A meeting between the President of the “Democracy Movement” Party, Stefanos Kasselakis, and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew at the Phanar lasted for approximately two hours.
“We had an excellent discussion for almost two hours with the Ecumenical Patriarch. I am very grateful that he received me. He is a truly enlightened person who loves the world, his fellow human beings, and the environment,” Kasselakis stated.
He added: “As a child of Hellenism abroad, every time I visit the Ecumenical Patriarch—or more generally, every time you see the heart of Hellenism outside Greece’s borders—I feel moved and obligated that we, as a state, support the claims and concerns of Hellenism. And naturally, within these claims, an integral part is our religion, our doctrine, and the influence our spiritual leader must have.”
The lengthy discussion focused on issues related to the environment, peace, and the pressures society faces due to economic difficulties. Technological changes, culture, education, and religion were also at the center of the conversation.
Kasselakis visited the Halki Theological School yesterday, and after today’s meeting with the Ecumenical Patriarch, he expressed cautious optimism regarding its reopening.
He recalled that he recently visited Saint Catherine’s Monastery in Sinai and expressed his intention, as leader of the Democracy Movement, to support the Ecumenical Patriarchate, including at the European level, both for the reopening of Halki and more broadly for all issues affecting the Patriarchate.
“It is something I obviously wish to support, and we want to show our support for the Patriarch on all these matters — for the concerns of the Patriarchate, for the reopening of the Halki School which I visited yesterday, and generally wherever we can be helpful, including at the European level,” the president of the Democracy Movement stated.
Referring to the war in Ukraine, Kasselakis said that it pains everyone to see two Orthodox peoples in conflict, and he emphasized that Europe must be more forceful and assertive in order for peace to finally be achieved in Ukraine.
