What is the State Department’s current contact with the Trump administration? And let’s not be too quick to ask why this concerns us… In America, crucial issues are being decided regarding Orthodoxy and, of course, our expatriates. At the moment,… Christos Marafatsos.
I didn’t know whether to cry or laugh at the response of a very ‘serious’ man who is closely associated with Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis and Alexandra Papadopoulou. His answer came in response to a question about how Greece plans to handle its international affairs in the era of Trump’s dominance.
Meanwhile, Erdoğan, I’m sure, is exchanging WhatsApp messages with President Trump. And the Greek government is relying on Christos Marafatsos, a young man of Greek origin who founded the ‘Pro-Trump Republican Friends Club’ —something akin to a ‘Mickey Mouse Club’ for those who remember the early days of private television.
Mr. Marafatsos is reportedly hinting in Athenian lounges—among journalist friends—that he ‘has connections’ with Trump. Meanwhile, he is also seeking a ‘deal’ involving ecclesiastical real estate, alongside another young talent from the Greek community who has made a living in Athens.
As of now, we have yet to see even a recent photo of Marafatsos with his supposed ‘close friend,’ President Trump. The only available picture is with the new ambassador, Kimberly Guilfoyle, taken as she was leaving an expatriate gathering—snapped casually on the sidewalk.
Church left out
It is not my intention to insult President Trump or the Republicans. I am merely pointing out the absurdity of the Greek government and its recklessness in relying on ‘fan clubs’ to conduct foreign policy.
Recently, Nikos Dendias visited Chicago and (officially) met with Endy Zemenidis, the president of yet another local expatriate club, who built his career with the support of Senator Menendez. Let us not forget that Menendez was convicted of corruption and sentenced to many years in prison by the US justice system, with his wife also implicated in the case.
And where is the Church in all of this? Nowhere. Next to President Trump, you have a proven friend and a practical supporter, John Catsimatidis. Yet, instead of leveraging this relationship, you are trying to strategize with ‘fan clubs’…
Otherwise, the government and the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs claim to count on the Church—not even close!
In Albania, Archbishop Anastasios fought alone for years. In the Ecumenical Patriarchate and other Orthodox Churches, they merely secured the permanent positions they were after. Meanwhile, in the Monastery of Sinai and the Patriarchate of Antioch, they have left them to fend for themselves, vulnerable to the geopolitical games of the major powers. Grief…
Melchizedek
*Published in the newspaper “Orthodoxi Alitheia”
