On Monday 14th October, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew visited the Premier of Victoria, the Hon. Jacinta Allan MP, in Melbourne.
The Patriarch was accompanied by His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia, His Eminence Metropolitan Filotheos of Thessaloniki, and the Very Reverend Grand Ecclesiarch Archimandrite Aetios, Director of the Personal Patriarchal Office.
Ms Allan welcomed with great joy and enthusiasm, the Primate of the Orthodox Church, expressing her pride that the state of Victoria hosts the largest Greek community outside of Greece and the largest Orthodox Christian community in Australia. She also congratulated the Ecumenical Patriarch, as well as Archbishop Makarios, on the centennial anniversary of the founding of the Holy Archdiocese of Australia.
For his part, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew thanked the State Premier for her support of Hellenism and the Orthodox Church in Victoria.
Finally, as a memento of the visit, he presented Premier Allan as well as the Greek-Australian ministers and MPs accompanying her, with commemorative coins for the centenary of the Holy Archdiocese of Australia.
Also present at the meeting of the Ecumenical Patriarch with the Victorian Premier were State Minister Mr Steve Dimopoulos and State MPs Ms Kat Theophanous, Mr Nick Staikos, and Mr Lee Tarlamis, all from the ruling Labor Party.
