The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, His All Holiness Bartholomew I, on Wednesday welcomed the President of the Republic of Montenegro, Milo Djukanovic, to the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s Phanar district see.
His All Holiness expressed joy over the visit of the head of state of the Adriatic country, reminding of recent visits to the Mother Church of the president of Montenegro’s Parliament and a group of teachers and seminar students of the Theological Seminar of St. Peter Cetinje.
The Ecumenical Patriarch also referred to his long friendship and cooperation with reposed Metropolitan of Montenegro & the Littoral Amfilohios.
For his part, Djukanovic, among others, said this is the first visit of a Montenegro head of state to the Ecumenical Patriarchate in more than a century.
The cordial meeting was also attended by the Elder Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon, hierarchs of the Patriarchal court, and officials of the Montenegro president’s delegation.
photos :Nikos Papachristou
Historic Archieratical liturgies on Sat., Sun. at the Phanar officiated by His All Holiness, Archbishop of Ohrid Stefan
Also from Constantinople, the Ecumenical Patriarch will officiate at the Great Vespers on Saturday and the Divine Liturgy on Sunday at the Patriarchal cathedral of St. George, along with the Archbishop of Ohrid, His Beatitude Stefan, who will co-officiate.
The con-celebratory Archieratical comes roughly one month after the Sacred and Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate resumed Eucharistic communion with the Archbishopric of Ohrid and recognized its canonical status, while instructing that “administrative issues” be resolved with the Serbian Patriarchate.
On the Monday of the Holy Spirit, the Ecumenical Patriarch will attend the Divine Liturgy at the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Stavrodromio district in the Bosporus metropolis, where Archbishop Stefan officiate at the reverent service.
