Greek church

The legal adviser to the Hierarchy of the Greek Church is reportedly drafting a letter that will be sent to lawmakers regarding the legal ramifications of same-sex marriage and, according to well-informed sources, it will be completed after the relevant government bill is made public.

The recent unanimous rejection by the influential Greek Church's governing Holy Synod of government plans to legalize same-sex marriage is perceived as a success for Archbishop Ieronymos in navigating the perennial antagonism between the more modernizing and conservative, at times obscurantist, factions within the Hierarchy.

Amid the controversy generated by the upcoming bill on same-sex marriage, the Greek Church is trying to strike a delicate balance between competing groups from within, and its congregations, while at the same time trying not to burn bridges with the government and political power in general.

The Greek government may decide to impose additional restrictions, "even unexpectedly," to limit the spread of the coronavirus if it is deemed necessary, Minister of State Giorgos Gerapetritis said on Thursday.

"You cannot rule out any measure. If we need to ban activities again, we will do so if necessary," he told Skai radio station on Thursday morning.

The Greek Church cannot "cherry-pick" among the health rules and restrictions that have been imposed to stem the spread of the coronavirus, government sources said on Monday, in response to an announcement by the Holy Synod that it intends to defy a government closure of all places of worship to celebrate the feast of the Epiphany on January 6.

The outlook for a tentative agreement between Archbishop Ieronymos and Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to loosen close ties between the Greek Church and the state appeared unclear on Wednesday after a church committee decided to halt discussions.

The controversy over the sex reassignment bill has dominated the public discourse in Greece, since the government introduced a clause allowing teenagers as young as 15 years old to transition. The Greek Church stated its position on the matter in a categorical manner squarely condemning the bill.

The Greek government has backed down from its initial harsh stance regarding the teaching of the new religious studies book in schools, after a two-hour meeting between PM Alexis Tsipras and the head of the Greek Church, Ieronymos, Wednesday, resulted in the two sides finding common grounds of understanding on the matter.

Coalition partner Panos Kammenos has suggested he will block plans by the education ministry to change the character of religious classes in schools - a source of friction between the SYRIZA-led government and the Greek Church.

The creation of a new diocese in the Albanian Orthodox Church has caused an angry row between the Church authorities and a rebel priest - who has often accused it in the past of acting as the agent of Greece.