His Eminence Metropolitan Cleopas of Sweden and All Scandinavia sat down with Mr. Nikolaos Kitsios for his first interview of the new year. The in-depth conversation took place at the Stockholm-based headquarters of the Holy Metropolis of Sweden on Tuesday, January 23, 2018, where the Metropolitan outlined his vision.

Metropolitan Cleopas discussed his initiatives in the four years that have passed since his election to his see with respect to the shepherding of the Holy Metropolis of Sweden, the establishment and organization of new parishes, the addition of new and able clergymen to the Metropolis, challenges facing the youth today, and the role that young people should play in the life of the Church.

This interview includes the Metropolitan’s comments on the protracted crisis in Greece and the way in which the Metropolis of Sweden can support Greek immigrants coming to Scandinavia.

The discussion also examines the role of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in the international community and His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew’s recent visit to Iceland, the complete interior renovation of the St. George Cathedral of Stockholm and the establishment of a Museum of Christian Art on site, the operation of the St. Nicholas Hermitage in Rättvik, Sweden and the role of monasticism in the Church, as well as the publication of a translation of the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom in Swedish.