National Commander,
Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in America
Conference Co-chair
Dr. Anthony J. Limberakis, MD has served as National Commander of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate since 1998.
Dr. Limberakis was invested as an Archon on March 8, 1987 and conferred with the offikion Aktouarios. He has served on the Archon National Council since 1989 and held the position of National Secretary for ten years. On September 3, 2023, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew elevated Dr. Limberakis to the offikion Archon Megas (Grand) Aktouarios.
Dr. Limberakis has led the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in a major domestic and international religious freedom initiative for the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Under his leadership, the Archons have initiated a multifaceted religious freedom project, working with the federal government of the United States, the legislative bodies of each of the 50 states, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), the European Union, the European Court of Human Rights and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), to convey the urgent message that the Turkish government must cease and desist the policies that restrict religious freedom. Over the years Commander Dr. Limberakis has met with various ministers of the Republic of Turkey, including the current President, initially when he served as mayor of Istanbul, and later when he assumed the office of Prime Minister.
Also, under the leadership of Dr. Limberakis, the Archons have established eleven Archon Engagement Committees, which afford hundreds of Archons the opportunity to devote their time, talent and treasure in service to a specific area of their interest that serves the advancement and protection of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
Dr. Limberakis also serves as Chair of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Foundation (EPBF), which is dedicated to providing financial independence for the Ecumenical Patriarchate, in perpetuity. As of this writing, the EPBF has over $23 million in pledges. Leading by example, Commander Dr. Limberakis is a FOUNDER of the EPBF, contributing $100,000; he is also a fulfilled member of the Archbishop Iakovos Leadership 100 Fund, and a significant Honor Wall benefactor of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine at the World Trade Center in Manhattan. Under his leadership, the Archons have raised over $60 million in direct and indirect funds for the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
In March 2015, Dr. Limberakis was conferred with the recognition of Distinguished Fellow of the Oxford Centre for the Study of Law and Public Policy at Harris Manchester College of the University of Oxford.
Dr. Limberakis is a current member of the Archdiocesan Council of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, and has been since 1996. He is a past member of the Board of Trustees of Hellenic College/Holy Cross School of Theology; that institution conferred upon him an Honorary Doctorate in Humanities for his leadership in the Church and Community. His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos of Jerusalem awarded National Commander Limberakis with a cross of the “Order of Orthodox Cross-bearers of the All-Holy Sepulcher” for his honorable work and faithful dedication to the Mother Church of Constantinople and the Jerusalem Patriarchate.
A graduate of Duke University School of Medicine, Commander Dr. Limberakis has served on the Board of Visitors of Duke University Medical Center, was the president of the Duke University Medical Alumni Association and the Medical School’s major gifts organization, The Davison Club, and received the medical school’s highest recognition for voluntary service, The Charles A. Dukes Award.
Dr. Limberakis currently serves on the Academic Radiology Faculty of Thomas Jefferson University, Sidney Kimmel Medical College. He is also the Supervising Radiologist for the City of Philadelphia Public Health Department, Division of Ambulatory Services.
Dr. Limberakis is married to Dr. Maria Borden Limberakis, a family practitioner, who is the daughter of Dr. Anthony G. Borden of blessed memory, the National Commander of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate from 1976 to 1989. They have three adult children and five grandchildren, and are parishioners of Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, and St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church in Valley Forge (Jeffersonville), Pennsylvania.
