Church of Greece

A tentative deal between Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Archbishop Ieronymos to take Greek priests off the state payroll and resolve a property dispute appeared in doubt on Friday after the Holy Synod rejected any changes to the way clerics are paid and called for more discussion. 

The Church of Greece's Hierarchy said on Friday it had voted to retain the status of civil servants for clergy, essentially rejecting a key element of the tentative deal with the government on changing church-state relations.

A meeting of the Church of Greece's Hierarchy on a controversial preliminary agreement for redrawing the Church-state relationship got off to a rocky start on Friday, with the metropolitan bishop of Messinia, Chrysostomos, walking out of the proceedings.

The first major clash within the Church over a tentative agreement between Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Archbishop Ieronymos to take clerics off the state payroll is expected on Friday when the Holy Synod is to convene amid reports of objections among a significant portion of the bishops.

Bishops on Tuesday continued to express opposition to the tentative agreement between Archbishop Ieronymos and Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on relations between Church and state and the way priests will be paid, ahead of a crucial meeting of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece on Friday.

Amid lingering skepticism within the ranks of the Church of Greece over a tentative agreement struck last week between Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Archbishop Ieronymos to move 10,000 clerics off the state payroll and recognize the "religious neutrality" of the state, the Holy Synod is preparing for an emergency meeting on the subject on Friday.

The Holy Synod of the Church of Greece on Friday said it will convene on November 16 to discuss the agreement between Archbishop Ieronymos and Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras regarding clerics' wages and the setting up of a fund to manage and develop property claimed by both the Church and the state.

The Holy Synod of the Church of Greece said there is no need to change the relations between Church and state in the country, adding that the 1975 Constitution clearly defines their roles.

Archbishop Ieronymos said on Monday that he and his colleagues "love the Patriarchate" and the country's political leadership but love the Church of Greece and the country more than anything else.

"We love them all [the Patriarchate and politicians] but we must stress that we love our church and country more," he told journalists.

The cancellation Thursday of a scheduled meeting in Athens between Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomaios and Archbishop Ieronymos has fuelled speculation about a rift between the two.

Church of Greece officials said the meeting, originally scheduled for Friday, was canceled due to Ieronymos's work obligations ahead of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece, also on Friday.