Future Bishop of Scopelos Formally Elected at the Phanar

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople has received Bishop-elect Pancratius (Dubas) at the Phanar, where his formal election as Bishop of Scopelos was conducted in the patriarchal Church of St. George. Bishop-elect Pancratius will serve primarily Ukrainian-speaking faithful of the Metropolis of Mexico City. More here.

Australian PM Visits the Phanar

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has visited the Ecumenical Patriarchate as part of her recent state visit to Turkey, meeting with Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) during her time at the Phanar. During their meeting the two discussed interreligious and inter-cultural dialogue worldwide as well as the environmental work of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. More here.

Turkish Constitutional Commission to Meet with Ecumenical Patriarch

The constitutional commission of the Turkish Parliament has invited Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople to speak to its members on 20 February about the issues facing the country's ethnic and religious minorities and how the new draft constitution being considered could best protect their place in Turkey. More (in Turkish) here.

First Metropolitan of Singapore Consecrated in Constantinople

Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople has consecrated Archimandrite Constantine Tsilis as the first Metropolitan of Singapore. Axios! Metropolitan Constantine will oversee the Constantinopolitan Orthodox Church in the East Indies and South Asia. More here.

Roman Catholic Church Hosts Inter-Religious Conference in Assisi

Pope Benedict XVI Ratzinger of the Roman Catholic Church presided today over an inter-religious peace conference in Assisi's Basilica of St. Francis, flanked by Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople and Rabbi David Rosen and with representatives of animism, Baha'ism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Daoism, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, paganism, Protestantism, Sikhism, and Zoroastrianism participating. The conference was organized to commemorate the 25th anniversary of a similar conference organized by Pope John Paul II. More here.

Serbian Orthodox Patriarch Visits Halki

As part of his recent visit to Turkey Patriarch Irinej (Gavrilovic) of the Serbian Orthodox Church paid a visit to the campus of the Halki Theological Seminary near Constantinople accompanied by Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople and the closed seminary's rector, Metropolitan Elpidophoros (Lambriniadis) of Brusa. More here.

Patriarch of Constantinople Celebrates 20th Anniversary of Election

Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople has marked the 20th anniversary of his election to the throne of St. Andrew, with Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II (Gudushauri-Shiolashvili) of the Georgian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Irinej (Gavrilovic) of the Serbian Orthodox Church, and Archbishop Anastasios (Yannoulatos) of the Albanian Orthodox Church and hierarchs from the Constantinopolitan Orthodox Church in Greece, Western Europe, and North America and the Russian Orthodox Church participating in the celebrations organized at the Phanar. More (in Greek) here.

Turkish PM Declares an End to Ethnic Discrimination

At an iftar or Ramadan fast-breaking dinner hosted by the Turkish government for representatives of Turkey's religious minorities (none of whom, if the author is not mistaken, actually fast during Ramadan) Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated in part that, "There have been times when people in our country were put under pressure for their beliefs, ethnic background, for the way they dress and their different lifestyles, but those days are over...nobody in this country is anymore privileged than anyone else in the eyes of the constitution or other laws."

Following the end of the iftar Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople, who participated in the event, welcomed the Turkish prime minister's statements as well as the recent decree of the Turkish government returning previously appropriated properties belonging to Turkey's religious minorities and expressed his hope that in the future Turkey would go further in its efforts to undo the injustices suffered by its minorities. More here.

Ecumenical Patriarch, Metropolitan Hilarion Meet in Turkey

The Russian Orthodox Church's Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) of Volokolamsk has visited Turkey to meet with Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople. After meeting with the ecumenical patriarch in Constantinople and visiting the city's Cathedral of St. George Metropolitan Hilarion proceeded to Patriarch Bartholomew's native island of Imbros, where the two met with local clergy and visited the island's metropolitan cathedral. More here.

Ecumenical Patriarch Visits Misappropriated Pontian Monasteries and Churches

As part of his pastoral visit to Pontus, in what today is northeastern Turkey, to celebrate new style Dormition at the historic Soumela Monastery Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople also visited several other historic Pontian monasteries and churches that were turned into mosques or museums following Turkey's expulsion of its large Greek-speaking minority after World War I. More (in Greek) here.

Ecumenical Patriarch Celebrates Dormition at Sumela Monastery

Nearly a thousand pilgrims from Greece, Georgia, and Russia gathered at the Soumela Monastery in Pontus today to attend festal services celebrated by Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople. The services are the second annual services permitted by the Turkish authorities at the Soumela Monastery on new style Dormition. More here.

Update (16/8/2011): There were also pilgrims from Cyprus, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, the USA, and other countries present at yesterday's services in Soumela, which were concelebrated by the ecumenical patriarch and Archbishop Demetrios of New York and two metropolitans of the Church of Greece, with Archbishop Panteleimon of Yaroslavl praying at the services.

During his homily Patriarch Bartholomew welcomed the delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church led by Archbishop Panteleimon and expressed his hope that Patriarch Kirill (Gundyayev) of Moscow would someday come to concelebrate the feast with him. More here.

Greek Foreign Minister Visits Turkey

Greek Foreign Minister Stavros Lambrinidis has begun a state visit to the Turkish island of Imbros, where he met with representatives of the island's Greek community, among them Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople, and expressed his support for Turkey's application for membership in the European Union. Lambrinidis' visit was occasioned by the 50th anniversary of the ordination of Patriarch Bartholomew to the priesthood. More here.

At the time that Imbros was awarded to the modern Turkish state by the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923 its population was 95% Greek and Orthodox Christian. Although Turkey committed to guaranteeing the security of the island's population, over the decades following the treaty it settled large numbers of Turks on the island, prompting many of its native inhabitants to immigrate. The island's population today is 97% Turkish.

Inter-Religious Iftar Held in Constantinople

In honor of Ramadan and to witness to inter-religious harmony leaders of Constantinople's Orthodox Christian, Jewish, and Muslim residents have celebrated an iftar (the evening meal that breaks the daytime fast kept by Muslims during Ramadan) in the former imperial capital, with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of the Constantinopolitan Orthodox Church, Archbishop Aram (Ateshian) of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Constantinople, and Metropolitan Mor Filuxinos (Yusuf) of the Syriac Orthodox Church in western Turkey participating. More here and (in Greek) here.

Ecumenical Patriarch, Metropolitan of Chisinau Meet in Constantinople

Metropolitan Vladimir (Cantarean) of the Moldovan Orthodox Church has met with Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople at the close of a pilgrimage to the holy places of Turkey. During their visit the two first hierarchs discussed the development of church life in Moldova and the former USSR and also in Turkey. More (in Romanian) here.

Ecumenical Patriarch Meets with US Secretary of State in Constantinople

Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople has met with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the seat of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in the Phanar as part of Clinton's visit to Istanbul. During their meeting the two discussed issues relating to the life of the Constantinopolitan Orthodox Church in Turkey, in particular the reopening of the Halki Seminary. More (in Greek) here.

Patriarch Bartholomew Visits Athens

Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople has begun a visit to Athens accompanied by several of metropolitans of the Constantinopolitan Orthodox Church. The ecumenical patriarch was received in the Greek capital by Archbishop Jerome II (Liapis) of the Greek Orthodox Church. More (in Greek) here.

Wikileaks: Constantinople Concerned About Russian Ambitions

A recent Wikileaks release has shed new light on the discussions between the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Turkish, US, and Greek governments regarding the reopening of the Halki Seminary, with Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople at one point telling a US senator that, 'If the Ecumenical Patriarchate abandons its traditional headquarters in Istanbul, then the Russian Orthodox Church will fulfill its ambition to take command of the Ecumenical Patriarchate." He went on to say that, 'The Patriarchate needs protection so as not to lose face before Ankara and the ambition of the Russians.' More (in Greek) here.

Bulgarian Orthodox Metropolitan Visits Constantinople, Turkish Thrace

Metropolitan Gabriel of Lovech has made a pastoral visit the Bulgarian Diaspora in Constantinople and Turkish-occupied Thrace, first visiting St. Stephen's Iron Church in Constantinople, the representation of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church to the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and then concelebrating with Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the latter's election as ecumenical patriarch. After his time in Constantinople Metropolitan Gabriel visited the two Bulgarian-speaking parishes in Adrianople (Edirne in Turkish) before returning to Bulgaria. More (in Bulgarian) here.

Patriarch Bartholomew to Visit Smyrna, Ephesus

This coming weekend Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople will undertake a historic visit to the city of Smyrna in Turkey, the first such pastoral visit by an ecumenical patriarch since the Turks' expulsion of the city's Orthodox Christians (who used to form the vast majority of the population) in 1922. Patriarch Bartholomew will serve in St. Mary's Church in Alacati (used as a mosque from the 1930s until recently) before moving on to Ephesus to celebrate the Divine Liturgy on Saturday and Sunday in the ancient city's Churches of Sts. John the Theologian and Photina the Samaritan Woman. More here.

Patriarch Bartholomew Says Greek Policies Should Not Effect Halki Reopening

Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhondonis) of Constantinople has reacted to Turkish demands that Greece improve its treatment of its Turkish minority in southwestern Thrace before it will consider reopening the Halki Seminary by saying that both he is Turkish and that the Greek government and its policies should not factor into the reopening of the patriarchal seminary. More here.