The feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross at the Phanar

The feast of the Exaltation of the Precious Cross was celebrated in an atmosphere of deep reverence at the Sacred Center of Orthodoxy.

The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew presided over the Divine Liturgy celebrated on Monday, September 14, 2026, concelebrating with Metropolitans Elder Dimitrios of the Princes’ Islands, Meliton of Philadelphia, Irenaios of Myriophyton and Peristasis, Chrysostomos of Myra, Ioakeim of Prusa, and Theodoros of Seleucia.

The Chief Secretary of the Holy and Sacred Synod, Archimandrite Vosporios, celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the customary order, together with Under-Secretary Deacon Oikoumenios.

After the ceremony of the Exaltation of the Precious Cross, the Ecumenical Patriarch, following tradition, distributed flowers and basil to the hierarchs, to the clergy of the Patriarchal Court, and to the Archons-Officials who came forward to venerate the Cross, and finally to all the faithful present.

Also attending the service were Bishops Adrianos of Halikarnassos and Paisios of Xanthoupolis, Archons-Officials of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and faithful from Constantinople and abroad.

After the dismissal, the Ecumenical Patriarch conferred the Office of Archon Didaskalos (Teacher) of the Church on Mr. Apostolos Kralidis, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Social Theology and the Study of Religion at the School of Theology of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.

The Patriarch’s Address to the New Archon

In his address, the Ecumenical Patriarch congratulated the new Archon, saying that the honorary distinction was conferred in recognition of his contribution to the Church, noting the following:

“You are Professor of the History of Religions in the Department of Social Theology and the Study of Religion of the School of Theology of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Your academic career is long and multifaceted. For a full decade, you served as a research associate at the Center for Byzantine Research of the Aristotle University. Alongside your university, teaching, and scholarly duties, you have served in various ecclesiastical institutions, scientific committees, and in organizing numerous conferences. Your presence in the life of the Sacred Patriarchal and Stavropegic Monastery of Vlatades and at the Patriarchal Institute for Patristic Studies is admirable. You honor the Holy Great Church of Christ and its pan-Orthodox, pan-Christian, and universal witness. We rejoice especially in the fact that, as Chairman of the Department of Social Theology and the Study of Religion, as a member of the Faculty Council of the School of Theology, and as a member of the Senate of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, you are contributing decisively to the establishment of courses on the history, identity, and mission of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

Your extensive engagement with the History of Religions, with particular emphasis on Greco-Roman antiquity and the Byzantine period, on the relations between Byzantium and its theology with Islam, as well as on the contemporary role of religions and interreligious dialogue, constitutes a highly timely contribution to understanding the spirit of our age, in which religions are claiming a significant role in the lives of people, societies, and civilizations. It has been said that religious pluralism, and its intense presence, poses a more serious problem for Christianity than secularization does.

The way in which you combine the perspectives of religious studies and theology in your scholarly work confirms the value of the study of religion for theological work, while at the same time affirming the distinct identity of theology, which “is not obliged to turn itself into ‘religious studies’ to demonstrate its scientific character and defend its place within the University,” the Palladium of the Sciences. Theology is not a “Religious Studies of Christianity.” The people of God expect from Sacred Science answers to their existential questions in the spirit of the Gospel of salvation, not information about Christianity.”

The Patriarch then added:

“From this moment you will bear the Cross of the Brotherhood of Officials of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, ‘Panagia i Pammakaristos.’ The Cross, ‘the most significant and most characteristic of all Christian symbols,’ signifies that you serve the Great Church of Constantinople in its holy mission as a fellow bearer of the Cross alongside the Patriarch, together with all the Archons of the Throne. For an official of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, taking up the Cross means serving the Holy Great Church of Christ with devotion and humility, and raising one’s stature when her rights are called into question.”

Patriarchal Vespers at the Church of St. Nicholas, Topkapı

On the eve of the feast, the Patriarch, as custom requires, presided over Great Vespers celebrated at the Church of St. Nicholas, Topkapı.

The homily was delivered by Grand Archdeacon Hieronymos, Librarian of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

The Ecumenical Patriarch was welcomed with an address by Metropolitan Maximos of Selybria, Overseer of the District of Ypsomatheia.

In his response, the Patriarch spoke of the significance of the Cross in the life of the Christian, noting that it is not only a symbol of sacrifice but also a sign of unconquerable victory.

“When Constantine the Great saw in the sky the form of the Cross with the inscription ‘in this sign conquer,’ he was taught the great truth of our faith: that the weapons of this world, however powerful they may appear, give way before the humble power of the Cross. This truth remains as timely today as ever, in an age in which humanity seems to place greater trust in weapons and violence than in love and reconciliation. We, as children of the Cross and the Resurrection, are called to bear witness to exactly the opposite: that the only truly victorious power is the one that sacrifices itself ‘for the life of the world.’

The City of Constantine, the City of our dreams and our unspoken sighs, knows better than anyone the weight, but also the glory, of the Cross. In the Church of the Holy Wisdom of God, the Emperor Heraclius raised the Precious Cross centuries ago before a multitude of clergy and people; here, the Holy Great Church of Christ, throughout the centuries, has been crucified many times together with her children, yet has never ceased to proclaim the Resurrection! This is the cross-and-resurrection identity of Romiosyni [Greek Orthodox Christendom]: to stand upon its cross, with eyes nevertheless always turned toward the light of the Resurrection.

Each one of us, brothers and children, bears his own cross: of illness, of trial, of hardship, of loneliness, of exile, of anxiety for tomorrow. The Lord did not promise us a life without a cross; but He told us, ‘take courage, I have overcome the world’ (John 16:33). Let us not forget, then, that every cross we carry with patience and faith becomes, through the grace of our Savior and Redeemer, a ladder toward the Resurrection. This is the message of today’s feast in the harsh times we are living through.

We address this optimistic message especially to the millions of our brothers and sisters who are carrying their own cross in Ukraine and in the Middle East, where war continues to reap the innocent, to lay waste to cities, and to sow pain and orphanhood. The Ecumenical Patriarchate stands in prayer and with great love beside all the victims of these conflicts and their families, regardless of religion or nationality, and beseeches the Prince of Peace to shatter the walls of hatred and grant these peoples the peace ‘which surpasses all understanding’ (Philippians 4:7). The Cross, as a symbol of sacrificial love, calls us not to remain mere spectators, but to suffer with others, to pray unceasingly, and to work, wherever and however we can, ‘for the peace of the whole world’ and for reconciliation.”

Concluding his address, the Ecumenical Patriarch expressed his Patriarchal gratitude to the Metropolitan of Selybria “for his ever affectionate and exemplary care for this historic and long-suffering District of the Most Holy Archdiocese of Constantinople.” He also congratulated the Parish Priest and all the members of the Church Committee for the work being carried out in the Community.

Photo: Nikos Papachristou