Metr. Saba Congratulates Newly Ordained Bishop in Turkey
According to the Patriarchate of Antioch, a Turkish-born cleric was ordained as bishop for a new southern Turkish diocese in a ceremony led by Patr. John X.
MERSIN, TURKEY — His Eminence Metr. Saba offered congratulations and well-wishes on behalf of the clergy and faithful of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America to His Grace Bp. Paul Ordologlou following his ordination on April 25 at the Church of the Archangels Michael and Gabriel in Mersin.
According to the Patriarchate of Antioch, Patr. John X of Antioch and All the East presided over the ordination, assisted by hierarchs of the Holy Synod. Archimandrite Paul Ordologlou, a Turkish native, was ordained to serve the newly created Diocese of Tarsus, Adana, and the Region of Alexandretta (Hatay).
"Antioch has spoken," His Holiness said. "This land of saints, the cradle of culture, faith, and witness, Antioch, has renewed the covenant with Paul the Antiochian Apostle of Tarsus through the ordination of Archimandrite Paul Ordologlu as Bishop of Tarsus."
Services included Great Vespers, Orthros, and the Patriarchal Divine Liturgy culminating in the ordination rite, with participation from multiple metropolitans, bishops, clergy, and faithful, and the liturgical acclamation of “Axios!”
Previously, the UOJ reported that Patriarch John X visited the earthquake-damaged Antioch Cathedral.
