Archbishop Makarios of Kenya and Irinoupolis (Dr. A. Tillyrides) was born in 1945 in Limassol (Cyprus), where he completed his elementary and secondary education. He studied Theology at St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute in Paris (1968-1972) and at the same-time attended the classes of Professors Jean Gouillard (Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes), Sorbonne and Paul Lemerle (College de France) (1970-1972) and was named "eleve titulaire".

      In September 1972 he was accepted by the University of Oxford as post-graduate student under the supervision of the Bishop of Dioklea, Kallistos Ware. In 1976 he was awarded the title Doctor of Philosophy of the University of Oxford.

      He spent three years at the University of Louvain (Belgium) as a post-doctorate research student (1979-1982). He taught in the Seminary of St. Barnabas in Nicosia, in Secondary schools and for more than 15 years in the Orthodox Patriarchal Seminary, "Makarios III, Archbishop of Cyprus",  in Nairobi, Kenya.

      His first acquaintance with the Orthodox in Africa was, in January 1977 when he was sent by the late Archbishop Makarios of Cyprus to organize and open the Orthodox Seminary in Nairobi. Since then he has dedicated his time, working closely with the Patriarchate of Alexandria, for the development of the Orthodox faith in the African continent.

      As a lay-theologian he participated in inter-Ecclesiastical and inter-0rthodox conferences. For, more than ten years he was a member of the Anglican-Orthodox doctrinal discussions, taking part in meetings of the World Council of Churches, Middle East Council of Churches, of the Ecclesiastical History Society, of the Patristic Conferences in Oxford, of Syndesmos, etc.

      On 19th July, 1992 he was ordained Deacon in the Church of St. Nicholas in Riruta, Nairobi, by the Patriarchal Exarch of East Africa, Metropolitan of Accra Mg. Petros, (the present-day Patriarch of Alexandria and all Africa) at which time he was given the new name Makarios. On the 20th of July, 1992 Deacon Makarios was ordained to the Priesthood , in the Church  of  St. Makarios of the Patriarchal Seminary in Nairobi by the Patriarchal Exarch. On July 25th, 1992, in the same Church, he was consecrated as Bishop of Riruta by the Metropolitan of Axum Petros and the Bishop of Uganda Theodoros.

      Apart from his native Greek, he speaks English, French, Russian, Italian and, can also speak and read many African dialects. He is the author of hundreds of Theological, and Scientific articles. His studies and writings are concerned mainly with the past and present Ecclesiastical history of the ancient Patriarchates, as well as Cyprus and Russia. He served as Dean of the Orthodox Patriarchal Seminary "Archbishop Makarios III"  in Nairobi, where he taught Church History, Homiletics, Hagiography, Lyturgics, Patristics and Greek. During his service as Dean of the seminary he organized the students in translating the Orthodox services into more than fifteen African dialects. In September 1997, at the recommendation of the Patriarch of Alexandria, H.B. Petros VII, the Holy Synod appointed him Director of the Patriarchal Library in Alexandria.

      On 13 January 1998, the Holy Synod of the Patriarchate elected him Metropolitan (Archbishop) of Zimbabwe and Southern Africa.

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