City council gives Athens church to Archdiocese of Athens, angering Patriarch Bartholomew who lays claim to the church

Athens, November 11, 2021

    

The Church of Greece and the Patriarchate of Constantinople have been engaged in a legal dispute over the Church of St. George at the Probona Estate in Athens for several years now.

On Monday, the Municipal Council of Athens ruled in favor of the Archdiocese of Athens, granting it free usage of the church for 50 years, report Ekathemerini and Romfea.

The Patriarchate attempted to prevent the Council from discussing the issue, but its efforts proved unsuccessful. And Patriarch Bartholomew wasted no time in expressing his displeasure after learning of the decision, dispatching Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon to place an unpleasant call to Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens.

In turn, the Archbishop replied that he couldn’t accept the Patriarchate’s moves to take possession of the church, which seem like robbery.

The dispute over the church, which Constantinople wants to turn into its representation in Athens, or even an Exarchate, without the blessing of Abp. Ieronymos or the Greek Synod, was one of the reasons why the Greek Archbishop didn’t attend the Synaxis of Primates that was convened in early 2016 to prepare for that summer’s Crete council.

Relations seemed to improve after the Patriarchate visited Athens in 2019 and then Abp. Ieronymos acquiesced to Constantinople pressure and entered into communion with the graceless schismatics of the “Orthodox Church of Ukraine.” However, the thorny issue has arisen again.

According to Ekathemerini’s trusted sources, Pat. Bartholomew may even cancel his planned trip to Athens later this month in honor of his 30th anniversary as Patriarch.

Besides its anti-canonical invasion of Ukraine, Constantinople also legally registered its own monastery/association in the Czech Republic in 2019 without the knowledge or blessing of the Czech-Slovak Holy Synod. The Patriarchate has threatened His Eminence Archbishop Michael of Prague for resisting this invasion.

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11/11/2021

See also
Relations between Patriarchate of Constantinople and Church of Greece becoming more strained Relations between Patriarchate of Constantinople and Church of Greece becoming more strained Relations between Patriarchate of Constantinople and Church of Greece becoming more strained Relations between Patriarchate of Constantinople and Church of Greece becoming more strained
The Archbishop of Athens did not attend the Pan-Orthodox meeting in Chambesy due to canonical disagreements between the Holy Synod of Greece and the Patriarchate of Constantinople. Tension between the Local Orthodox Churches of Greece and Constantinople is growing. Tension between the Local Orthodox Churches of Greece and Constantinople is growing. Tension between the Local Orthodox Churches of Greece and Constantinople is growing. Tension between the Local Orthodox Churches of Greece and Constantinople is growing – expert
According to the expert, “One of the signs of this tension was the invitation by Patriarch Bartholomew of all the hierarchs of the Patriarchate of Constantinople and bishops of North Greece, who belong to the Church of Greece and are members of its Synod of Hierarchs, to a meeting that was held late in August-early in September in Istanbul”. “And the Archbishop of Athens was even not informed about the invitation of these hierarchs,” he added. Patriarch of Constantinople will not send his representatives to enthronement of the new head of the Church of Czech Lands and Slovakia Patriarch of Constantinople will not send his representatives to enthronement of the new head of the Church of Czech Lands and Slovakia Patriarch of Constantinople will not send his representatives to enthronement of the new head of the Church of Czech Lands and Slovakia Patriarch of Constantinople will not send his representatives to enthronement of the new head of the Church of Czech Lands and Slovakia
By this token gesture the Church of Constantinople is saying that it does not recognize the newly elected head of the Church of Czech Lands and Slovakia.
Comments
Peter11/12/2021 12:30 am
Bartholomew is a snake and Ironemos followed him in recognizing the Ukrainian schismatics, now Bartholomew has turned on Ireonimos….never trust a snake
Theodoros11/11/2021 11:24 pm
So Archbishop Ieronymos considers the phanars seizure of a single Church “robbery”. How about the attempted seizure of the whole of Ukraine? Is that not robbery on a much grander scale? The Synod of Athens must recognize the grave sin they committed by entering into communion with the fake church in Ukraine. They should reverse their decision and formally reconcile with the canonical Church. Then they should use their influence (political, financial etc) to work for the removal of Bartholomew from the Patriarchate. The two previous Archbishops of Athens fiercely resisted Bartholomews encroachments on Greek territory.
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