
His Eminence, Efthymius, Metropolitan of Thessaloniki, according to the world, Christos Orphanos, was born in 1943 in Limassol, Cyprus, graduating from the Laniteo School of his native country. In 1960 he left for Jerusalem. In 1962, he was tonsured a monk by the ever-memorable Elder, Archimandrite Iakovos. In 1966 he received the Angelic Schema on the Holy Mountain In 1967 he was ordained a deacon by the late Metropolitan of Piraeus, Gerontios, and was elevated to the rank of archdeacon by Metropolitan Akakios of Attica. In 1972 he was ordained a priest by Metropolitan Gerontios and later elevated to Archimandrite by the then Metropolitan of Thessaloniki, Chrysostomos. He received honorary degrees from the Thessaloniki Bar Association, the Medical School, the Municipality of Thessaloniki, the Medical School of Athens, the Hellenic-German Association, the golden key of the city of Cleveland, the Cappadocian Society Studies, the Medical Research Society, the Municipality of Larissa, etc. He was elected Bishop on February 16, 1979, and consecrated by the late Archbishop Auxentios with the title of Stavroupolis. He was elevated as Metropolitan of Thessaloniki on October 3, 1980. He has been publishing since 1981 the Periodical of the Metropolis of Thessaloniki “Orthodox Parousia”.