Following the proposal of our Modesty and the subsequent canonical election by the Holy and Sacred Synod of our Apostolic Throne, you were recently elected Bishop of the ancient Episcopal See of Eudokia, and thus today, in the Holy Church of Saint Alypius in Attaleia, you will receive the grace of Archpriesthood.
Today is a truly historical day for our local Church, and this is not an exaggeration. Just 100 years ago, the last Assistant Bishop Meletios of Patara was appointed in Antalya, and he became a historical ecclesiastical Personality, an excellent Hierarch of the Ecumenical Throne.
In our reading from the Letter to the Romans, St. Paul lays before us two basic truths, which are of particular interest for us today. The first, is that we should desire and seek the salvation of our people with all of our hearts.
Today we celebrate the “Synaxis of All the Saints of Pisidia, Side and Antalya, along with the “Holy Fathers of the Fourth Ecumenical Council of Chalkidon
God is calling us today to celebrate the Divine Liturgy in the very place that the Apostle Paul preached for the first time in Asia Minor. And this, His Speech, is preserved in the New Testament, in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 13:17-41).
