Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Canada

The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Canada (formerly known as the Holy Metropolis Of Toronto) is an archdiocese of the Eastern Orthodox Church based in Canada. It is under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. The present Archbishop and Exarch of All Canada is Sotirios Athanassoulas.[5] Its jurisdiction covers members of the Greek Orthodox community living in Canada. Archbishop Sotirios was born in Arta, Epiros in Greece. The headquarters of the archdiocese is in the East York district of Toronto.

Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Canada

Ελληνική Ορθόδοξη Αρχιεπισκοπή Καναδά
Annunciation Of The Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Cathedral, Toronto
Location
CountryCanada
Headquarters86 Overlea Boulevard, Toronto.
Coordinates43.708578°N 79.339025°W / 43.708578; -79.339025
Statistics
Parishes75[1]
Members350,000
Information
DenominationEastern Orthodox
RiteByzantine Rite
Established
  • 1960: Ninth Archdiocesan District of GOARCH.
  • 1996: Metropolis of Toronto (Canada).
  • 2019: Archdiocese of Canada.[2][3]
CathedralAnnunciation of The Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Cathedral, Toronto.[4]
LanguageGreek Language
English Language
PatriarchBartholomew I of Constantinople
Metropolitan ArchbishopSotirios (Athanassoulas), Archbishop of Canada and Exarch of the Arctic
Website
www.gometropolis.org

Parishes and monasteries
Metropolitan Sotirios

As of 2020 there are 75 parishes in Canada. They are organised into four regions:

  • Atlantic Canada (4 parishes)
  • Ontario (39 parishes)[6]
  • Quebec (13 parishes)
  • Western Canada (19 parishes)[7][8]

There are two monasteries in the metropolis.[9]

History

At the beginning of the 20th century there were approximately 300 Canadians of Greek descent. The first community was established in Montreal in 1896. This was followed in 1909 by the community of "St. George" in Toronto and by "Holy Trinity" in Thunder Bay in 1918. At this time, all of the Americas were part of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.

The first Bishop in Canada, Metropolitan Athenagoras of Elaia, was appointed by the Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras I in 1960. He was succeeded by Bishop Timothy of Rodostolon (1963-1967) and by Bishop Theodosios of Ancona (1967-1973).

Sotirios Athanassoulas was elected Bishop on December 18, 1973 and ordained on January 27, 1974. On September 24 1996, he was elevated to the rank of "Metropolitan Archbishop of Toronto and Exarch of all Canada".[10]

At the start of his episcopate, the number of parishes in the metropolis stood at 22. Under his tenure, that number has grown to 76 and 350,000 Greek Orthodox Christians. In 1993, the Convents of St. Kosmas of Aitolos in Ontario, and the Virgin Mary of Consolation in Quebec were established.

In 1998, the "Toronto Orthodox Theological Academy" was founded.[11]

Episcopacy
  • Archbishop Sotirios (Athanassoulas) of Canada and Exarch of the Arctic[2][3] (1974–present)

Auxiliary bishops
  • Bishop Bartholomew (Mostratos) of Keramos[12][13] (July 2020 – present)
  • Bishop Athenagoras (Salmas) of Patara[12][14] (July 2020 – present)
  • Bishop Iakovos (Antonopoulos) of Zenoupolis[12][15] (July 2020 – present)

Deceased hierarchs

List of bishops who have served the Greek Orthodox Church in Canada historically, and the years served:

  • Bishop Theodosios (Sideris) of Ancona,[16] GOA Ninth (Canadian) District (1967-1973)
  • Bishop Timotheos (Haloftis) of Rodostolou,[17] GOA Ninth (Canadian) District (1963-1967)
  • Metropolitan Athenagoras (Kokkinakis) of Elaia,[18] GOA Ninth (Canadian) District (1960-1963)

References
  1. Parishes. Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Canada.
  2. Metropolis of Toronto Named Archdiocese of Canada. The National Herald. 20/6/2019. Retrieved: August 13, 2020.
  3. Toronto Mayor John Tory and Councillor Jim Karygiannis Congratulate Archbishop Sotirios. Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Canada. July 7, 2019. Retrieved: August 13, 2020.
  4. (in Greek) Archbishop Iakovos (Coucouzis) of America. "Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church - Cathedral Letter." Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North and South America. 14 November 1967.
  5. "Holy Metropolis Of Toronto". patriarchate. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  6. St Nicholas Greek Orthodox parish - new church openedly opened its doors on December 4, 1983.
  7. Orthodox Times - Archbishop Sotirios met Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides in Calgary.
  8. Greek Orthodox Church in Regina - St Paul's parish.
  9. GOMetropolis - Monasteries
  10. Greek Reporter - Andrew Scheer, Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada and Leader of the Opposition, visited the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Canada on Friday and congratulated the Archbishop on the recent elevation of the Metropolis of Toronto to the Archdiocese of Canada.
  11. Orthodox Times - Commencement Ceremonies of the Patriarchal Toronto Orthodox Theological Academy.
  12. The ordinations of the three Auxiliary Bishops for the Archdiocese of Canada. ΟΡΘΟΔΟΞΙΑ INFO. 01/08/2020 / 11:41. Retrieved: August 13, 2020.
  13. HG Bishop Ioan Casian participated in the ordination HG Bartholomew of Keramos vicar - bishop (Ecumenical Patriarchate - Canada). The Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Canada. July 27, 2020. Retrieved: August 13, 2020.
  14. (in Greek) Η Χειροτονία του Επισκόπου Πατάρων Αθηναγόρου στο Τορόντο. Ορθοδοξία News Agency. 27/07/2020 - 10:06. Retrieved: August 13, 2020.
  15. (in Greek) Χειροτονία Επισκόπου Ζηνουπόλεως Ιακώβου (ΒΙΝΤΕΟ). ΡΟΜΦΑΙΑ (Romfea.gr). 30/07 16:54. Retrieved: August 13, 2020.
  16. Bishop Theodosios (Sideris). Canadian Orthodox History Project. Retrieved: August 13, 2020.
  17. Bishop Timotheos (Haloftis). Canadian Orthodox History Project. Retrieved: August 13, 2020.
  18. Archbishop Athenagoras (Kokkinakis). Canadian Orthodox History Project. Retrieved: August 13, 2020.
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