Metropolitan Cleopas of Sweden and All Scandinavia, who is serving as a member of the Holy and Sacred Synod during the current Synodal period, participated in the deliberations of the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, convened from May 26th to 28th, 2026.
On this occasion, Metropolitan Cleopas was received in audience by the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, to whom he presented a copy of his newly published study entitled “Saint George Cathedral of Stockholm” («Ο Καθεδρικός Ναός Αγίου Γεωργίου Στοκχόλμης»).
The new publication by Metropolitan Cleopas, comprising 800 pages in the Greek edition and 620 pages in the English edition, has been issued by the Apostoliki Diakonia of the Church of Greece under the supervision of its General Director, Metropolitan Agathangelos of Fanarion, together with his distinguished collaborators.
The publication commemorates the fiftieth anniversary of the donation/transfer of the Saint George Cathedral of Stockholm by the Catholic Apostolic Church to the Holy Metropolis of Sweden and All Scandinavia.
The volume is divided into four chapters. The first chapter traces the acquisition of the Cathedral during the episcopacy of the late Metropolitan Pavlos of blessed memory, presenting the historical circumstances that preceded the transfer of ownership, the church consecration, the first phase of restoration, and the liturgical life of the Cathedral in its formative years.
The second chapter is devoted to the episcopal ministry of the present Metropolitan Cleopas. Particular emphasis is placed upon the growth and outreach of the Holy Metropolis in recent years, national commemorations, visits by clergy and distinguished guests, as well as the second phase of the Cathedral’s restoration. This phase included the exterior restoration completed in 2019 and the interior restoration started in 2020.
Special reference is made to the installation of new iconography, the construction and placement of a new hand-carved wooden iconostasis bearing twenty-seven holy icons, and the overall aesthetic and liturgical enhancement of the Cathedral.
The third chapter is dedicated to the three Patriarchal Visits to Sweden, events of exceptional significance in the life of the Holy Metropolis. These historic occasions bear witness to the living bond between the local Church of Sweden and the Mother Church of Constantinople, while underscoring the pastoral concern of the Ecumenical Patriarchate for its faithful in the Scandinavian countries.
The fourth and concluding chapter contains an extensive photographic appendix, bringing together a rich collection of historical material, including engravings, architectural drawings, archival documents, and rare photographs. This material constitutes an important historical source in its own right and substantially enriches the scholarly value of the publication.
The Ecumenical Patriarch congratulated Metropolitan Cleopas for the considerable labour invested in the preparation of this monumental study and for his wider contribution to ecclesiastical scholarship.
At the same time, the Ecumenical Patriarch expressed the appreciation of the Mother Church to Metropolitan Agathangelos of Fanarion for both the publication of the present work and the multifaceted ministry of the Apostoliki Diakonia of the Church of Greece.
Following the audience, Metropolitan Cleopas presented copies of the volume to the Members of the Holy and Sacred Synod, as well as to the Chief Secretary of the Holy and Sacred Synod, Archimandrite Vosporios; to Codicographer Evlogios, presently serving as Deputy Secretary; and to the Archon Didaskalos tou Genous of the Great Church of Christ and Director of the First Patriarchal Office, Mr. Konstantinos Delikostantis.
