Bishop Athenagoras of Nazianzos elected Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of New Jersey; enthronement set for Nov. 7

The Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, meeting at the Phanar in Istanbul on Thursday, Oct. 1, elected Bishop Athenagoras of Nazianzos as Metropolitan of New Jersey. The Metropolis of New Jersey is part of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. The synod chose him from a three-candidate list sent by the archdiocese's Eparchial Synod, Greek Reporter and The National Herald reported. The see had been vacant since Metropolitan Apostolos was elevated to Archbishop of Canada, according to The National Herald.

The archdiocese says the enthronement will take place on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 11 a.m. at the Cathedral of St. John the Theologian in Tenafly, N.J. The next day, Nov. 8, he is to celebrate his first Divine Liturgy there as metropolitan. Archbishop Elpidophoros of America congratulated him, saying the metropolis "receives a shepherd who knows and loves our Church."

Athenagoras was born Christos Ziliaskopoulos in 1970 in Reutlingen, Germany, and grew up in Germany and Greece. According to the archdiocese's biography, he spent several years in monastic life on Mount Athos as a young man. He was ordained a deacon in 1997 and a priest in 1998, and served the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Germany for about two decades. His work there included setting up the first Orthodox chapel at Frankfurt International Airport and a 24-hour Orthodox crisis hotline. He moved to Toronto in 2017 to lead the Patriarchal Orthodox Theological Academy there. In 2019 he came to the United States to serve at Hellenic College Holy Cross in Brookline, Mass. The synod elected him Bishop of Nazianzos on May 19, 2021, and he was ordained to the episcopacy that June. He has since served as chief secretary of the archdiocese's Eparchial Synod.