View source for Tarasios (Anton) of Buenos Aires

His Eminence [[Metropolitan]] '''Tarasios (Anton)''' is a [[hierarch]] of the [[Ecumenical Patriarchate]].  As the Metropolitan of Buenos Aires and the [[Exarch]] of South America, he is the [[primate]] of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Buenos Aires and South America.

==Life==
Metr. Tarasios was born Peter (Panayiotis) C. Anton in Gary, Indiana, in 1956 to Peter and Angela Anton.  The family moved to San Antonio, Texas, in 1960, and young Peter grew up in the Church of St. Sophia in San Antonio.  He studied at [[Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology (Brookline, Massachusetts)|Hellenic College and Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology]], as well as Trinity University in San Antonio, the University of Notre Dame in Indiana (M.A. in Theology 1983), the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome, and the Pontifical School of Paleography and Archives at the Vatican.

He served as a [[lay]] assistant at St. Nicholas' church in St. Louis, Missouri, beginning in 1980, and eight years later became administrative assistant in the Diocese of Atlanta.

In 1990, Peter became the first American to serve at the Patriarchal court in Constantinople, when he was [[ordination|ordained]] to the [[diaconate]] by Metr. [[Bartholomew I (Archontonis) of Constantinople|Bartholemew of Chalcedon]].  He advanced through the ranks of the patriarchate, eventually being appointed as Grand Archdeacon of the Patriarchate.  In this role he oversaw the operation of the Patriarchal Church of St. George (the seat of the Ecumenical Patriarch), as well as various functions of the [[Archdiocese]] of Constantinople.  He supervised the production of the first English language guidebook to the Patriarchal church. 

He was ordained to the [[priest|priesthood]] on [[May 27]], 2001, in Prokopi, and to the [[episcopate]] on [[June 3]] in Constantinople.  He was enthroned in Buenos Aires on [[July 14]], 2001.

Metr. Tarasios speaks English, Greek, Spanish, Italian, and French, and has some reading knowledge of Portuguese.

Since taking up his post, His Eminence has relocated and reorganized the administrative offices and other departments of the Archdiocese, initiated programs and activities involving social action, missions, and Christian philanthropy, organized events focusing on the youth with the hope of bringing them closer to the Orthodox Church, sponsored six candidates for ordination to the priesthood, and established close ties with the inter-religious communities primarily of Buenos Aires but also throughout the South American continent.

Presently Metropolitan Tarasios is in the process of establishing a permanent and solid economic foundation based on the principle of Christian Stewardship. Future plans include developing a Department of Religious Education, a Department of Communication, a Sister Parish Program, and establishing an Orthodox Spiritual and Hellenic Cultural Center in their existing facilities.

==Sources==
*"Metropolitan Tarasios of Buenos Aires," ''The Orthodox Observer'', June 2001, page 8. [http://www.goarch.org/en/news/observer/pdf/2001/01-June.pdf PDF]
*[http://www.bulletin.goarch.org/ChurchBulletins/46/071507/OtherNotes.html His Eminence Metropolitan Tarasios of Buenos Aires to Celebrate the Divine Liturgy in Modesto on July 29, 2007]

==External links==
*[http://orthodoxresearchinstitute.org/resources/hierarchs/constantinople/currenta.htm#tarasios_metr_buenosaires Listing] at the Orthodox Research Institute
*[http://www.wwrn.org/article.php?idd=1267&sec=15&cont=8 "American Enthroned As Greek Leader"] by Bill Cormier, 2001
*[http://www.i-tur.com.ar/contenido/arzobizpo/arzobispo_es.php Tarasios, Arzobispo Metropolitano de Buenos Aires y Exarca de Sudamérica] (Spanish)


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{{succession|
before=[[Gennadios (Chrysoulakis) of Buenos Aires|Gennadios (Chrysoulakis)]]|
title=Metropolitan of Buenos Aires|
years=2001 - present|
after=&mdash;}}
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[[Category:Bishops]]
[[Category:Bishops of Buenos Aires]]
[[Category:21st-century bishops]]
[[Category:Holy Cross Seminary Graduates]]


[[es:Tarasios (Antonopoulos) de Buenos Aires]]
[[pt:Tarasios (Antonopoulos) de Buenos Aires]]