On Tuesday, November 11, 2025, at 11:00 a.m., responding to the special invitation of the Honourable Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Greece, Mr. Matthew Lodge, and on behalf of the Armenian Prelacy of Greece and its Primate, His Grace Bishop Sahak Yemishian, the parish priest of Saint John the Baptist Church in Neos Kosmos (Fix), Rev. Fr. Narek Shahinian, were present at the outdoor official Memorial Service held at the Pantheon of Fallen Soldiers of the Allied Forces of the First World War, located in the “Alimos” district of southern Athens.
The service was presided over by the Very Reverend Benjamin Drury, pastor of Saint Paul’s Anglican Church in Athens, with the participation of clergy and representatives of the English Catholic, German Catholic, German Evangelical, Greek Orthodox, Greek Evangelical, and Armenian Apostolic Churches.
The service was conducted in English, during which the representative of the Greek Orthodox Church was also given the opportunity to perform a brief memorial rite in Greek, while the representative of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Fr. Narek, chanted in Armenian the sacred hymn “Der Voghormya” (“Lord, Have Mercy”).
At the conclusion of the ceremony, wreaths were laid.
The event was attended from high-ranking Greek state and military officials, ambassadors of numerous countries accredited to Greece, military attachés, official guests, representatives of institutions of the English community of Athens, as well as students from community schools who presented a short artistic program in commemoration of the day.
In the end, Fr. Narek expressed his gratitude to the British Ambassador for the invitation, as well as to the pastor of the Anglican Church for the opportunity to participate in the ceremony with an Armenian liturgical contribution, wishing them good health and peaceful days free of wars.
