On the occasion of World Environment Day, observed each year on 5 June, Archbishop Ieronymos II of Athens and All Greece delivered his customary message to the faithful, highlighting our shared responsibility to safeguard Creation and address the contemporary ecological crisis.
In his capacity as President of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece, the Archbishop emphasized the pioneering role of the Orthodox Church in bringing environmental issues to the forefront and noted that the protection of the natural environment is inextricably linked to the Eucharistic and ascetic ethos of the Orthodox tradition.
In his message, the Archbishop stressed the need for cooperation among the Church, the scientific community, the state, and civil society in addressing the consequences of the climate crisis. At the same time, he called on everyone to transform environmental awareness into concrete actions and initiatives for the benefit of humanity and creation.
Read below the message of Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece
The Orthodox Church has been a pioneer in recognizing the ecological problem in the contemporary world and civilization. As early as 1989, the Ecumenical Patriarchate established 1 September as an annual day of prayer for the protection of God’s Creation. Furthermore, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, through his global initiatives and international conferences, initiated an unprecedented mobilization that influenced the broader Christian world. Since then, the relationship between the Church and the natural environment has become a central theme in contemporary Orthodox theology, which has profoundly highlighted the Eucharistic, Philokalic, and ascetic ethos of Orthodoxy.
Centered on the Holy Eucharist, the Church possesses a universal vision of the world and of life. The Church exists, just as the Holy Eucharist does, “so that the world may live.” The ethos and experience of the Eucharist do not concern the human person merely as an individual spiritual or rational being; rather, they fundamentally shape humanity’s relationship with the world and the natural environment. The Divine Liturgy is, above all, an Eucharistic act through which the world and life are offered by humanity to God. It represents humanity’s reception of the material world, not as something to be exploited for individual self-sufficiency or biological survival, but as a gift to be offered back in thanksgiving to its Creator and then shared justly with others.
This living relationship between humanity and God reveals the personal and social use of Creation, as well as the meaning and purpose of material reality. In the Eucharistic act, human beings bring not only themselves but also their active relationship with the natural environment and their relationships with others, all of which are mediated through the use and stewardship of the gifts and material resources of Creation. Everything in the Eucharist passes through the material world, which serves both as the place and the means of encounter between God and humanity. The Eucharist itself is offered “for the life and salvation of the world.”
The crucial question of our time is whether we can inspire and work together for a civilization grounded in meaning and purpose—one that genuinely respects the natural environment. Today, the theology and pastoral ministry of the Church must engage in dialogue and cooperation with the modern world and contemporary culture, especially at a time when science, politics, philosophy, ethics, art, education, and other fields seem unable, on their own, to cope with the new realities created by the escalating destruction of the natural environment and the climate crisis. The Church and its theology cannot replace the work of science, technology, politics, education, philosophy, ethics, or environmental organizations. They can, however, collaborate, inspire, and help shape a different culture in our common effort to protect the environment and ensure its sustainability.
The serious challenges posed by the climate crisis do not affect some distant natural environment or an abstract quality of life elsewhere; they concern us directly and daily. Our relationship with the natural environment is neither a luxury nor something external to the Orthodox Tradition of the Church. As part of the Church’s pastoral and theological responsibility to protect the natural environment and to promote the Eucharistic and ascetic use of the world as God’s Creation for humanity, the Special Synodal Committee on Divine and Public Economy and Ecology is already actively coordinating a network of environmental initiatives under the auspices of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece and the local Holy Metropolises.
At the same time, for many years now, and inspired in part by the visionary initiatives of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, our Church has encouraged fruitful dialogue between theology and the sciences, politics, philosophy and ethics, education, and culture in general. It has also fostered cooperation with environmental organizations and civil society within the public sphere. The ecological problem must be addressed through a multifaceted approach and through practical cooperation at the local, national, and global levels.
Since 5 June 1972, when the United Nations designated this day to raise awareness of environmental issues, the situation has unfortunately continued to deteriorate rather than improve. Let us not remain at the level of words alone. Let us finally move forward with concrete actions and programs for environmental protection and sustainability, “so that the world may live.”
+ IERONYMOS of Athens
President of the Holy Synod
of the Church of Greece
