I would like to thank the member for Humber River–Black Creek for sponsoring Bill 167, and thank the member from Brampton North for leading our discussion on Bill 167, Orthodox Christian Week Act.

As a government, we take pride in demonstrating our commitment to celebrating these important initiatives by passing a number of bills similar to this one for the other communities that have also done so much for our province. As Ontario is home to Canada’s largest Orthodox Christian community, it seems only fitting that we now move to designate a time to reflect and celebrate all the ways in which Orthodox Christians have helped shape our province.

It is my honour to stand up and support a bill which has a profound impact on a large number of Ontarians. I personally have a great affinity to the Orthodox Church. I am proud that my family roots are in two segments of the Orthodox Church: Armenian Orthodox as well as Greek Orthodox. My maternal grandmother is Greek Orthodox, and my grandfather is Armenian Orthodox. They are survivors of two genocides: the Armenian and the Greek genocides. My ancestors paid the ultimate price to preserve their Orthodox faith and then pass it to my generation.

My riding of Scarborough–Agincourt has the vibrant churches of St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church and St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church. The two Armenian Orthodox churches are not far away from my riding. In addition, a large number of the congregation of the above-mentioned three churches reside in Scarborough–Agincourt. It is always spiritually fulfilling to attend Christmas, Easter and other masses in all three churches.

Madam Speaker, the Armenian Orthodox Church is part of the Oriental Orthodox Church. It is one of the most ancient Christian institutions. In 301 AD, the kingdom of Armenia was the first state to adopt Christianity as its official religion. According to tradition, the church originated in the missions of Apostles Bartholomew and Thaddeus of Edessa in the first century. St. Gregory the Illuminator is the patron saint of the church.

The Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem was established in the seventh century. The presence of Armenians in the Holy Land extends back to the earliest period of the church. According to historians, the Armenian Orthodox Church was the first Christian church to initiate the tradition of pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

Speaker, I am pleased to speak to Bill 167, the Orthodox Christian Week Act, and I would like to recognize and thank the sponsoring member from Humber River–Black Creek for introducing it.

I also want to thank my colleagues from Brampton North and Scarborough–Agincourt for their great remarks.

As a member of the Greek Orthodox faith, this bill is important to me, as it means this Legislature is recognizing the important place of Orthodox Ontarians in our province and its history. Orthodox Christians have lived in our province since before Confederation, coming from countries such as Ukraine, Armenia, Serbia, Russia, Egypt and, of course, my own home country of Greece, along with many others.

Orthodoxy dates back to the earliest times of Christianity in the Roman Empire, clearly separating from the Roman Catholic Christianity of western Europe in the Great Schism of 1054. Who knows about the Great Schism of 1054? You would have to be a history buff. It was centred at that time in the Greek world, in Constantinople, but has spread throughout the Middle East, Africa and Eastern Europe. Four of the five great episcopal sees of the early church joined the Orthodox faith, including Alexandria, founded by St. Mark.

Today, the Orthodox Christian Church worldwide has 220 million followers. Many have immigrated to countries around the world. And the 2021 census reported about 623,000 members of Orthodox churches in Canada.

Here in Toronto, the oldest Greek Orthodox church is St. George’s, known as the mother church of the Greek diaspora in Canada. The church stands today at 115 Bond Street. Founded in 1909, it remained the only Greek Orthodox church in the city until 1961, providing a place of faith and comfort for the many early Greek immigrants to Ontario, including my own family.

Throughout their history, Orthodox churches have provided their parishioners a place to share their faith, often in times of great threat, persecution and oppression. This was true for Greece under the Ottoman rule, for the people of eastern Europe under Nazi and Soviet rule, and t's true for Ukrainians under attack today.

We are truly blessed to live, work and raise a family in a province and country that safeguards our religious freedoms.

I am proud to support this bill and to recognize the struggles and accomplishments of Orthodox Christians to our communities, and how their contributions have made Ontario a stronger, safer and more prosperous place.