wfn.org | Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to Appear on 60 Minutes Segment

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

GREEK ORTHODOX ARCHDIOCESE OF AMERICA

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> Contact: PRESS OFFICE
> Stavros Papagermanos
> pressoffice@goarch.org

> Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to Appear on
> 60 Minutes Segment on Orthodox Christianity

NEW YORK ? His All Holiness Bartholomew, the spiritual leader of 300
million Orthodox Christians who constitute the second largest
Christian denomination in the world, will be featured on the CBS News
program 60 Minutes reported by Bob Simon, scheduled to air on Sunday,
December 20, 2009 at 7 p.m. EST.  The segment will focus on the
Orthodox Church, the most ancient Christian church, and its
development from its earliest years to modern times in what is now the
Republic of Turkey.

His All Holiness was named 11th among the world?s 100 most influential
people by Time magazine and was awarded the US Congressional Gold
Medal for his efforts to promote human rights and religious tolerance.

He has also been recognized by the United Nations as a Laureate
Champion of the Earth for his pioneering work to protect the
environment. Affectionately known as ?the Green Patriarch,? Patriarch
Bartholomew has called upon leaders of all denominations to join him
in this effort, noting simply that ?If life is sacred, so is the
entire web that sustains it.?

His All Holiness recently concluded an extended visit to the U.S.,
where he participated in an environmental symposium in Mississippi,
ministered to the five million Orthodox faithful in America, and met
with Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and
President Barack Obama, among many others.  He is the author of
Encountering the Mystery (Doubleday) and In the World, Yet Not of the
World (Fordham).

Commenting on the upcoming broadcast, Archbishop Demetrios of America said:

?The appearance of the Ecumenical Patriarch on a program such as 60
Minutes is an extraordinary opportunity for the American public to
become aware of our Orthodox Christian Faith. Millions of people who
would otherwise have limited knowledge of the Orthodox Church will
have the chance to see and hear the highest ecclesiastical personage
of our Church in their living rooms. It is also a tremendous
opportunity for our own Orthodox Faithful in the United States to see
His All Holiness in a way that will surely touch their hearts and
minds with love and deep respect.?

60 Minutes is the pre-eminent investigative television news show in
the United States and has run on CBS since 1968. It has been among the
top-rated TV programs for much of its life and has garnered numerous
awards over the years.  The show will also be broadcast over the
Internet on the 60 Minutes website: www.60minutes.com
<http://www.60minutes.com

More information about His All Holiness?s work for religious freedom,
human rights, environmental conservation, and the Ecumenical
Patriarchate, as well as texts of his addresses may be found at:
www.patriarchate.org <http://www.patriarchate.org/

Information on religious freedom for the Ecumenical Patriarchate may
be found on: www.archons.org <http://www.archons.org

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