Athens, July 25, 2019
Photo: ekathimerini.com
The Orthodox Church has taught for 2,000 years that abortion is murder. Unfortunately, this great sin is nevertheless common in many Orthodox countries.
As part of its ongoing fight against this genocide, the Holy Synod of the Greek Orthodox Church resolved to establish the Day of the Unborn Child, to be celebrated on the Sunday after the feast of the Nativity, when the Church celebrates the salvific birth of Christ, reports Romfea.
The decision was made on July 9 and announced in circular number 5721/2018, where it is noted that the decision was made to protect children and to help solve the country’s demographic problem.
According to 2010 numbers, the growth rate in Greece was -1.01 people/1,000 population. According to a report given by His Eminence Metropolitan Ignatius of Demetrias at a conference in Athens in 2017, the population is estimated to drop by 500,000-1 million over the next 20 years, bringing the total to 8 million people.
“The long experience of the Church shows that the demographic problem has its basis primarily in spiritual causes,” Met. Ignatius said in his report.
The movement “Let Me Live,” which took the initiative for the decision stated: “With feelings of joy and gratitude we welcomed the decision of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece to establish the first Sunday after Christmas as a day dedicated to the protection of the life of the Unborn Child.”
“Our movement, ‘Let Me Live,’ faithful to the Word of the Gospel and to the Tradition of our Orthodox Church, proclaims the truth that the unborn child is a human being, the image of God … and strives to protect his life without terms and conditions,” the statement continues.
According to Met. Ignatius’ 2017 report, among the main factors in the decline in fertility are the continuous and systematic belittling of the sacred institution of the family, the psychological and intellectual immaturity of society, the frighteningly large number of abortions in Greece, the seeming well-being in which several generations were raised, the devaluation of motherhood, the desacralization of man, and the relativistic approach to faith in God.
Metropolitan Ignatius spoke about the Greek Orthodox Church’s initiatives designed to facilitate the resolution of the demographic crisis: Since 1999 the Church has paid a cash benefit for the birth of a third child in the Thrace region, provides free kindergartens in every diocese and parent-organized schools, and renders significant financial aid to families.
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