Changes

The '''[[Church of Constantinople|Ecumenical Patriarchate]] in America''' comprises five six separate [[jurisdiction]]s, along with a number of [[stavropegial]] institutions, and includes roughly two -thirds of all Orthodox Christians in America. The [[archbishop]] of the [[Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America]], by far the largest of Constantinopolitan jurisdictions in the US, is considered the local primate and may convene a [[holy synod]] of all the hierarchs of the Ecumenical throne in America.

While reliable statistic statistics are always difficult to come by, the Ecumenical Patriarchate has roughly 500,000 adherents (or up to 2 million, by some estimates) in the United States[http://hirr.hartsem.edu/research/quick_question17.html] worshiping at roughly about 750 [[parish]]es (about 725) and [[monastery|monasteries]] (about 25). It includes fourteen 14 defined dioceses(a number of which overlap, since multiple jurisdictions are represented), governed by nineteen 19 [[ruling bishop|diocesan ]] and [[auxiliary bishop|auxiliary bishops]] [[bishop]]s. Thus Constantinople thus is by far is the largest numerical representation of [[Orthodoxy in America]], including roughly twice as many Orthodox Christians under its [[omophorion]] than all other jurisdictions combinedand about two-fifths of all Orthodox bishops in America. Of the ten bishops who are members of [[SCOBA]], four represent Constantinopolitan jurisdictions.[http://www.scoba.us/jurisdictions.html]

The [[Sacred Patriarchal and Stavropegial Orthodox Monastery of St. Irene Chrysovalantou (Astoria, New York)|Sacred Patriarchal and Stavropegial Orthodox Monastery of St. Irene Chrysovalantou]] in Astoria, New York, founded in 1972, had historically been part of the [[Old Calendarists|Old Calendarist]] movement in (specifically the United States [[Genuine Orthodox Church of Greece (Florinite)|"Kiousis Synod"]]) but in 1998 came under the [[omophorion]] of the [[Ecumenical Patriarch]]. Though not formally organized as a [[diocese]], the [[monastery]] and its ten [[metochion|metochia]]—two monasteries and eight [[parish]]es—essentially function as a jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in the United States (also including one mission in the Central American nation of Belize).

The [[abbot]] and debuty deputy abbot of the monastery are both [[bishop]]s, governing not only the monastery but also the metochia, most of which are in the northeastern United States. Besides an additional monastery in Astoria, New York, and one in North Fort Myers, Florida, there are four parishes in New York, one in Delaware, one in Florida, one in Illinois, and one in Belize.[http://www.stirene.org/Resources/dependencies.htm] (The list at the Greek Archdiocese website also includes a parish in New Jersey.[http://www.goarch.org/en/otherpatriarchal/sta.asp]) The current abbot is [[Metropolitan]] [[Paisios (Loulourgas) of Tyana]], who led the monastery and its metochia into the Ecumenical Patriarchate along with the deputy abbot, Bishop [[Vikentios (Malamatenios) of Apameia]]. Both Paisios and Vikentios were [[ordination|ordained]] upon entry into the patriarchate, as their previous ordinations in the Old Calendarist movement were regarded as invalid.

The monastery and its metochia continue are [[stavropegial]], directly under the Ecumenical Patriarch, and until recently continued to follow the [[Julian Calendar]], but have been on the [[Revised Julian Calendar]] for some years. The [[Patriarch Athenagoras Orthodox Institute]] in Berkeley, California, is also a stavropegial institution of the patriarchate.

** Bp. [[Savas (Zembillas ) of Troas]]

** Abp. [[Antony (Scherba) of Hierapolis]]

** Bp. [[Ilia (Katre) of Philomelion]]