On May 26, 2026, at a meeting of the Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople (Istanbul), Archimandrite Panaret Psaravtis was elected as the new Bishop of Themis and Exarch of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople in Lithuania.
The episcopal consecration of Bishop Panaret will occur this Sunday, May 31, coinciding with the Feast of Pentecost, at the Patriarchal Cathedral of St. George in Phanar.
According to the Exarchate’s website, the new bishop is expected to arrive in Lithuania on June 7, accompanied by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.
His All-Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew will be visiting Lithuania at the invitation of Roman Catholic Archbishop Gintaras Grušas and will participate in the Congress of Mercy.
A divine service for the Orthodox community, featuring the Patriarch and the new Exarch, is scheduled for June 7 at 9:00 a.m. at Holy Trinity Church in Trinapolis (70 Verkiau St., Vilnius). Following the service, there will be a community meeting.
Background: 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.