Bartholomew (born Dimitrios Archontonis, 29 February 1940) is the current

Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople The ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople () is the List of ecumenical patriarchs of Constantinople, archbishop of Constantinople and (first among equals) among the heads of the several autocephalous churches that comprise the Eastern Orthodox ...

since 1991. In accordance with his title, he is regarded as the ''

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'' (first among equals) in the

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, and as a spiritual leader of the Eastern Orthodox Christians worldwide. Bartholomew was born in the village of Agios Theodoros (officially called Zeytinliköy) on the island of Imbros (later renamed Gökçeada by the Turkish government). After his graduation, he held a position at the Patriarchal Theological Seminary of Halki, where he was ordained a priest. Later, he served as Metropolis of Philadelphia and

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and he became a member of the Holy Synod as well as other committees, prior to his enthronement as Patriarch. Bartholomew's tenure has been characterized by intra-Orthodox cooperation, intra-Christian and inter-religious dialogue, such as formal visits to

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Old Catholic The terms Old Catholic Church, Old Catholics, Old-Catholic churches, or Old Catholic movement, designate "any of the groups of Western Christians who believe themselves to maintain in complete loyalty the doctrine and traditions of the Great C ...

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, and

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leaders previously visited by a patriarch. He has exchanged numerous invitations with church and state dignitaries. His efforts to promote religious freedom and human rights, his initiatives to advance religious tolerance among the world's religions, as well as his efforts to promote ecology and the protection of the environment, have been widely noted, and these endeavors have earned him the title "The Green Patriarch". Among his many international positions, he currently sits on the Board of World Religious Leaders for the

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. In 2018, the

Moscow Patriarchate The Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus (), also known as the Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia, is the title of the Primate (bishop), primate of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC). It is often preceded by the honorific "His Holiness". As the Ordinar ...

broke communion with the Ecumenical Patriarchate as a result of disputes over his decision to grant

autocephaly Autocephaly (; ) 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 Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches. The status has been compared with t ...

to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.

Early life and background

Dimitrios Arhondonis was born in the village of Agioi Theodoroi on the island of Imbros (now Gökçeada, Turkey), son of Christos and Meropi Archodónis (née Skarlatos), both of

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descent. He was the fourth and last child and as a boy helped his father in his coffee shop that also doubled as a barber's. He began his studies at Imbro and went on to attend the Zografeion Lyceum high school in Istanbul, then entered the Theological School of Halki on the island of that name ( Turkish: Heybeliada), in the

Sea of Marmara The Sea of Marmara, also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, is a small inland sea entirely within the borders of Turkey. It links the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea via the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, separating Turkey's E ...

. There he gained a doctorate in theology. On 13 August 1961, he was ordained deacon and in the years 1961–1963 completed military service in the Turkish army with the rank of sublieutenant. Following this, from 1963 to 1968, with a study bourse from the Ecumenical Patriarchate, he gained diplomas in postgraduate specialization at the Oriental Institute of the Gregorian University in

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, the Ecumenical Institute of Bossey (Switzerland) and the

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. Subsequently, he gained a doctorate from Rome's Gregorian University with a thesis regarding the codification of the canons and canonical decrees in the Orthodox Church, perfecting also in these years his knowledge of Latin, Italian, French, English, and German.

Ordinations and ecclesiastical appointments

* 13 August 1961:

Diaconate 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 denominations, such as the Catholi ...

– receiving the

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