Heraklion, Crete, Greece, February 26, 2024
Photo: orthodoxia.info
The Eparchial Synod of the Church of Crete has adopted new, stricter guidelines concerning the Sacrament of Baptism.
The Church of Crete, though territorially within Greece, ecclesiastically falls under the Patriarchate of Constantinople.
The Synodal circular, sent to the parishes and monasteries of Crete last week, stipulates that the relevant diocese must give its approval before any Baptism can be celebrated. Journalist Dimitrios Alikakos, who published the new guidelines, notes that this was not previously the case.
Before the Baptism of a child, a number of documents must be submitted:
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Child’s birth certificate
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Photocopies of the parents’ and Godparents’ IDs
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A notarized declaration by the Godparent: a) that they are an Orthodox Christian, and b) if married, that the marriage was conducted through a religious ceremony, certified by the state
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A notarized declaration by which each parent separately agrees to the Baptism, the choice of Godparent, and the name of the baptized child, as well as the holy church and the location where the Mystery will take place.
Additionally, couples who have undergone a civil marriage ceremony but not a Church crowning cannot serve as Godparents.
The priest must submit all the above documents to the relevant diocesan authorities and may celebrate the Baptism only once approval is granted.
The Eparchial Synod’s circular is dated February 9—just a week before the Greek Parliament voted to legalize gay marriage.
It also reminds me of the international scandal that arose when Archbishop Elpidophoros of Constantinople’s Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America baptized the adopted child of a famous gay couple in Greece two years ago, which the gay couple publicly hailed as the “first openly gay Baptism” in the Greek Church. In that case, the couple chose a Greek and an Italian woman to serve as Godparents.
The incident was in the news again recently, when the Archbishop Elpidophoros traveled to Mt. Athos last month, where he visited several monasteries, but was not afforded the usual formal greeting of a hierarch specifically in protest of the anti-evangelical impression that was created by the PR surrounding the “Gay Baptism.”
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