On June 7, Patriarch Bartholomew presided over the Divine Liturgy at the Church of the Holy Trinity in Vilnius.
In his address to the faithful, Patriarch Bartholomew introduced his new Exarch in Lithuania, His Grace Bishop Panaretos of Tamissos, as reported by Orthodoxtimes.
The Patriarch noted that the newly appointed Patriarchal Exarch in Lithuania undertakes a difficult and important mission.
"The mission of this elected Hierarch of the Ecumenical Throne fully corresponds to the historic duty of the Mother Church: to care unceasingly for Orthodox Christians who are in need, providing them with spiritual nourishment wherever they may be," he emphasized.
Patriarch Bartholomew highlighted the bishop's many years of dedicated service at the Center for Orthodoxy, emphasizing his professionalism.
"His profound and complete knowledge of the Russian language, as well as his ability to celebrate the sacred services in the Old Church Slavonic language and according to the Slavonic Typikon, constitute a bridge of consolation and a channel of communion for a multilingual and deeply wounded flock in the Baltic countries," Patriarch Bartholomew noted.
Among those present on this historic occasion were Roman Catholic Archbishop Gintaras Grušas of Vilnius, Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Georg Gänswein, the Ambassador of Greece to Lithuania Mr Grigorios Karachalios, the Ambassador of Romania Ms Adriana Ciamba, the Ambassador of Moldova Mr Emilis Drucas, the representative of the Embassy of Ukraine Mr Viktoras Hamockis, representatives of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, and other representatives of the diplomatic corps, public authorities, social organizations, and religious communities.
As RISU reported, on May 26, 2026, during a meeting of the Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople (Istanbul), Archimandrite Panarets Psaravtis was elected as the new Bishop of Themis. He will serve as the Exarch of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople in Lithuania.
Archimandrite Panaret Psaravtis was born in Crete. He studied at the Universities of Athens and Thessaloniki and speaks four languages.
He took monastic vows in 2002, was ordained as a priest in 2003, and has held the title of archimandrite since 2010.
Since 2014, at the invitation of Patriarch Bartholomew, he has served as the rector of the parish attached to the Athonite St. Andrew’s Skete in Istanbul, which serves Slavic and Turkish Christian communities.