His Eminence Athanasios, Metropolitan of Kyrini, was born in Morphou, Cyprus in 1958. He is a brother of the Holy Royal and Stavropegic Monastery of Kykkos. On a scholarship from the Monastery he studied Theology at the University of Athens as well as Byzantine music. He did post graduate studies at the Universite de Paris 1, Pantheon, Sorbonne, Histoire du monde byzantine, post byzantine et orient Latin. He was ordained to the diaconate on 15th August 1976 and Priest on 18th March 1984, on the same day being elevated to the rank of Archimandrite. He served for a number of years as Registrar at the Holy Monastery of Kykkos and as a member of its Hegumen’s Council. By proposal of the late Patriarch Petros VII of Alexandria and following a blessing given by the Monastery of Kykkos he traveled to Moscow on 29th September 1997 to undertake the duties of Patriarchal Exarch of the ancient Patriarchate in the Church of Russia. On 23rd November 1999 he was elected Bishop of Kyrini and consecrated on 28th November 1999. On 6th October 2009 the erstwhile Diocese of Kyrini was elevated to an active Metropolis of the Patriarchal Throne, in the person of His Eminence Metropolitan Athanasios who continues his Exarchal ministry in Moscow.
The Holy Metropolis of Kyrini includes in its spiritual jurisdiction the area of Marsa Matrouh in Egypt.
e-mail: church.kulishki@gmail.com
