“There is no disposition or intent to intervene inside the church, it is an interpretative order requested by the Ecumenical Patriarchate with the confirmation of the law and the normal.”stressed the Minister of Education, Sofia Zacharakis, defending the amendment that enables Metropolitans of other areas of the Church concerned, to be elected to another metropolis of the same Church.

The issue was raised in the House of Representatives, the President of the Freedom Freight, Zoe Konstantopoulouduring the debate on the Military Hospitals bill, which was tabled by the amendment, arguing that it was a raw intervention of the government in the Charter of the Church.

“It concerns a process of the Church that has a self -governing Church of Crete. There is a terrible brutal intervention and does not concern a true interpretative provision for a 1961 law that was thus requested, suddenly. It is a process to check who will be elected to the Metropolis of Chania »said Mr. Konstantopoulou.

The withdrawal of the amendment and its re -establishment after consulting and a regular parliamentary process, was requested by PASOK parliamentary representatives, Dimitris Mantzosof SYRIZA, Nikos Papas and of the Greek solution, Stylianos Fotopoulos.

Mr. Mantzos argued that “The issue is not legal but political”and added that “The legal status of the Church of Crete is abolished by an interpretative arrangement, which unilaterally interprets and altering the Charter of the Church, which is very dangerous.”

“Why after 64 years we suddenly need to make true interpretation of the law?” noted by Mr. Priestwhile Mr. Fotopoulos He talked about a cruel intervention of the state in the self -government of the Church of Crete.

“There is no intervention intention. The Ministry of Education did not come to legislate in vacuum. The Ecumenical Patriarchate was requested an interpretation. With the confirmation of the legal and normal interpretative provision in response to the Ecumenical Patriarchate, we come to legislate. “the Minister of Education insisted and continued:

“We are called today, after the response of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, which was considered, both legal, and normal, to make the law more firmly. All this interpretation given by the Ministry of Education was answered as legal and normal by the Ecumenical Patriarchate … This is an interpretative provision. These were done with a social and recipient of the Church of Crete. “.

“It is not something that is done many years later, but mainly as an interpretation that we were asked to give and gave. The legal and normal and normal response of the service was confirmed, the Ecumenical Patriarchate came and responded, so the intervention has nothing to do with a timely or sudden intervention. It is because it has been started by the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and the Ministry of Education has come to facilitate any consultation between the Church of Crete and the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Not anything that can be said, supposed, about intervention and even with nominal references. “concluded K. Zacharaki.