Ieronymos II ( el, Ιερώνυμος B’, ''Ierōnymos II'', ; born 10 March 1938) is the

Archbishop of Athens and All Greece The Archbishopric of Athens ( el, Ιερά Αρχιεπισκοπή Αθηνών) is a Greek Orthodox archiepiscopal see based in the city of Athens, Greece. It is the senior see of Greece, and the seat of the autocephalous Church of Greece. Its ...

and as such the

primate Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians ( monkeys and apes, the latter includin ...

of the

Autocephalous Autocephaly (; from el, αὐτοκεφαλία, meaning "property of being self-headed") is the status of a hierarchical Christian church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop. The term is primarily used in Eastern O ...

Orthodox

Church of Greece The Church of Greece ( el, Ἐκκλησία τῆς Ἑλλάδος, Ekklēsía tē̂s Helládos, ), part of the wider Greek Orthodox Church, is one of the autocephalous churches which make up the communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. It ...

. He was elected on 7 February 2008. Ieronymos served as Protosyncellus of the Metropolis of Thebes and Livadeia,

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. Th ...

of the monasteries of the Transfiguration of Sagmata and

Hosios Loukas Hosios Loukas ( el, Ὅσιος Λουκᾶς) is a historic walled monastery situated near the town of Distomo, in Boeotia, Greece. Founded in the mid-10th century, the monastery is one of the most important monuments of Middle Byzantine architec ...

, and Secretary, later Archsecretary, of the

Holy Synod In several of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called the Holy Synod. For instance, the Holy Synod is a ruling body of the Georgian Orthodox C ...

of the Church of Greece. In 1981 he was elected

Metropolitan Metropolitan may refer to: * Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories * Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England * Metropolitan county, a typ ...

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

of Thebes and Levadeia. He published two major textbooks: "Medieval Monuments of

Euboea Evia (, ; el, Εύβοια ; grc, Εὔβοια ) or Euboia (, ) is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. It is separated from Boeotia in mainland Greece by the narrow Euripus Strait (only at its narrowest poi ...

" (1970), and "Christian

Boeotia Boeotia ( ), sometimes Latinized as Boiotia or Beotia ( el, Βοιωτία; modern: ; ancient: ), formerly known as Cadmeis, is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Central Greece. Its capital is Livadeia, and its ...

" (2006). On 7 February 2008, Ieronymos was elected the new Archbishop of Athens and All Greece by the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece, He formally took office on 16 February 2008.

Early life and background

Ieronymos was born in

Oinofyta Oinofyta ( Greek: Οινόφυτα) is a village and former municipality in eastern Boeotia, Greece. Following the local government reform of 2011 it is now part of the municipality of Tanagra, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit h ...

and is of Arvanite descent. Ieronymos holds degrees in

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsc ...

Byzantine studies Byzantine studies is an interdisciplinary branch of the humanities that addresses the history, culture, demography, dress, religion/theology, art, literature/epigraphy, music, science, economy, coinage and politics of the Eastern Roman ...

, and

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

from the

University of Athens The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA; el, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών, ''Ethnikó ke Kapodistriakó Panepistímio Athinón''), usually referred to simply as the Univers ...

. He has undertaken postgraduate studies at the

University of Graz The University of Graz (german: link=no, Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz, ), located in Graz, Austria, is the largest and oldest university in Styria, as well as the second-largest and second-oldest university in Austria. History The univers ...

, the

University of Regensburg The University of Regensburg (german: link=no, Universität Regensburg) is a public research university located in the medieval city of Regensburg, Bavaria, a city that is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university was founded on 18 ...

and the

University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's sixth-oldest university in continuous operatio ...

."Ο μητροπολίτης Θηβών εξελέγη νέος Αρχιεπίσκοπος"
, Accessed 12 November 2020. Following a stint as lector in Christian archaeology at the Athens Archaeological Society under professor

Anastasios Orlandos Anastasios Orlandos ( el, Αναστάσιος Ορλάνδος, 23 December 1887 – 6 October 1979) was a Greek architect and historian of architecture. Biography A descendant of Ioannis Orlandos, Anastasios was born and died in Athens. He ...

, he taught as a philologist in

Lycée Léonin The Lycée Léonin (Greek: ''Λεόντειο Λύκειο'') is a non-profit private school in Athens, Greece. It was founded in 1838 and belongs to the Catholic Church. Since 1907 it has been run by the Community of the Marist Brothers (''Frèr ...

and he was ordained

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

and then

presbyter Presbyter () is an honorific title for Christian clergy. The word derives from the Greek ''presbyteros,'' which means elder or senior, although many in the Christian antiquity would understand ''presbyteros'' to refer to the bishop functioning a ...

in the Orthodox Church in 1967.

Titles

The official title of the Archbishop of Athens and All Greece is: His Beatitude Ieronymos II, Archbishop of Athens and All Greece; in Greek: Η Αυτού Μακαριότης ο Αρχιεπίσκοπος Αθηνών και Πάσης Ελλάδος Ιερώνυμος Β'

Ecclesiastical affairs

Ieronymos served as Protosyncellus of the Metropolis of Thebes and Livadeia,

of the monasteries of the Transfiguration of Sagmata and

, and Secretary, later Archsecretary, of the

of the Church of Greece. In 1981 he was elected

of Thebes and Levadeia. In addition to his pastoral ministry, Ieronymos has been pursuing his work on Christian archaeology and has published two major textbooks: "Medieval Monuments of

" (1970), and "Christian

" (2006). In 1998, he unsuccessfully contested the election to the throne of the archbishopric of Athens. On 7 February 2008, Ieronymos was elected the new Archbishop of Athens and All Greece by the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece, receiving 45 out of 74 votes in a two-ballot process. He formally took office on 16 February 2008. As of 2016, Ieronymos, is involved in a dispute with Patriarch

Bartholomew I of Constantinople Bartholomew I ( el, Βαρθολομαῖος Αʹ, , tr, I. Bartholomeos; born 29 February 1940) is the 270th archbishop of Constantinople and Ecumenical Patriarch, since 2 November 1991. In accordance with his title, he is regarded as the '' ...

over who has ecclesiastical authority over certain parts of Greece.

Social and political views

In 2012, Ieronymos criticized

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagoni ...

antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

Islamophobia Islamophobia is the fear of, hatred of, or prejudice against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general, especially when seen as a geopolitical force or a source of terrorism. The scope and precise definition of the term ''Islamophobia'' ...

and the

Golden Dawn Golden Dawn or The Golden Dawn may refer to: Organizations * Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a nineteenth century magical order based in Britain ** The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, Inc., a modern revival founded in 1977 ** Open Source ...

party, saying that "The church loves all people, including those who are black, white or non-Christians." On 16 April 2016, he visited, together with

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013 ...

and Bartholomew I of Constantinople, the Mòria camp in the island of

Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( el, Λέσβος, Lésvos ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with approximately of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece. It is separated from Asia Minor by the nar ...

, to call the attention of the world to the

refugee crisis A refugee crisis can refer to difficulties and dangerous situations in the reception of large groups of forcibly displaced persons. These could be either internally displaced, refugees, asylum seekers or any other huge groups of migrants. A ...

.Pope Francis visits Lesbos
The Guardian. Published: 16 April 2016

Notes and references

*Bintliff, John (2003), "The Ethnoarchaeology of a "Passive" Ethnicity: The Arvanites of Central Greece" in K.S. Brown and Yannis Hamilakis, eds., ''The Usable Past: Greek Metahistories'', Lexington Books. .

External links

Archdiocese of Athens
Official website , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Ieronymos 02 Of Athens 1937 births Living people People from Boeotia Arvanites National and Kapodistrian University of Athens alumni University of Graz alumni University of Regensburg alumni Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni Archbishops of Athens and All Greece Eastern Orthodox Christians from Greece 21st-century Eastern Orthodox archbishops Eastern Orthodox theologians 20th-century Eastern Orthodox bishops Bishops of Thebes, Greece 20th-century Greek historians Recipients of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 3rd class Recipients of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 1st class 21st-century Greek historians