17 April 2010
The Board of the Archdiocese convenes in Geneva with the participation of His Beatitude Patriarch Ignatius IV
At the invitation of His Eminence Metropolitan John Yazigi of the Antiochian Orthodox Church of Western and Central Europe, meeting of the board of the archdiocese was held in the city of Geneva on April 17 with the participation of His Beatitude Patriarch Ignatius IV of Antioch and the Entire East, and with the presence of Dr. Elie Salem, president of the University of Balamand, vice-president Nadim Karam, member of the board Adnan Takla, and representatives from different parts of the archdiocese. During the meeting, achievements of the last year in the archdiocese were reviewed, and future challenges that await the archdiocese were examined in depth.
His Beatitude made clear in his opening word that the church is built everyday like a house, and he encouraged the attendees to band around the Metropolitan of the archdiocese to provide the necessary needs to care for Antiochian Orthodox who are spread across the European continent, reminding them that the role of the Antiochian church is not limited to a specific national group but supercedes that to reach all peoples no matter what nationality they belong to, thus abiding by the commandment of Christ to his disciples to go forth ad make disciples of other nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. His Beatitude blessed the efforts of Metropolitan John, who in a short time was able to meet with most of the parishes in the archdiocese, especially those in Germany, France, Britain, Ireland, Austria, and Switzerland. He also thanked his immense efforts to found new parishes in other countries, namely Italy and Sweden. His Beatitude expressed his great joy at registering the metropolis in the official agencies in Paris and starting prayers in the new church of Saint Helen in Paris, emphasizing the need to continue building churches and institutions all over the archdiocese to keep the flock together.
In turn, Metropolitan John thanked the Patriarch for traveling to participate in the archdiocese conference, noting his continuous support for the archdiocese, its shepherd and members. The conference coincided with the ninetieth birthday of the patriarch, so all the attendees chanted “Many years to you Master” and thanked God for the blessings which he bestowed on him, which he had utilized in the service of the church which knew in his time spiritual and institutional growth unseen before, such as the formation of Balamand University, the only Orthodox university in the world, one of his most important accomplishments.
Patriarch Ignatius met during his stay in Geneva the Orthodox metropolitans of other jurisdictions, representatives from the World Council of Churches, and a number of Orthodox believers who reside in the city. He also participated in two meetings held to honor him by the embassies of Syria and Lebanon in Switzerland. In each of the meetings he focused on the commitment and loyalty of the Orthodox to their homelands.
