Athens, August 26, 2019
simvol-veri.ru
Irenaios (Skopelitis), the former Patriarch of the Holy City of Jerusalem, will soon head to Athens to receive treatment in the St. Porphyrios Center for Gerontology and Welfare Support of the Archdiocese of Athens.
The Patriarch was hospitalized in Jerusalem in early July after suffering a pulmonary edema and cardiac arrhythmia, being released a week later. His Beatitude Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece then invited Pat. Irenaios to receive treatment in the center.
Current Patriarch, His Beatitude Theophilos, signed the necessary papers for issuing his predecessor’s passport and other documents a few days ago, and Deputy Foreign Minister of Diaspora Affairs Antonis Diamantaras took the initiative to expedite the procedures for issuing the travel documents, reports Romfea.
It is also reported that efforts are being made so that Pat. Irenaios can undergo a number of tests in a hospital in Athens before entering the gerontology center. His doctors at the French Jerusalem Hospital, where he is being treated, say he should be seen by neurologists and have his breathing stabilized before going to the center, reports the Orthodoxia News Agency.
The ailing Irenaios (Skopelitis) was formally reinstated to the episcopal dignity and recognized with the title of “Former Patriarch” by the Holy Synod of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem in late July.
He had been removed from office by the Patriarchate in 2005 due to allegations of dubious real estate transactions with Israeli authorities.
