By the grace of God and the blessing of His Beatitude Pope and Patriarch Theodoros II of Alexandria and All Africa, the Bishop’s House in Diego, of our missionary Diocese, is now ready!
I would like to express my warm and sincere thanks to Mr Panagiotis Taloumis, who contributed decisively to this important project, offering very great help and making this vision a reality.
What remains now are the outdoor areas and the fencing, so that the Bishop’s House can be fully completed and we can move in, continuing our missionary work by the grace of God.
We thank from our hearts all who have contributed and continue to support this effort. Every offering, small or large, becomes a blessing for the Mission and for our Church.
Glory to God! After a long journey to various parts of the world for the needs of our Diocese, the time has finally come to return from Thessaloniki to our beloved Chania, to stay there for a while. And, God willing, when the right time comes, we will return again to our Diocese to continue our work and ministry.
Glory to God for everything!
May your return be blessed, with health, strength and God’s blessing, wherever your duty calls you!
A new beginning for the Parish of Saint Charalambos in Ambanja!
With special joy we announce that today the Parish of Saint Charalambos in Ambanja opened its doors in its new premises and is now operating normally, in a better, more beautiful and more accessible building, so as to be closer to the people and their needs.
To serve the parish, Father Paisios will be close to the faithful; we ordained him a few months ago precisely for this purpose: to contribute substantially to the pastoral work and to serve the needs of our Holy Metropolis.
At the same time, we made sure there is living space for the priest, and we also bought a bicycle so that he can move more easily and quickly for his liturgical and pastoral duties, and be close to the people who need his presence and support.
Every such step is another effort to make our Church more accessible, more alive and closer to people. We do not stop at words, but move on to actions that support our parishes and strengthen the presence of the Church in local communities.
With the patriarchal blessings of His Divine Beatitude Pope and Patriarch Theodoros II of Alexandria and All Africa, we pray wholeheartedly that Saint Charalambos may protect the parish, Father Paisios and all the faithful. May God bless every effort made for the progress of our Church and the relief of our fellow human beings.
With faith, love and works of real giving, with God’s help we continue the spiritual and social ministry of our Diocese!
A great blessing for our Missionary Diocese of Majunga and North Madagascar!
Today is full of joy and gratitude to God, as the Orthodox Parish of Antsohihy, the capital of the Sofia region in North Madagascar, has acquired its own Holy Church, dedicated to Saint Basil the Great! The church is in the Ambalabe district.
By the grace of God, we are moving steadily towards the completion of our church, and tomorrow we will celebrate our first Divine Liturgy.
We glorify the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, who makes us worthy to build churches in many towns of our Diocese, so that through Divine Worship, sacramental life and the preaching of the Gospel the message of salvation may be passed on and more and more of our brothers and sisters may come to know the Orthodox faith.
Every new Holy Church is a bright hearth of prayer, love, hope and spiritual rebirth for these people.
Glory to God for all things!
May Saint Basil the Great intercede for us all and may the Lord bless and strengthen our missionary work in Madagascar!
Today we were found worthy to receive a special and great blessing, after our visit to His Eminence Metropolitan Athanasios of Sisanion and Siatista.
His love, his humility, his simplicity and his warm hospitality captured our hearts!
We were especially moved by his practical interest in strengthening and supporting our Mission in the Holy Diocese of Majunga and Madagascar. His love for the missionary work and his willingness to stand by our effort filled us with joy, emotion and deep gratitude.
Your Eminence, we thank you from the depths of our hearts! May the Lord grant you health, strength and His rich grace, so that you may continue to serve His Holy Church with love, humility and a spirit of sacrificial giving.
For the Church of Christ knows no borders. It is ONE, the Body of Christ, which unites all people through faith, love and brotherhood.
From Siatista to faraway Madagascar, we are united by the same Christ, the same faith and the same love for people!
With the blessing of His Eminence Metropolitan Philotheos of Thessaloniki, we celebrated Matins and the Divine Liturgy at the Holy Church of the Holy Twelve Apostles in Thessaloniki.
The blessing we received was especially great, and the love of the people even greater!
From our hearts we would like to thank His Eminence Metropolitan Philotheos of Thessaloniki for his fatherly love, support and blessing, thanks to which we have the honour of being in Thessaloniki these days, taking part in many Vespers services, events and Divine Liturgies.
All these blessed moments are a precious support for our missionary work in faraway North Madagascar. Every prayer, every blessing and every expression of love gives us strength to continue our effort, carrying the message of the Gospel and the love of Christ to our brothers and sisters.
We thank from the depths of our hearts His Eminence, the holy clergy and all the people who are close to us and support the work of the Mission.
We pray that the Lord may grant His Eminence health, strength and long life, so that he may continue his pastoral ministry with the same love and devotion.
May your prayers and blessing be our fellow travellers in the great mission of love!
Glory to God for all things!
With the blessing of His Beatitude Pope and Patriarch Theodoros II of Alexandria and All Africa and of His Eminence Metropolitan Philotheos of Thessaloniki, on Sunday 18 October 2026 I had the special joy of speaking about the missionary work of the Orthodox Church in North Madagascar, at the spiritual centre of the Holy Church of the Holy Twelve Apostles in Thessaloniki.
A special honour was the presence of the Very Reverend Protopresbyter Fr Theodosios Argyropoulos, who represented His Eminence Metropolitan Philotheos of Thessaloniki, to whom I express my heartfelt thanks and deep gratitude for his fatherly love and valuable support for the work of our Holy Diocese.
I thank from the depths of my heart all who honoured us with their presence and took part in the constructive discussion that followed, as well as all those who, through their prayer, love and practical giving, support our missionary ministry. Their support is a precious expression of our unity in Christ and a living testimony of the love that transcends every geographical distance.
May our Lord Jesus Christ, through the intercessions of the Most Holy Theotokos, richly bless all supporters of the Mission and strengthen our common effort, to the glory of His Holy Name and for the spiritual and material relief of our brothers and sisters in Madagascar.
Today I had the special blessing of visiting His Eminence Metropolitan Philotheos of Thessaloniki and discussing the progress and needs of our Mission in faraway Madagascar.
His Eminence is a man who has embraced our Diocese with love, blessings and practical support. The freedom and blessing he gives me to move about and celebrate in all the churches of his Holy Metropolis are an invaluable gift to me. Without his love, his trust and his precious help, much of what we have achieved would not have become reality.
His Eminence’s love and support are a shining example of church giving and of true love for the Mission. At the same time, they make me feel that Thessaloniki is my second homeland; a place where I feel the love, acceptance and support we so need in our difficult work. That is why I come and stay here with special joy, feeling that I am in an environment where I can move with trust and freedom, continuing my ministry unhindered.
Your Eminence, I thank you from the depths of my heart! May our Lord grant you health, long life and His rich grace, repaying many times over the love you so generously offer to our Diocese and to the Mission of Madagascar.
This morning I felt great emotion as I met, at the Metochion of the Holy Monastery of Grigoriou of Mount Athos in our Thessaloniki, my fellow villager and childhood friend, Andreas Patrikakis, from beautiful Gerani in the Municipality of Platanias, Chania, our beloved Gerani!
Andreas has been living permanently in Thessaloniki for several years, and our meeting today was full of joy, emotion and beautiful memories.
We remembered our village, our childhood years, everything we have been through together, and also all that we still have to live and share. Because the bonds formed in childhood, in the place where we were born and grew up, remain alive and strong, no matter how many years pass and wherever life may lead us.
My dear Andreas, from my heart I wish you health, strength and every blessing! May you continue your ministry with the same love and devotion, may your family be well and may we all be well, so that we can meet often in our Thessaloniki and share moments of true friendship.
Our beautiful Gerani, its people and our memories will always unite us. Because our roots are never forgotten and true friendships are not lost with time.
Let us be well, my dear friend Andreas, and always meet with health, love and the same joy!
With special joy, on Wednesday 14 October I gave a talk at the School of Theology of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki on the subject “Orthodox Mission Today”.
I warmly thank His Eminence Metropolitan Philotheos of Thessaloniki for his blessing and permission to give the talk, and Professor Maria Rantzou of the School of Theology for her kind invitation and the flawless organisation of the event.
I thank from my heart everyone who attended and took an active part in the beautiful and meaningful discussion that followed.
It was a particularly blessed gathering, in which we felt the grace of our Christ and the love of Orthodox Mission, which unites us, despite the great distances, on a shared path of faith and giving.
May our Christ bless you all and make us worthy to continue together the blessed work of love for our neighbour!
With feelings of deep gratitude to God, in the coming days I will be in historic Thessaloniki, the city of saints, for the presentation of the missionary work of our Church in faraway Madagascar.
On Wednesday 14 October at 19:00 there will be a talk at the School of Theology of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, on the subject of Orthodox Mission and the service of people.
On Sunday 18 October, in the morning, I will celebrate the Divine Liturgy at the Holy Church of the Holy Apostles in Thessaloniki. In the evening, at 19:00, I will celebrate Vespers, followed by a talk with testimonies and experiences from the missionary work in Madagascar.
I express from my heart my warm thanks to His Eminence Metropolitan Philotheos of Thessaloniki for his brotherly love and warm hospitality, and to all who contributed to making these events possible.
Orthodox Mission is a living testimony of Christ’s presence in the world, a practical manifestation of His love and an offering of hope to every person.
In Madagascar we experience every day that God’s love knows no borders and that every act of giving can become a source of hope and life.
I invite you all with much love to meet in person, to pray together and to share the experiences and blessings of missionary ministry.
I pray that these events may be an occasion for brotherly fellowship and for strengthening our love for the Mission, so that the light of Christ may illumine every corner of the earth.
One year since my election as Bishop of Majunga and North Madagascar…
One year since that blessed day that marked my life and opened a new chapter in the path of my ministry.
A year full of emotion, anxiety and difficulty, but above all of faith, love and countless blessings.
Today, looking back on the moments of that day, my heart overflows with gratitude to God, who, despite my human weakness and unworthiness, made me worthy to take on the responsibility of pastoral ministry in this blessed corner of Africa.
I am grateful to His Beatitude our Patriarch Theodoros II and to the Holy and Sacred Synod for their trust, and to all of you who, with your love, support and prayers, accompany my steps.
This first year has taught me even more deeply that episcopal ministry is not an honour but a Cross; not a rank but a responsibility; it is nothing other than love and giving.
With the same emotion as on the first day and with complete trust in the will of God, I continue on this path, asking only for your prayers, so that the Lord may grant me strength, humility and enlightenment.
A year has passed… And the heart remains full of gratitude, faith and hope!
With the blessing of our Christ and the venerable blessing of His Divine Beatitude Patriarch Theodoros II of Alexandria and All Africa, another Greek Flag 🇬🇷 was raised on the flagpole of the new “Samaria” Educational Institution, in the parish of Saints Constantine and Helen in Ambovondramanesy.
Today is for all of us a day of special joy and emotion, because another great vision of ours has become reality. The new Educational Institution (Kindergarten, Primary School and College) opened its doors and welcomed 220 pupils, offering them knowledge, education, hope and the prospect of a better future.
These children are the future of Madagascar. Through education we want to give them the tools they need to go forward in life with dignity and to create a better tomorrow for themselves, their families and the whole of society.
The Greek Flag 🇬🇷, raised today on the flagpole of the new school complex, with the Precious Cross ✟ and its blue and white colours, will now be a living symbol of Orthodoxy, of Greek Culture and of our Homeland.
At the same time, it will bear witness to the presence and work of the Orthodox Church of the Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa, which, through mission, education, love and giving, stands close to the people of Madagascar and strives for a better future.
Greece and the Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa are here in Madagascar not to impose, but to serve, support, help and stand by the people of this land, offering education, love, hope and a better future.
This flag 🇬🇷 will fly as a symbol of love, peace, education and giving, carrying the message that through Orthodoxy, education and culture we can build a world with more hope, dignity and better living conditions.
By the grace of God we continue the missionary work of the Holy Diocese of Majunga and North Madagascar, with faith, love and vision, so that every child in Madagascar may have the right to knowledge, education and a better future.
The Greek Flag 🇬🇷 has been raised. The Cross ✟ blesses. Orthodoxy bears witness. The Patriarchate of Alexandria serves. And love continues to build the future.
A great blessing and a special honour: our visit to His Eminence Metropolitan Augoustinos of Germany
Today we had the great blessing and special honour of visiting His Eminence Metropolitan Augoustinos of Germany, at the see of the Holy Metropolis of Germany in Bonn.
His Eminence welcomed us with much fatherly love and warmth, hosted us with special cordiality and addressed spiritual words to us, full of wisdom and fatherly love. With his rich spiritual experience and the great wisdom that distinguishes him, he counselled and strengthened us, and at the end he gave us his fatherly blessing. Our joy and emotion at this meeting are truly great.
Our visit had even greater significance for us, because His Eminence Metropolitan Augoustinos comes from our Crete, from Chania, and specifically from Voukolies. This common origin was another special and blessed bond at our meeting.
From our hearts we express our warmest thanks to His Eminence for his great love, his fatherly welcome, his warm hospitality and the blessing he gave us.
At the same time, we congratulate and thank him for the great, long and enduring work he has offered to the Orthodox Church in Germany, serving with devotion, love and a sacrificial spirit for 66 whole years.
We pray that God may grant him health, strength and long life, so that he may continue his blessed ministry for many more years and contribute to the further establishment and growth of Orthodoxy in Germany.
Your Eminence, Metropolitan Augoustinos of Germany, from the depths of our hearts we thank you and pray that God may bless you, strengthen you and grant you many and blessed years!
With feelings of filial love and respect,
† Nephon, Bishop of Majunga and North Madagascar
PUBLICATION by the International Church News Agency “ORTHODOXIA”
With great joy and with the blessing of our Christ, yesterday, Sunday, we celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Holy Church of Saint Demetrios in Masokoamena.
The attendance of the faithful was large, and it is truly a moving and encouraging event for our Mission. Warm congratulations are due to the priest of the area, Fr Evmenios, who with his zeal, love and devotion has managed to bring more and more people close to the Church.
About a month and a half ago, during my visit to the parish, we had the great joy of performing many baptisms in the river of the area. It was a particularly moving moment, which bears witness to the continuous increase of Orthodox Christians and the fruitfulness of the missionary work.
The Holy Church of Saint Demetrios is in a particularly remote area and needs immediate restoration and reconstruction. Despite the difficulties, the Orthodox Christians of the area are constantly increasing and the need for a functional and dignified church is becoming ever greater.
For this reason, one of the next goals of the Missionary Diocese of Majunga and North Madagascar is the reconstruction of the Holy Church, so that it becomes a beautiful, functional and living place of worship for all the Orthodox Christians of the area.
We pray that Saint Demetrios, the Great Martyr and Myrrh-streamer, whose name the Holy Church bears, may intercede with our Lord Jesus Christ and help us, so that by the grace of God we may manage to rebuild and renovate his Holy Church.
With faith, love and much prayer, we continue the work of the Mission.
With the blessing of His Eminence Metropolitan Augoustinos of Germany, today we had the great blessing of celebrating the Liturgy at the Holy Church of Saints Constantine and Helen in Waiblingen, Stuttgart.
I express warm thanks and gratitude to Fr Anastasios, the parish priest, who welcomed us with much love, generous hospitality and a brotherly spirit.
The church, packed with Greeks, filled us with emotion and joy. The presence and love of the congregation made us feel as if we were at home. It is truly moving to see the great and important work being done in this parish, and more generally in the Holy Metropolis of Germany, under the care of His Eminence Metropolitan Augoustinos, his co-workers, the Bishops and the Priests.
After the Divine Liturgy there was a rich reception in the parish hall, in an atmosphere of joy, love and brotherhood. Psalms, Christian songs and lovely conversation united us all even more.
From my heart I want to thank His Eminence Metropolitan Augoustinos of Germany for his love and for his blessing for us to celebrate today in this beautiful parish.
I warmly thank Fr Anastasios, his co-workers and, above all, all the Christians who were with us today and surrounded us with so much love and fatherly and brotherly warmth.
Today we felt that we were not guests, but members of a big family.
I thank you all from my heart!
At the first opportunity, I will return again with great joy, to celebrate together again and to meet as one big, beloved family in Christ.
May God bless the parish of Saints Constantine and Helen, our Metropolitan His Eminence Augoustinos, Fr Anastasios, his co-workers and all the faithful.
With much love and gratitude, † Bishop Nephon Daskalakis Missionary Diocese of Majunga and North Madagascar
With special joy and blessing we were found worthy today to attend the Liturgy at the Holy Church of Saint Luke the Physician, Archbishop of Simferopol and Crimea, in Nafplio, and to receive the blessing of the Saint.
Attendance was large, with people from all over Greece and abroad. And we too, with a group from Thessaloniki, had the joy of taking part in the Divine Liturgy and venerating the Saint.
I thank from my heart His Eminence Metropolitan Nektarios of Argolis for his love, his blessing and his valuable support for the work of our Mission in the Diocese of Majunga and North Madagascar.
With God’s help and great joy, classes are continuing at the Priestly School “Saint Nektarios, Bishop of Pentapolis”.
Our young priests are being taught Orthodox Liturgics, so that they may come to know in depth the order, the tradition and the spirit of our Holy Church.
Today, after the lesson at the School, there was practical training at our Cathedral of Saint Nicholas.
We pray wholeheartedly that, by the grace of God, they may learn to celebrate the Holy Services with precision, reverence and an Orthodox mind, so that tomorrow they can pass on to the faithful the Orthodox Faith, Holy Tradition and the grace of the Sacraments of our Holy Orthodox Church.
May God strengthen and enlighten them in their sacred work!
Training and continuous development of our teachers
With special joy I am following the participation of the Secondary School teachers and the Primary School teachers of our school in the compulsory training seminars held at the offices of the Directorates of Primary and Secondary Education in Majunga.
The continuous training of our teachers is essential, so that they can enrich their knowledge, use modern teaching practices and offer our children an even better education.
As a Diocese, we consider it our duty and responsibility to support our teachers and our school in practice. All the costs of our teachers’ participation in the training, that is, travel, accommodation and meals, are covered by the Holy Diocese of Majunga and North Madagascar.
In this way we support our teachers and invest in the quality of education and in the future of our children.
I wish our teachers good training, strength and every success in the important work they do.
With God’s help, we continue to work all together for a school that develops, progresses and offers the very best to our children.
With special joy and emotion we announce the founding of the Kindergarten at the “Samaria” Education Centre of the Holy Diocese of Majunga and North Madagascar, based in the parish of Saints Constantine and Helen in Ambovondramanesy.
This important undertaking is being carried out under the venerable blessing of His Divine Beatitude Patriarch Theodoros II of Alexandria and All Africa, with unshakeable faith in God and a high sense of responsibility towards the children and their families.
This new level, in full harmony with the existing Primary School and College, will form a complete Educational Institution that fully meets the needs of the school community. Through this organised structure, the continuous provision of quality education and the holistic support of our pupils from the very first steps of their school life are ensured, substantially strengthening the spiritual and social work of the Holy Diocese in the area.
The facilities of the new Kindergarten have already been fully completed and in the coming days it will open its doors to welcome its first pupils. This project is a milestone for our Educational Institution, as it responds to a long-standing need of the local community and to a heartfelt request expressed with expectation by the parents themselves. With special willingness and love, we have made sure that this wish is put into practice today.
At the same time, today our first meeting with the parents took place at the “Samaria” Educational Institution. We had the opportunity to get to know each other, to talk about their children and to present the educational path and philosophy of our College, both in the Primary and in the Secondary School.
Today marks another decisive step in the development of the “Samaria” Educational Institution; an institution that is growing steadily, modernising and creating new, bright prospects for the children of the area.
With God’s help, the fatherly prayers of His Beatitude our Patriarch and the continuous support of the parents, we move forward with undiminished devotion, love and a shared vision for the future.
With the blessing and grace of our Christ and the venerable blessing of His Divine Beatitude Patriarch Theodoros II of Alexandria and All Africa, the works on the second centre of our Diocese, in Diego, are progressing and gradually being completed.
The new buildings of our Diocese are now taking on colour, the colour of the sky and the sea, blue and white, the colours of our beloved Greece.
And the pole for our flag 🇬🇷 is being prepared! In a very few days the blue and white 🇬🇷 will be raised, as in the other places of our Diocese, to fly proudly and remind everyone of our Greece, our homeland and our Orthodox tradition.
Alongside the construction of the Diocese buildings, we are also renovating the Holy Church of the Archangels Michael & Gabriel in Diego.
We are especially happy and grateful to God, as we will soon be able to continue and expand the great pastoral work we have already begun in the area.
Through the new, beautiful and functional facilities of our Diocese, and through the Holy Church, renovated with love and care, we will be able to respond even better to the needs of our new Christians and to serve the work of the Church.
With faith, love and the blessing of God, we continue our work, with Greece and Orthodoxy always in our hearts.
With the blessing and grace of our Christ and the venerable blessing of His Divine Beatitude Patriarch Theodoros II of Alexandria and All Africa,
Glory to God!
Today, after the Blessing of the Waters, the bell of our Priestly School, the Training School for Young Priests “Saint Nektarios, Bishop of Pentapolis”, rang for the first time.
With special joy and emotion, the new students and candidates of the School took their places at the desks, full of joy and enthusiasm, to begin their first lesson.
This first lesson took place at our Cathedral of Saint Nicholas, in an atmosphere of prayer, blessing and special emotion.
After the lesson there was a meal at the School’s premises, in a beautiful brotherly atmosphere.
We pray wholeheartedly that God, through the intercessions of Saint Nektarios, may bless this new effort, enlighten and strengthen the new students and make them worthy to serve His Holy Church with faith, humility and love.
