GREEK ORTHODOX ARCHDIOCESE OF AMERICA ARCHEPISCOPAL ENCYCLICAL
Prot. No. 130/2024
Archepiscopal Encyclical on AHEPA Sunday
May 19, 2024
Unto the Most Reverend and Right Reverend Hierarchs, Pious Priests and Deacons, Monks and Nuns, Presidents and Members of the Parish Councils, Honorable Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Members of Leadership 100, Day and Afternoon Schools, Philoptochos Societies, Youth, Greek Orthodox Organizations, and entirety of the Christ-loving Plenitude of the Sacred Archdiocese of America:
My beloved brothers and sisters and in the Risen Lord,
Christ is Risen!
On this AHEPA Sunday, when the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America celebrates the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association, let us give thanks to God for AHEPA’s resilience and commitment to Hellenic causes worldwide. Not only is AHEPA a tremendous supporter of our Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Mother Church of Constantinople, but the members and friends of AHEPA champion both Greece and Cyprus in the halls of American power. Especially this year, when we observe the tragic fiftieth anniversary of the unjust and illegal Turkish invasion of the sovereign island Nation of Cyprus, the voice of AHEPA is needed now more than ever.
We all know the members of AHEPA to be faithful members of our Church and parishes. They are our neighbors, our friends and our family. That is why we reserve the third Sunday of May as AHEPA Sunday, to recognize these fellow Hellenes of the Diaspora for the amazing contributions they have made to the Omogeneia and to our Hellenic roots.
Therefore, let us take this opportunity to acknowledge AHEPA in every parish across the country, celebrating the history and impact of this marvelous organization of the Greek-American experience with gratitude and appreciation for their most significant contributions to the Church and the Omogeneia.
Christ is Risen! Truly, He is Risen!
With paternal love in our Risen Lord,
† ELPIDOPHOROS Archbishop of America