Archbishop Nikitas of Thyateira and Great Britain has returned to London following his first official visit to Cyprus, which took place from September 24 to October 1, 2022, at the invitation of Archbishop Chrysostom of Cyprus.
Archbishop Nikitas was accompanied by Bishop Iakovos of Claudiopolis, together with the Protopresbyters Fr. Theodoros Polyviou and Fr. Christodoulos Christodoulou of the Archdiocese of Thyateira.
The visit began in Lefkosia with Archbishop Nikitas presiding over a hierarchal concelebration of the Divine Liturgy at the Cathedral of Saint Barnabas. Archbishop Chrysostom and Archbishop Nikitas exchanged warm fraternal greetings and mutually affirmed the strong historic and spiritual bond between the members of their flocks, with both hierarchs commemorating the victims and missing persons of the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus, as well as reiterating their prayers and appeals that this injustice be corrected.
Archbishop Nikitas then embarked on a pilgrimage around the island, visiting the Metropolis of Tamassos and Orinis, the Monastery of St Herakleidios, the Kykkos Monastery, the Metropolis of Paphos, the Monastery of Saint Neophytos the Recluse, the Monastery of St John the Forerunner of Mesa Potamos, the Metropolis of Limassol, the headquarters of the Metropolis of Kyrenia in Lefkosia, the Metropolis of Constantia and Ammochostos, the Monastery of Ayia Napa, the Machairas Monastery, the Metropolis of Kition, and the Church of St Lazarus, all along the way meeting with brother hierarchs, local civil authorities and Orthodox faithful. In the capital, Archbishop Nikitas also visited the Cypriot Parliament, where he was welcomed by Annita Demetriou, Speaker of the House of Representatives. They discussed the life and work of the Archdiocese and the Cypriot diaspora in the United Kingdom, as well as current global events affecting Cyprus and Europe.
