The profound contemporary relevance of the teachings of the Three Hierarchs was underscored by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, as he delivered the keynote address at the official celebration of the Feast of the Three Hierarchs, held today at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. The ceremony took place in the Ceremonial Hall of the University and brought together representatives of the Church, the state, and the academic community.
In his address, the Ecumenical Patriarch emphasized that the theology, piety, ecclesial ethos, anthropological wisdom, and pedagogical ideas found in the writings of Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, and John Chrysostom remain strikingly актуal. He noted that the Three Hierarchs uniquely articulated the experience of salvation in Christ by employing Greek philosophical terminology, allowing Christianity to engage creatively and convincingly with the cultural environment shaped by Greek language and education, while simultaneously enriching both theology and philosophy.
“The commemoration of the great Fathers is not a reference to the past,” the Patriarch stressed, “but to a living ecclesial tradition of theory and practice that illuminates the present and serves as a guide for our future.” Central to the spirit of the Three Hierarchs, he explained, is the conviction that education lies at the heart of human formation. True education, he said, presupposes human freedom and seeks to guide it toward the good, reminding his audience that freedom is always a task and a responsibility, not an automatic achievement.
Reflecting on contemporary challenges, Patriarch Bartholomew observed that the education of younger generations has become increasingly demanding, especially amid the dominance of new technologies and economic criteria in educational systems. While acknowledging the value of technological tools, he warned that transforming schools into mere “paradises of new technologies” or organizing education solely on economic grounds fails to address the deeper meaning of education, which concerns the formation of the human person.
Addressing the rapid development of technological culture and artificial intelligence, the Patriarch underlined that scientific progress does not render obsolete our understanding of the human person, freedom, and moral responsibility. He recalled the declaration of the Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church that scientific knowledge alone does not activate moral will. Genuine spirituality and responsible freedom, he argued, require ethical and religious formation rooted in the faith, ethos, and culture of Orthodoxy. In this light, religious faith emerges as a complementary “great power,” reminding humanity that the human person always transcends what science alone can comprehend.
In his welcoming remarks, the Rector of Aristotle University, Professor Kyriakos Anastasasiadis, highlighted that education is not merely a matter of knowledge but fundamentally one of relationship, responsibility, and a way of life. He noted that the presence of the Ecumenical Patriarch lent particular weight and symbolism to the celebration, as the Feast of the Three Hierarchs remains a timeless point of reference for both Greek and universal education.
The event concluded with the traditional New Year’s cake cutting of the University and was attended by representatives of the government, parliament, local authorities, the armed forces, the Church hierarchy, and members of the academic community, affirming the enduring dialogue between faith, education, and society.
Photos: Dimisthenis Tsavdarikis
