Fourth Centennial Pilgrimage to Istanbul, Holy Land, Jordan Commences

On November 28, His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America welcomed GOARCH pilgrims to Istanbul for the Fourth Centennial Pilgrimage of 2022. His Eminence arrived earlier this weekend and participated in the meeting of the Holy and Great Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate (November 27 — November 29).

On November 29, the group will attend the investiture of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Order of St. Andrew, at the Cathedral of St. George. Among this year’s class are Dr. George Dangas, Dr. Stamatios Lerakis, Dr. George Syros, and Dr. John Thomas, who performed His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew’s stent surgery last year during the 2021 Apostolic Visit to the United States. The following day, the group will celebrate the Feast Day of St. Andrew, the patron saint of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, with His All-Holiness.

The second leg of the trip will begin in Jerusalem on December 1, where the group will have the opportunity for a private audience with the Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Beatitude Theophilos III, and to visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and other sacred sites of the Holy Land. The pilgrimage concludes in Jordan, where Archbishop Elpidophoros will concelebrate the Divine Liturgy with His Eminence Archbishop Christophoros of Kyriakoupolis in the Metropolis of Amman.

The Fourth Centennial Pilgrimage to Istanbul, the Holy Land, and Jordan is the final installment of a pilgrimage series, organized by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and led by His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros, in celebration of the 100th Anniversary of the Archdiocese.  While each pilgrimage itinerary is unique, all carry the distinction of visiting the Mother Church in celebration and gratitude for the establishment of the Sacred Archdiocese of America by the Ecumenical Patriarchate in the year 1922.