Patriarchs of the Various Orthodox Churches

 Patriarch of Constantinople       Patriarch of Alexandria/Africa       Patriarch Of Antioch

Pope of Alexandria                   Patriarch of Ethiopia                         Catholicos of Armenia

Catholicose of the East


His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew

          Patriarch of Constantinople and 270th Succesor to the Apostolic Throne of St.Andrew
   [Top] His All Holiness, BARTHOLOMEW, Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch is the 270th successor of the 2,000 year-old local Christian Church founded by St. Andrew. As a citizen of Turkey, Patriarch Bartholomew´s personal experience provides him a unique perspective on the continuing dialogue among the Christian, Islamic and Jewish worlds. He works to advance reconciliation among Catholic, Muslim and Orthodox communities, such as in former Yugoslavia, and is supportive of peace building measures to diffuse global conflict in the region.
As Archbishop of Constantinople and New Rome, Patriarch Bartholomew occupies the First Throne of the Orthodox Christian Church and presides in a fraternal spirit among all the Orthodox Primates. The Ecumenical Patriarch has the historical and theological responsibility to initiate and coordinate actions among the Churches of Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, Russia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Georgia, Cyprus, Greece, Poland, Albania, The Czech Land and Slovakia, Finland, Estonia, and numerous archdioceses in the old and new worlds. This includes the convening of councils or meetings, facilitating inter-church and inter-faith dialogues and serving as the primary expresser of Church unity as a whole. As Ecumenical Patriarch he transcends every national and ethnic group on a global level and today is the spiritual leader of approximately 250 million faithful world-wide.
The Greek Orthodox Church of America was founded as an Archdiocese of the Ecumenical Throne in 1922. As such, the Archdiocese of America is an eparchy of the Ecumenical Patriarch. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese is blessed to have as its Primate ad Patriarchal, His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios, who was elected Archbishop in 1999 by the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
In his person, Patriarch Bartholomew represents the memory of the life and sacrifice of the martyred Orthodox Church of the 20th Century. After ascending the Ecumenical Throne in 1991, he journeyed throughout the Orthodox and non-Orthodox world bringing a message of restoration and renewed hope. He has presided over the restoration of the Autocephalous Church of Albania and Autonomous Church of Estonia, and as been a constant source of spiritual and moral support to those traditionally Orthodox countries emerging from decades of wide scale religious persecution behind the Iron Curtain. The Patriarch is a living witness to the world of Orthodoxy´s painful and redemptive struggle for religious freedom and to the innate dignity of humankind.
Patriarch Bartholomew strives earnestly to prepare the Orthodox Church for its continuing role as a mediator between East and West. In his capacity as Ecumenical Patriarch, he has three times convened the leaders of the self-governing Orthodox Churches around the globe, challenging them to vigorously pursue solutions to the challenges of the new millennium, for example, by categorically condemning nationalism and fanaticism. Together with His All Holiness Pope John Paul II, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew has supported progress toward the reconciliation of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christian Churches.
Patriarch Bartholomew´s roles as the primary spiritual leader of the Orthodox Christian world and a transnational figure of global significance continue to become more vital each day. He co-sponsored the Peace and Tolerance Conference in Istanbul (1994) bringing together Christians, Muslims and Jews. Most noted are his efforts in environmental awareness, which have earned him the title "Green Patriarch." He has organized environmental seminars in co-sponsorship with His Royal Highness Prince Philip, and international environmental symposia on Patmos (1995) and around the Black Sea (1997). Since 1999 three other Religion, Science and the Environment International Symposia took place under the joint auspices of His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and His Excellency Mr. Romano Prodi, President of the European Commission: Symposium III, which sailed down the Damude River; Symposium IV: "The Adriatic Sea: A Sea at Risk, a Unity of Purpose" (June 2002) and Symposium V: "The Baltic Sea: A Common Heritage, A Shared Responsibility" (June 2003). These endeavours, together with his inspiring efforts on behalf of religious freedom and human rights, rank Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew among the world´s foremost apostles of love, peace and reconciliation for humanity, a reason for which he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by the U.S. Congress



His Holiness Theodoros II

                                            Patriarch of Alexandria and all Africa
   [Top] His Holiness Theodoros II, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa (born Nicholas Choreftakis) was born in Crete in 1954, where he completed his schooling. He is a graduate of the Rizarios Ecclesiastical School in Athens and holds a degree from the Theological Faculty of the Aristotelian University of Thessalonica. He also studied History of Art, Literature and Philosophy in Odessa. From 1975-1985 he served as Archdeacon and Chancellor of the Holy Metropolis of Lambis and Sfakion in Crete, where he developed significant Preaching and Philanthropic activities (hostels for needy youth, etc). From 1985-1990 he served as Patriarchal Exarch in Russia, based in Odessa during the tenure of Patriarchs Nicholas VI and Parthenios.
He established the Institution of Hellenic Culture and the Philiki Eterea Museum with 600 children, where they were taught a thorough knowledge of Greek. In 1990 he was ordained Bishop with the title of the formerly distinguished Diocese of Kyrene and was appointed as Representative of Patriarch Parthenios in Athens (1990-1997). He always accompanied Patriarch Parthenios on his travels throughout Africa and to many international, interfaith and Theological conferences. In 1997 he was appointed Patriarchal Vicar of Alexandria by Patriarch Petros VII of blessed Memory, in order to assist him at the outset of his Patriarchate and after 10 months he was elected as Metropolitan of Cameroon. He greatly developed Missionary activity there. He built churches, schools and hospitals, helping many Africans and Hellenes. In 2002 he was transferred to the Holy Metropolis of Zimbabwe, where he established 4 Missionary centres in Harare, a Hellenic Cultural Centre for 400 delegates, 2 large Missionary centres in Malawi, with a hospital, technical schools and nursery schools. Aided by the Greek Parliament he renovated the Hellenic Square (School-Church-Vicarage) in Beira, Mozambique. He founded churches and contributed to the establishment of the Hellenic Communities of Botswana and Angola.
On 9th October 2004 he was unanimously elected by the Synod of the Alexandrian Throne as Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa. The enthronement ceremony took place at the Cathedral of Annunciation in Alexandria, on Sunday October 24, 2004 in the presence of distinguished ecclesiastical & civilian representatives and great number of faithful. His general Missionary activity, as well as his affable character, are the reason behind the love felt towards him by all Africans, as well as by the communities of the Hellenes and Arabs of Egypt and All Africa.


His Holiness Moran Mor Ignatios Zakka I Iwas

       Patriarch of Antioch and 122nd Succesor to the Apostolic Throne of St.Peter
   [Top]     His Holiness Moran Mor Ignatios Zakka I Iwas was born in 1932 in Mosul, Iraq. He completed his high school education at St. Thomas Syrian Orthodox School and entered the Mor Aphrem theological school at Mosul in 1946 where he completed his education in 1954. He was ordained priest and became a monk in 1947. Later he completed a Masters degree in English at City University of New York and a Master´s degree in Pastoral Theology at General Theological Seminary, New York. He was ordained Metropolitan Mor Severius Zakka by Patriarch Ya`qub III in 1963. In 1964, Mor Severious discovered the remains of St. Thomas in the sanctuary wall of the church at Mosul. In 1969, Mor Severious became the Metropolitan of Baghdad, where he also served as the Head of Syriac Studies and a member of the educational academy. Mor Severius also served as a member of the World Council of Churches. On September 14, 1980, Mor Severius was consecrated the Patriarch of Antioch by name Ignatius Zakka I, in a rite officiated by Catholicos of the East, Mor Baselius Paulos II along with the archbishops of the Holy Synod.


His Holiness Pope Shenouda III

          117th Pope of Alexandria and Succesor to the Apostolic Throne of St.Mark
   [Top]His Holiness was born Nazeer Gayed on August 3, 1923, to a pious Christian family in Egypt. By the age of 16, H. H. was active in the Sunday School movement, which wrought to enrich Christian Education in the Coptic Orthodox Church.
When H. H. graduated from Cairo University, he joined the Coptic Orthodox Seminary, and upon graduation, joined the faculty of the seminary.
On July 18, 1954, H. H. chose the solitude of the Egyptian desert and the angelic life of monasticism over everything else, taking the example of St. Anthony the Great. As a monk, and later a monk priest, H. H. carried the name of the Christian monk and was known as Fr. Antonious El-Syriani.
Wishing to live in complete solitude and devotion to our Lord, he became a hermit and lived in a cave that he had carved out himself for a period of six years. On September 30, 1962, he was called by the late Pope Cyril VI to be consecrated Bishop of Christian Education and President of the Coptic Orthodox Theological Seminary. He was known as His Grace Bishop Shenouda. Through his leadership of the seminary, the number of students tripled.
On November 14, 1971, His Grace Bishop Shenouda was consecrated as His Holiness Pope Shenouda III, the 117th Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark.
Since that blessed day, the Coptic Orthodox Church has witnessed a remarkable revival through the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the pastoral care of H. H. Pope Shenouda III. H. H. conducts a weekly meeting, which is attended by over seven thousand of the faithful at the Cathedral of St. Mark in Cairo.
H. H has been the editor-in-chief of El-Keraza Magazine, the official publication of the Coptic Orthodox Church, since 1962. He became the first patriarch of Alexandria since the Fifth Century to have been Dean of the Theological Seminary and continues to lecture at the branches of the Seminary in Cairo, Alexandria, and abroad and the Higher Institute of Coptic Studies. He also established other branches of the Seminary in Egypt as well as in America, Australia, and the United Kingdom.
His Holiness is the author of 101 books on a variety of subjects, over half of which have been translated into English, French, German, Italian, and other languages.
He has ordained more than eighty Metropolitans and Bishops and over 600 priests since 1971. He gives special attention to the youth of the church. H. H. has said many times, “A church without youth is a church without a future.” And one of our youth once replied to H. H., “And youth without the church are youth without a future.”
H. H. also gives special attention to the service of women in the Coptic Orthodox Church. H. H. said, and I quote, “We felt a great need of the work of women and we wanted women to have a certain order and service in the church, not only to have girls as Sunday School teacher who give a part of their time whenever they can, but we want girls and women to give their whole life to God and serve the Church.”
Despite his many responsibilities, H. H. usually manages to spend three days a week in the monastery. His love of monasticism has led a monastic revival in the Coptic Orthodox Church. He has ordained hundreds of monks and nuns and reestablished many monasteries and convents. He is the first pope to establish Coptic monasteries outside of Egypt, which presently number nine.
One of the most remarkable things about the growth of the Coptic Orthodox Church is her expansion worldwide. When H. H. became pope in 1971, there were only four churches in North America. Today, there are over 100.
The year 1996 witnessed the installation of the fist two Diocesan bishops for the United States, one for Los Angeles and the other for the Southern United States. There are plans to further group the churches into regional dioceses in the near future.
H. H. has established mission churches in the U. S. Virgin Islands in St. Thomas, Bermuda, and St. Kitts. Moreover, he founded the first Coptic Orthodox Church in South America in Sao Paolo, Brazil, and the second in Bolivia.
Under his leadership, the Coptic Orthodox Church has also witnessed a growth in Australia and New Zealand, where there are currently twenty-eight churches. In 1999, we witnessed the enthronement of the first bishop over Melbourne, Australia and New Zealand. In Europe, there are currently over fifty church and ten bishops. Africa currently has two bishops serving in missions in nine African countries.
His Holiness Pope Shenouda III is well known for his deep commitment to Christian Unity. In an address he gave at an ecumenical forum during the International Week of Prayer in 1974, he declared, “The whole Christian world is anxious to see the church unite. Christian people, being fed up with divisions, are pushing their church leaders to do something about church unity and I am sure that the Holy Spirit is inspiring us.”
H. H. has emphasized that Christian Unity must be found upon a unity of faith and not a unity of jurisdiction. As a result, H. H. has paid many visits to the various sister Orthodox churches and their patriarchs, such as those of Constantinople, Moscow, Romania, and Antioch. A full communion of these churches with the Oriental Orthodox Churches is very close.
In 1973, H. H. was the first Coptic Orthodox pope to visit the Vatican in over 1500 years. In this visit, both H. H. Pope Shenouda III and H. H. Pope Paul VI signed a common declaration on the issue of Christology and agreed to establish joint commissions for dialogue on unity. There have also been dialogues with various Protestant churches worldwide.
Under the leadership of H. H., the Coptic Orthodox Church is a full member of the World Council of Churches, the Middle East Council of Church, the All-African Council of Churches, the National Council of the Churches in Christ in the U.S.A., the Canadian Council of Churches, and the Australian Council of Churches. In May 2000, he established the first ecumenical office, in the Archdiocese of North America.


His Holiness Patriarch Abune Paulose

                              Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church
   [Top]Patriarch Paulos was born 1935 and elected to office in 1992. He has made remarkable contributions to the peace and stability of the Horn since taking office. His Holiness took the initiative to the series of peace meetings between all Ethiopian and Eritrean religious leaders in 1998, 1999 and 2000. The meetings were successful and all the leaders urged the two Presidents to find a solution to the Ethiopian-Eritrean war.
His Holiness and the Ethiopian Orthodox Church have also been specially involved in the support of war displaced and drought-hit Ethiopians, making the Church one of the major "relief organisations" in the country, alongside with the Muslim society. His peace efforts and humanitarian work probably were the key reasons for being chosen to receive the the Nansen Medal by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNCHR).
Patriarch Paulos indeed himself has been a refugee. He was imprisoned for seven years by the Menghistu dictatorship after the then Patriarch Theophilos (which was deposed in 1976 and murdered in prison in 1979) ordained him a bishop without government approval in 1975. His Holiness was released in 1983 and spent the next years in the United States as a political refugee


His Holiness Karekin II Nersissian

                              132nd Catholicos of all Armenians
   [Top]His Holiness Karekin II, was born on 21st August 1951 in the village of Voskehat near Etchmiadzin. He entered the Theological Seminary of Holy Etchmiadzin in 1965, graduating with honours in 1971. For a year after his graduation, he taught New Testament at the Theological Seminary. In 1970 he was ordained a deacon, and in 1972 a celibate priest.
Shortly thereafter, HH Vasken I Catholicos of All Armenians sent the new priest to Vienna to study theology. In 1975, Fr. Nersissian moved to Germany, where he studied and graduated from Bonn University, while serving as pastor to the local Armenian Community. Following a brief return to Armenia, he enrolled to postgraduate studies at the Russian Orthodox Academy in Zagorsk, Russia, from which he graduated in 1979.
In March 1980 he entered the service of the Armenian Pontifical Diocese, the Armenian Church's most populous diocesan jurisdiction, which incorporates the capital Yerevan and the vicinity of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. He was appointed the head of that Diocese in June 1983 and soon was elevated to the rank of bishop on 23rd October of the same year, by His Holiness Vasken I. In November 1992 he was granted the title of Archbishop.
In November 1998 Archbishop Karekin Nersissian was appointed as Pontifical Vicar by His Holiness Karekin I and served in this capacity until the death of the late Catholicos.
On 27th October 1999, the National-Ecclesiastical Assembly held in Holy Etchmiadzin, elected Archbishop Karekin Nersissian Catholicos who thus became Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians. The consecration and enthronement of the Catholicos took place on 4th November 1999.


His Holiness Moran Mor Baselios Marthoma Mathews II

                Catholicose of the East and 89th Succesor to the Apostolic Throne of St.Thomas
   [Top]   His Holiness Moran Mar Baselios Marthoma Mathews II, the Catholicose of the East and Malankara Metropolitan, was born at Perinadu in Kollam district of Kerala, India on January 30,1915, to Mr.Idiculla and Mrs.Annamma, Puthusherazhikathu Puthen Veedu. After attending schools and colleges in India, he completed his theological studies at Basil dayara, Pathanamthitta, and Old seminary, Kottayam. Later he joined Bishops College, Calcutta for his BD Degree. He then pursued his higher education in Theology over seas at The General Theological Seminary, New York. He was ordained as Sub Deacon in 1938 by the late Catholicose His Holiness Baselious Geevarghese II (Memory Eternal), as Deacon on May 6,1941 and as Priest on May 25,1941.
It was during his stay at St.George Dayara, Othara that Fr. Mathews made a mark as a devoted and an able priest of the Malankara Orthodox Church. He was noted for his spiritual leadership and loving nature and could endear himself to everyone who came in contact with him. He was well-known as a charismatic teacher and Theologian. He was known to many people as "Angel Achen" for the Godly Fire that burned in him, and Godly Light that illuminated from him.
The then Catholicose His Holiness Baselious Geevarghese II took special interest to see that the services of Fr. Mathews are utilized in a still better way for the Church and the community. On May 15,1953 he was ordained as a Bishop of The Malankara Orthodox Church at 38. He was consecrated as His Eminence Mathews Mar Coorilose. Thirumeni was appointed as the Metropolitan of the Quilon (Kollam) Diocese on 1953. As a Metropolitan he was fully responsible for the growth and progress and the number of parishes that almost doubled with in a short period of time.
Several Monasteries and Convents were started, large number of educational institutions and hospitals were established. His services in the field of education and social service are all very well-known. Several colleges, schools, hospitals and other service institutions are successfully established and administered under his direct authority.

On April 29,1991, His Eminence Mathews Mar Coorilose Metropolitan became the 6th Catholicose and Malankara Metropolitan of the Malankara Orthodox Church of India. His Holiness Baselious Mathews II is the most traveled Catholicose in the history of the Catholicate. He has visited nearly every country in the world which would receive him. He has very friendly relations with leaders of other religions as well and has demonstrated this by his diplomatic abilities. He encourages all activities directed towards the progress and development of all Nations and the promotion of communal harmony and maintenance of peace in the all Countries.
His Holiness is a good orator, an eminent scholar, a renowned theologian, an able administrator, and a man who follows and teaches the Word of God. He has all the qualities needed for a spiritual leader and a Good Shepherd. With his intelligence, wisdom, love, vision, and with his vast experience in various fields he has proved himself as a successful and a skillful ecclesiastical head of The Ancient Malankara Orthodox Church of India. With his devotion and dedication in life towards God and his People and Church, and his sincerity of a Golden Heart, shows no doubt that all Communities and Nations at large is truly benefited by his true Christian life as a servant of God in the service of mankind.