Anniversary Tribute to His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia

Anniversary Tribute to His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia

As we approach the first anniversary of the enthronement of His Eminence Archbishop Makarios as Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church of Australia and Dean of St Andrew’s Theological College—and to mark the arrival of our beloved Shepherd on our shores on this day in 2019—we take this opportunity to express our wholehearted gratitude and unwavering support to him in light of the visionary and sacrificial leadership he has provided the Theological College and the Church more broadly over the last twelve months.

From the very first moment of his arrival, Archbishop Makarios formally stated that the Theological College would be one of his most pressing concerns for the Church. At his enthronement address, he made special reference to the Theological College, stating: “I promise you that St Andrew’s Theological College will have my undivided support.”

In less than a year, and under the leadership and spiritual guidance of our Archbishop, St Andrew's has transitioned into a new and exciting phase of its existence: with an unprecedented increase in student enrolments, the opening up of the Bachelor of Theology program to women, a reinvigorated St Andrew’s Press, a richer curriculum through the invitation of international scholars to teach specialised courses. Most importantly, His Eminence announced the development of a new purpose-built campus with state of the art facilities to better meet the needs and challenges of theological education in the twenty-first century.

All of these initiatives, and countless others, demonstrate our Archbishop and Dean’s undivided concern to our College’s “labour in teaching and preaching” (1Tim 5:17).

More broadly, as a man of God, ardently filled with the love of Christ, the Archbishop has brought this joy-filled, Christ-like love to the Church here in Australia; and for this we are profoundly grateful and express, with one mind and heart “εἰς πολλά ἔτη Δέσποτα.”

We pray that our loving God will continue to bestow upon His Eminence the bountiful Grace of the Holy Spirit so that he may continue in his difficult yet sacred mission in the service of Christ for the glory of His Name and the salvation of the faithful.