Archbishop Elpidophoros of America took to social media on June 19, 2025, to commemorate Juneteenth—the historic day marking the emancipation of the last enslaved African Americans in Texas in 1865, two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation. He described Juneteenth as “a day of truth-telling and remembrance.”
Recalling the legacy of Archbishop Iakovos, a key figure in the Civil Rights Movement who famously marched alongside Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma, Archbishop Elpidophoros shared a powerful reflection: “I came to the United States because I chose to be in a country where I would not be a second-class citizen. Yet I soon discovered that there were citizens borne into this land who were treated as less than equal.” This testimony underscores the vital truth that “faith without justice is a contradiction, and that silence in the face of inequality is not an option for those who follow Christ.”
As we honor the path from slavery to emancipation and from exclusion to dignity, Archbishop Elpidophoros reminded us of the Gospel’s enduring call: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me… to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed” (Luke 4:18). For him, Juneteenth is “not merely about the past—it is a call to live in truth, and to build a more righteous society, one where the image of God is honored in every human being.”
