Metropolitan Tikhon sends greetings to newly elected Metropolitan Joseph

Met Joseph

In a letter dated July 10, 2014, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, congratulated His Eminence, the newly elected Metropolitan Joseph of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America.

Metropolitan Joseph was elected Archbishop of New York and Metropolitan of All North America by the Holy Synod of Antioch on Thursday, July 3, 2014.  [See related story.]

The text of the letter, which also appears in PDF format, reads as follows.


LETTER OF CONGRATULATIONS ON THE ELECTION OF METROPOLITAN JOSEPH

July 10, 2014
07/009

His Eminence Joseph
Archbishop of New York
Metropolitan of All North America
P.O. Box 5238
Englewood, NJ 07631-5238

Your Eminence,

Greetings to you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

It is with great joy that we congratulate Your Eminence on your election as the Metropolitan of the Self-Ruled Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America.

It is our hope and expectation that during the course of your leadership within the Antiochian Archdiocese we will continue to build upon the decades of common work for the glory of God.  May the Orthodox Church in America and the Antiochian Archdiocese journey together, inspired by the shared vision of Orthodox mission in America and committed to unity in Orthodox ministry and witness.  We look forward to greeting Your Eminence with brotherly love in person.

We pray that God will generously endow you with gifts of strength and wisdom and clarity of vision.  We rejoice with the Church of Antioch and the Antiochian Archdiocese of North America.  Axios!

Your brother in Christ,

+ Tikhon
Archbishop of Washington
Metropolitan of All America and Canada