WCC congratulates Ecumenical Patriarch on 35th anniversary of enthronement

WCC congratulates Ecumenical Patriarch on 35th anniversary of enthronement

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Wed, 10/21/2026 - 16:45

The World Council of Churches (WCC) sent a congratulatory message to His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I upon the 35th anniversary of his enthronement.

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Photo: Albin Hillert/WCC

“ With deep joy and gratitude to the Triune God, the World Council of Churches extends its warmest congratulations to Your All-Holiness on the 35th anniversary of your enthronement as Archbishop of Constantinople – New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch, on 2 November 1991,” wrote WCC general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay. “ The fellowship of the World Council of Churches holds a special debt of gratitude to the Ecumenical Patriarchate.”

Pillay recalled with particular affection the Ecumenical Patriarch ’ s own personal bonds with the ecumenical movement: his years of study at the Ecumenical Institute at Bossey, his long service on the WCC Faith and Order Commission, and his steadfast encouragement of the churches to seek together the visible unity to which Christ calls us.

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