Metropolitan Arsenios of Austria and Exarch of Hungary consecrated the Church of the Three Hierarchs at the Orthodox Christian Dialogue Center “Fanarion” of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Budapest on Thursday, August 20, 2026.
The consecration took place with the blessing and encouragement of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew on the day when the Church commemorates Bishop Hierotheos and King Stephen, Enlighteners of the Hungarians, which also coincides with Hungary’s national holiday.
The newly consecrated church, dedicated to St Basil the Great, St Gregory the Theologian and St John Chrysostom, is located within the “Fanarion” Center, which will serve as the headquarters of the Exarchate of Hungary in Budapest.
Metropolitan Arsenios concelebrated with Bishop Paisios of Apamea and Bishop Maximos of Arista, together with clergy from the Exarchate of Hungary and the Metropolis of Austria.
In his homily, Metropolitan Arsenios reflected on the deeper meaning of the consecration of a church, stressing that it represents far more than the completion of a construction project. Rather, it marks the dedication of a particular place to the grace of God.
He said that the stones of the church would become witnesses to prayer, while its walls would receive “the whisper of repentance, the supplication of those who suffer, the joy of the child, the thanksgiving of the faithful, and the silence of those who can no longer find words with which to pray.”
The Gospel will be proclaimed and the Divine Eucharist celebrated there, he added, describing the church as a place “where time will meet eternity.”
Referring to the Three Hierarchs, Metropolitan Arsenios noted that the Church sees in them a profound reconciliation between faith and reason, theology and education, truth and love. Their example, he said, demonstrates that truth does not fear intellectual inquiry and that theology brings philosophy to fulfillment through divine Revelation.
Metropolitan Arsenios also highlighted the historic ties between the Ecumenical Patriarchate and Hungary. He described the Ecumenical Patriarchate, as the Mother Church of many peoples and regions, as having served for centuries an Orthodoxy that bears witness to the faith without enclosing or isolating itself, but instead seeks encounters that can be transformed into communion.
“The consecration does not end today; it begins today,” the Metropolitan emphasized. He expressed the hope that the church would continually be “consecrated anew” whenever someone entered burdened and departed with hope, whenever a child lit their first candle, or whenever a stranger found hospitality, the suffering found consolation, the young found direction, and the despairing heard a word of life.
Above all, he said, this would occur whenever the people of God gathered around the Holy Altar and “the many become one body in Christ.”
Metropolitan Arsenios expressed his gratitude to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, who had supported the establishment of the Orthodox Christian Dialogue Center from the outset, recognizing in it an important opportunity for Christian witness, encounter and service in the heart of Budapest.
He also thanked the Hungarian people for their support and the Hungarian government for providing the legal and institutional framework and financial assistance for the project.
The Metropolitan concluded by expressing the hope that the new church would become “a place where heaven and earth meet,” bringing blessings to the people of Hungary and the faithful of the Exarchate.
Following the service, a gathering was held, providing an opportunity for conversation and dialogue with the bishops.
Photos: Andras D. Hajdu
