Three significant conclusions were drawn from the recent conference held by the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Athens. From an organizational standpoint, everything proceeded seamlessly. Those who needed to attend were present, and Father Alex Karloutsos’ team managed the program effectively.
The Archons attended the conference but left with a sense of bitterness due to the perceived disregard shown by the government and the prime minister. They commented on it, analyzed it, and vowed to remember it as they left. The second conclusion highlights the government’s erratic policy on issues concerning the Greek Diaspora and the Patriarchate. To be more precise, the governemnt made a mess of this.
No strategy
The prime minister, lacking a plan, acted erratically in this situation. He claimed his schedule was too busy to meet with the Archons, yet he managed to find time for the… “master of our foreign policy,” Endy Zemenides. The executive director of a Chicago-based organization, with an unspecified number of members, who, informally, seem to be authorized to wield influence in matters of foreign policy for our country.
The third conclusion is that whether within or outside the country, Greeks will continue to engage in strife against each other. People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. Businesspeople from the Greek Diaspora, ministers, high-ranking hierarchs, ordinary Archons, and intermediaries, instead of collaborating for the betterment of the Greek community and the country, engage in complaints, thus backbiting one another.
This government has equated backbiting and slander with progress for the country. You carry out your tasks without interference, as attention is focused elsewhere.
Obsessions
A journalist of Greek Cypriot origin, with a long career in the Greek Diaspora and a respected—until recently—reputation in the field, addressed the issues raised by the column. On his blog, he insinuates that we have engaged (for a fee!) to advocate for specific interests and other nonsense.
Let the Patriarch and the people be the judges of Elpidophoros’s course. We express our opinions without yielding to the Archbishop of America, the Metropolitan of Chalcedon, Antonis Diamataris, or Endy Zemenidis. We acknowledge his trajectory and will refrain from further discussion on the matter.
One final point: if he frequently mentions the “Turkish House” in the US, why does he not scold the Cypriot government? Despite Archbishop Elpidophoros attending the inauguration of the Turkish House in New York, the Cypriot government continues to receive him with glory and honors to this day.
The Greek government, supposedly offended, is acting like a tough nut to crack. Is the Greek government more sensitive to Cyprus issues than the Cypriot government?
Why doesn’t he criticize Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who last year agreed to meet Tayyip Erdogan as a host at the “Turkish House” and didn’t insist on meeting on neutral ground, such as a site within the UN offices?
Criticism through journalism is beneficial, but obsession can be harmful.
From the column of Greek edition orthodoxtimes.gr, Melchizedek
*Published in the newspaper “Orthodoxi Alitheia”
