ADVENTURES IN THE UNSEEN

Adventures in the Unseen: My Adventures in Africa

My Adventures in Africa

 

by Metropolitan Makarios (Tillyrides) of Kenya

 

Paperback (September 2007)

ISBN: 978-1-933275-13-0

Price: $29.95 + S&H (USD)

 

My Adventures in Africa is a sequel to Adventures in the Unseen: The Silent Witness. Many people who have read the latter have expressed further interest in the life of Orthodox Mission in Africa. The manner in which Orthodoxy was introduced into East Africa during the twentieth century, and the way in which it has taken root and spread, can only be explained in terms of a Divine miracle. Orthodoxy has spread phenomenally throughout East Africa. From Uganda, it has spread into Kenya, Tanzania and all Africa. In recent years, the Orthodox Churches of Finland, Greece, Cyprus and America have assisted their sister Church in East Africa. This help in no way detracts from the fact that the planting of Orthodoxy in East Africa was achieved by African men and African enterprise without any external missionary support. His Eminence Archbishop Makarios, Metropolitan of Zimbabwe, a native of Cyprus, began his missionary activity in East Africa as the Prinicipal of the Patriarchal Seminary which was established in Kenya by His Beatitude Archbishop Makarios III of Cyprus. In 1992, he was elected and consecrated Bishop of Riruta. He continued as principal of the Patriarchal Seminary until September 1997. The following year, the Holy Synod of the Patriarchate of Alexandria elected him as Metropolitan of Zimbabwe. His collection of sermons and other discourses, delivered on various occasions, gives an insight into a work of transformation. Seventy years ago, authentic Orthodoxy did not exist in East Africa. Today, a network of hundreds of parishes extends across the length and breadth of this vast area of the continent. It is an event of no small significance in modern Christian history. These sermons serve to provide a witness to this remarkable phenomenon.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Archbishop Makarios of Kenya (Dr. A. Tillyrides) was born in 1945 in Limassol (Cyprus), where he completed his elementary and secondary education. He studied Theology at St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute in Paris (1968–1972) and at the same time attended the classes of Professors Jean Gouillard (École Pratique des Hautes Études, in the Sorbonne) and Paul Lemerle (College de France) (1970–1972) and was named in the "élève titulaire."

In September 1972, he was accepted by the University of Oxford as a post-graduate student under the supervision of the Bishop of Dioklea, Kallistos Ware. In 1976 he was awarded the title Doctor of Philosophy of the University of Oxford.

He spent three years at the University of Louvain (Belgium) as a post-doctorate research student (1979–1982). He taught in the Seminary of St. Barnabas in Nicosia, in secondary schools and for more than 15 years in the Orthodox Patriarchal Seminary, "Makarios III, Archbishop of Cyprus," in Nairobi, Kenya.

His first acquaintance with the Orthodox in Africa was in January 1977 when he was sent by the late Archbishop Makarios of Cyprus to organize and open the Orthodox Seminary in Nairobi. Since then he has dedicated his time, working closely with the Patriarchate of Alexandria, to the development of the Orthodox faith in the African continent.

As a lay-theologian he participated in inter-Ecclesiastical and inter-Orthodox conferences. For more than ten years, he was a member of the Anglican-Orthodox doctrinal discussions, taking part in meetings of the World Council of Churches, Middle East Council of Churches, the Ecclesiastical History Society, the Patristic Conferences in Oxford and Syndesmos, etc.

On 19 July 1992, he was ordained Deacon in the Church of St. Nicholas in Riruta, Nairobi, by the Patriarchal Exarch of East Mrica, Metropolitan of Accra Mgr. Petros (the present-day-Patriarch of Alexandria and all Africa), at which time he was given the new name Makarios. On 20 July 1992, Deacon Makarios was ordained to the Priesthood in the Church of St. Makarios of the Patriarchal Seminary in Nairobi by the Patriachal Exarch. On 25 July 1992 in the same Church, he was consecrated as Bishop of Riruta by the Metropolitan of Accra, Petros, assisted by the Metropolitan of Axum, Petros, and the Bishop of Uganda, Theodoros.

Apart from his native Greek, he speaks English, French, Russian, Italian and can also speak and read many African languages. He is the author of hundreds of theological and scientific articles. His studies and writings are concerned mainly with the past and present Ecclesiastical history of the ancient Patriarchates as well as Cyprus and Russia. He served as Dean of the Orthodox Patriarchal Seminary, "Archbishop Makarios III" in Nairobi, where he taught Church History; Homeletics, Hagiology, Teleturgics, Patristics and Greek. During his service as Dean of the seminary he organized the students in translating the Orthodox services into more than fifteen Mrican languages. In September 1997 and at the recommendation of the Patriarch of Alexandria, H. B. Petros VII, the Holy Synod appointed him Director of the Patriarchal Library in Alexandria.

On 13 January 1998, the Holy Synod of the Patriarchate elected him Metropolitan (Archbishop) of Zimbabwe and Southern Africa, and in February 2001, he was elected Metropolitan of Kenya and Irinoupolis..

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