His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America, Exarch of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, together with Dr. Anthony J. Limberakis, the Archon Grand Aktouarios and National Commander of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate (AEP), on Saturday, October 17, 2026 presented the Athenagoras Human Rights Award to Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop Emeritus of New York.
The Award was presented at the annual Athenagoras Human Rights Award Banquet, a black-tie event at the New York Hilton Midtown Hotel in New York City, with well over 700 Archons and guests in attendance.
His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, in a message commemorating the occasion, observed that Cardinal Dolan’s “advocacy for religious liberty and his friendship with the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America give practical expression to Christian solidarity. His efforts to strengthen relations between Catholics and Orthodox encourage us as we pursue the restoration of full communion.” Accordingly, His All-Holiness stated, “we rejoice in the recognition accorded to him on this occasion.”
In an accompanying video, His All-Holiness spoke about the groundbreaking 1964 meeting between Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras and Pope Paul VI. He noted that although the two spoke about their encounter in modest terms, as a brotherly gesture inspired by Christ’s love, it was actually an historic moment, laying the groundwork for all the dialogue and friendship between Orthodox and Roman Catholics that has occurred since then. “You have shown yourself,” His All-Holiness said to Cardinal Dolan, “to be a sincere and generous friend.”
His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros noted that Cardinal Dolan “is not only a personal friend, but an ecumenical companion of the highest quality.” His Eminence praised Cardinal Dolan’s “principled stands for virtue, righteousness, and above all, the core message of the Gospel.” His Eminence added that Cardinal Dolan’s “ecumenical heart was most evident to me when we shared in the Holy Friday Services at the Saint Nicholas National Shrine. We walked together in the Way of the Cross, and we prayed together at the Tomb of our Lord. This willingness to go the proverbial extra mile is a special quality of Cardinal Dolan, who is a person of outreach and inclusion.”
Read the entirety of His Eminence’s remarks HERE.
The Hon. B. Theodore Bozonelis, National Vice Commander of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, observed that Cardinal Dolan was “the face of the Catholic Church in New York City for many years,” and that he had been “a good friend and ecumenical partner.” The Master of Ceremonies for the evening, Archon Mike Emanuel, chief Washington correspondent for Fox News, told Cardinal Dolan: “I was watching you on September 11, 2026,” the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks, “and I felt like you were speaking to me and to all of us.”
Dr. Limberakis stated: “Tonight is a night of milestones,” noting that in 2026 the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate marked sixty years of service to the Holy Mother Church. 2026 is also the 40th anniversary of the Athenagoras Human Rights Award, and on November 2, 2026, His All-Holiness will have served thirty-five years as Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch.
Noting that the Archon class of 2026 included both Archon-elect Evangelos S. Tsivicos, who is 32 years old, and Archon-elect George Michael Gines, who is 90, Dr. Limberakis stated: “Whether one is just beginning a lifetime of service or crowning a lifetime of service, there is no age limit to diakonia.”
Dr. Limberakis also paid tribute to Cardinal Dolan, calling him “a steadfast defender of religious freedom and friend of the Ecumenical Patriarch.” He said to the honoree: “Your friendship with our Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America has been constant and personal.” He recounted some of the instances of common prayer between His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros and Cardinal Dolan, concluding: “You preached at Holy Trinity Cathedral, where His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros gave you the pectoral cross you’re wearing this evening.”
Dr. Limberakis went on to note that “there is a poignant and historic reason why the friendship between a Cardinal of the Church of Rome and the Church of Constantinople feels so natural.” He then recounted that the Apostle Saint Andrew told his brother, Saint Peter, about the Lord Jesus Christ, and brought his brother to the Lord, “establishing a relationship that remains to this day.” He spoke of some of the milestones of Orthodox/Roman Catholic rapprochement in recent decades, and added: “We honor you as a fearless defender of human dignity,” stating that Cardinal Dolan had “given voice to Christians and those of any faith who are denied religious freedom.”
After Dr. Limberakis concluded his remarks, His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros and Dr. Limberakis presented the Athenagoras Human Rights Award to Cardinal Dolan.
In his own remarks, Cardinal Dolan stated: “More than any award in itself, what means a lot to me is from whom it comes.” He noted that the Athenagoras Human Rights Award was coming from “two people I regard as brothers and friends,” His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and His Eminence Archbishop of America. He also said that “the joy and honor is enhanced by the company of my beloved Archbishop Demetrios,” Geron of America.
New York, said Cardinal Dolan, is “a city of bridges and tunnels,” and that “the bridge between Roman Catholics and Greek Orthodox is one of the greatest bridges around.” He noted that the meaning of the papal title Pontifex was “bridge builder,” and said that we are all called to be bridge builders. “If I have done anything to deserve this award,” Cardinal Dolan stated, “it is because I was formed by Jerusalem, Athens and Rome.” He added: “I see those values in His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros and all of you. Your friendship and solidarity mean the world to me, and it ain’t over yet.”
His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros termed Cardinal Dolan a “giant of the contemporary Roman Catholic Church, and a veritable spiritual fixture of New York City,” who was renowned “for his principled stands for virtue and human dignity, his extraordinary eloquence, and his firm hand on the rudder of the ecclesial vessels entrusted to his pastoral care.”
His Eminence continued: “I also came to know another man – a true friend, a comrade in the ecumenical endeavor, and a brother in the Lord.” He said that in honoring Cardinal Dolan, the Archons had sent a signal about the future of the Church. Addressing the honoree, he concluded: “I have been privileged to know you, and to walk beside you – sometimes over a bridge – that we might build together stronger Christian bonds of love and peace, and a better world for every member of God’s great, big family. You are indeed most worthy of this Prize! Axios!”
Established in 1986, the Athenagoras Human Rights Award is given in honor of Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras, who served as Archbishop of the Americas for 18 years before being elected Ecumenical Patriarch in 1948. He was universally acknowledged as a visionary leader and worked for peace among Churches and people throughout his life.
Previous recipients include Russian dissident Yulia Navalnaya; the Prince’s Trust (now the King’s Trust), an international youth charity founded by King Charles III while he was Prince of Wales; His Beatitude Theodore II, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa; His Beatitude Epiphaniy, Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine; President Joseph Biden (when he was vice president); former President Jimmy Carter; former President George H. W. Bush and First Lady Barbara Bush; Nobel Laureate and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev; Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel; Mother Teresa of Calcutta; former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo; and the scientists who developed COVID vaccines and treatments. View a list of previous recipients.
WORDS OF GRATITUDE
As we gather this evening to honor His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan, who for sixteen years shepherded the Archdiocese of New York, we offer our deep gratitude to the many individuals who made this evening possible and who contribute immeasurably to the mission of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate (AEP).
We remember with love our late National Vice Commander Nicholas J. Bouras, whose legacy has underwritten this Banquet for the 29th time with a gift of $100,000, faithfully facilitated by our National Vice Commander, Archon Hon. B. Theodore Bozonelis. We extend heartfelt appreciation to Archon Michael G. and Robin Psaros, who for the 11th time have generously served as Banquet Underwriters with a gift of $100,000. To these devoted benefactors we proclaim: AXIOI!
We are deeply indebted to our committed sponsors, whose generosity at every level sustains the AEP’s unwavering commitment to defend the religious freedom and institutional human rights of the Holy and Great Mother Church of Constantinople.
We offer profound gratitude to this evening’s Banquet Co-Chair and AEP Sergeant-at-Arms, Archon Alexander Pritsos, who worked so diligently to ensure the evening’s success, together with Presvytera Xanthi Karloutsos and Leah Kats.
Special recognition is extended to our revered National Vice Commander, Hon. B. Theodore Bozonelis, for his exemplary devotion to the AEP mission and his essential guidance in its daily operations. To our outstanding officers, National Secretary Gus (Kosmas) M. Pablecas and National Treasurer John G. Manos, we offer our thanks and congratulations for your steadfast and extraordinary service every day of the year. We are grateful as well to our superb Legal Counselor, Peter Kakoyiannis, Esq., Deputy Legal Counselor, Nikiforos Mathews, Esq. and Assistant Treasurer Chris E. Tsamutalis, CPA.
We thank Archon John A. Catsimatidis, Chair of our Religious Freedom Committee; Archon Congressman Gus Bilirakis, who carries the banner of religious freedom in the hallowed halls of Congress; Archons Andrew and Mike Manatos, who coordinate our Washington initiatives; and Archon Steve Trakas, who represented the Order at the annual OSCE Human Rights meetings earlier this week in Warsaw, Poland. To Archon John Zavitsanos, who brilliantly enhanced our Exarch’s Appeal Program and spearheaded the successful Archon Boot Camp Committee he chairs, we offer our commendation and gratitude.
We offer heartfelt thanks to Archons Rocky Sisson and Jim Speros, who lead our sophisticated Communications initiative, and to their committee of Archons Ted Vagelos and John Mindala and Elizabeth L. Limberakis, MBA. Archon John Mindala’s creative contributions are immeasurable, as every visual piece produced by the AEP attests. BRAVO, Archon John!
To the Vellios Family, who each year generously donate tens of thousands of dollars for the beautiful floral arrangements and décor at the EPBF FOUNDERS Dinner, the Nicholas J. Bouras Award for Extraordinary Archon Stewardship Banquet, and the Athenagoras Human Rights Award Banquet, we offer our deep thanks. To Leah Kats, AEP Administrator and herself an EPBF FOUNDER ($100,000), we express our deep appreciation. And to our hard-working National Council Members, Committee Chairs, Regional Commanders, and the Chairs and Vice Chairs of all 11 Archon Diakonia Ministries, we express our sincere gratitude.
To Father Alexander Karloutsos, our beloved Spiritual Advisor par excellence, Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, and now The Grand Protopresbyter of the Great Church of Christ, together with Presvytera Xanthi, we extend our deep appreciation and respect for their extraordinary service to the Mother Church and to the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.
To the esteemed Metropolitans of the Holy Eparchial Synod, we offer our sincere gratitude for their support of and dedication to the Holy and Great Mother Church, the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.
To His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America, our Spiritual Father in America, we offer profound gratitude for his tireless diakonia to the Holy Archdiocese of America and his beloved flock. Εις πολλά έτη, Δέσποτα!
To my dearest wife, Maria; to our children, John and his wife Danielle, Anthony and his wife Kathryn, and Elizabeth and her husband Praneet; and to our five beloved grandchildren, Dakota, Anthony, and two-year-old Felix, sons of John and Danielle, and Evangeline (age 8) and Anthony (age 5), children of Anthony and Kathryn, I offer my heartfelt gratitude for your love, encouragement, and understanding.
Allow me now to offer words of profound respect and homage to His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, our intrepid spiritual Father to the world, who amid the most difficult circumstances in the Republic of Turkey has borne abiding Martyria and Diakonia for all humankind for 35 years, the longest ministry of any Ecumenical Patriarch in the nearly two-thousand-year history of the Church of Constantinople. Εις πολλά έτη, Παναγιώτατε!
In the Service of the Ecumenical Patriarchate,
Dr. Anthony J. Limberakis
The Grand Aktouarios
National Commander
Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate
2026 Athenagoras Human Rights Award
Banquet Remarks
Anthony J. Limberakis, MD
National Commander of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate
Honoring His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan
Archbishop Emeritus of New York
New York City, NY
October 17, 2026
Your Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros, Exarch of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and our spiritual father in America;
Our honoree, His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop Emeritus of New York, steadfast defender of religious freedom and cherished friend of the Ecumenical Patriarchate;
Your Eminences, Your Graces, Grand Protopresbyter Fr. Alex, Reverend Clergy and Presvyteres,
Members of the Diplomatic Corps,
Honored guests of the dais,
Brother Archons, Archons-elect, Archon Families;
Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Tonight is a night of milestones. This year the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate mark sixty years of service to the Mother Church. This evening we present the Athenagoras Human Rights Award on its fortieth anniversary. And in just two weeks, on November 2nd, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew will celebrate thirty-five years on the Throne of Saint Andrew. In the words spoken on September 14, 407 A.D., by another Archbishop of Constantinople, Saint John Chrysostom, as he died in exile: Glory to God for all things!
I’d like to take just a moment to recognize this year’s class of Archons-elect, a remarkable group that spans generations: from dynamic churchmen in their thirties and forties to devoted senior servants of the Church who are blessed to be ninety years of age. Our youngest, Archon-elect Evangelos Tsivicos, just 32 years old, follows in the footsteps of his beloved father, Archon Savas Tsivicos, and our most senior, Archon-elect William Gines, is a nonagenarian. This tells us something very significant about the Archon Offikion. Whether one is just beginning a lifetime of service or crowning a lifetime already given to the Church, there is no age limit on offering Diakonia to the Holy Mother Church. Together, these men represent both the wisdom and sagacity of experience and the bright, energetic future of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. And I quickly add that each and every day I pray that our dream for female Archons will ultimately be realized!
As a practicing radiologist, before I begin my remarks tonight, I wish once again to salute a group of unheralded women and men who show their courage in a vastly different arena: the fight against breast cancer. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. This year more than 380,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and when it is caught early, the 5-year survival rate is 99%! As the supervising radiologist for the Mammography Program for the City of Philadelphia, I am keenly aware of the importance of early detection and annual screening mammography. LADIES, MAKE THIS A PRIORITY!
Beloved friends, the many individuals responsible for this evening’s success are recognized in the WORDS OF GRATITUDE insert in your BANQUET PROGRAM, but I do wish to acknowledge from the podium our two $100,000 BANQUET UNDERWRITERS: the Nicholas J. and Anna K. Bouras Foundation, represented by our beloved National Vice Commander, the Hon. B. Theodore Bozonelis, and Archon Michael and Robin Psaros. Thank you so very much!
Your Eminence Cardinal Dolan, your friendship with our Greek Orthodox Archdiocese has been constant and personal. When Archbishop Elpidophoros arrived in New York in 2019, you hosted him at your residence, led him into St. Patrick’s Cathedral for prayer, and expressed the hope that each of you would be present at the great feasts and occasions of the other. You have kept that promise. In 2020, when the Turkish government, in a provocative act against all Christendom, reconverted Hagia Sophia into a mosque, you and Archbishop Elpidophoros raised your voices together, as Brothers in Christ, to condemn that decision. On the anniversary of September 11th, you stood with the Archbishop at the Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine at Ground Zero and read the 23rd Psalm: “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” And this past January, in one of your final acts as shepherd of New York, you preached at our Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, where Archbishop Elpidophoros presented you with a pectoral cross in gratitude for your friendship. Your Eminence Cardinal Dolan, you have been a steadfast and revered friend of the Greek Orthodox Church in America.
And there is a poignant and historic reason why this bond between a Cardinal of the Church of Rome and the Church of Constantinople feels so natural. In the Gospel according to Saint John, it is Andrew who first follows Christ, and Andrew who runs to find his brother Peter with the words, “We have found the Messiah.” Saint Andrew, the First-Called, brought his brother Saint Peter to Christ. Peter became the Apostle and Founder of the Church of Rome, and Andrew the Apostle of Byzantium and Founder of the Church of Constantinople, establishing a brotherly relationship between East and West that continues to this day.
In our own lifetime, the two direct Apostolic successors of Peter and Andrew have embraced on a number of historic occasions. In 1964 in Jerusalem, Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras, for whom tonight’s award is named, embraced Pope Paul VI, the first meeting of a Pope and an Ecumenical Patriarch in more than five centuries. His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew has further carried that embrace with every succeeding Pope: with Pope John Paul II, who restored to Constantinople the holy relics of Saint Gregory the Theologian and Saint John Chrysostom; with Pope Benedict XVI, who prayed with him at the Phanar on the Thronal Feast of Saint Andrew; with Pope Francis, at the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and in Constantinople; and just last November with Pope Leo XIV at Nicaea, where together they marked the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council.
By the grace of God, I was personally blessed to witness three of these historic moments: the transfer of the holy relics of Saint Gregory and Saint John Chrysostom, Pope Benedict’s presence at the Thronal Feast at the Phanar, and the embrace of Pope Francis and His All-Holiness in Jerusalem. In each of those sacred moments, I could truly feel the two Apostolic brothers, Peter and Andrew, spiritually standing together once more.
But tonight we honor you not only as a friend, but as a fearless defender of human dignity. Through your service on the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee for Religious Liberty and on the White House Religious Liberty Commission, you have given voice to Christians and people of every faith who are denied their unalienable, God-given right of religious freedom. You understand, as the Archons do, that religious freedom is not a privilege granted by governments. It is a gift of God, a charisma bestowed upon the dignity of every child of Abraham.
That is precisely why the Archons exist. For sixty years we have stood with the Ecumenical Patriarchate, which in its own homeland has been denied legal personality, has seen its properties confiscated, and has endured government interference in the election of its Patriarch. We give thanks to Almighty God for the long-awaited progress toward reopening the Theological School of Halki, closed by the Turkish state since 1971, and we will not rest until its classrooms are once again filled with young men and theologians preparing to serve the Great Church of Christ.
Your Eminence Cardinal Dolan, when a Prince of the Church of Rome, a Cardinal, stands beside the Church of Constantinople, the world sees the brotherly witness of Peter and Andrew alive in our troubled world, and it gives us solace and hope.
In closing, Your Eminence Cardinal Dolan, for sixteen years you shepherded the Archdiocese of New York with joy, conviction, and steadfast commitment to human rights and religious freedom, and through all those years you have been a cherished friend of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and of the Greek Orthodox faithful of this great city. Just as Saint Andrew ran to bring his brother to Christ, you have always welcomed your Orthodox brothers and sisters with open arms and staunchly promoted religious freedom for those who have been denied that basic human right.
It is for these reasons and many more that the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, together with the Exarch and our spiritual father in America, His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros, are deeply honored to present the 2026 Athenagoras Human Rights Award to His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan.
Thank you.
With the utmost gratitude and admiration, we present the 2026 Athenagoras Human Rights Award to His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan!
AXIOS! AXIOS! AXIOS!
At this time I invite to the podium His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop Emeritus of New York, for his Remarks upon receipt of this richly deserved Award.
At this time I invite to the podium our Spiritual Father in America and Exarch of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros, to offer the Archiepiscopal Exhortation and Benediction.
