Θεοφιλ. Ἐπισκόπου Διοκλείας κ. Νεκταρίου,

Ἐθνικοῦ Πρωτοσυγκέλλου τῆς Ἱ. Ἀρχιεπισκοπῆς Ἀμερικῆς

 

Χειροτονητήριος Λόγος εἰς Ἐπίσκοπον

Νέα Ὑόρκη, Ἱ. Καθεδρδικὸς Ναὸς τῆς Ἁγίας Τριάδος,

Σάββατο, 13 Ἀπριλίου 2024

 

Μὲ αἰσθήματα ἐσωτερικῆς συνοχῆς καὶ βαθιᾶς ταπείνωσης στέκομαι ἐνώπιον τοῦ Κυρίου καὶ ἐνώπιόν σας, νιώθοντας ἀδύναμος μὲν μπροστὰ στὸ μέγα τοῦτο γεγονός. Εἶναι ἡ ἔκφρασις γιὰ μένα τῆς θείας βουλήσεως καὶ κλήσεώς μου, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς προσωπικῆς ἐν Χριστῷ κλίσεώς μου. Αἰσθάνομαι ὅμως ταυτόχρονα καὶ δυνατός, καθῶς ἐν πίστει νοερᾷ ἔρχονται στὴν σκέψη μου οἱ λόγοι τοῦ Θεοῦ ποὺ ἀπηύθυνε πρὸς τὸν Μωϋσῆ: «ἀνδρίζου καὶ ἴσχυε, µὴ φοβοῦ, µηδὲ δειλιάσῃς, µηδὲ πτοηθῆς... ὅτι Κύριος ὁ Θεός σου... οὐ µὴ σὲ ἀνῇ, οὐδ’ οὐ µὴ σὲ ἐγκαταλίπῃ...».

Αὐτὸ τὸ κάλεσμα τῆς ἄμετρης ἀγάπης του καὶ τῆς ταπεινῆς διακονίας μου ἐπιθυμῶ νὰ βιώσω καὶ τὸ ἐνστερνίζομαι τὴν στιγμὴ τούτη ὡς προσφορὰ θυσιαστικὴ καὶ ὄχι ὡς ἀνέλιξη διοικητική, ὡς δοκιμασία καὶ ὄχι ὡς ἐπιβράβευση, ὡς κατάθεση καὶ ἀφιέρωση ψυχοσωματικὴ καὶ ὄχι ὡς ἀποκόμιση κοσμικῶν προνομίων καὶ κενόδοξων τιμῶν, τέλος δὲ ὡς σταυρικὴ θυσία πρὸς τὸν λαὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ «ἐπ᾽ ἐλπίδι ἀναστάσεως» κατὰ τὴν θεία βουλὴ καὶ κρίση του, ποὺ ἐπέλεξε τὴν ἀναξιότητά μου γιὰ τὴν Ἀρχιερατικὴ διακονία τῆς Ἐκκλησίας μας.

Ὁ Κύριος μᾶς καλεῖ νὰ τὸν ἀκουλουθήσουμε ὁλοκληρωτικὰ καὶ γνήσια, μιμούμενοι αὐθεντικὰ τὴν δική Ττου ζωή, τὴ διακονία του καὶ τὴν σταυροαναστάσιμη πορεία του, κατὰ τὸ «ἐὰν ἐμοί διακονῇ τις, ἐμοὶ ἀκολουθείτω» (Ἰωάννου 10, 26).

Μὲ τὶς δύο αὐτὲς προσκλητήριες λέξεις του «Ἀκολουθείτω μοι» (Λουκᾶ 9, 23) ἀπευθύνει αἰώνιο κάλεσμα καὶ προσδοκᾶ ἀφοσίωση, βίωση τῆς ὀντολογικῆς ἀλήθειάς του, ὅπως φανερώθηκε στὸ θεϊκὸ πρόσωπό του.

Σ᾽ αὐτὸ τὸ κάλεσμα ἀνταποκρίνομαι γιὰ μία ἀκόμη φορὰ μὲ τὴν σημερινὴ εἰς Ἐπίσκοπον χειροτονία τῆς ἀναξιότητός μου, στεκόμενος ἐνώπιον Θεοῦ καὶ ἀνθρώπων.

Κατανοῶ, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπιθυμῶ νὰ βιώσω καὶ νὰ πορευθῶ στὴν Ἀρχιερατικὴ πορεία μου μὲ πνεῦμα θυσιαστικὸ καὶ ὄχι ἐξουσιαστικό, πνεῦμα ταπείνωσης καὶ ὄχι ὑπεροχῆς,

πνεῦμα διακονίας μετ᾽ αὐταπαρνήσεως καὶ ὄχι ὑπεροπτικῆς ἐξουσίας,

μὲ κατάθεση δωρεᾶς τοῦ χαρίσματός του καὶ ὄχι ἀποκομίσεως ἰδίου ὀφέλους,

μὲ διάθεση προσευχητικῆς ἀναφορᾶς πρὸς τὸν Πανάγαθο Θεό μας καὶ ὄχι ὡς διανοητικῆς προσέγγισης διαχείριση τῶν πραγμάτων,

μετὰ πνεύματος καρδιακῆς προσέγγισης τῆς ποιμαντικῆς καὶ ὄχι ὡς νοητικῆς διαχείρισης της,

μετὰ δυναμικῆς ἐν Χριστῷ καὶ ὄχι στατικῆς ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ διακονίας,

μετὰ πνεύματος τὸ ὁποῖο θὰ φωτίζει «ὡς λύχνος πᾶσι τοῖς ἐν τῆ οἰκία»,

τέλος δέ μὲ εὐχαριστιακὴ καὶ δοξολογικὰ ἀναφορὰ αὐτῆς πρὸς τὸν Πανάγιο Πατέρα ὅλων μας.

Αὐτὴ ἡ πορεία γνωρίζω ὅτι χρειάζεται ὑπομονή, πραότητα, καὶ ἀγάπη μέχρι θανάτου, «ὅτι κραταιὰ ὡς θάνατος ἡ ἀγάπη του» (Ἆσμα 8,6) (γιατὶ εἶναι δυνατὰ σὰν θάνατος ἡ ἀγάπη του).

Ὁ Ἐπίσκοπος συνυφασμένος καὶ ταυτισμένος μὲ τὸ ἐκκλησιαστικὸ γεγονὸς ἐν τῇ θείᾳ Εὐχαριστίᾳ καὶ τὴν ἐν Χριστῷ κοινωνία μὲ τοὺς πιστούς, δὲν νοεῖται ἐκτὸς τῆς Ἐκκλησίας καὶ τοῦ σώματος αὐτῆς.

Μὲ ὅλα τὰ παραπάνω καλούμεθα νὰ διακονήσουμε σὲ ἕνα κόσμο ποὺ τὰ τελευταῖα ἔτη παρουσιάζει συνεχῶς ἔντονες προκλήσεις ἀλλὰ καὶ συνεχιζόμενες προσκλήσεις γιὰ ἐνεργή, αὐθεντική, καθολικὴ καὶ ζωντανὴ παρουσία τῆς Ἐκκλησίας καὶ τοῦ λόγου αὐτῆς «παντί τῷ αἰτούντι».

Ἀκολουθώντας τὴν σκέψη καὶ τὸν προβληματισμὸ ἑνὸς μεγάλου συγχρόνου θεολόγου τοῦ ἀειμνήστου Μητροπολίτου Περγάμου Ἰωάννου Ζηζιούλα «Χρειαζόμαστε ἑρμηνεία τῶν δογμάτων μας μὲ ὑπαρξιακοὺς ὅρους [...] Δὲν ὑπάρχει δόγμα τῆς Ἐκκλησίας μας ποὺ νὰ μὴν ἔχει κάτι νὰ πεῖ γιὰ τὰ πραγματικὰ προβλήματα τοῦ ἀνθρώπου». Ἡ Ἐκκλησία δρᾶ στὴν προοπτικὴ τῆς συγχώρησης, τῆς μετάνοιας καὶ τῆς μεταμόρφωσης τοῦ κόσμου σὲ Βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ, στὴν ἀνακεφαλαίωση ὅλων τῶν πραγμάτων ἐν Χριστῷ, στὴν ἀνάδειξη «τῆς ἀξίας καὶ τοῦ μεγαλείου τοῦ ἀνθρωπίνου προσώπου ὡς εἰκόνος Θεοῦ»,

At this moment, please allow me -- as is my solemn responsibility to mention the persons who have supported and nurtured me both ecclesiastically and spiritually along my path thus far.

First of all, as is meet and right, to the recollection of His All-Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, expressing my filial devotion and my utmost and profound respect to the Most Venerable Head of the Great Church of Christ, the Ecumenical Patriarchate, to which our Eparchy spiritually belongs. For the Holy Mother Church of Constantinople is the eternal and authentic guardian of fidelity to apostolic responsibility and to our universal mission, as well as the guarantor of the unity of our Church and our Faith.

I now turn to you, your Eminence, to express my profound gratitude. For you, Archbishop Elpidophoros, are the Chief Shepherd of our Archdiocese, and from the bottom of my heart, at this sacred moment I express my thankfulness to you -- for your paternal and benevolent love, for your confidence and for your magnanimous embrace that overshadows all with fatherly affection. What is more, Your Eminence has seen fit to entrust to my humble person the position of Chancellor of our National Church.

By making me your close co-worker and a companion at your table, I owe you my boundless respect and eternal gratitude. I pray that our All-Good Lord will grant you long life, good health and God's strength, so that, as today so in the future, you may continue to guide the ship of the Church in America as an experienced navigator with exemplary wisdom and prudence, unto the unity and salvation of all Her believers, as you fulfill your dutiful, multidimensional, and myriad Arch-Pastoral labors.

My gratitude and thanks to all the members of the Holy Eparchial Synod for accepting the kind proposal of the Archbishop and for including me to the triprosopon.

And of course to His All Holiness and all the members of the Holy and Sacred Synod for offering their vote unanimously to my humble person.

I would like to express my deepest appreciation for Metropolitan Alexios of Atlanta whom I first met when I was a young man in Astoria and he was the Dean of the St. Demetrios Cathedral. He was the first Hierarch that I had a deep connection and had the opportunity to assist. Those days bring back great memories when Astoria was at it’s peak and the Church was overflowing with Parishioners.

Κατάθεση ὀφειλετικῆς εὐχαριστίας, εὐγνωμοσύνης καὶ χαρᾶς κατὰ τὸ «χαίρετε μετὰ χαιρόντων» (Ρωμ. 12, 15), ἀπευθύνομαι ἰδιαιτέρως στοὺς πολυσεβάστους πολιοὺς Ἀρχιερεῖς ποὺ προσῆλθαν ἀπὸ τὴν ἀγαπημένη πατρίδα μας, τὴν Ἑλλάδα καὶ μὲ τιμοῦν μὲ τὴν σημερινὴ παρουσία τους. Πρωτίστως τὸν Σεβασμιώτατο Μητροπολίτη Σερβίων καὶ Κοζάνης κ. Παῦλο, ἀπὸ τὸν ὁποῖο, ὡς πνευματικὸ τέκνο του ἔλαβα μὲ περίσσεια ἀγάπη τὰ πρῶτα διδάγματα καὶ τὴν σοφὴ καθοδήγησή του στὰ πρῶτα βήματά μου στὴν ἱερωσύνη.

Ἰδιαιτέρως εὐχαριστῶ τὸν Σεβασμίωτατο Μητροπολίτη Βεροίας, Ναούσης καὶ Καμπανίας κ. Παντελεήμονα, στὸν ὁποῖο ὑπερπλεονάζει τὸ χάρισμα τῆς ἐν Χριστῶ ἀγάπης του πρὸς ὅλους ποὺ βρίσκονται πλησίον του. Ἔτσι καὶ ἐγώ, ἔχοντας λάβει τὴν πλούσια εὐλογία του, αἰσθάνομαι τὸ τίμιο προσωπό του καὶ τὴν παρουσία του «ἐγγύτερόν μου» (βλ. Ρωμ. 13,11).

I must also mention with much gratitude and respect, the former Archbishop of America, His Eminence Demetrios. It was he who invited me to return from Greece to the United States, and gifted me with the wonderful Parishes of Saint Nicholas in Babylon, New York, and finally the Cathedral of Saint Demetrios in Astoria.

I am fortunate to have connected on a personal level with many Hierarchs that I can call friends. His Eminence Metropolitan of New Jersey Apostolos, whom I met when I was visiting as a Clergy from Greece and he was serving at St. Demetrios in Astoria. My parents and family had an opportunity to host him many times. I’m grateful for him for being at their funeral.

With His Eminence Metropolitan of Chicago Nathanael we have been friends for many years and when he was in New York we had many chances to get together and share our concerns about the Church and how it could better serve the faithful. It’s a blessing to be here serving the Church as Hierarchs where we can make a difference.

Both, their Eminencies Apostolos and Nathanael, voted for me as members of the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, for which I am grateful. His Eminence Apostolos served also as the Nymfagogos, as is the term, during the holy service of the election.

I am grateful as well to all the Hierarchs who have come to welcome me into the company of the Bishops of the Church. For all of them I’m grateful for their support:

His Grace Bishop Sevastianos of Zela

His Grace Bishop Joachim of Amissos

His Grace Bishop Athenagoras of Nazianzos

His Grace Bishop Constantine of Sasima

His Grace Bishop Theophan of the Philomelion

His Grace Bishop Χριστοφόρος of Amfipolis

My thanks also go to the clergy with whom I have been connected through my life here in the United States and in Greece, and who "honored [me] with many honors and supplied me with what was needful." (Acts 28, 10). I thank all of them for their friendship.

At this moment and with great emotion I recall my late parents, Vasilios and Aspasia, who brought me up "in the teaching and admonition of the Lord," and raised me "to live well, according to Christ.” Their care and guidance are the indispensable provisions for my life, and especially my priestly ministry.

Also in my heart is my late grandmother, Giannoula, for she was the spiritual beacon in our family, passing on to all of us love for the Church and our fellow man. I am thankful and with emotion I remember the late brother of my grandmother, Father Spyridon Xenos. It was he who connected us with the Garden of the Panagia, Mount Athos, where I continue to maintain spiritual communication, especially with the ascetic fathers of Nea Skete, to whom I return every year and refresh myself spiritually.

I express as well my gratitude to my siblings, with whom I share deep connections of love, mutual appreciation and respect. First, my brother, Father Panagiotis with his beloved and excellent family. Together with his worthy Presvytera Christina, whom I esteem and consider as my little sister, they are raising their good children, Marianna, Demetris and Vasilios, in an exemplary manner with the ethical mind of the Church. I am proud of them and glorify our All-Good God that we work together closely and fraternally in our ministry to our Chief Shepherd, Your Eminence, Archbishop Elpidophoros. I also owe a special note of gratitude to my dear sister Ioanna, who always willingly and lovingly offers whatever help is asked of her.

I also owe my thanks to my brothers in Christ who are here with me today to share in my joy, from afar my spiritual father, Hieromonk Benedictos, a father of New Skete on the Holy Mountain, and whom I ask to accompany me with his prayers and his spiritual admonitions in my ministry and my new course in our Church.

My gratitude goes as well to Archimandrite Vasileios Drosos, with whom I studied and by whom I was taught many useful things in matters of administration for ministry to the faithful of our Church.

I feel great joy, jubilation and gratitude for everyone, reciprocating the love and offering of all those I mentioned above, wishing and praying that they receive the infinite and rich Grace of our All-Merciful God.

I am also asking all of you to pray for me at this supreme moment, that I might be found worthy of the call of God, and the apostolic gift of the Episcopacy that I will receive from the Holy hands of our Most Reverend Chief Shepherd and the most venerable Hierarchs around him.

I ask "that the power of Christ may overshadow me", through the embassies of my patron Saint Nektarios of Pentapolis, so that I may become "a type of the faithful in speech, in repentance, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity", so that my humble ministry is called "precious", "worthy", "blessed", "holy" (Ignatius Theophoros).

Before God, I stand before you, Most Reverend Father and Master, and in the midst of the people I unworthily but sincerely repeat the words of His Prophet:

Here am I, Lord; send me! (ἰδοὺ εἰμὶ ἐγώ, ἀπόστειλόν με. Ιsaiah 6:8)

Amen.

Photos: GOARCH/Dimitrios Panagos