Ecumenical Patriarch: Let the light of Christ illumine our hearts

With deep reverence, the great feast of the Transfiguration of Christ the Savior was celebrated on Prinkipo (Büyükada), where the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew presided on Thursday, August 6, 2026, at the Divine Liturgy held in the Patriarchal and Stavropegic Monastery bearing the feast’s name on the island.

The Patriarch of the Armenians in Turkey, Sahak II, was present, along with Archbishop Nektarios of Anthedon, Commissioner of the Holy Sepulchre in Constantinople, a group of Archons of the Ecumenical Throne and young people from the USA, and a multitude of the faithful.

At the end of the Divine Liturgy, the Ecumenical Patriarch blessed the grapes according to tradition, distributing them to the faithful after the Dismissal, and immediately afterward held a memorial service (Trisagion) for the repose of the soul of the great benefactor of the Nation, Symeon Siniosoglou, before his tomb, located beside the church. This year marks 120 years since the passing of this great benefactor.

Afterward, in the monastery courtyard, the young shoots of the Romiosini of Constantinople participating in this summer’s camp session sang together with their group leaders and danced…