Statement from the Holy Orthodox Order of Saint George the Great Martyr
June 13, 2025
“In the shadow of Thy wings will I rejoice.” (Psalm 63:7)
The Holy Orthodox Order of Saint George the Great Martyr watches with sorrow and grave concern as the threat of war darkens the skies between Israel and Iran. We speak not from a place of politics, but from the heart of the Church—from the foot of the Cross, from the empty Tomb, and from the living witness of our brothers and sisters who dwell in the Holy Land and across the Middle East.
We see the gathering of arms and the hardening of hearts. We hear the drums of retaliation, the silence of diplomacy, and the rising voices that seek war rather than peace. And we say: this must not be.
War is never holy. Vengeance is never righteous. The Lord Himself wept over Jerusalem, crying, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!” (Luke 19:42)
If war comes, it will not be the powerful who suffer most. It will be the poor, the voiceless, the displaced—those already carrying the cross of persecution and poverty. It will be the Christians of Galilee, of Nazareth, of Gaza, of Syria, of Lebanon—those who have remained steadfast in faith across centuries of conquest and division. It will be the children in churches, mosques, and synagogues—who pray not for empires, but for bread, for safety, and for peace.
We call upon all leaders, civil and religious, to remember the sacred charge entrusted to them: to preserve life, not to end it; to sow peace, not destruction. We call upon those in the halls of power to hear not only their advisors, but the cries of mothers, the tears of children, and the groaning of the earth.
We call upon all Christians, especially our own brothers and sisters in the Orthodox Church, to stand as witnesses—not of empire or ideology—but of Christ Crucified and Risen. Let our prayers rise like incense. Let our words carry the fire of the prophets. Let our love be the sword we bear.
As Saint Paul wrote, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:21)
We appeal to Heaven, and to all those who still believe that mercy is stronger than wrath, that justice is more than revenge, and that the Cross is not the end—but the beginning.
May Christ, the Prince of Peace, reign in the hearts of men.
May His mercy be a shield to the innocent.
And may the angels of the Lord hold back the hand of war.
The Order remains steadfast in its commitment to the community of Saint Porphyrios, to Archbishop Alexios of Tiberias, to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and to all Christians who live and breathe across Gaza, the Holy Land, Lebanon, Syria, and the wider Middle East.
