Archbishop of Cyprus, the Euro, and the Phanar

On October 16, 2025, the Patriarchal Synod of the Ecumenical Throne will convene in Constantinople, and on October 17, Metropolitan Tychikos of Paphos will appear before it. The session will examine his appeal against the decision of the Holy Synod of the Church of Cyprus, which deposed him from office.

All Orthodox Churches are following the case of Metropolitan Tychikos with great interest and tension, each for its own reasons. Those who understand the fine fabric of inter-Orthodox relations grasp the gravity of what is unfolding.

Since the August communiqué announcing that Metropolitan Tychikos had been summoned to Constantinople, the Patriarchate has issued no other official or unofficial statements. The Phanar remains in solemn silence.

The same silence reigns on the side of Metropolitan Tychikos. From May 22 until today, he has uttered not a single public word in his defense. He has chosen silence – dignified and steadfast.

Archbishop Georgios of Cyprus, however, has chosen another path. He is not silent – quite the opposite. With every new statement, he offends the faithful’s sense of justice and even provokes the Ecumenical Patriarchate itself. Wherever he appears, he declares that the Tychikos case is “already closed,” for the Patriarchate will supposedly confirm his deposition. His staff in the Archdiocese of Nicosia and bishops loyal to him echo the same confident refrain.

The Archbishop’s certainty that the Patriarchate will bless his every unlawful, uncanonical, and anti-statutory act is so absolute that in Paphos he already acts not as a locum tenens but as a ruling hierarch. He reassigns clergy, reshuffles commissions, consecrates churches, and even signs contracts worth hundreds of thousands of euros with the Paphos municipality – contracts that Metropolitan Tychikos had refused to endorse. In essence, the Archbishop's seems to follow an 'I-do-as-I-please' philosophy, without regard for canons, statutes, laws, God, or man.

Is this arrogance merely the outgrowth of the Archbishop’s character – his pride, self-importance, and sense of impunity? Or does his boldness conceal something deeper – perhaps knowledge of the Synod’s decision before it is even made?

For how else could he so confidently proclaim that “the case is settled,” when the Synod has not yet convened and no judgment has been rendered? When, back in August, the Patriarchal Synod decided to summon Metropolitan Tychikos for a hearing on October 17, how could the Archbishop already announce that the verdict is known and that it will favor him?

This question touches not only one man’s fate – it reaches into the very heart of the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s authority, dignity, and credibility.

The issue takes a provocative turn

Just yesterday, October 14, 2025, Cypriot theologian and journalist Theodoros Kyriakou – a vocal critic of Metropolitan Tychikos and supporter of Archbishop Georgios – declared: “Personally, I believe the Ecumenical Patriarchate will not risk its relations with the Archbishop and our Synod, given that the Church of Cyprus supports the Phanar in many ways – particularly by recognizing the autocephaly of the Ukrainian Church and by providing financial support to the Patriarchate.”

He made similar remarks earlier, on September 30, 2025, during the “Protoselido” program on Sigma TV, stating: “I do not expect the decision of the Cypriot Synod to change. The relationship between the Patriarchate and the Church of Cyprus does not allow it. On the contrary, [the Patriarchate] will confirm the decision, and Bishop Tychikos will return with instructions to submit to the Church of Cyprus. The Ecumenical Patriarchate, though the appeal gives it a chance to intervene, will show restraint. Remember, the Church of Cyprus is one of the four Churches that supported Ukrainian autocephaly and has financially supported the Phanar for years.”

Kyriakou would not risk his reputation lightly. As one friendly to Archbishop Georgios, he is well aware of the inner workings of Cypriot church politics.

But his words raise a chilling question. What do they mean? That the Ecumenical Patriarchate will confirm the Archbishop’s decision to depose Metropolitan Tychikos because it fears damaging its alliance with the Church of Cyprus – the Church (viz. Archbishop Georgios) that
a) supports Ukrainian autocephaly, and
b) pours money into the Phanar’s coffers?

How should this statement be understood?

a) As open blackmail of the Ecumenical Patriarch – “If you don’t punish Tychikos, I will withdraw my recognition of Ukrainian autocephaly and cut off financial support”?
or
b) As a troubling admission that money truly guides even the most critical ecclesiastical decisions – including the fate of the Paphos Metropolis and Metropolitan Tychikos?

Even to entertain such a thought is painful – yet it can no longer be ignored.

The statement of Fr. Evangelos Papanikolaou, made publicly on July 29, 2025, gives it further weight. The well-known missionary priest declared what everyone in Cypriot church circles already knows: “In Cyprus, people say that the ‘great one’ [i.e., Archbishop Georgios] has said: ‘If the Patriarch does not give me the decision I want, I’ll start commemorating Onuphry.’ Fine church affairs indeed!”

This remark caused astonishment throughout the Orthodox world. Greek hierarchs reacted with deep skepticism toward what the Archbishop of Cyprus seemed to be signaling.

Now, however, one of his unofficial spokesmen repeatedly asserts that the criterion for the Patriarchate’s ruling will not be the Holy Canons, ecclesiastical law, or truth, but rather political expediency – the degree to which the Church of Cyprus supports patriarchal initiatives and finances the Phanar. (!)

Everyone knows that Metropolitan Tychikos neither possesses wealth nor stoops to such dealings – whereas Archbishop Georgios commands vast sums of money, the management of which remains opaque and unaccounted for.

The Ecumenical Patriarchate must respond

The Ecumenical Patriarchate now faces a moment of truth. It must respond to these archiepiscopal provocations not with vague statements or press briefings, but with a clear, reasoned decision – one grounded in the Holy Canons, ecclesiastical tradition, the Charter, and the conscience of the Orthodox faithful.

Any opposite outcome – one that justifies injustice, legitimizes lawlessness, and rewards arbitrariness – would strike a mortal blow to the universal authority of the Ecumenical Throne. The right of appeal, once considered a sacred guarantee of fairness, would instead become an empty phrase – a bitter jest to all who believe in truth and justice.

The Patriarchal Synod must now render its judgment.
And its decision will resound far beyond the walls of the Phanar – echoing throughout the entire Orthodox world.