Visit of the Archbishop of Crete to the province of Famagusta

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The Free Province of Famagusta was visited on the morning of Thursday, January 14, 2016 by His Eminence Archbishop Ireneos of Crete as part of his official visit to Cyprus, accompanied by the Hierarchical Commissioner of the Holy Archdiocese of Crete, Archbishop Xeros Agios Minas, Heraklion, Fr. Georgios Haniotakis. On behalf of the Church of Cyprus, they were accompanied by the Most Reverend Bishop of Karpasia, Mr. Christoforos.

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The first stop was the Holy Diocese of Constantia-Famagusta in Paralimni where they received a warm welcome from the local Metropolitan Mr. Vassilios. Following the joyfully sounded bells, they entered the Metropolitan Church of Agios Georgios where they worshiped and His Holiness signed the Holy Gospel as a remembrance of his visit.

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After a short conversation at the Mega Synod, they visited the Cultural Center of the Municipality of Famagusta in Deryneia. There they were welcomed by the Deputy Mayor of Famagusta Mr. Simos Ioannou, who guided them to the exhibits of the cultural center. His Holiness and his entourage gazed from afar at the silent and abandoned city of Famagusta, the city of Phantom, which is lost in the decay of time, waiting for the return of its rightful inhabitants to be filled with life again.

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Next stop was Paralimni High School. There they were warmly welcomed by the Director of the School Mr. Adamos Sergiou and the staff of the School, as well as Principals of the other Secondary Schools of our province. Also present was Mr. Michalakis Loizidis, theologian, National Education Officer and District Inspector of Secondary Education Larnaca-Famagusta. In the multipurpose hall, the student youth gave a warm applause to the Archbishop of Crete, who addressed paternal reasons of love and construction to the young people. He even randomly invited three children to the stage, asking them to hear a word from them, to express their thoughts freely, being moved by the maturity and the ethos that govern the way the young children express themselves. After thanking the School Management again for the warm welcome and for the opportunity of this communication with the young people, he distributed to all the students as a blessing and a souvenir from an image of the great martyr Saint Minas.

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At noon, the Most Venerable Metropolitan Mr. Vassilios, hosted a dinner in honor of His Eminence the Archbishop of Crete Mr. Irineos and his entourage, where the corresponding speeches and exchanges of souvenirs were made.

The last stop of the Most Reverend Archbishop of Crete in the province of Famagusta, was the Medieval Monastery of Ayia Napa, where he worshiped the copy of the ancient holy icon and was guided to the Monastery.

Metropolis of Constantia-Famagusta