One photo can bring back a flood of memories. And so it was on Sunday, when I came across this photo, which dates from 1987 (the year in which I was invested as an Archon). From left to right, it depicts:
- Dr. Anthony G. B. Borden, of blessed memory. Dr. Borden was the National Commander of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate from 1976 to 1989, and was also my much-beloved father-in-law and a fellow radiologist. He and I often spoke about matters involving the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and during his tenure, the Archons first began major efforts to safeguard the religious freedom of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. The Athenagoras Human Rights Award was also established.
- Archon John Brademas, of blessed memory. A Rhodes scholar as well as a pioneering and visionary Greek-American leader, Archon Brademas was the first Greek-American member of the U.S. Congress, where he served for 22 years. He later became president of New York University.
- President Jimmy Carter, the 39th POTUS of blessed memory, and recipient of the Athenagoras Human Rights Award in 1987. In 1985, President Carter compelled the Turkish government to allow the reconstruction of the main building of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, which had burned down in 1941.
- His Eminence Archbishop Iakovos, of blessed memory. The legendary Archbishop of North and South America from 1959 to 1996. Archbishop Iakovos was renowned throughout the world for his courageous stand for the dignity of every human being, risked his life by marching for civil rights alongside Martin Luther King in Selma, Alabama on March 15, 1965.
- Archon Paul S. Sarbanes, of blessed memory. Archon Sarbanes was a U.S. Senator from Maryland for thirty years, from 1977 to 2007, the longest tenure of any Maryland Senator up to that time. He was coauthor of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which secures ethical practices in financial record keeping and reporting for corporations.
- Archon Ike Pappas, of blessed memory. A CBS News reporter, Ike was present during the jail transfer in Dallas of John F. Kennedy’s assassin Lee Harvey Oswald on November 24, 1963. Jack Ruby stepped directly in front of Ike and murdered Oswald, whereupon Pappas shouted “Oswald has been shot!,” in a moment that has been replayed thousands of times in reports and documentaries about the assassination.
- Archon Ernie Anastos, TV news superstar. Ernie is a Hall of Fame broadcaster and Emmy award winning television news anchor and talk show host. He interviewed innumerable world leaders, including Athenagoras Human Rights Award winners Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush, Mikhail Gorbachev and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
How much time has passed, and how much, by God’s grace, the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate have accomplished since then! The Archons have one of the longest and most illustrious histories of any organization in human history. Our fundamental goal has remained the same since the days of classical Athens: to preserve peace, advance human dignity, foster civic responsibility, and ensure the integrity and future of faith.
Father Alex Karloutsos, Spiritual Advisor of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, noted the occasion when this photo was taken: “That’s when Archon John and Margo Catsimatidis, Presbytera Xanthi and I were sitting together and Margo asked me to take her to the dais to meet President Carter. Memories.”
Archon Christopher Stratakis, seeing this photo, quoted the Greek philosopher Heraclitus: “The Ancient Greeks used to say ‘ta panta ri’, in free translation ‘Everything flows like water in river.’ A photograph is just another instant in our lives. One second or 38 years ago. Time keeps flowing. So, when we look at an old photograph, we may want to ask ‘what has transpired in my life during the interim?’ For an almost 97 years old….plenty!”
Archon Anastos added a succinct and apposite comment: “Good memories, and let’s make more!”
Time rushes on. In God’s providence, we all have a time to serve Him and His Holy Church. We have been uniquely blessed to be Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate; let us make the most of this blessing while we have the time to do so.
Yours in the service of the Ecumenical Patriarchate,
Anthony J. Limberakis, MD
Archon Megas Aktouarios
National Commander
