Bishop John KALLOS

Family-Placed Death Notice

KALLOS, Bishop John HIS GRACE BISHOP JOHN (KALLOS) OF AMORION His Grace Bishop John (Christodoulos Kallos) of Amorion, 84, died of natural causes in his home on Saturday, Dec. 1, 2012. Bishop John faithfully served the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese for over 43 years and was the first Bishop of the Greek Orthodox Diocese of Atlanta from 1980-1988. Bishop Kallos was born on March 29, 1928, in Chicago, Illinois. He was raised and educated in the Boston area. He was a long time resident of Tucker, Georgia. Although he had no siblings, he had 6 paternal first cousins in the USA and 7 maternal first cousins in Greece. Bishop John became the first American born bishop in the Greek Orthodox Church of America when he was ordained by the late Archbishop Iakovos of America and two other hierarchs on January 17, 1971, at the Annunciation Cathedral in Houston, Texas. He served as Auxiliary Bishop in Houston (1971-1973), and Denver (1974-1977), as Diocesan Bishop in Charlotte (1978-1980), and Atlanta (1980-1988). On January 1, 1989, for reasons of health, he resigned as Bishop of Atlanta. He was a graduate of Boston College, Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Theological School in Brookline, MA and the Divinity School University of Athens, Greece. He also pursued graduate studies at the Ecumenical Institute in Geneva, Switzerland, Huntingdon College in Montgomery, AL. Harvard Divinity School and Episcopal Theological School in Cambridge, MA. Bishop John was ordained a Deacon on August 15, 1955, by Bishop Athenagoras of Elaias at the Dormition Church, Somerville, MA, and a Priest on October 21, 1956, by Bishop Athenagoras at the Holy Cross Seminary Chapel, Brookline, MA. He served as Archdeacon and Assistant Librarian at the Holy Cross Seminary, Brookline, MA, and as a Priest at the St. Demetrios Church, Fall River, MA, Annunciation Church, Montgomery, AL, Holy Trinity Cathedral, Charlotte, NC and at the Dormition Church, Somerville, MA. Bishop John served as an Assistant Dean, Dean of Students, Registrar and Instructor at Holy Cross Seminary in Brookline. He also served as a supply priest to many Greek Orthodox Churches in the U.S. In 1961, he established the American Greek Orthodox Community at the U. S. Air Force Base in Athens, Greece where he served as Auxiliary Civilian Chaplain. As an ecumenist, he served on the Board of Directors of the Texas Conference of Churches, Oklahoma Conference of Churches, Colorado Council of Churches, Georgia Council of Churches, as well as a member of the N.C.C. Commission of Regional and Local Ecumenism and the Fellowship of St. Alban & Sergius. He also served as the S.C.O.B.A. Ecclesiastical Endorsing Agent for the Armed Forces and V.A. Hospitals. Bishop John became the chairman of the St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine in St. Augustine, FL, in November, 1977. The St. Photios National Shrine is the oldest existing edifice in the Western Hemisphere where Orthodox Christians began worshiping in November, 1777, upon the demise of the New Smyrna Colony. He became the first chairman of the Shrine in 1981 and the first president in 1989. In 2006, he established the Bishop John Kallos Scholarship Fund in memory of his beloved parents, James and Kaliope Kallos, at the Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Theological School in Brookline, Massachusetts. Bishop John was bestowed the title Bishop of Amorion by His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and the Holy Synod of Constantinople on October 15, 1992. He received honors from his Alma Maters and authored several books and pamphlets and several hundred articles appeared in various Orthodox journals and newspapers. Bishop John enjoyed writing, gardening, walking and traveling. He was known for his love of Orthodox worship, especially the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy, his enthusiasm in encouraging participation in worship and delivering meaningful sermons in both the Greek and English language. The Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Annunciation located at 2500 Clairmont Rd. NE in Atlanta, Georgia, will be accepting visitors on Thursday, December 6, 2012 from 5-8 PM, with a Trisagion Prayer Service at 7:30 PM. Bishop John will lie in state at the Annunciation Cathedral Thursday evening and Divine Services will begin on Friday morning, December 7, 2012 Orthros, (Matins) beginning at 8 AM, the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at 9 AM and the Funeral Service at 11 AM. Officiating will be His Eminence Metropolitan Alexios, Hierarch of the Metropolis of Atlanta, His Grace Bishop Dimitrios of Xanthos, The Very Rev. George J. Tsahakis, Metropolis Chancellor, the Rev. Paul A. Kaplanis, Dean of Annunciation Cathedral, the Rev. Christos P. Mars, Cathedral Presbyter and guest priests from the metropolitan area and the U.S. The Metropolis of Atlanta Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate Order of St. Andrew will serve as honorary pallbearers. His Grace Bishop John will be interred at Greenwood Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the St. Photios National Shrine, 41 St. George St., Saint Augustine, FL 32084, or to the Bishop John Kallos Scholarship Fund, Holy Cross Theological School, 50 Goddard Ave., Brookline, MA 02146. A.S. Turner & Sons Funeral Home and Crematory