Greece mourns death of Orthodox leader

ATHENS, Greece, Jan. 28 (UPI) -- The head of the Greek Orthodox Church, Archbishop Christodoulos, died at his Athens home Monday of liver cancer at the age of 69.

The archbishop was diagnosed with cancer seven months ago and in recent days had refused hospital treatment, a New York Times correspondent reported.

The government announced a four-day period of mourning during which time the archbishop's body would lie in state at the Athens cathedral's chapel, the Athens News Agency reported.

In a statement, Greek Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis called Christodoulos "the enlightened Hierarch who, with his pastoral work, brought the church closer to society and the modern-day problems, closer to the youth and their anxieties," the report said.

Christodoulos went to university and became a lawyer but switched to the priesthood in 1961, and was named to lead the church's 10 million members in 1998.

The Times said Christodoulos made a point to reach out to young people. He also mended rifts with the Roman Catholic Church when he invited the late Pope John Paul II to Athens in 2001. John Paul was the first pope to visit Greece in nearly 1,300 years, the report said.