Bishops of the Orthodox Church in Greece voted unanimously against the government’s proposal to legalize same-sex marriage. According to the bill, they would also have the right to adopt children.
Members of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece released a statement indicating that this legislative proposal would destroy the basic social unit, namely the family. They recalled that before Christmas they had issued a circular expressing their opposition to same-sex “marriages” and the adoption of children. In the absence of a meeting between the Head of the Church, Archbishop of Athens and All Greece, Jerome, and Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who is the promoter of this legislative initiative, an extraordinary session of the Holy Synod was convened on January 23.
In defense of the family
The participants recalled the Church’s teaching on marriage, which stems from Sacred Scripture, the teachings of the Church Fathers and the ritual of concluding this sacrament. They pointed out that the sexual complementarity of spouses is necessary to achieve the goals of marriage. They emphasized that Christian marriage is not a simple contract about living together, but a common path of man and woman towards divinization. Therefore, although the Church is not a law of the state, if it were silent about what sin is, it would take on serious responsibility.
The bishops’ announcement recalls that since 2015, the cohabitation contract has given same-sex couples all the rights of married couples, except the ability to adopt children. In their opinion, “the slogan about ‘marriage equality’ therefore has one purpose: to have children with ‘same-sex couples’.”
The hierarchs also sharply criticize the possibility of ‘same-sex parenting’ and emphasize that the bill’s priority is ‘the sexual choices of homosexual adults’, and not the well-being of children who would grow up confused about the role of parents .
“The bill not only abolishes bioethical principles, Christian values and Greek family traditions, but also invalidates the rights of future children and the role of gender as part of social cohesion. This applies to everyone, even if they do not follow Christian beliefs. The question that remains unanswered is: what is the compelling reason for this decision, which fundamentally and unequivocally changes the institution of marriage and the status of parenthood, and why is this decision promoted with such persistence? – ask the bishops.
The categorical opposition of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece is important because Orthodoxy is the state religion in this country. The bill promoted by the Prime Minister is also contested within his New Democracy party. Interior Minister Makis Woridis has already announced that he will resign if it is passed by parliament.
Source: Do Rzeczy
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