Dear Brother Archons and Friends of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate,

Demonstrating once again that where there is a need, there is an Archon, the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate (AEP) National Council has donated $50,000 for the repair of Holy Trinity Church in Gothenburg, Sweden. After Saint George Cathedral in Stockholm, this parish is home to Sweden’s second largest Greek congregation, numbering approximately 5,000 parishioners.

In the winter of 2022, sustained low temperatures (-4 degrees Fahrenheit) along with a series of heavy rainfalls, caused severe damage to the church. Insurance covered only 20 percent of the original cost, due to the age of the building, and the iconostasis, icons, bishop’s throne, chanters’ stands, pews, and other essential items were not covered at all.

That was where the AEP stepped in, responding to an urgent appeal from His Eminence Metropolitan Cleopas of Sweden and All Scandinavia. In response to the Archons’ donation, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew wrote in the attached letter below: “Your magnanimous gesture, which brought to our minds donors and benefactors of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and our devout Genos over the centuries, became a reason to praise the name of the Lord from Whom comes every good and perfect gift, and Who most wisely, provides for the ministry of His Church and offers earthly blessings to noble hearts.”

We give thanks to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and His All-Holy Mother for enabling us to come to the aid of God’s Holy Church in Sweden. I am grateful to each and every one of you and your families for your dedication to the protection and support of our beloved Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Church throughout the world.

Your vital participation in sponsoring a day of the Exarch’s Appeal empowers the AEP to respond to the needs of the Holy Mother Church and all its jurisdictions.

Yours in the service of our Holy Mother Church,