Every summer, the same sad reality repeats itself: our expatriates are on the frontlines. — at festivals, in churches, in the squares, and in the cafés. Yet few are truly involved for the benefit of the place. Depending on their financial means, they come to enjoy Greece, arriving from the USA, Australia, or Europe.
The unpleasant truth? By September, they’re gone. Disappeared. How many, beyond the realm of folklore and nostalgia, actually invest in the local community? Not just with money, but with genuine interest in a better future for the country. Very few. How many bring a part of their wealth to invest in the land of their ancestors? No one really knows.
It’s not entirely their fault. Thkno about the bureaucracy and cronyism they face if they try to invest would deter anyone. But still — they do little to help change things.
With the first rains of September, they vanish without a trace. And when they leave, they judge those who remain. They pass judgment on the people who vote for Mitsotakis, Tsipras, or whoever has governed for decades and is “responsible for the country’s plight.” They judge, but they never take action.
Homeland Left Alone
How many of them send their children to truly connect with Greek tradition and language? Very few. The Greek diaspora has never established a high-standard elder care facility for those who wish to return in their later years.
Meanwhile, Israelis and Germans are buying and building in Greece — and the expatriates are absent. Are we being unfair to them? Perhaps the truth lies somewhere in the middle.
If you don’t put your back into it, nothing will change. Incentives must be offered, jobs created, and investments made in their homeland. Do they have reliable institutions to work with in Greece? The Church is one of them.
When has a Metropolis been entrusted with managing a project, or when has someone co-invested with an ecclesiastical body, only to be left damaged? These are the trustworthy partnerships they should be seeking.
No Help
In some cases, the expatriates themselves are at fault. The Greek Prime Minister — today Kyriakos Mitsotakis, yesterday Alexis Tsipras, and tomorrow, who knows — is constantly seeking to build alliances abroad.
Would the Jewish lobby fail to back Benjamin Netanyahu, or the Turkish lobby turn its back on Recep Tayyip Erdoğan?
And yet, Mitsotakis struggles to find even a “door” into the White House, with none of Trump’s associates lending a hand.
Not for Mitsotakis personally, but for Greece. Meanwhile, Erdoğan and Italy’s Giorgia Meloni are reshaping the Mediterranean map, and Greece is once again left on the sidelines.
Of course, Mitsotakis also bears responsibility, especially when he entrusts George Gerapetritis and Alexandra Papadopoulou to liaise with the expatriates — with predictable results.
But the diaspora, at every level, must also shoulder its share of responsibility toward Greece — whether it concerns national issues, investments, or creating new national capital.
Otherwise, their summers here will remain nothing more than a seasonal return for the festivals. And Greece will be nothing more than their country of origin for celebrations.
Melchizedek
*Published in the newspaper “Orthodoxi Alitheia”
