On Sunday, 25 January 2026, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, officially established the new Parish of Saint Nicholas in Cyprus, uniting the faithful of Kyrenia, Famagusta, Lefkoșa and Lefke into one Christian community characterized by its diversity. He was welcomed by clergy and parishioners and presided over a Mass attended by Catholic, Orthodox, Evangelical, and diplomatic representatives, highlighting the event’s ecclesial and ecumenical significance.
During the liturgy, the formal decree erecting the parish was read, and Fr. Andrew Arhin, OFM, was entrusted with its pastoral care. In his homily, the Cardinal reflected on how the Church is born, not from success, but from faithful perseverance through trials. Drawing on the Gospel image of Jesus beginning His mission in “Galilee of the Gentiles”, he described the new parish as a modern “Galilee”, where cultural and linguistic diversity is not a challenge but a grace and a sign of the times. He emphasized that a parish is above all a community gathered by the Word of God, called to be a welcoming light through charity, unity, and hope. Entrusted to the Virgin Mary and the Holy Spirit, the Parish of Saint Nicholas is called to become a true “House of the Gospel”, where no one is a stranger and where the faithful grow together as “fishers of men”. The celebration concluded with a hymn honoring Saint Nicholas, patron of charity and protector of the weak.
