Eminence Archbishop attends for the Feast Day of Saint Eleftherios Church in NYC
New York, N.Y., (December 14, 2021) — His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America
Homily at the Vespers of the Feast of Saint Eleftherios the Hieromartyr
Greek Orthodox Church in New York. In October 2019, H.E. Archbishop Elpidophoros appointed Rev. Nicholas Kazarian Ecumenical Officer of the Greek Archdiocese of America beginning his new pastoral ministry at St. Eleftherios Church.
The Church of Saint Eleftherios was established by a group of determined Greek Orthodox Christians. The first official service took place on Holy Thursday night the 2nd of May, 1918. The Community from that day on had a rapid growth. One newspaper had written at that time, ‘The secret success of this Greek Community can be found in that they maintain the unity of all its members. They are dedicated to their high ideals of love and harmony”.
Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros (Lambriniadis) of America, Most Honorable Exarch of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, is the eighth Archbishop of America elected since the establishment of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese in 1922.
Archbishop Elpidophoros was born in 1967 in Bakirköy, Istanbul. He studied at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki School of Pastoral and Social Theology, from which he graduated in 1991. In 1993, he finished his postgraduate studies at the Philosophical School of the University of Bonn, Germany, submitting a dissertation entitled, “The Brothers Nicholas and John Mesarites: Defenders of Orthodoxy in the Union Negotiations from 1204 to 1214 (in the historical and theological framework of the era).” He was ordained a Deacon in 1994 at the Patriarchal Cathedral and was thereafter appointed as the Codecographer of the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
In 1995, he was appointed Deputy Secretary of the Holy and Sacred Synod. From 1996-1997 he studied at the Theological School of St. John the Damascene in Balamand, Lebanon, where he improved his knowledge of the Arabic language. In 2001, he presented his doctoral dissertation at the Theological School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki under the title, “The Opposing Stance of Severus of Antioch at the Council of Chalcedon,” earning him a Doctorate of Theology with highest distinction. In 2004, he was invited to Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, MA, where he taught as a visiting professor for one semester.
Saint Eleftherios — lived in the Roman Empire during a time in which paganism was the prominent religion. Saint Eleftherios was brought up Christian by his mother, and from a young age, he was very involved in the church. He became a priest at the age of 18, and a bishop when he was only 20 years old. Saint Eleftherios was a very intelligent bishop, he was a renowned scholar of the church and a great orator. As a result of this, Emperor Hadrian ordered a centurion, Felix, to find and capture him. Felix succeeded in finding Saint Eleftherios and his hidden church, walking in on him giving a sermon.
Felix was captivated by the oratory of the brilliant Eleftherios. He felt bad about bringing treachery to the church and offered Eleftherios an escape. Eleftherios declined and forgave the man who brought him to the Emperor to undergo trial. He was put in prison, tortured and killed.
Saint Eleftherios is the protector of the expectant mothers and childbirth. His feast day is celebrated on December 15.
Saint Eleftherios is the protector of the expectant mothers and childbirth. His feast day is celebrated on December 15.
On May 11, 2019, he was elected Archbishop of America by the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and was enthroned at the Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in New York City on June 22 of the same year.
