Source: The National Herald
Metropolitan Evangelos of Sardis during the Clergy-Laity Congress of the Metropolis of New Jersey May 16, 2016 as ruling hierarch of the Metropolis. (Photo TNH Archive/Kosta Bej)
BOSTON – Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew has appointed Metropolitan Evangelos of Sardis as a member of the Holy Synod of the Phanar for a one-year tenure starting March 1, 2023. Archbishop Elpidophoros is also a member of the Synod during the current Synodic period.
Metropolitan Evangelos served as the duly and canonically elected Metropolitan of the Metropolis of New Jersey for seventeen years, from his election and enthronement on May 11, 2003, until October 8, 2020. Under his leadership the Metropolis of New Jersey, for the first time, acquired its Metropolis Center in the city of Westfield, NJ.
As The National Herald has revealed in its previous editions, Archbishop Elpidophoros, through the twisting of terms and situations and with lies, managed to unfortunately drag in Patriarch Bartholomew, through his Synod of that time, October 8, 2020, to suspend the Charter of the Archdiocese, to dethrone Metropolitan Evangelos of New Jersey, and to impose a three-month suspension of Metropolitan Methodios of Boston.
As TNH has reported, Elpidophoros had set his sights on taking the Metropolis of Evangelos even before he was enthroned, and annexing it to The Direct Archdiocesan District. His plan was revealed to a close friend and associate to a good friend of Evangelos in Thessaloniki. All these intrigues by Elpidophoros became known to the Phanar after the Patriarch, and his Synod made the decision without giving the opportunity to Evangelos nor to Methodios to confront Elpidophoros’ reproaches.
The Synod of the Phanar meets once a month under the presidency of Patriarch Bartholomew. It will not meet in February.
Metropolitan Evangelos was born in New York City. On September 20, 1961, a baby boy was born to John and Magdalene Kourounis, who was very special from the first moment.
Upon graduating from the Saint Spyridon School, he enrolled in Hellenic College, in Brookline, Massachusetts, from which he graduated in 1983 and then continued his studies at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, graduating in 1986 with a Master of Divinity Degree. With the blessings and urging of the late Archbishop Iakovos, he attended, from 1987-88, the Ecumenical Institute of Bossey of the University of Geneva, Switzerland, from which he received a Certificate of Ecumenical Studies.
On February 1, 1987, he was ordained to the Holy Diaconate at the Saint Eleftherios church, in Manhattan by Bishop Philotheos of Meloa. He was assigned Deacon to Archbishop Iakovos and Assistant Director of Archives of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese from 1988-1989.
On July 30th, 1989 was ordained to the Holy Priesthood by Bishop Philotheos at his home parish of Saint Spyridon in Washington Heights. He served at St. Demetrios of Astoria and also as chancellor of the Diocese of New Jersey, where he would serve until March 1999. In the meantime, he was appointed to serve as Director of the Registry of the Archdiocese from 1996 to 2001, and as President of the Spiritual Court for the Direct Archdiocesan District from 1996 until April 2003.
On April 12th, 2003, he was unanimously elected Metropolitan of New Jersey.
