Struggles

Published by The National Herald, February 11, 2005

Church of Greece Struggles to Contain Expanding Crisis

ATHENS – What began as a fairly commonplace corruption scandal involving a mid-level member of the clergy has erupted into one of the most severe ecclesiastical crises to hit Greece in decades.

It appears that Archimandrite Iakovos Yiosakis was just the tip of the iceberg, since shocking revelations in recent days have dealt a severe blow to the standing of the Church of Greece. In a country where Greek Orthodox faithful comprise more than 90 percent of the population and taxpayers pay priests’ salaries, the Church of Greece maintains a position of prevalence which often overshadows all other institutions in the country.

This past Tuesday evening, February 8, His Beatitude Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens cautioned the faithful to be alert: "Be careful who you feed, who you help, because if they turn out to be criminals, they will ask you to cover their bail," he said, describing the events of the last few days as "a theater of the absurd underscoring that certain individuals are set on undermining the Church of Greece: "Nasty people have unearthed evidence and letters from the past, but they are making fools of themselves. I have a clear conscience, because I have learned how to give love and help people."

Archbishop Christodoulos has pledged to deal severely with any clerics found guilty of wrongdoing, regardless of any position they hold, and has repeatedly appealed to the faithful to report improprieties and help eradicate corruption "in order to strengthen the time-honored institution that is the Church of Greece."

At press time, the Archbishop of Athens, who presides over the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece, is expected to propose to the Holy Synod (the Church’s governing body) to call an emergency convention of its hierarchy before the end of February.

In the meantime, the Archbishop has already met with Metropolitan Ieronimos of Thebes, and is scheduled to meet with Metropolitan Dorotheos of Nafpaktos, as well as the Metropolitans of Elassona, Samos, Mantineia and Demetriada, in his continuing effort to achieve a consensus on the handling of the crisis.

The recent spate of scandals has spread throughout the ranks of Greece’s clergy, and has resulted in several high-level clerics being investigated for a variety of crimes, ranging from embezzlement and promotion of prostitution to actively seeking the acquittal of convicted drug dealers and influencing church elections.

In an effort to stop a flood of "guest-star" appearances on television and radio programs, the Synod decided to prohibit the participation of members of the clergy in any such program, without having previously secured written permission to do so from the Church of Greece. Greek public opinion had widely viewed these appearances as evidence that high-ranking hierarchs have been taking advantage of the ecclesiastical crisis to promote their own personal agendas.

The Holy Synod decided to suspend Metropolitan Panteleimon of Attica from his duties for six months. Panteleimon’s suspension came two days after an Athens radio station broadcast excerpts of what it claimed were taped telephone conversations between the Metropolitan, his lawyer and a high-ranking judge, relevant to securing a favorable ruling in a case involving control of a disputed monastery.

Although he questioned the authenticity of the tape, Panteleimon publicly acknowledged that he had, in fact, spoken to the judge about the case in question. In addition to seeking a favorable ruling on the monastery, investigators are also examining accusations that the high-ranking cleric embezzled more than 2.3 million euros worth of Church funds during the course of his tenure.

In an unprecedented move, the Holy Synod announced the suspension of Panteleimon, whose jurisdiction includes most of the Athens metro area, live on television. It should also be noted that his punishment was the harshest ordered against a high-ranking church official in two decades.

The suspended Metropolitan was quick to react, pledging that he would be "taking others with him to the depths of Hades."

The Church of Greece has decided to form a three-member committee comprised of members of the Holy Synod (Metropolitans Panteleimon of Xanthi, Vasilios of Elassona and Efsevios of Samos), which will initially conduct an audit of the Metropolis of Attica’s finances (as well as those of the Metropolis of Kefallonia, which are also being examined), and will begin investigating all other pending corruption allegations.

When asked about the shocking revelations which have scandalized Greek public opinion, Rev. Epiphanios Economou, the spokesman for the Church of Greece, stated, "This is undoubtedly the worst crisis we have faced in decades, but we are determined to act quickly and decisively. Our top priority at this time is to restore the people’s faith and trust in the Church." Rev. Economou also stated that the hierarchy views the recent developments as "a well-orchestrated attack against the Church and the Archbishop" and proposed that each case "should be judged on its own merits."

Aside from numerous financial and legal scandals, several allegations of scandalous behavior by senior members of the clergy are also coming to light.

The Holy Synod has asked for a written explanation from the elderly Metropolitan Stefanos of Trifyllia and Olympia, after an indecent picture of him recently appeared in the tabloids. It has also proceeded with the appointment of an interrogator in the case involving Metropolitan Theoklitos of Thessaly, despite the fact that the Church’s governing body has deemed the written explanations he provided (regarding allegations of indecent conduct) as "sufficient." Metropolitan Panteleimon of Xanthi has been appointed as the examiner in this case, and will soon begin conducting interrogations of all those accused of any wrongdoing.

Meanwhile, the man who started it all, Archimandrite Yiosakis was taken to Athens’ Korydalos Prison on Tuesday, after the Piraeus prosecutor’s office turned down his lawyer’s request for a conditional release. An arrest warrant was issued for Yiosakis last week after he was deemed to be a flight risk, pending his trial for antiquities theft and trafficking.

Responding to questions regarding the widespread corruption in the Church of Greece, acting government spokesman Evangelos Antonaros stated, "The Greek Government supports the purging efforts currently underway in the Church. Everything that needs to be done at the legislative level will be done. Phenomena that hurt the basic institutions of our society must be eliminated so that the Greek people can feel that justice is being done. It is important that Greeks regain their trust in the Church." He also commented on European Parliamentarian John Varvitsiotis’ proposal to separate the Church from the State, saying that "this is not an option being considered by the Greek Government."

With regard to the way the Government views the ecclesiastical crisis, Mr. Antonaros said, "it is only to be expected that such unpleasant phenomena sadden everybody, especially if they are proven to be true."

He also noted that the Government is willing to examine any proposals brought to the table by the Holy Synod, such as the amendment of the ecclesiastical law, as soon as the Church of Greece submits its specific proposals.

Mr. Antonaros also commented on the relationship between Prime Minister Karamanlis and Archbishop Christodoulos. He said that the Prime Minister maintains "good and consistent contact" with the Archbishop, but pointed out that this does not necessarily mean "they speak every other day."



Volume 7 Number 7 - Tuesday, February 15th, 2005	A Publication of the ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN LAITY