Ephraim of Arizona

Archimandrite Ephraim (Moraitis, also known as Ephraim of Philotheos, Greek: Εφραίμ Φιλοθεΐτης and Ephraim of Arizona, Greek: Εφραίμ Αριζόνας; June 24, 1928 – December 7, 2019) was a revered Athonite Elder and spiritual father in the American Archdiocese of the Orthodox Church of Constantinople.

Early life and background
On June 24, 1928, he was born Ioannis Moraitis (Ιωάννης Μωραΐτης) in Volos, Greece. His parents were Demetrios and Victoria Moraitis.

Ephraim moved to Mount Athos in 1947, where he was a disciple of the Athonite elder St. Joseph the Hesychast. On July 13, 1948, he was tonsured and given the monastic name Ephraim. When his spiritual master Joseph the Hesychast died on August 15, 1959, he became the geronda (elder) of the hut of Annunciation of the Theotokos in New Skete. Ephraim soon became the head of his own brotherhood (which grew to 80 monks in 1981) and moved with them to the skete of Provata in 1968. From October 1, 1973, to 1991, Ephraim served as the abbot of Philotheou Monastery. Through the efforts of Archimandrite Ephrem, monastic life was restored in several sketes on Mount Athos, as his disciples also repopulated the monasteries of Philotheou, Xeropotamou, Konstamonitou, and Karakallou.

In 1979, Ephraim visited North American cities and met with members of the Greek diaspora.

First he visited parishes in Canada (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal). Afterwards, people started inviting him to the US. Similar visits became regular in the United States and Canada. Finally, Archimandrite Ephraim decided to move to the United States for the spiritual nourishment of the flock and for the revival of spiritual life in the Greek communities of North America.

Missionary work in the US and Canada
Archimandrite Ephraim devoted his entire life to missionary work, which was based on the opening of Orthodox monasteries in the United States and Canada, which soon became spiritual centers. The first monastery was founded in 1989 (the convent of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania). In 1995, Archimandrite Ephraim founded the now-famous monastery in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona in honor of Anthony the Great, where he settled. Totally 19 monasteries were established in the United States and Canada as a result of his work. The Greek Orthodox monasteries in North America founded by Ephraim of Arizona are:

Archimandrite Ephraim died at St. Anthony Monastery, Arizona, on December 7, 2019, at the age of 91.