Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew arrived on his native island of Imbros on Tuesday evening, accompanied by Patriarch Theodore II of Alexandria and All Africa and Archbishop Ioannis of Albania, together with their respective entourages.
The three Primates had departed earlier from the Phanar for Imbros, where celebrations will take place marking a significant milestone in the ecclesiastical ministry of the Ecumenical Patriarch.
On Thursday, August 13, the three Church leaders will concelebrate the Divine Liturgy on the occasion of the 65th anniversary of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew’s entry into the sacred clergy, following his graduation from the Theological School of Halki in 1961.
The Primates are accompanied by Metropolitan Emmanuel, Elder of Chalcedon, representing the Hierarchy of the Ecumenical Throne; Metropolitan Meliton of Philadelphia, a native of Imbros; and clergy of the Patriarchal Court.
Also present on the island are Metropolitan Chrysostomos of Myra and Metropolitan Kyrillos of Imbros and Tenedos, the local hierarch.
Athanasios Martinos, Archon Exarch of the Great Church of Christ, is also expected to attend the celebrations as a representative of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, accompanied by his wife, Marina Martinou.
The anniversary celebrations will carry particular significance for Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, as the milestone of his 65 years of ecclesiastical ministry will be commemorated in his birthplace alongside the Primates of the Churches of Alexandria and Albania.