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Today, the city of Corinth bid a solemn farewell to its late Metropolitan, Dionysios, with a large congregation of faithful and numerous hierarchs gathered at the Cathedral of the Holy Apostle Paul.
The day began with the celebration of the Divine Liturgy by Metropolitan Ieronymos of Kalavryta, who has been appointed locum tenens of the Metropolis of Corinth. At 11:00 a.m., the funeral service commenced, presided over by Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece.
The Chief Secretary of the Holy Synod, Archimandrite Ioannis Karamouzis, delivered the eulogy, noting:
“Throughout his life, he proclaimed Christ Crucified and Risen… He dedicated himself to shaping Christ in the hearts of the faithful.”
Fr. Ioannis added: “With you, we learned what it means to strive to become a Saint of God,” and recalled the late Metropolitan Dionysios’ final address during the feast of Saint John the Russian last May in Neo Prokopi: “There we heard you say that a person can both say and truly mean, ‘Let it be blessed.’”
Metropolitan Gabriel of Geron Leontopolis conveyed the condolences of Patriarch Theodoros of Alexandria.
On behalf of the clergy of the Holy Metropolis of Corinth, Bishop Agapios of Kechries, Protosyncellus, also offered a eulogy.
Following the funeral service, a procession accompanied the late hierarch to the Cemetery of the Church of the Life-Giving Spring in Corinth. The cortege was led by the marching band of the Municipality of Corinth and an honor guard, where the burial took place.
Following the service, a funeral procession proceeded to the Cemetery of the Life-Giving Spring, accompanied by the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Municipality of Corinth and a military detachment from the School of Engineering in Loutraki.
The late Metropolitan’s body was placed in state yesterday at 6:00 p.m. in the Cathedral of the Holy Apostle Paul, where the faithful gathered to pay their final respects.
Metropolitan Dionysios of Corinth passed away on Thursday, August 7, at the age of 72, at the hospital where he had been receiving care in recent days, following a long battle with cancer.
For an extended period, the hierarch of the Church of Greece had undergone treatment in the United States, where he underwent surgeries in an effort to address the illness.
The late Metropolitan Dionysios of Corinth (born Dionysios Mantalos) was born in 1952 in Neo Psychiko, Athens. He studied at the Faculty of Theology of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and pursued postgraduate studies in Christian Philosophy and Pedagogy at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
He was ordained deacon in 1974 and presbyter in 1979. From 1977, he served in the Holy Metropolis of Chalkida, and, from 1990, as Protosyncellus.
He was responsible for Youth Ministry and the Catechetical Schools of the Metropolis of Chalkida, Director of its Boarding School, and Chairman of the Board of the “Drug Prevention Center” of Evia Prefecture. He also organized and operated Training Schools for church workers (catechists, summer camp staff, and anti-heresy teams).
He oversaw the creation of 25 spiritual centers and the establishment of the modern camps of the Holy Metropolis of Chalkida in Ilia, Evia.
In 2002, he was appointed Deputy Director General of the Apostolic Ministry of the Church of Greece, and in 2006, Chief Secretary of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece.
He engaged actively in writing articles, delivering lectures, participating in conferences, and making numerous radio and television appearances on theological, social, and national issues. On October 15, 2006, he was ordained Metropolitan of Corinth.
Photos: Vasilis Psomas / Eurokinissi
