Iakovos (Sofroniadis) of Princes Islands
His Eminence Iakovos (Sofroniadis) of Princes Islands is the metropolitan of the Metropolis of the Princes' Islands, under the jurisdiction of the Church of Constantinople. He has been the ruling hierarch since 2009.
Life
Charalambos Sofroniadis was born on March 14, 1947 in Ferikioi in Istanbul (Constantinople). His parents were John and Theopoula (nee Thales) Sofroniadis. From 1954 to 1960, he attended primary school before attending the Zografio gymnasium (high school) in Istanbul from 1960 to 1963. In 1963, he entered the Theological School of Halki, from which he graduated in 1970 after having presenting his dissertation on: Relations of the Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches in the 20th-century.
During his last year at Halki, Charalambos was ordained a deacon in the Church of Agia Paraskevi in New Smyrna, Athens, Greece on September 14, 1969, taking the name Iakovos (James). As deacon he served in the church and schools in the Archdiocese of Constantinople. In 1970, he was assigned to the staff of the patriarchate, serving initially as a patriarchal deacon and Rapporteur of the Patriarch. He, then, served for eighteen months in the Turkish army during the period from 1971 to 1973.
Upon completion of his military service in 1973, Dcn. Iakovos was appointed to the Secretariat of the Holy Synod. On February 28, 1984, he was appointed the Chief Secretary of the Holy Synod, followed on March 11, 1984 with his ordination to the priesthood.
On December 19, 1987, Father Iakovos was elected to a titular see as Metropolitan of Laodicea. He was consecrated at the Patriarchal Church of St. George on December 25, 1987 by Patriarch Demetrius. On June 25, 2002, Metr. Iakovos was elected to the see of the Metropolis of Princes Islands. His enthronement took place in the Metropolitan Church of St. Demetrius on July 13, 2002, with Patr. Bartholomew celebrating.
| Iakovos (Sofroniadis) of Princes Islands | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by: ? |
Metropolitan of Laodicea titular 1987-2002 |
Succeeded by: ? |
| Preceded by: ? |
Metropolitan of Princes Islands 2002-Present |
Succeeded by: — |
