With a sense of responsibility and pastoral concern for the sufferings that plague humanity, especially the much-tried African continent, Pope and Patriarch Theodore II addresses a Patriarchal and Synodal Letter to the local governments and peoples, calling for peace, justice, and reconciliation.
The Patriarch unequivocally condemns every form of violence, war, and violation of human dignity, emphasizing that peace constitutes a central evangelical truth and an essential condition for the progress and future of humankind.
This appeal is a voice of spiritual awakening and a call to action for all people of goodwill, reminding everyone that “peace is our only choice.”
Patriarchal and Synodal Letter
(Addressed to the local governments of the states within the canonical jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Alexandria)
In a world that has experienced, in the previous century, two catastrophic World Wars with millions of human victims and incalculable material destruction; countless civil conflicts, genocides, and displacements; with war zones still burning to this day and crimes against humanity continuing even now, it seems that we have not yet fully realized the urgent necessity for the prevalence of peace and reconciliation.
Sadly, the powerful of the earth continue to walk the path of lawlessness, seeking material power and wealth at the expense of the many and innocent—those deprived even of the most basic means for survival. The African continent has bitter experience of such past calamities, as well as of ruthless colonialism and merciless economic exploitation, which left deep wounds that still afflict our African brothers and sisters to this very day.
The Orthodox Church has always prayed and striven for the establishment of peace, as it constitutes a central evangelical teaching and imperative, as was also emphasized by the Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church (Crete, 2016): “The Orthodox Church recognizes and continually highlights the central place of peace and justice in human life. The very revelation in Christ is characterized as ‘the gospel of peace’ (Eph. 6:15), for Christ, ‘having made peace through the blood of His Cross,’ reconciled all things (Col. 1:20), ‘preached peace to those who were far off and to those who were near’ (Eph. 2:17), and became ‘our peace’ (Eph. 2:14).
This peace, which ‘surpasses all understanding’ (Phil. 4:7), is broader and deeper than the peace the world promises: ‘Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you’ (John 14:27).
For the peace of Christ is the mature fruit of the recapitulation of all things in Him, the revelation of the worth and greatness of the human person as the image of God, the organic unity of the human race, the universality of the principles of peace, freedom, and social justice, and finally, the fruit of Christian love among all people and nations.”
The Ancient and Second Throne Patriarchate of Alexandria, not only as the oldest functioning institution of Africa but also as the sole canonical guardian of the Orthodox Faith on the African continent—despite northern challenges and unbrotherly attacks—watches with profound anxiety and heartfelt pain the tragic events unfolding across Africa: the persecutions of Christians in Nigeria by fanatical Islamists, the crimes against civilians in the Congo, the civil wars in Somalia, Sudan, and Mozambique, the armed conflicts in Ethiopia and South Sudan, the bloody anti-government demonstrations in Madagascar, and so many others.
Likewise, we grieve over the tragic events occurring beyond the pastoral boundaries of our Patriarchate: the massacres of Christians in the Middle East, the discrimination against them in Syria, the bloodshed and genocide in Palestine and the Gaza Strip, and many other horrors.
The Holy Synod of the Patriarchate of Alexandria, which met from the 6th to the 9th of October 2025 under the presidency of His Beatitude Theodore II, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria, and with the participation of hierarchs from all parts of Africa, after careful study of all the above, expressed the firm and unwavering commitment of the Throne of the Holy Apostle Mark to the establishment and cultivation of peace, justice, reconciliation, and equality.
We condemn, in the most categorical and unambiguous terms, and express our abhorrence for the crimes committed against our innocent brothers and sisters, regardless of religious affiliation or racial origin. We emphatically affirm that violence against the human person constitutes a modern form of blasphemy—indeed, of fighting against God—since the human being, according to the biblical teaching, was created “in the image and likeness” (Gen. 1:23) of his Creator.
Furthermore, we make an earnest appeal to political, spiritual, and religious leaders, both in Africa and throughout the world, to work for the triumph of peace, for the immediate cessation of hostilities in war-torn regions, for the repatriation of displaced persons, for economic assistance and the reconstruction of destroyed infrastructures and homes, and for the full respect of the human rights of all people everywhere—without discrimination or reservation.
We call upon every person of good will to embrace and spread this appeal, so that the cause of peace may gain strong momentum and become an effective lever of moral pressure upon those in authority.
We have reached a critical juncture. This is the time for deeds, not words—for action, not vague and hypocritical well-wishes. Each of us must measure himself against his responsibilities before God, before history, and before “the least of the brethren of the Lord” (cf. Mt. 25:40). Our world, and the much-suffering Africa, cannot continue to endure this tragedy. Peace is our only choice, but also the indispensable condition for revealing the hidden potential of the African continent and for building together a better tomorrow.
We pray that Christ, “having made peace through the blood of His Cross” (Col. 1:20), may swiftly bring His peace to this suffering world.
Peace be unto all!
† Theodore II
Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa
The Synodal Hierarchs
At the Great City of Alexandria
8 October 2025
Translated by Ioanna Georgakopoulou
