His Eminence Seraphim Archbishop of Zimbabwe and Angola, (known in the world as George Philip Iakovou), was born in Galataria, Paphos on 2nd February 1961. In 1963 he entered the Holy Monastery of Kykkos as a novice, graduated as an A’ student from the Lyceum of Kykkos and then also from the Theological Faculty of the National Kapodistrias University of Athens. In 1983 he was ordained as Hierodeacon and in 1991 as Priest, given the rank of Archimandrite from His Beatitude Chrysostomos Archbishop of New Justinian and All Cyprus. During the years of 1988-1993, and on scholarship from the Holy Archdiocese of Cyprus and the Holy Monastery of Kykkos he studied Patristics at the Universities of Oxford and Durham in Great Britain. He was as a member of the Central Executive Committee of the International Organization of Orthodox Youth, SYNDESMOS, and served as a Parish Priest in the Holy Archdiocese of Athens, the Holy Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain and as Vicar General of the Holy Archdiocese of Kenya and Irenopolis being elected as its Archbishop on September 23rd 1997. He was ordained Bishop on 28th September 1997 by His Beatitude Petros VII, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa and was enthroned by him on 16th November 1997. During the years of 1997 – 2001, by order of His Beatitude Petros VII, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, apart from his pastoral duties as Archbishop of Kenya and Irenopolis, he served as Director of the Archbishop Makarios III of Cyprus Patriarchal Seminary in Nairobi, Patriarchal Vicar of the Holy Archdiocese of Dar Es Salaam and of the Diocese of Bukoba. On the 22nd February 2001, during the meeting of the annual Synod of our Patriarchate and after the early passing of Archbishop Ioannis of blessed memory, and suggested by His Beatitude Petros VII Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, he was elected by the members of the Holy Synod as the new Archbishop of Johannesburg and Pretoria. He was enthroned on 18th March 2001. His name day is on 2nd January, the Feast Day of St Seraphim of Sarov. He is a member of the Trustees of the Archbishop Makarios III of Cyprus Patriarchal Seminary in Nairobi, a member of the Executive Administration Committee of the Holy Archdiocese of Kenya and Irenopolis and a member of the Synodal Committees on Ecclesiastical Periodicals, on Missionary Matters and on Inter-Christian Issues and Dialogues with the Roman Catholics, Anglicans and Islam. He is the General Director of the new Missionary Ecclesiastical School ‘Catechetical School of Alexandria’, and President of the local Non-Governmental Organization ‘Alexandrian Lighthouse’. On 7th October 2010 he was elected by the Holy and Sacred Synod as Metropolitan of Zimbabwe .
The Holy Archdiocese of Zimbabwe and Angola includes in its jurisdiction the countries of Zimbabwe and Angola.
See: Harare
Adress:
P.O.Box 2832, Harare, Zimbabwe
Tel: +2634 744991
Fax: +2634 744928
Mobile: +263772611258
E-mail: stmark@mweb.co.za
