First Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Suffolk is Dormition of the Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church of the Hamptons

Suffolk County now has its first Greek Orthodox Cathedral after the worldwide spiritual leader of that religion bestowed the title on a parish in Southampton.

His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, who is touring the United States with stops at the White House and the U.N. General Assembly, bestowed the title of cathedral on the Dormition of the Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church of the Hamptons on Sunday. 

It is only the second Greek Orthodox Cathedral on Long Island — another is in Hempstead at St. Paul’s. A cathedral is considered the principal Greek Orthodox church in a certain geographical area.

The Rev. Alexander Karloutsos, who leads the church in Southampton, said the upgraded status was a great honor and would help energize the church’s outreach work throughout the East End.

"It was humbling because it was not something you look for," Karloutsos said. "All you look for is to serve. So it became a blessing out of the blue, as they say, because we never thought of ourselves as a cathedral. We just thought of ourselves as serving, doing God's will."

The church that received the title of cathedral is a visually beautiful $24.5 million structure completed in 2013, Karloutsos said. It replaced a far humbler church built in the mid-1980s by local faithful who wanted to establish a parish on the East End.

Outreach work

But he said the congregation is more focused on its service work than its building, which is why it was declared a cathedral.

The congregation of about 275 families includes 39 ethnicities and is involved in a plethora of outreach work, he said. It includes a residence for people with autism, language and culture classes, and support for impoverished people locally and worldwide.

"It's not about the building. It's about building up the Body of Christ," Karloutsos said. "It's about bringing people together in the presence of the Lord. And so that is the cathedral challenge."

"Our church will continue to be a light on a hill in the Hamptons," he added.

There are about 2,000 Orthodox Christian churches in the United States, including a subset of 650 that are Greek Orthodox, Karloutsos said. Long Island is home to 15 Greek Orthodox churches with about 40,000 members. There are about 300 million Orthodox Christians in the world, he said.

'Green Patriarch'

Bartholomew is known as the "Green Patriarch" for his work on the environment. In April, he was awarded the Templeton Prize given to people for extraordinary contributions in areas that include the intersection between religion and science. Past winners include Mother Teresa (St. Teresa of Kolkata), the Dalai Lama, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Jane Goodall.

Stony Brook University on Saturday awarded Bartholomew the Stony Brook Council University Medal for his efforts on "climate action, faith-based environmentalism and helping foster interfaith dialogue," the university said.

The ceremony was at the school’s Southampton campus. Bartholomew also took a boat tour of the Shinnecock Bay with Stony Brook professors from the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences department who study and try to help preserve the environment.

"The oceans, the rivers and streams now need our help," Bartholomew said, according to a news release from the university. "Here at Stony Brook, you are making most significant contributions to the healing of our waters that they so desperately need."