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Your Holiness, Your Beatitudes, Your Eminences, Venerable Hierarchs and Clergy, Representatives of Christian Churches, Communions and Organizations throughout the world,
Brothers and sisters in Christ:
by Fr. Panagiotis Kapodistrias
In 2025, the Christian world marks 1700 years since the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea—a defining moment in the theological formation of the Church. The Council responded to a deep need of the early Christian community: the need for a common language of faith, theological clarity, and spiritual orientation. Nicaea became a lasting point of reference for the Church of its time and for every generation seeking the truth of faith through the living experience of the Church.
By Fr. Panagiotis Kapodistrias
The Apostolic Encyclical In unitate fidei, dated 23 November 2025, was issued on the occasion of the 1700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea (325 AD). It is a theologically rich, historically grounded, and ecclesiologically oriented document. Pope Leo XIV offers more than a commemorative reflection; he presents a proposal centered on the renewal of faith in the Holy Trinity as a wellspring of life for the Church and for the modern believer.
George Florovsky
The city of Nicaea was selected as the city to host the First Ecumenical Council. Constantinople was to be officially inaugurated only in 330 and hence at the time of the convening of the Council of Nicaea the imperial residence was in Nicomedia, very close to Nicaea. Nicaea — its name comes from the Greek for “victory” — was easily accessible by sea and land from all parts of the empire. The imperial letter convening the council is no longer extant. Eusebius informs us that the emperor sent letters of invitation to the bishops of all countries and instructed them to come quickly — σπεύδειν άπανταχόθεν τους επισκόπους γράμμασι τιμητικοίς πρoκαλoυμεvoς. All expenses were to be paid from the imperial treasury. The number of bishops present has come down to us as 318 — so states Athanasius, Socrates, and Theodoret. An element of mystical symbolism became attached to this number of 318, some seeing in the Greek abbreviation a reference to the cross and a reference to the “holy name of Jesus.” St. Ambrose in his De fide (i, 18) connected the number of 318 with the number of servants of Abraham in Genesis 14:14. The number differs in other accounts. For example, Eusebius gives the number as two-hundred and fifty — πεντηκοντα και διακοσίων αριθμόν . But Eusebius does not include the number of priests and deacons. Arabic accounts from a later period give the number of more than two-thousand bishops. The extant Latin lists of signatures contain no more than two-hundred and twenty-four bishops. There appears to be no reason why the number of 318 is not in fact accurate. If one includes the number of priests, deacons, and others, then the number may have reached two thousand.
+B A R T H O L O M E W
Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch
Address delivered on Acceptance of the Templeton Prize
(New York, September 24, 2025)
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by Rev. Fr. Panagiotis Kapodistrias
At the outset of the 2025–2026 ecclesiastical year, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew issued, from the ever-radiant Phanar, his annual Patriarchal Message for the Day of Prayer for the Protection of the Environment. This message, steeped in theological insight and spiritual gravity, reaffirms the responsibility entrusted to all Christians with regard to creation—an essential dimension of faith and an expression of Orthodoxy as right action.
† Bartholomew
By the Mercy of God
Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome, and Ecumenical Patriarch
Grace, Peace, and Mercy unto the Plenitude of the Church
From the Fashioner of All Creation
Our Lord and God and Savior Jesus Christ
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On Saturday, August 23, 2025, His All-Holiness attended an Ecumenical Prayer Service as part of the Lutheran Church’s Ecumenical Celebration – Time for God’s Peace – at the Great Church in Stockholm, Sweden. King Carl Gustaf, Queen Silvia and Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson were in attendance.
“Contradictions and Prerequisites of Interreligious Dialogue”
Your Eminences,
Your Excellencies,
Mr. Secretary General,
Distinguished members of the World Council,
Dear friends and colleagues,
Your Eminence, Cardinal Joseph Tobin,
Your Eminence, Archbishop Elpidophoros of America,
Reverend Fathers,
Dear Pilgrims,
Beloved children in the Lord,
With heartfelt joy, we welcome you today to the sacred and historic city of Constantinople – New Rome – as you continue your blessed pilgrimage, “From Rome to New Rome.” Your journey, which leads from the tombs of the Apostles Peter and Paul in Rome to the seat of the Holy Apostle Andrew here in Constantinople, and soon to the ancient city of Nicaea, is a powerful and visible testimony to the Spirit at work in our midst, guiding us along the path of reconciliation, understanding, and unity.
By Fr. Panagiotis Kapodistrias
Damascus remains a heavy place, charged from all sides: socially, politically, religiously, militarily, etc. Centuries ago, it was there that Saul, a fervent Jew and persecutor of Christians, traveled “bearing letters to the synagogues” (Acts 9:2), determined to bring the disciples of Jesus bound to Jerusalem. He had zeal, determination, and religious self-confidence. He believed he was serving God...
Your Grace, Most Reverend Brother, Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York,
Dear Members of the Nikæan Club,
Distinguished Guests and Friends,
With every prayer for the health and prosperity of His Majesty King Charles III, we thank you for this warmest of welcomes, and the sentiments expressed to our humble person by Your Grace.
Τιμιώτατοι ἀδελφοί Ἱεράρχαι,
Ἐξοχώτατοι,
Εὐλαβέστατοι πατέρες, τέκνα ἐν Κυρίῳ λίαν ἀγαπητά,
Ἑορτήν καί πανήγυριν ἄγομεν σήμερα, καθώς καθαγιάσαμεν καί παρεδώκαμεν εἰς τήν λατρείαν τοῦ μόνου ἀληθινοῦ Θεοῦ τόν περίτεχνον τοῦτον Ναόν τοῦ Ὁσίου Σωφρονίου τοῦ Ἀθωνίτου, τοῦ γενομένου Πατρός, Κτίτορος καί τώρα ἐπουρανίου προστάτου τῆς Ἱερᾶς ταύτης Μονῆς.
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Your Grace, Most Reverend Brother in the Lord, Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York,
Your Excellency, Right Reverend Brother in the Lord, Martin Warner, Bishop of Chichester,
Dear Ecumenical Brothers and Sisters from the Church of England,
Beloved Brethren in Christ,
Standing here in this magnificent Cathedral, celebrating its own anniversary of nine hundred and fifty years, we are moved by the grace of the Holy Spirit to give thanks for this ecumenical gathering, which accords the highest honor to the Most Holy and Great First Ecumenical Council of the Three Hundred and Eighteen Fathers gathered in Nicaea. We stand together in this Evensong, from the East and from the West, to pause and reflect upon the Seventeen Hundred years since this sacred Καιρός, that established the Faith of the Apostles once and for all.
On the occasion of the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea and in preparation for Pentecost Sunday, the Lutheran World Federation and the Orthodox Church are issuing a Common Statement on the Holy Spirit, the Church, and the World.
+ B A R T H O L O M E W
By God’s Mercy, Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome
and Ecumenical Patriarch
To the Plenitude of the Church: May God’s Grace and Peace be with you!
We offer a hymn of thanks to the almighty, all-seeing, and benevolent God in Trinity, who vouchsafed that His people reach the 1700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea, which bore spiritual witness to the authentic faith in divine Word born without beginning and truly consubstantial with the Father, “who for us and for our salvation descended, was incarnate and became human, suffered and arose on the third day, and ascended to the heavens, who will come again to judge the living and the dead.”
HIS ALL HOLINESS ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH
B A R T H O L O M E W
Patriarchal Address at the International Scientific Conference
Restarting from Nicaea:
The Importance of the Incarnation in Contemporary Theology
Ecumenical Patriarchate – Holy Metropolis of Pisidia
Akra Hotel – Antalya, Turkey
(May 6, 2025)
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+ B A R T H O L O M E W
By God’s Mercy
Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch
To the Plenitude of the Church:
May the Grace, Peace and Mercy of Christ Risen in Glory be with you All
Most honorable brother Hierarchs,
Dearly beloved children,
By God’s mercy and strength, we have journeyed through prayer and fasting across the ocean of Holy and Great Lent, finally reaching the splendid feast of Pascha, and we praise the Lord of glory, who descended to the depths of Hades and “achieved the entrance for all to Paradise” through His raising from the dead.
by Archpriest Dr Georgios Lekkas
What caused the outpouring of love from Mary and the outpouring of love from the people toward Jesus, as narrated in the Gospel reading for Palm Sunday? Surely, it was the Divine Humility of the Lord Jesus.
+ B A R T H O L O M E W
BY GOD’S MERCY
ARCHBISHOP OF CONSTANTINOPLE – NEW ROME
AND ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH
TO THE PLENITUDE OF THE CHURCH
MAY THE GRACE AND PEACE
OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST,
TOGETHER WITH OUR PRAYER, BLESSING AND FORGIVENESS BE WITH ALL
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By Protopresbyter of the Ecumenical Throne PANAGIOTIS KAPODISTRIAS
Three years after the onset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the voice of truth and justice continues to resonate powerfully from Phanar, the heart of Orthodoxy. In his address to the Ukrainian diplomatic corps and the local Ukrainian community in Constantinople (February 23, 2025), Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew fearlessly expressed the stance of the Ecumenical Patriarchate: the subjugation of a people cannot be tolerated, freedom is non-negotiable, and truth cannot be overshadowed by lies and propaganda.
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“Another person is our own secret self and even more so the hidden Christ.”
— Fr. Georgios Dormparakis*
The Lord Jesus Christ hungered for us, suffered for us, endured pain for us, and was crucified for us so that He might give us the possibility of sharing His resurrection. The pain suffered by the God-Man cannot be compared to that of any human being because it had cosmic dimensions—for the Lord suffered as much as all people have ever suffered or will suffer until His Second Coming. However, there is a further reason why His suffering is also unequalled by any other human being: He alone, of all humanity, was fully aware that He was the Son of God and God Himself precisely at the moment when He was suffering for us all.