Elder Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon highlighted the spiritual significance of the Patriarchal delegation’s visit to the Holy Monastery of Dionysiou, describing the presence of Metropolitans Dimitrios of France and Titus of Kydonia and Apokoronos as “a blessing.”
He noted that Metropolitan Dimitrios bears witness to Orthodoxy in Western Europe, while Metropolitan Titus represents Crete, which he described as “the precious inheritance of the Ecumenical Throne.”
Referring to the Akathist Hymn, Metropolitan Emmanuel recalled that it was composed by people who saw their salvation coming from above. Since then, he said, the refrain “Rejoice, O Bride Unwedded” has become “the common breath of the Orthodox people.”
Addressing Abbot Petros and the brotherhood of the Monastery of Dionysiou, he conveyed the paternal wishes and blessings of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, stressing the sincere esteem in which the Patriarch holds them.
The Metropolitan praised the Abbot’s modesty and discreet presence, noting that he stood in his stall as one of the brothers and personally served guests in the refectory. He added that the monastery’s unostentatious hospitality, dignified chanting, and faithful observance of the monastic order reveal “a spiritual fatherhood that requires no words to make itself felt.”
Metropolitan Emmanuel also reaffirmed the close relationship between the Ecumenical Patriarchate and Mount Athos, declaring that “the Great Church of Christ looks upon Athos with maternal affection and finds comfort in the faithfulness of its twenty holy monasteries.”
Concluding, he emphasized the spiritual unity of Orthodox Christians across the world. The same hymns heard at Dionysiou, he said, were being chanted “from thousands of mouths” in Constantinople, Paris, Chania, and throughout the Orthodox diaspora.
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