Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is set to hold a meeting with Archbishop Makarios of Australia at the Maximos Mansion to discuss issues concerning Hellenism in Australia.

Athens is the Archbishop’s second stop on his recent overseas trip, which comes after visiting Istanbul where he received the Ecumenical Patriarch’s praise.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew praised Archbishop Makarios saying: “For three years now, the Mother Church has sent him to the fifth continent to minister to the nearly one million Orthodox Christians there. I have visited Australia three times as Metropolitan of Philadelphia and as Metropolitan of Chalcedon and in ’96 as Patriarch…. Now the baton of this great province of the Throne is in the hands of a very worthy Pastor, Brother Makarios, who comes from Crete,” said Bartholomew, who stated that “God enlightened us and we sent Archbishop Makarios”.

While in Istanbul the Patriarch referred to the work carried out by Archbishop Makarios in Australia, as well as to the cooperation he has with him not only for the pastoral work in this corner of the world, but also to the issues that concern the Ecumenical Patriarchate and Orthodoxy in general, as “despite our goodwill, problems are unfortunately not lacking for the Ecumenical Patriarchate,” he said.

“In the years of its stay there, it has conquered the hearts of Greeks and political authorities. Suffice it to say that the Federal Prime Minister of Australia, who is Catholic, says that my Archbishop is the Catholic Archbishop, but his friend is Archbishop Makarios,” the Patriarch added.

Archbishop Makarios thanked the Ecumenical Patriarch for his “warm paternal words”, noting among other things that “once again we have seen what Patriarch Bartholomew means, a Patriarch who is full of love and full of affection.”

Smyrna: Concession of a Roman Catholic church to the Ecumenical Patriarchate

Patriarch Bartholomew also met with Massimo Fusarelli, Rome’s Head of the Franciscan Order, accompanied by members of the Brotherhood and his associates, on the occasion of the concession to the Ecumenical Patriarchate of the Holy Church of Santa Maria in Smyrna, which belongs to the Order, for the needs of the Holy Metropolis of Smyrna.

The meeting was also attended by Bishops Emmanuel Emmanuel of Chalcedon and Bartholomew of Smyrna, as well as the president of the Smyrna Orthodox Community, George Theodorides.

Currently, the Holy Metropolis of Smyrna operates through a small holy church dedicated to St. Photini, but it is no longer sufficient to meet the needs of the growing Orthodox community in the area.

Pope Francis responded immediately to the request of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and immediately after the meeting, the official signing of the church’s concession agreement took place in the High Priests’ Hall of the Orthodox Patriarchal House.

The agreement was signed on behalf of the Mother Church by Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon and, on behalf of the Franciscans, by Massimo Fusarelli.