We are Orthodox Christian Greeks. Because we are Orthodox Christians, we love our country, our people and all the peoples of the earth; this of course includes our African brothers and sisters.
Τετάρτη 19 Απριλίου 2023
Orthodox Easter (Pascha) 2023 in Zambia & Mozambique / La fête de la Résurrection du Christ, Kananga
Σάββατο 1 Μαΐου 2021
Memory Eternal Bishop Chrysostomos of Mozambique († Great Saturday, 1st May 2021)
Orthodox times (photo from here)
The Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa announced the passing of Bishop Chrysostomos of Mozambique.
Patriarch Theodore II of Alexandria offered a Trisagion service for the rest of the soul of the late bishop in the Patriarchal Chapel of Agioi Thedoroi, as reported by neakriti.gr.
By order of the Patriarch of Alexandria, Metropolitan John of Zambia was appointed locum tenens of the diocese.
The late Bishop of Mozambique, Chrysostomos (born George Karangounis), was born in Tithorea, Fthiotida, in 1960.
He was a graduate of the Higher Ecclesiastical School of Athens and the Theological School of the University of Athens. He was ordained a deacon in 1983 and a presbyter in 1986.
He served as priest, head, preacher and catechist in the Metropolises of Fthiotida and of Peristeri. He was seconded to the Patriarchate of Alexandria in 2005 and was appointed head of the Church of St. George in Tripoli, Libya and protosyncellus of the Holy Metropolis of Tripoli.
In November 2008 he was appointed head of the Church of Saints Constantine and Helen in Cairo and priest of the Patriarchal Monastery of St. George in Old Cairo. In 2013 he returned to Libya as protosyncellus of the Holy Metropolis of Tripoli.
On November 26, 2014, following a proposal by the Patriarch of Alexandria, he was elected as Auxiliary Bishop of Berenice by the Holy Synod, ordained by the Patriarch of Alexandria on December 6, 2014, at the Patriarchal Church of Saint Nicholas in Cairo.
On November 24, 2015, following a proposal by the Patriarch of Alexandria, he was elected as Bishop of Mozambique by the Holy Synod of the Patriarchate of Alexandria.
Εκοιμήθη ο Μοζαμβίκης Χρυσόστομος
Εκοιμήθη σήμερα, Μεγάλο Σάββατο 1 Μαϊου 2021 ο Θεοφιλέστατος Επίσκοπος Μοζαμβίκης Χρυσόστομος του Παλαιφάτου Πατριαρχείου Αλεξανδρείας.
Σύμφωνα με πληροφορίες της Romfea.gr ο Επίσκοπος Χρυσόστομος, τον τελευταίο καιρό αντιμετώπιζε σοβαρά προβλήματα υγείας.
Οι ίδιες πληροφορίες αναφέρουν ότι Τοποτηρητής της Μητροπόλεως, ανέλαβε ο Μητροπολίτης Ζάμπιας κ. Ιωάννης.
Τέλος να σημειωθεί ότι Α. Θ. Μακαριότης, ο Πάπας και Πατριάρχης Αλεξανδρείας και πάσης Αφρικής κ.κ. Θεόδωρος Β΄, συγκινημένος, ετέλεσε στο Πατριαρχικό Παρεκκλήσιο των Αγίων Θεοδώρων, Τρισάγιο υπέρ Αναπαύσεως της ψυχής του μακαριστού Επισκόπου κυρού Χρυσοστόμου.
Λίγα λόγια για τον Επίσκοπο Χρυσόστομο
Ο Θεοφιλ. Επίσκοπος Μοζαμβίκης κ. Χρυσόστομος (κατά κόσμον Γεώργιος Καραγκούνης) εγεννήθη στην Τιθορέα Φθιώτιδος το 1960.
Είναι πτυχιούχος της επταταξίου Ιερατικής Σχολής Λαμίας, της Ανωτέρας Εκκλησιαστικής Σχολής Αθηνών και του τμήματος Θεολογίας της Θεολογικής Σχολής του Πανεπιστημίου Αθηνών.
Χειροτονήθηκε Διάκονος το 1983 και Πρεσβύτερος το 1986. Υπηρέτησε ως Εφημέριος, Προϊστάμενος, Ιεροκήρυξ και Κατηχητής στις Ιερές Μητροπόλεις Φθιώτιδος και Περιστερίου. Απεσπάσθη το 2005 στο Πατριαρχείο Αλεξανδρείας και διορίσθηκε Προϊστάμενος στον Ιερό Ναό του Αγίου Γεωργίου "των σκλάβων" στην Τρίπολη της Λιβύης και ως Πρωτοσύγκελλος της Ιεράς Μητροπόλεως Τριπόλεως.
Τον Νοέμβριο του 2008 διορίσθηκε Προϊστάμενος στον Κοινοτικό Ναό των Αγίων Κωνμσταντίνου και Ελένης Καϊρου και Εφημέριος στην Θεοβάδιστη Ιερά και Πατριαρχική Μονή του Αγίου Γεωργίου Παλαιού Καϊρου.
Το 2013 επανήλθε στην Λιβύη ως Πρωτοσύγκελλος της Ιεράς Μητροπόλεως Τριπόλεως.
Την 26η Νοεμβρίου 2014, τη προτάσει της Α.Θ.Μ., εξελέγη υπό της Αγίας και Ιεράς Συνόδου Βοηθός Επίσκοπος Βερενίκης, χειροτονηθείς υπό της Α.Θ.Μ. του Πάπα και Πατριάρχου Αλεξανδρείας κ.κ. Θεοδώρου Β΄, την 6η Δεκεμβρίου 2014 στον Ιερό Πατριαρχικό Ναό Αγίου Νικολάου Καϊρου. Την 24η Νοεμβρίου 2015, προτάσει της Α.Θ.Μ. εξελέγη υπό της Αγίας και Ιεράς Συνόδου του Πατριαρχείου Αλεξανδρείας Επίσκοπος Μοζαμβίκης.
Igreja Ortodoxa (tag)
Orthodox Diocese of Mozambique - Ιερά Επισκοπή Μοζαμβίκης
Κυριακή 8 Νοεμβρίου 2020
Patriarch Theodoros: “Archangels, The protectors of every human being” (November 8, Synaxis of the holy Archangels)
On the evening of Thursday 7th November 2019, His Beatitude, Theodoros II, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, officiated and preached the homily at the Great Festive Vespers, with great splendor and in a full church, in the imposing Holy Church of the Archangels in the Daher district of Cairo, which has the largest Arabic-speaking Greek Orthodox community in the Egyptian capital.
A church that is always vibrant, particularly on the eve of its celebration, with the Alexandrian Primate presiding over the festive vespers of the Archangels, concelebrating with a multitude of Hierarchs: His Eminence Elder Metropolitan Makarios of Nairobi, as well as the Patriarchal Vicar of Cairo His Eminence Nicodemus Metropolitan od Memphis, His Eminence Niphon Metropolitan of Pilousion and the Abbot of the Patriarchal Monastery of St George Old Cairo, His Grace Theodoros Bishop of Babylonos, together with the Holy Clergy.
“Today the largest Arabic-speaking Greek Orthodox Parish of the Patriarchate of Alexandria is celebrating, the Holy Archangels in the Daher district of Cairo. And I feel immense gratitude for their love and dedication to the Patriarchate of Alexandria and its Primate", the Patriarch of Alexandria emphasized.
Speaking of the Archangels, the Primate of the Orthodox Church of Africa, emphasized that "the Archangels are the symbol of the protection of all human beings, as every person coming into the world is accompanied by his guardian angel right up until he/she faces Christ. Above all the angels though, are the patrons Michael, Gabriel, Raphael and Uriel, who as protectors of every human being are the light, hope and our approach to the Triune God”.
Τετάρτη 29 Απριλίου 2020
القديس مرقص الرسول مؤسس الكرسي الإسكندري المقدس، وشفيع بطريركية الإسكندرية وسائر أفريقيا
Κυριακή 18 Νοεμβρίου 2018
Jesus Christ & Capitalism: The Parable of the Rich Fool (three Orthodox voives from Africa)
THE GOSPEL (For the Ninth Sunday of Luke)
Orthodox Diocese of Mozambique
The Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke. (12:16-21)
The Lord spoke this parable: The land of a rich man brought forth plentifully; and he thought to himself, What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?
And he said, I will do this: I will pull down my barns, and build larger ones; and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; take your ease, eat, drink, be merry.
But God said to him, Fool! This night your soul is required of you; and the things you have prepared, whose will they be? So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.
As He said this, Jesus called out, He who has ears to hear, let him hear.
Glory to Thee, O Lord, glory to Thee.
For Children Click on the link to listen to the Holy Gospel here.
The Parable of the Rich Fool can
be found in Luke 12:13–21. The key to understanding this parable is in
verse 15 (and later summarized in verse 21). Luke 12:15 says, “Take
care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does
not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” Jesus says this to
the man who asked Him to arbitrate between him and his brother. In
ancient times, the firstborn was guaranteed a double portion of the
family inheritance. More than likely, the brother who was addressing
Jesus was not the firstborn and was asking for an equal share of the
inheritance. Jesus refuses to arbitrate their dispute and gets to the
heart of the matter: Covetousness! Jesus warns this person, and all
within earshot, that our lives are not to be about gathering wealth.
Life is so much more than the “abundance of possessions.”Jesus proceeds to tell the man the Parable of the Rich Fool. This person was materially blessed by God; his land “produced plentifully” (verse 16). As God continued to bless the man, instead of using his increase to further the will of God, all he was interested in was managing his increase and accumulating his growing wealth. So the man builds larger barns in place of the existing ones and starts planning an early retirement. Unbeknownst to him, this was his last night on planet earth. Jesus then closes the story by saying, “So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
So the point of the Parable of the Rich Fool is twofold. First, we are not to devote our lives to the gathering and accumulation of wealth. There is an interesting point made in the parable. God says to the man in the story, “And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?” This echoes the thought expressed in Ecclesiastes 2:18 (“I hated all my toil in which I toil under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me”). You see it all the time in people who are singularly devoted to the accumulation of wealth. What happens to all that wealth when they die? It gets left behind to others who didn’t earn it and won’t appreciate it. Furthermore, if money is your master, that means God is not (Matthew 6:24).
The second point of the Parable of the Rich Fool is the fact that we are not blessed by God to hoard our wealth to ourselves. We are blessed to be a blessing in the lives of others, and we are blessed to build the kingdom of God. The Bible says if our riches increase, we are not to set our hearts upon them (Psalm 62:10). The Bible also says there is one who gives freely and grows all the richer (Proverbs 11:24). Finally, the Bible says we are to honor God with the first fruits of our increase (Proverbs 3:9–10). The point is clear; if we honor God with what He has given us, He will bless with more so that we can honor Him with more. There is a passage in 2 Corinthians that summarizes this aptly (2 Corinthians 9:6–15). In that passage Paul says, “And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that having all contentment in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.” We are blessed by God, so we can in turn “abound in every good work” and be a blessing in the lives of others. So, if God has blessed you with material wealth “set not your heart on it” and “be rich toward God.” That is the message of the Parable of the Rich Fool.
On the 9th Sunday of Luke (Luke 12:16-21)
Metropolitan Sotirios of Pisidia
Orthodox Archbiscopic of Zimbabwe & Angola
The parable in today’s Gospel is a brief, but powerful story. If every person were to learn from it, millions of our fellow human beings would not die from hunger or poverty. In addition, many rich people would not suffer from agonizing worry and anxiety over their possessions, and maybe save their souls from being lost due to their wealth.
Let’s look at the rich person in the parable. God gave him fruitful land with an amazing yield of crops. Instead of rejoicing in God and glorifying him for this blessing, he was overwhelmed with worry: “What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?” (verse 17).
“What shall I do?” People who say this usually have no house to live in, no clothes to protect them from the weather, or bread to give to their children to keep them alive! But a rich person who suddenly becomes even richer saying these same words is outrageous. Sadly, this is our reality. There are countless examples of wealthy people who suffer serious psychological problems and anxiety over how to maintain and increase their wealth. Those who cling to material things and are constantly trying to get more will suffer a great fall. “Rich men turned poor and went hungry” (Psalm 33:11), and the Apostle Paul warns us: “Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition” (1 Timothy 6:9).
But the great misery of the rich in the parable would come quickly. While he wondered where he would store his crop, and dreamed of living high for many years, he heard the voice from Heaven say to him, “Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?” (verse 20). By acting in this way, the rich person loses both his earthly goods and the treasure of Heaven. This treasure is denied because the rich person, due to their greed, was not able to do the good works needed to get it.
Maybe the rich would ask: “Why am I dying now? What did I do wrong? There was no stealing here, and this is what I have earned. It’s mine!”
Here we see the great mistake, both of the rich in the parable and of every person of wealth. They are under the illusion that the riches they possess are for them alone. They do not understand that God has given them this to share it. This goes back to the teaching of St. Basil the Great: You are a keeper of your fellow human beings. Do not think that all this was given to you for yourself only…For all this, you will be asked directly….Do you think that this is unfair, with so much given to you, and you give nothing to others? The extra food you keep belongs to the person who is hungry. The clothes you have filling your closet are for the naked. The money you get and hide away is for the one who needs it. So much inequality, and so many people in need who could be helped.
In God’s Wisdom, he allows rich people their wealth to benefit not just them, but all people. If everyone just kept what they needed, and gave away the rest, there would be no poor in the world.
My brothers and sisters in Christ, let us apply the teaching of the Apostle Paul: “Having food and clothing, with these we shall be content (1 Timothy 6:8). Let us make sure that we are rich in what will earn us our permanent riches in Heaven. Amen.
Capitalism (tag)
An african orthodox christian voice about the Parable of the Sower
Orthodox Church & Capitalism: Orthodox Fathers of Church on poverty, wealth and social justice
Is capitalism compatible with Orthodox Christianity?
Grace and “the Inverted Pyramid”
Τρίτη 14 Αυγούστου 2018
Dormition of the Theotokos (August 15) & some African Flowers for Her // The "Easter of the Summer" in the Orthodox Church
I think they are moving to the depths of their heart and to Heaven.
See also
The Holy Epitaph of Theotokos in MozambiqueThe Feast of the Dormition of Theotokos in Katanga (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
Paraklesis to Theotokos in Uganda with fr Silvestros Kisitu (photo)
Δευτέρα 12 Μαρτίου 2018
Helen Lieros' “Fresco Secco” in the Orthodox Cathedral of the Archangels in Mozambique’s capital (Maputo)
The Herald
The photos of the icons are from the article Η εικονογράφηση του Ελληνορθόδοξου Ναού στο Μαπούτο της Μοζαμβίκης δια χειρός Helen Lieros / A Igreja Ortodoxa Grega no Maputo by fr Panayiotis Kapodistrias (in Greek).
Stephen Garan’anga : Visual Art
When we took up our artistic arms decades ago to venture into
professional visual art through the then famous BAT Visual Arts Studios
of the National Gallery of Zimbabwe we knew there existed a local
venerate artist Helen Lieros and Gallery Delta. But we had not yet
grasped what it is that makes one an exceptional artist and be widely
recognised as a referral point in society. She was the first established
artist to descend to the BAT Studios at the beginning of our foundation period and embraced us with her career art talk.From that moment we were equipped with determination and genuine insight of the artistic journey that exterminate short cuts we had embarked on. We became highly inquisitive to perceive what she does and never missed out on most of her local participation in exhibitions especially at her confounded Gallery Delta.
Over the years what we have known on the surface of Helen locally is that she is a multifaceted no nonsense senior artist of high talent who expresses herself mostly in highly textural abstract painting work of rich colour from self-made pigments.

Her handmade paper too is a highly exploited surface of her work as a painter, drafts person and master printmaker and above all a generous warm-hearted and God fearing individual. Having highlighted the above few there are other critical attributes which need to be understood that uplifted her to reach the dizzy heights of creativity that we are accustomed to today.
This has a history, a tale of conquered obstacles through sheer hard work and resilience. Her recently launched art book at Gallery Delta Foundation for Art and the Humanities titled “Helen Lieros Mural Paintings” authored by her husband and co-founder of Gallery Delta, publisher Derek Huggins reveals she is a painter of the old masters’ calibre who executed great frescos of centuries still withstanding, appreciated and enjoyed by millions the world over by executing her own in Maputo, Mozambique.
The high definition images of her “Fresco Secco” which she locally first showed at Hellenic School in Harare when she gave her talk about the work now in a compact thick volume book illustrate magnificent human and animal anatomy with sublime flow of linear work of the drapery entailing what hard work and artistic talent is.
It is a rarity in this modern era to have an individual painter of one nation to be invited to another to partake such a mammoth task of furnishing the entirety of interior walls of an enormous iconic holly chapel with biblical events. She had to be the one fearless and capable to take us back to painting as we have known it.
The project was conceived in 1996 when she was approached by the Honorary Greek Consul of Mozambique, George Tsihlakis, to paint murals in the Greek Orthodox Cathedral of Maputo. He had seen murals done just shy of three decades earlier by Helen in Harare’s Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Holy Trinity. He furnished her with images of the naked interior walls and invited her to visit the holy space. She accepted to do justice to the call and with her typical whole painting kit from Zimbabwe she embarked on the execution of the “Apocalypse”, her first work of the fresco, with reference from the biblical book of Revelations. With the subject her intention was to have something which the general populace and worshippers would relate to and realise the necessity of peace.
Now as then, we are confronted by natural disasters, civil unrest, conflicts and wars, and the search for justice and peace. In reality these events become apocalyptic as predicted.
Her thoughts are portrayed by archetypes in their battles, flights and migrations in their search for freedom and as related to the African continent.
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| The Ephitafios |
Then I put in the white ram and the “Alpha and Omega”, and surrounded by the four symbols of the winged lion, human, bird and bull. Further down lies Saint John who dreams as God tells him what to write. In the background are the seven churches and the four horsemen of the Apocalypse. Below, in the foreground lie dead figures, depicting wars, and illness by fling frogs as stated in the Book of Revelations that the people vomited”.
Her interpretations were created taking into account that it was a Greek Orthodox cathedral in Africa and necessity dictated figurative work. Encompassing narratives she has forsaken the traditional Byzantine style feeling that the essence should be vivid colour, impact and power. However, she respected the Orthodox tradition by the execution of such paintings as “The Panagia and Child” in a sanctuary behind the altar and “The Pantocrator” in a five-meter wide dome twenty five metres from the floor.
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| The Judgement |
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| The Creation |
Hats off to the local star and may her work continue to be of great inspiration to many.
Helen Lieros - Biography (from the article of fr Panayiotis Kapodistrias)
Holy Icons (tag)

































