all those who contributed to its beautification, either morally or materially. Amen. Many peaceful returns!”

His Beatitude’s address at the meal follows below:

“Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (James 1,22), Saint James the Brother of God asks.

Reverend Holy Fathers and brothers in Christ,

Respected members of our community in Kufr Smea

We rend glory and thanksgiving to the Holy Triune God on this blessed gathering of clergy and people today in your multi-cultural town.

The purpose of the Holy Eucharistic gathering which we celebrated in the Holy and bloodless Altar, has been and is still the application of the Lord’s words: “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another” (John 13,34). And, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14,27).

The lack and absence of love and peace in God and in the world are the main reasons for divisions, quarrels (Gal. 5,20) and wars (James, 4,1).

The mission of the Church in the world, which is the body of Christ, is no other than the evangelism of Christ’s commandments about love and peace, which [commandments] are the prerequisites of unity in the Holy Spirit. “There is nothing that angers God more than the division of the Church. A holy man said: not even a martyr’s blood can erase such a sin”, Saint Chrysostom says.

While we participate in the great sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, we participate in Christ’s Resurrection, therefore, we are called to declare this joyful event along with the hymnographer, proclaiming: “It is the day of Resurrection; let us be radiant for the festival, and let us embrace one another. Let us say, O brethren, even to those that hate us: Let us forgive all things on the Resurrection; and thus let us cry: Christ is risen from the dead, by death hath He trampled down death, and on those in the graves hath He bestowed life” (Pentecostarion, Sunday of Pascha, Stichera, Glory). Amen. Many peaceful returns!”

​

At 10.30 p.m. on the night of Wednesday, January 25th/February 7th, 2024, the Hegoumen of the Holy Monastery of Saint Simeon in Katamon, Archimandrite Theodoritos, slept in the Lord.

His Funeral Service was held at 10.30 am. on Thursday, January 26th/ February 8th 2024 in the chapel of Saint Thecla inside the Central Monastery, presided over by our Father and Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos, with the participation of the Holy Sepulchre High Priests and other Holy Sepulchre Fathers, at the honorary presence of the Consul General of Greece in Jerusalem, Mr Dimitrios Angelosopoulos, and at the joint prayer of monastics and laity of the Greek parish of Jerusalem.

The Obituary was delivered by the Elder Chief Secretary His Eminence Archbishop Aristarchos of Constantina, in which the details of his life and activity as a Holy Sepulchre Father and Hegoumen of the Monastery of Saint Simeon Katamon are mentioned as follows:

“Your Beatitude Father and Master,

Reverend Archbishops,

Consul General of Greece,

Dear Fathers,

Beloved brethren in Christ,

We stand in tears before the tomb of our beloved brother Hieromonk Theodoritos, as our Lord stands before the tomb of his four-day friend Lazarus. We mourn the separation, like Christ’s disciples after His glorious Ascension. We humanly reflect that death is a great and terrible mystery. We wonder how the most harmonious symbiosis of soul and body is broken, how the soul is forcibly separated from the body, how man, through disobedience and the fall, brought death upon himself and heard from his Creator and Maker: “For dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return”(Gen. 3, 19).

To these questions of human concern, the person, the teaching and the work of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ comes as an answer. The fact that God condescended to our race, had mercy on us and in Christ, His Only Begotten Son became like us humans. He assumed in the Incarnation our human nature and flesh and through the Cross and the Resurrection He raised us from Hell and granted us eternal life and rest in the heavens with Him.

This truth was revealed to the holy disciples and apostles of Christ. These became eye-and-ear witnesses not only of Christ’s teaching but also of His God-human person. They saw and recognized Him in His earthly life and witnessed His healing and redemptive action, but also is Resurrection “in another form” (Mark 16:12). The faith in this redeeming truth is comfort and power against the fear of death, especially of death by martyrdom. The Incarnation, the Crucifixion and the Resurrection of Christ compose, hold and sustain the whole body of the Church.

Our beloved, elderly and respected late brother Archimandrite Theodoritos also embraced this faith, as he was ordained as a monk at a young age in the holy Trooditissa Monastery of the Church of Cyprus. From there he came to the Israeli hospital in Hadassah for treatment of the precarious health of his eyes. Following the exhortation of his Spiritual Father, Hieromonk Pagratios, whom he greatly respected, he sought and joined our Holy Sepulchre Brotherhood shortly after 1967. He served in various ministries with zeal and devotion, overcoming the difficulty of his health. He was responsible for the students in the Patriarchal School, a ministering Priest in the Holy Monastery of the Megali Panagia for years, and a member of the Holy and Sacred Synod, as appointed by His Beatitude our Father and Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos.

Mainly, he was the Hegoumen of the Holy Monastery of Saint Simeon the God-receiver in Katamon continuously and uninterruptedly since 1979. He preserved this Monastery and its Church as the functional centre of the Greek Community of Jerusalem in Katamon, as it had always been as a Pilgrimage centre for the adults from the Orthodox countries of pilgrimage. He also protected it from outsiders, because of its historical position.

Conscientiously appreciating the donations of the pilgrims, and not failing to be charitable to the poor, he renovated its temple and enriched its iconography. Many external repairs were carried out for its maintenance and beautification. Thanks to his perseverance and energy, the Patriarchate achieved the impossible, the acquisition of what was said to be a piece of the relic of Saint Simeon the God-receiver from the Roman Catholic Church of Croatia in 2010, kept as a treasure of the Monastery; the return of the Saint’s relic is celebrated annually on the 25^th September.

For these good works of his life, for his honest and virtuous monastic and priestly ethos and for his tireless patience and determination during the many years of testing due to poor health and for his care for the weekly Divine Liturgy in the Monastery and Holy Communion while bedridden, we beseech our philanthropic God, to forgive him because as a man he has sinned voluntarily or involuntarily; to rank his soul in the land of the living with the holy and the righteous in the enjoyment and rejoicing of the unwaning light of His glory; to give him the crown of righteousness, “which He shall give to all those who love Him”.

May his memory be everlasting!”

The funeral procession to Holy Zion was led by their Eminences the Archbishops, Aristarchos of Constantina and Aristovoulos of Madaba, where he was buried in the Cemetery of the Fathers.

May his memory be everlasting!

From Secretariat-General