Panagia Soumela Monastery
Pontos. Built in AD 386. Greek Orthodox Christian Monastery.
Upcoming Event
Pontian Greek Genocide Memorial
Join us at our church in New Jersey for the Pontian Greek Genocide Memorial in mid-May.
More info will be available very soon.
Pontian Land of the New World
On its private "Pontian Land of the New World" in West Milford, NJ, the Holy Institution achieves a devout realization of the annual Holy Pilgrimage of the Holy Mother and properly preserves and promotes the Pontian-Hellenic cultural heritage, history and Orthodoxy in a manner consistent with its charitable mission.
Holy Institution Panagia Soumela is a Greek Orthodox self-governing religious organization, administratively independent of any other churches, religious or social organizations, or of any federations or other legal entities.
Panagia Soumela Around the World
Pontos gave us the philosopher Diogenes, an influencer of Stoicism which influenced Christian philosophy and its element of Virtue.
Christianity
Panagia Soumela (Pana-yee-a Soo-mela), means...
Pan = All
Agia = Holy, as in Hagia/Saint
Sou = Of
Mela = Dark, as in the root word for 'melanin'. Dark because the mountain is a dark hue rockChristianity
Jason and the Argonauts plays a major role with Pontos, en route to the Golden Fleece.
Mythology
St. Andrew preaching in Pontos in the first century converted the Pontian Greeks, who then helped cement and spread Christianity.
Christianity
Trapezounda was on the Silk Road and was an important Greek city on the eastern-most edge of the Greco-Roman civilization.
Pontos
The Greek Pontian genocide and following population exchange decimated Pontian Greeks. The governments continue to erase their memory by banning books about Pontos.
Genocide
The Monastery of Panagia Soumela built in 386 AD, perched high in the mountains with its cave church carved inside the mountain is a world-class monument deserving to be revived as a monastery, alive again with monks, prayer, chants, icons, flowers and incense.
Christianity
Pontian Greek is the among the closest dialects there is to Ancient Greek.
Pontos
At the monastery, there was a pilgrimage and festival which annually brought together Church, family, prayer, pilgrimage, feast and dance for almost 1,500 years.
Christianity
Support recognition of the Greek (Pontian, Ioanian, Thracian) Genocides, along with Armenian, Assyrian and other Anatolian ethnic-minority Genocides.
Genocide
