Jerusalem, 17-18 November 2025. Official visit of the IAO delegation to the Patriarchate of Jerusalem

A delegation of the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy (IAO) paid an official visit to the ancient Patriarchate of Jerusalem. The delegation was attended by MPs: Ioan Vulpescu, from Romania, President of the IAO General Assembly, Georgios Karasmanis, Theophilos Leontarides, and Charalambos Mamoulakis, from Greece, Vangelis Doule, from Albania, Nenad Grkovic from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mile Talevski, from North Macedonia, Irakli Kadagishvili from Georgia and Laokratis Koranisz from Hungary. Moreover, present were Mr. Aleksander Wasilyk, runner-up MP from Poland, the Metropolitan of Zambia and Mozambique, Mr. Ioannis, as well as the IAO Advisor, Dr. Kostas Mygdalis.

During the address of the IAO Secretary General, member of the Hellenic Parliament, Dr. Maximos Charakopoulos to His Beatitude Patriarch of Jerusalem, Mr. Theophilos III, the head of the interparliamentary institution emphasized, “The Patriarchate of Jerusalem, on whose throne you have already been for twenty years, constitutes the supreme bulwark of Orthodoxy and Hellenism. Divine providence has reserved for you the mission of guarding the long tradition, which entrusted the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate and the Roman gens with the rights to the most holy pilgrimages to the Holy Land. The Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulcher has the highest honorable duty to preserve this invaluable heritage.”

He noted, “We know that, especially in recent years, the Christian flock, as well as many Christian pilgrimage sites, such as the Church of Saint Porphyrios in Gaza, have suffered from severe turmoil.

As the IAO, we have always stood on the side of Peace, Reconciliation, Mutual Understanding, Diplomacy and Approach. We have condemned in the most categorical way religious intolerance, misanthropic fanaticism, and extremism in the name of any ideology or faith.

We hope that despite the serious problems that still exist, the path to peace will not be closed again. That people here will find a way to coexist by cooperating and not by fighting each other. That the commitments of the world’s powerful for substantial assistance for the healing of wounds and the development of the wider region will not remain an empty letter.” He concluded by noting that “The celebration in a few days of the 1700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea reminds us of the duty of all Christians to work together for the peace and unity of the Christian world, but also to upgrade the dialogue with representatives of other Abrahamic religions, with a view to consolidating peaceful coexistence and mutual understanding”.

For his part, the Patriarch warmly welcomed the Orthodox deputies and highlighted the importance of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, as the most ancient institution with continuous temporal continuity and as the guardian of the unity of all Christians, and especially the Orthodox. He underlined the need to consolidate peace, and the sincere contribution of the international community to this goal. Finally, he stressed that the Christian element in the Middle East must be preserved, because its disappearance would be a disaster. For this reason, he asked for support for the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, but also for the arrival of pilgrims, who in this way also help Christians to remain in their homes.

During their stay in Jerusalem, the members of the IAO International Secretariat had the opportunity to visit the Holy Church of the Resurrection, where they were welcomed by the Archbishop of Hierapolis, Mr. Isidoros and Fr. Anastasios, as well as the Holy Church of the Nativity in the city of Bethlehem, where they attended Vespers, celebrated by the Metropolitan of Caesarea and Patriarchal Commissioner in Bethlehem, Mr. Benedict. Finally, the IAO members venerated the Tomb of the Virgin Mary, the All-Pure Theotokos tomb, at the Mount of Olives.