With deep reverence and gratitude, the National Philoptochos Society joined clergy, faithful, and pilgrims from around the world at the Ecumenical Patriarchate to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the enthronement of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. Representing National Philoptochos were National President Debbie George and First Vice President Anita Kartalopoulos, who took part in the historic commemoration at the Mother Church of Orthodoxy. 

The celebration coincided with the anniversary pilgrimage led by His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America, held October 19–23, 2026. For the National Philoptochos delegation, being present in the Queen of Cities, Constantinople, was both a profound honor and a deeply spiritual moment. His All-Holiness granted a private audience to the Philoptochos delegation and the Archon Delegation from the United States and shared in his remarks: 

“Throughout these years, you have stood faithfully beside us. Our predecessor Patriarch Athenagoras came to this Venerable See from your Archdiocese, and two of the institutions (National Philoptochos and The Order of Saint Andrew) so worthily represented here bear his imprint. As Archbishop of North and South America, he founded the Philoptochos—“friends of the poor”—a title that is itself a rule of life….To the National Philoptochos, in the persons of your National President and First Vice President, we owe particular gratitude. The strength of a community is revealed in the care it extends to its most vulnerable members; your sisterhood has made that principle visible in countless towns and cities from coast to coast, and in your generous support of the Mother Church.”

In recognition of this milestone, National Philoptochos presented His All-Holiness with a gift of $35,000; one thousand dollars for each year of his ministry as Ecumenical Patriarch. The offering reflects the Society’s enduring love for the Mother Church and its gratitude for His All-Holiness’s steadfast shepherding of the Orthodox faithful throughout the world. 

“On behalf of the Greek Orthodox National Philoptochos Executive Board and our entire membership across the United States, we extend our most sincere wishes as you celebrate the 35th Anniversary of your Election and Enthronement,” said National President Debbie George. “We are profoundly honored and humbled to participate in this momentous and historical occasion. We hold both you and His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America in the deepest reverence. Though the Phanar, our Mother Church, has always been in our hearts, with Archbishop Elpidophoros’ leadership and guidance, it is always a top priority for National Philoptochos.”

Since his enthronement on November 2, 1991, His All-Holiness has become the longest-serving Ecumenical Patriarch in the history of the Church. Throughout his ministry, he has been a tireless voice for Christian unity, religious freedom, and the care of God’s creation. For the women of Philoptochos, whose ministry is rooted in love and service to those in need, his example continues to inspire our work in parishes and communities across the country. 

The Greek Orthodox Ladies Philoptochos Society, Inc. is the philanthropic arm of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. With over 90 years of experience, Philoptochos has served communities in need through fundraising and charitable programs. The Society includes more than 400 active chapters nationwide. Learn more at www.philoptochos.org. 

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On Thursday, October 22, 2026, a Patriarchal Divine Liturgy in the most venerable Patriarchal Church of Saint George at the Phanar celebrated the completion of 35 years of the patriarchal ministry of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. His All-Holiness presided, concelebrating with His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America and other hierarchs.

Although the anniversary celebration the evening before at the Hilton Istanbul Bosphorus, at which His All Holiness was the final speaker, ran late into the night, the Ecumenical Patriarch was in the Patriarchal Church from early in the morning. Attending the Divine Liturgy were the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, a great many Greeks of the diaspora, and numerous clergy from the United States, Australia, Europe and other parts of the world, together with many of the “Romioi,” the city’s own Greek Orthodox.

Minister of Culture Lina Mendoni represented the Greek government. Also present was the shipowner Athanasios Martinos, Archon Exarchos of the Holy and Great Church of Christ and Great Benefactor of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

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ECUMENICAL PATRIARCHATE OF CONSTANTINOPLE—Near the close of his remarks at the Phanar, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew offered his guests an image whose plainness was the point. “Each one of us is a drop,” he said. “The ocean is the Ecumenical Patriarchate.” Spoken by the leader of the Church who has now completed thirty-five years on the Ecumenical Throne, it was self-effacement of a deliberate kind.

The anniversary of his election and enthronement brought His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America and the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, to Istanbul. They came on a pilgrimage organized jointly by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and the Order of Saint Andrew the Apostle, which runs from October 20 to 25, 2026.

His Eminence spoke first. Surveying three and a half decades of patriarchal ministry, he singled out the Ecumenical Patriarch’s initiatives for the unity of Orthodoxy, his dialogue with the wider Christian world, and his long work for the protection of the environment. A ministry like this one, the Archbishop said, should be measured by its quality and its reach as much as by its length, and he admitted that its accomplishments were difficult even to list.

He then conveyed the love and support of the Greek American faithful. “Your All Holiness, in America you have wonderful people, all of them faithful to you,” he said. “They admire you, they love you, they respect you, they pray for your long life and your health, and they always want to be at your side.” He added: “Whatever work you have in mind, we are here to support you, Your All Holiness.”

On the bond between the Archdiocese and the Ecumenical Patriarchate, His Eminence was explicit. “We are grateful to the Mother Church,” he said. “We know that everything we have, everything we enjoy in the United States — the respect, the standing that the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese has in the United States — is a light that comes from you. We simply reflect the light from the Phanar.”

He went further, tying the Archdiocese’s place in American life to its canonical home. “If we were not under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, I do not believe that the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese or the Greek Orthodox community in the United States would enjoy the degree of respect and attention that we have, not only from the political authorities, but also from all the other Christian authorities and Churches.”

His All Holiness answered the image of reflected light with a story. He recalled a visit to the United States by Metropolitan Meliton of Chalcedon, of blessed memory, who had been his spiritual father. Metropolitan Meliton had come at the invitation of Archbishop Iakovos, so that the two hierarchs could celebrate Holy Week and Pascha together. Addressing a gathering of the Greek American community, he thanked his hosts for their warm hospitality and admired what they had accomplished, the great institutions above all, while insisting that the source of it all was the Mother Church.

The Patriarch then recounted what his spiritual father had gone on to say. “Metropolitan Meliton of Chalcedon also said something else, and I do not know whether Archbishop Iakovos liked it at the time: that if Archbishop Iakovos has this glory and these honors, and comes and goes at the White House, it is because he is a hierarch of the Ecumenical Throne.”

Then, he went on: “For Archbishop Iakovos, and Archbishop Elpidophoros, and Patriarch Bartholomew, and all of us, as individual persons, may have virtues, abilities, responsibilities, but whatever we enjoy, in the final analysis, we owe to this institution of seventeen hundred years,” he said. “As persons, we are nothing before this institution, which has endured so many centuries.” It was then that he arrived at the drop and the ocean.

When he had finished, the Ecumenical Patriarch exchanged gifts with Archbishop Elpidophoros and the other hierarchs present. Before the delegation left the Patriarchate, he invited His Eminence into his office and gave him two books: a collection of his selected articles, and the volume Thirty Years of Patriarchate: The Human Face of an Ancient Institution, edited by Archdeacon John Chryssavgis.

The anniversary volume Thirty-Five Years of Patriarchate includes a personal testimony by Archbishop Elpidophoros, who looks back on how he came to know His All Holiness and sets down his own memories of thirty-five years of patriarchal ministry.

The pilgrimage had opened with a dinner on its first evening, at which Archbishop Elpidophoros paid special tribute to His Eminence Metropolitan Gerasimos of San Francisco. The Metropolitan had made the journey from his Metropolis to celebrate his name day in Constantinople, close to the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

The next day, the Archons set out for three places that hold the memory of the City’s Greek Orthodox: Panagia Baloukliotissa, the shrine of the Life-Giving Spring at Baloukli; the Chora Monastery; and the Church of the Theotokos at Blachernae. It was a walk through the faith and the long history of the Greeks of the City, whose memory there remains a living one.

That evening, the anniversary celebrations continued at the Hilton Istanbul Bosphorus, where His All Holiness addressed the guests. They watched excerpts from a documentary on his patriarchal journey made by ERT, the Greek public broadcaster, along with a video produced by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. The music was by Evanthia Reboutsika, who also composed the score for the ERT film.

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An ERT documentary traces the life and ministry of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, marking 35 years since his election. The film will air Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at 10 p.m. Greece time on ERT3, ERT Cosmos and ERTFLIX. ERT Cosmos will rebroadcast it Oct. 23 at 2 p.m. Greece time.

In conversation with journalist Pierros Tzanetakos, His All-Holiness reflects on his journey from Imbros to the Phanar. In his home village of Agioi Theodoroi, he welcomes viewers into his house and visits his father’s café and the cemetery where his parents are buried. He recalls his childhood, his earliest experiences of the Church and his love of learning, along with his spiritual father’s counsel: “Walk with your eyes fixed only on Jesus.”

The film explores his efforts to revive the island’s Greek community after the persecutions of 1964, focusing on reopened Greek schools and the young people he sees as the hope for Hellenism’s future.

At the Phanar, he discusses Church unity, dialogue among Christians, interfaith understanding and environmental protection, recalling meetings with popes and world leaders. He also addresses divisions within Orthodoxy, reaffirming the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s enduring primacy and its role in coordinating the Churches’ common work. He emphasizes synodality, with particular reference to the Holy and Great Council held in Crete in 2016.

He also describes the ties linking Constantinople’s Greek Orthodox community to the Patriarchate. At Halki, where he studied, he expresses hope that the Theological School will reopen soon.

Filmed in Imbros, Constantinople and Halki, the documentary is directed by Manolis Papanikitas and features an original score by Evanthia Reboutsika, performed by ERT’s Contemporary Music Orchestra.

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His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew outlined his priorities and reflected on nearly 35 years of ministry in an interview with Manolis Kostidis for the Oct. 18 Sunday edition of the Greek daily Kathimerini. He was elected Oct. 22, 1991. Reopening the Theological School of Halki remains a commitment from his enthronement address, one he hopes to fulfill soon. Founded in 1844, Halki educated generations of Orthodox clergy. Its theological program has been closed since 1971. He also wants to contribute personally to peaceful coexistence between Greeks and Turks and stable relations between their governments, ending recurring fluctuations between calm and tension.

Kostidis credited Patriarch Bartholomew’s knowledge, perseverance and personal contacts with strengthening the Patriarchate’s standing in Türkiye. He described mutual respect with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as allowing greater freedom of action, and cited Boğaziçi University’s 2013 honorary doctorate as evidence of recognition.

The Patriarch identified the Holy and Great Council in Crete in 2016 as a milestone achieved after decades of preparation, despite four Churches’ last-minute absence. He welcomed the participation of representatives of the Georgian and Bulgarian Churches, both absent from Crete, in the theological conference in Chantilly, France. Organized by the Ecumenical Patriarchate on Oct. 5–8, the gathering marked the council’s 10th anniversary.

Granting autocephaly to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine in January 2019 was among his most difficult decisions. Referring to Moscow’s fierce opposition, he emphasized the courage and determination required to proceed. Autocephaly gives a Church the right to govern its ecclesiastical affairs under its own hierarchy.

He stressed dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church. The report recalled encounters with Popes John Paul II, Benedict XVI, Francis and Leo XIV. Kathimerini described his attendance at Francis’ 2013 inauguration as the first by an Ecumenical Patriarch since the schism of 1054.

In November 2025, he and His Holiness Pope Leo XIV joined other Christian leaders in Nicaea, now İznik, marking the First Ecumenical Council’s 1,700th anniversary. The account also recognized his dialogue with representatives of Islam and Judaism and the environmental advocacy that earned him the designation “Green Patriarch.”

Kostidis described the Patriarch’s affection for Imbros, his birthplace, where returning islanders and reopened schools have renewed the Greek Orthodox community’s prospects. His All-Holiness identified those developments as changes that had altered the course of the island’s history.

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