The Metropolitan of Sweden discusses mission work in Scandinavia at the Church of Greece Event
On Saturday afternoon, February 19, 2022, the Metropolitan Cleopas of Sweden delivered an online presentation entitled “Missionary Work in the Northern Countries” at a catechism conference organized by the missionary arm of the Greek Church, Apostoliki Diakonia. Fr. Bartholomew Iatridis, pastor of St. George’s Cathedral in Stockholm, attended.
Metropolitan Cleopas began his presentation by thanking Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All of Greece, with whose permission priests from Metropolises across Greece are loaned out to support the pastoral ministry of the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s missionary Metropolis in Scandinavia.
He also thanked the Director General of the Apostolic Diakonia Metropolitan Agathangelos of Phanarion for his steadfast and touching support for the ministry provided by the congregations in Sweden’s Holy Metropolis, by publishing liturgical and theological texts, as well as catechetical resources, while expressing his gratitude to the organizer of afternoon catechism conference Ioannis Vidalis.
Afterwards, Metropolitan Cleopas spoke about the venerable head of Orthodoxy, ecumenical patriarch Bartholomew, whose paternal care was shown through his two patriarchal visits to Reykjavik, Iceland in 2017 on the occasion of the Arctic Circle International Assembly, and Stockholm 2019, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of its establishment. of Sweden’s Holy Metropolis.
The Metropolitan of Sweden then referred to the recent rest of its eternally memorable predecessor Metropolitan Pavlos earlier from Amaseia, during whose forty years of arch-pastoral supervision Sweden’s Holy Metropol was able to acquire four churches.
Speaking about his eight-year service in Scandinavia, Metropolitan Cleopas noted that by the grace of God, ten congregational communities have been established (five in Sweden, three in Norway, one in Denmark and one in Iceland), which has more than doubled. the existing number of congregations and increase to a number of active priests serving in Metropolis from one to twelve.
Metropolitan Cleopas also pointed out that the ecumenical patriarch Bartholomew’s visit to Stockholm coincided with the first ever priest-lay conference in his eparchy, which was attended by 250 priests and lay delegates from the congregations operating in the four nations that spiritually constitute Sweden’s holy metropolis. .
Another topic that Metropolitan touched on was the total renovation of the Hermitage which was founded by the always memorable Fr. Eusevios Vittis, who is named in honor of St. Nicholas and located in Rättvik, Sweden, the gift to the Metropolis of a church dedicated to St. Georg of Ioannina the New Martyr, located in Roskilde, Denmark, the purchase of a Metropolis residence, and the complete restoration of St. George Cathedral in Stockholm and Metropolitan Church of theotokos Annunciation of the Theotokos in Oslo.
Concluding his presentation, Metropolitan Cleopas noted that the local church in Scandinavia strives to upgrade its ministries and expand its facilities, citing his vision for the establishment of a cultural center, the promotion of necessary reforms and administrative changes, the adoption of innovative ideas and modern organizational practices, as well as an outreach development strategy to achieve profitability and progress for Metropolis congregations.
The Metropolitan concluded his speech by saying that “we aim to implement our vision for the next fifty years of our local church with an emphasis on charitable works for the public good that will be supported by and present the whole community as stakeholders and have a common mission that is genuinely missionary, academic, municipal, philanthropic and cultural. “