Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew / Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew invited more than 50 lonely Greeks of Constantinople, to celebrate with their spiritual father, in a family atmosphere, at Christmas. Mr. Bartholomew blessed the holiday meal he hosted at the Patriarchal Urban School of Maraslis, which after its recent renovation serves the needs of the Patriarchate.
Earlier it stood out, in a festive and joyful atmosphere, at the divine service, which was held in the patriarchal church of Agios Georgios. The ambassador of Greece to Turkey, Theodoros Bizakis, was present, clergy, holy monks, representatives of Christian communities of the City, ruling officials of the Great Church of Christ under the General Secretary of their brotherhood "Panagia the Pammakaristos" Konstantinos Delikostanis, the consul general of Ukraine in Istanbul, Roman Nedilski and the consul of Greece Theofilos Georgakis, and a multitude of believers from Istanbul and abroad.
Subsequently, the Ecumenical Patriarch received at the Patriarchal Office the ambassador of Greece with whom he exchanged warm wishes, asking him to convey to the Greek state and the pious Greek people the Christmas wishes and the love of the Mother Church. He then received the abbot of the Holy Monastery of Vatopedi on Mount Athos, Archimandrite Mr. Ephraim, with members of his fraternity and lay associates.
The Ecumenical Patriarch also accepted, the wishes of the mayors of Istanbul districts, where historically there is a presence of the Greek minority, of Pera, Inan Gunai, of Sisli, Resul Emrah Shahan and Sariger, Mustafa Oktai Aksu, as well as the representative of the municipality of Diplokionio. In his short speech he thanked them for their presence, underlining that this demonstrates a spirit of unity and solidarity.
He also emphasized that his desire is for a similar spirit to prevail in the Middle East as well, where thousands of our fellow human beings, especially children, they live in the shadow of war, and appealed again for the prevalence of peace.
"We pray to Almighty God to stop the bloodshed", said the Patriarch expressing the hope that the politicians, through dialogue, they will put an end to war conflicts. Especially for the situation in Syria, he again declared his support for the aging Patriarchate of Antioch and wished the new governors of the country to serve all citizens, regardless of religion, as all are children of the same God.
Concluding his short speech, he expressed his joy for the Pope's upcoming visit to Turkey, and wished a Merry Christmas to all Christians living in the country, and happy new year to all citizens.