On the occasion of the celebration of the International Greek Language Day, Metropolitan Arsenios of Austria highlighted, via his announcement, the importance of the Greek language.
In particular, Metropolitan Arsenios said, “People of all ages, linguists and ordinary admirers of the linguistic beauty of the Greek language, we honor one of the oldest languages in the world, which is an intangible cultural heritage for the whole world. According to the poet Odysseas Elytis, we have an “obligation” to remind at every opportunity of its importance”.
The Metropolitan of Austria also highlighted: “The interest of archaeologists and linguists in the early stages of Greek writing and in the alphabet, which is the first in history to record all the sounds of each word. Every ancient Greek text is a revelation of the beauty, morality, and greatness of the human soul. Lyric and tragic poets, philosophers, historians, and the first founders of science left valuable works for human civilization, written in the Greek language. The Evangelists, the Apostles, and the first preachers of the Divine Word raised with the Greek translation of the Old Testament write the New Testament in Greek. Who researches Christian theology and ecclesiastical poetry and does not refer to the Greek works of the great Fathers and the Hymnwriters of the Orthodox Church? In every era, we can also admire the Greek folk language creation in its enviable simple and wise creations. Folk proverbs and songs, church hymns, lives of the Saints, and soul-winning narratives, nurtured the linguistic sense of the Greeks until recent years and gave birth to modern Greek scholars, poets, and writers. Two of them, Giorgos Seferis and Odysseas Elytis were honored with the highest literary distinction, the “Nobel Prize”.
Metropolitan Arsenios said, among other things, that we should take action “in order to maintain our self-awareness and become the living carriers of the culture of the Greek language. As it is one of the official languages of the European Union, let us take care of its dissemination, starting from the teaching of the Greek language in school. Let us take advantage of the opportunities provided in Vienna, on the premises of the Greek National School, and in its Branches in the cities of Graz and Salzburg. Let us also take care to keep the Greek language strong and undefiled from unmatched interventions and additions, having it in our minds together with freedom, as our national poet Dionysios Solomos wrote”.
Source: Metropolis of Austria
