The Christian roots of Smyrna are very deep; they go back to the apostolic times. During the times of persecution, the Church of Smyrna also highlighted its martyrs. Koryphaeus its heroic bishop, the holy martyr Polykarpos. Saints and martyrs, however, were highlighted by the Church of Smyrna throughout its historical course.
In the dark times of slavery to the Turks, the soil of Smyrna was stained with the blood of the new martyrs. The martyrdom tradition of the unforgettable and many-cloistered city was sealed with his sacrifice by its last bishop, the martyred Metropolitan Chrysostomos.
On the joyous anniversary of the completion of fifty years (1974-2024) from the founding of the Holy Metropolis of Nea Smyrna, which does not simply bear the name of Smyrna Asia Minor, but is in a way the inheritor of its spiritual wealth, its bishop-pastor brings to light and highlights the godly lives and sports of the holy figures of Smyrna.
