Metropolitan Gerasimos of San Francisco (born Gerasimos Michaleas; August 2, 1945) is a Greek Eastern Orthodox prelate who has served as the Metropolitan of San Francisco in the

Greek Orthodox Church The term Greek Orthodox Church (Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also call ...

since 2005. His spiritual flock comprises 67 Greek Orthodox parishes in Hawaii, Alaska, Oregon, Washington, California, Nevada, and Arizona. He was elected to his office by the Sacred and Holy Synod of the

Ecumenical Patriarchate The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( el, Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, translit=Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos, ; la, Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constanti ...

on February 22, 2005 to succeed Metropolitan Anthony. He was enthroned at the Ascension Greek Orthodox Cathedral in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

on April 2, 2005 by

Archbishop Demetrios Archbishop Demetrios (born Demetrios Trakatellis; el, Δημήτριος Τρακατέλλης) is a former elder archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and Exarch of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. He resigned from this posit ...

Education

Gerasimos Michaleas (born Kalamata,

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, ) completed his

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works * ...

and

secondary education Secondary education or post-primary education covers two phases on the International Standard Classification of Education scale. Level 2 or lower secondary education (less commonly junior secondary education) is considered the second and final pha ...

before

emigrating Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

for the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. He earned

B.A Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

and

M.Div. For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and di ...

degrees from

Hellenic College Hellenic College Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology (HCHC) is an Orthodox Christian liberal arts college and seminary in Brookline, Massachusetts. Its mission is to educate individuals for life and service in the Orthodox Christian co ...

/ Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theologybr>
in

Brookline, Massachusetts Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States, and part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area. Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Boston, Brighton, A ...

, in 1973 and 1976, respectively. He earned a

master's Degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

counseling Counseling is the professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods especially in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes. This is a list of co ...

and school psychology from

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...

in 1986, and a

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

in counseling and school psychology in 1993.

Prior ecclesiastical service

Michaleas was ordained a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

in 1979, and served as the

archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that o ...

to Greek Orthodox Archbishop Iakovos until 1996. He was elected by the Ecumenical Patriarchate as the titular bishop of

Krateia Cratia, Crateia or Krateia ( grc, Κρατεία) was a town in the interior of ancient Bithynia, which also bore the name Flaviopolis, which clearly dates from the imperial period, and probably the time of Vespasian. The Antonine Itinerary places ...

in 2001, and served as the chief secretary of the Holy Eparchial Synod of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America until his election to serve the metropolis of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

Administrative experience

He served in administrative positions for many years at Hellenic College/Holy Cross, where he was variously registrar (1977–1979), dean of students (1980–1999), director of admissions and records (1998–2000), and finally administrative assistant to the president of Hellenic College/Holy Cross (2000–2001), a post he held until his election as Bishop of Krateia in December, 2001.

Professional experience and academic achievements

He taught courses in

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

at Hellenic College and in teleturgics (liturgical practice) at Holy Cross, and served as senior lecturer in personality and psychology at Northeastern University. He was also member of the staff of the outpatient clinic of the V.A. Medical Center in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. He is a member of the

American Psychological Association The American Psychological Association (APA) is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United States, with over 133,000 members, including scientists, educators, clinicians, consultants, and students. It ha ...

and the American Counseling Association. The

University Press of America University Press of America is an academic publisher based in the United States. Part of the independent Rowman & Littlefield Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group is an independent publishing house founded in 1949. Under several imprints, the ...

published his doctoral dissertation, ''Intellectual Deficiencies in a Substance Abuse Population'', in 1994.

Ecumenical relations

Gerasimos maintains cordial relations with other religious leaders as a member of the Holy Eparchial Synod of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America (the chief ruling body of the Greek Orthodox churches in America,) the Canonical Bishops of the West Coast (i.e., Orthodox bishops,) and the Joint Committee of Orthodox And Catholic Bishops.

References

Official biography of Metropolitan Gerasimos
from th
Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San FranciscoGreekNews Greek-American Weekly Newspaper
article posted April 4, 2005, viewed February 22, 2008.

posting of

Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, headquartered in New York City, is an eparchy of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. Its current primate is Archbishop Elpidophoros of America. Archbishop On May 11, 2019, the church's Hol ...

press release. Viewed February 22, 2008.
Greek Orthodox Church picks new leader for Western states
San Francisco Chronicle, February 23, 2005. Viewed February 22, 2008.
Boston Theological Institute Spring 2002 newsletter
p 11. Viewed February 22, 2008.

Viewed February 22, 2008.
Armenian Church 2007 Year in Review
Viewed February 22, 2008.
Meeting of the Canonical Bishops of the West Coast
Viewed February 22. 2008.
Joint Committee of Orthodox and Catholic Bishops
meeting. Viewed February 25, 2008. {{DEFAULTSORT:Michaleas, Gerasimos 1947 births Living people People from Kalamata Hellenic College Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology alumni Eastern Orthodoxy in California Greek Orthodox Christians from the United States 21st-century Eastern Orthodox bishops Eastern Orthodox metropolitans Eastern Orthodox bishops in the United States Religious leaders from the San Francisco Bay Area