Archepiscopal Encyclical for National Philoptochos Sunday
November 2, 2025
Unto the Most Reverend and Right Reverend Hierarchs, Pious Priests and Deacons, the Monks and Nuns, Presidents and Members of Parish Councils, Honorable Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Members of Leadership 100, the Day and Afternoon Schools, Philoptochos Societies, the Youth, Greek Orthodox Organizations, and the entirety of the Christ-named Plenitude of the SacredArchdiocese of America:
Ἀνυμνοῦμέν σε Χριστὲ ὁ Θεός, τὸν δι' ἡμᾶς πτωχεύσαντα.
(Κανών α', ᾨδὴ ε', τῶν Ἁγίων Ἀναργύρων)
We praise you, O Christ our God, You who for our sakes became poor.
(Canon 1, Ode 5 of the Holy Anargyroi)
Beloved sisters and brothers in Christ,
On this National Philoptochos Sunday, when we remember the Holy Anargyroi, Saints Cosmas and Damian, whose feast falls on the first day of November, we recognize the wonderful Sisters of all the Philoptochos Societies around the country. They are the ones committed to seeing everyone as our Lord, Who became impoverished of the mighty glory of His Divinity, so that we might enrich Him and ourselves through genuine ministries of compassion and mercy.
The Philoptochos Societies throughout the Archdiocese fulfill this ministry of “enriching” our Lord through very practical means. They offer in their local communities, in the Ministries of the National Philoptochos, and in their support for the philanthropic initiatives and diakonia of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, charitable benefactions that are life-changing for their many recipients. Whether it is through medical assistance, or nutrition, or through their efforts at humanitarian relief, Philoptochos stands proud as an “Army of Agape.”
Therefore, on this Sunday dedicated to them and the causes they support, let us join them in enriching the Lord Who became poor for our sake, and make our own offering and gifts to help them in their multifaceted ministries. Let us stand with them shoulder to shoulder, in a phalanx of generosity and cheerful giving. For they truly are the ones who love the poor, and by sustaining their labors, we repay the Poor One, Whose poverty is the very source of all our heavenly riches.
With much gratitude
and paternal love in Christ,
† ELPIDOPHOROS
Archbishop of America
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