Born Christodoulos Sabbatos was born in the Athens suburb of Peristeri in 1961. After completing his general education, he entered the Ecclesiastical School of Athens in 1980, graduating in 1983. He then studied at the Faculty of Theology of the University of Athens from 1983 to 1987. In 1988, Christodoulos entered into a career in the Orthodox Church when he was [[ordination|ordained]] a [[deacon]] and received the ecclesiastical name of Chrysostomos. His education includes degrees from schools in Rome , 1988 to 1990, and Strasbourg. He is a professor and [[Theologian|theologian]] with the Theology Faculty of the University of Athens. He also holds membership in the Orthodox-Roman Catholic Dialogue Commission.