About the common sensitivities that the Church shares with the broader space of the left, Mr Archbishop of America Elpidophoros with g.c. of the Central Committee of the KKE, Dimitris Koutsoubaduring a meeting held at its headquarters Archdiocese in New York. Mr. Koutsoubas was in the American metropolis as part of the first official tour he made in Canada and the USA.

For his part, the Archbishop welcomed the Rev. saying “for us, every political leader who comes from our country gives us great joy. And you especially know that with the left, so to speak in general, we are connected as a Church and as a Christian faith by sensitivities for human rights, for equality, for justice, peace, the injustice that exists in the world, poverty. All this is a common denominator in which I think we find ground to cooperate and support each other”.

Separation of Church-State in the USA and popular participation in the administration of the Archdiocese of America

Archbishop Elpidophoros shared two key elements from the operation of the Church on the other side of the Atlantic. The first, as he said, is that the Archdiocese in the USA has managed to grow and progress in a country where there is complete separation of Church and State. Mr. Elpidophoros estimated that it is an experience that proves that the prosperity and progress of the Church may not be affected by its separation from the state.

The second element he underlined has to do with the way the Archdiocese of America is organized, as it is an administration model that has differences from that of the Church of Greece. “Here the Archdiocese does not have parishes in the sense and structure that exists in Greece. We have communities here. Communities in which the laity have absolute participation, the right to vote and decide on the administration and financial management at all levels of the church organization, from the local community that we call a parish in Greece up to the Archdiocese. Therefore, there is a body of lay people, men and women, and the participation of the people is essential through processes of election and not appointment”he noted.

In this context, Archbishop Elpidoforos shared the specific experience of the Orthodox Church in America, considering that its discussion may be useful in our country as well. As he mentioned, “these are two facts that I would like to share with you. Maybe they will be useful for you and for our country because there is a phobia in general in Greece about what will happen if the Church is separated from the state. I don’t know if this will be finally decided in Greece. This is a matter for the Greek state and the Church of Greece. It’s just that we have a certain experience here, which we are depositing and which can be useful in all directions”.

Elpidophoros-Koutsoubas

Archbishop Elpidophoros: Christ broke all the taboos of his time

For his part, Mr. Koutsoubas argued that there could be a separation of Church and State at all levels and at the same time there should be very good cooperation and common action in areas that both the Church and the state need, without interfering with each other’s affairs. In this light, civilized the practice of parties and organizations that prey on genuine religious sentiment, spreading extreme notions that divide people.

At this point, Archbishop Elpidophoros explained that this is not a Greek phenomenon, as something similar is also observed in the USA, where political parties isolate teachings of the Gospel and Christianity, in order to exploit them for party purposes.

“These are contrary to the teaching of our Church and contrary to the teaching of Christ himself who does not separate people. Quite the opposite, Christ himself broke all the taboos of his time. And we arrived two thousand years later to wonder if we should also break the taboos of the societies in which we live. And really that’s sad. It is a retreat of Christianity from its principles.”

Elpidophoros-Koutsoubas

D. Koutsouba’s call to expatriates to participate in the European elections through postal voting

Mr. Koutsoumbas recognized the contribution of the diaspora and expressed his emotion that he managed to find himself next to Hellenism in America. At the same time, he invited the expatriates to take advantage of the new possibility given to them through the postal vote, thus participating for the first time in the European elections from their place of residence.

“They have left with a thousand and two difficulties, mainly the older generations, but unfortunately history somewhat repeats itself, as with the last financial crisis we had another flight. And we think it will be a good opportunity to talk to expats. Let’s invite them to participate in the European elections, now that there is the possibility of postal voting. And of course let’s also listen to issues that we can forward to the central government and help with all our forces so that they are resolved.”