The Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate has announced that the 3rd International Scientific Conference on Bioethics will be held in Rethymno, Crete, from 24 to 26 October 2025, under the theme “Euthanasia.”
With the blessing of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, the conference will be presided over by His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia, who also serves as President of the Synodal Committee on Bioethics.
Archbishop Makarios will represent the Ecumenical Patriarch at the event, which will bring together leading theologians, academics, and clergy to address complex moral, spiritual, and social questions surrounding euthanasia.
The conference will be hosted by His Eminence Metropolitan Prodromos of Rethymno and Avlopotamos and held at the Centre for Social and Cultural Ministry “Theomitor” and the Holy Patriarchal and Stavropegic Monastery of the Holy Cross of Vosakos.
Across three days, participants will engage in keynote addresses, panel discussions, and theological reflections examining euthanasia through Christian, philosophical, and medical perspectives. Topics will include the sanctity of life, the moral challenges of assisted dying, cultural perceptions of death, and the role of faith in end-of-life care.
Among the featured speakers are prominent figures such as Professors Konstantinos Delikostantis, Miltiadis Vantsos, Christos Lionis, and Konstantinos Kornarakis, as well as Metropolitan Nikolaos of Mesogaia and Lavreotiki and His Grace Bishop Athenagoras of Canberra.
Opening the proceedings, Archbishop Makarios will deliver a keynote address titled “Euthanasia as an affirmation of death and denial of the Resurrection, or the temptation of Calypso.” The conference will conclude with a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at the Monastery of the Holy Cross and the presentation of the final resolutions.
The Organising Committee is chaired by Archbishop Makarios and includes Metropolitans Prodromos of Rethymno and Myron of New Zealand, alongside distinguished academics.
