page_title: Bartholomew I of Constantinople
section_title: Patriarchate
hierarchical_section_title: Bartholomew I of Constantinople / Patriarchate
caption_attribution_description: עברית: תמונות מהמפגש בין האפיפיור פרציסקוס לבין הפטריארך האקמוני ברתולמאוס בכנסיית הקבר.English: Pope Francis &amp; Patriarch Bartholomew I in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.Español: El Papa Francisco y el Patriarca Bartolomé I en la Iglesia del Santo Sepulcro en Jerusalén. Français&#160;: Le pape François et le patriarche Bartholomée Ier dans l'église du Saint-Sépulcre à Jérusalem. Português: Papa Francisco e Patriarca Bartolomeu I na Igreja do Santo Sepulcro, em
context_page_description: Bartholomew I is the 270th and current archbishop of Constantinople and ecumenical patriarch, since 2 November 1991. In accordance with his title, he is regarded as the primus inter pares in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and as the spiritual leader of approximately 300 million Orthodox Christians worldwide.
  Bartholomew I was born as Dimitrios Arhondonis, in the village of Agios Theodoros on the island of Imbros. After his graduation, he held a position at the Patriarchal Theological Seminary of Halki, where he was ordained a priest. Later, he served as metropolitan of Philadelphia and Chalcedon and he became a member of the Holy Synod as well as other committees, prior to his enthronement as ecumenical patriarch.
  Bartholomew's tenure has been characterized by intra-Orthodox cooperation, intra-Christian and inter-religious dialogue, and formal visits to Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, Orthodox and Muslim leaders seldom previously visited by an ecumenical patriarch. He has exchanged numerous invitations with church and state dignitaries.
context_section_description: As ecumenical patriarch, he has been particularly active internationally. One of his first focuses has been on rebuilding the once-persecuted Eastern Orthodox churches of the former Eastern Bloc following the fall of Communism there in 1990. As part of this effort he has worked to strengthen ties among the various national churches and patriarchates of the Eastern Orthodox Church. He has also continued the reconciliation dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church started by his predecessors, and initiated dialogue with other faiths, including other Christian sects, Muslims, and Jews.
caption: Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem
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