Irineos Galanakis

Irineos Galanakis ( Greek Ειρηναίος Γαλανάκης , also circumscribed Irenäos or Irenaios , real name Michail Galanakis , born November 10, 1911 in the village of Nerochori (Νεροχώρι) in Apokoronas , Crete , Greece ; † April 30, 2013 ) was again from 1982 to 2005 bishop or metropolitan of the diocese of Kissamos and Selino on Crete and from 1971 to 1980 metropolitan of the Greek Orthodox metropolis of Germany . Throughout his life he was considered the most popular church leader in Crete because of his social commitment.

Services

During his tenure, the Orthodox Church was recognized in Germany. Various Orthodox churches were also built in Germany. The founding of the shipping company ANEK Lines goes back to him, which gained considerable importance for the economy, especially tourism in Crete. In 1978 he founded the company ET.AN.AP. ( Greek Εταιρεία Αναπτύξεως Αποκορώνου ), which sells the Samaria mineral water known in Crete. By founding this company, he wanted to strengthen the economic structure of his home town and was successful. He also founded the Orthodox Academy in western Crete.

career

Irineos studied at the Priest School in Crete and the Theological Faculty of the University of Athens . After completing his studies, he undertook further studies in theology and sociology at the French universities of Lille and Paris .
From 1938 to 1945 he worked as a religion teacher at schools in the prefecture of Chania. In 1946 he was ordained a deacon and later a priest, and he was given the title of Archimandrite . He held the position of Vice Director of the Ecclesiastical Faculty of Crete. In December 1957, the Synod of the Cretan Church elected him Bishop of Kissamos and Selino. In September 1962, when the Cretan dioceses were elevated to archbishopric (metropolises), he became a metropolitan. In December 1971 he was elected Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Germany by the Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate . Under his leadership, the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Germany was officially recognized as a corporation under public law in 1974 and thus the Orthodox Church as the third church, the Metropolitan Center with the Agia Trias (Holy Trinity) Metropolitan Cathedral in Bonn and many other Orthodox churches in larger ones Cities in Germany.

Re-election as Metropolitan in 1981

Liturgical vestments and the episcopal crown of the former Metropolitan Irineos (in the museum of the monastery of Agia Triada, Akrotiri )

On January 26, 1981 Irineos Galanakis was again elected Metropolitan of Kissamos and Selino. However, the Synod of the Church of Crete had recently elected another priest as bishop. Thousands of believers prevented his enthronement, however, boarded up the doors of the episcopal church and demanded the election of Irineos. The Synod then met again and, under pressure from the grassroots (precautionary surrounded by thousands of believers), elected him Metropolitan.

He held this office for another 24 years until he submitted his resignation in August 2005 at the age of 94 for health reasons. Irineos, who - even after his death - is extremely popular in Crete and is already venerated like a saint, continued to appear in public on festive occasions until his death.

He was buried in Kissamos on May 2, 2013 .

Social, social and economic commitment

Foundation of ANEK Lines

After 241 people died on December 8, 1966 when the Greek ferry Iraklion sank on the journey from Crete to Piraeus due to non-compliance with safety regulations, riots and demonstrations against the Greek government and the Typaldos shipping company ensued in Crete.

In 1967 Archbishop Irineos suggested the establishment of his own Cretan ferry company in order to create a safe and reliable means of transport for the residents and visitors of the island. Due to his initiative, the people's stock corporation ANEK was founded, based in Chania . 5,000 Cretans acquired 356,000 people's shares with a nominal value of around 25 euros. Until his death, Irineos was chairman of the board of directors of ANEK Lines as well as its subsidiary ANEN .

Foundation of the Orthodox Academy

Metropolitan Irineos is the founder of the Orthodox Academy of Crete, an ecumenical meeting and conference center that was established in the Gonias Monastery in 1971 and was considered a place of spiritual resistance during the time of the Greek military dictatorship .

For a long time there was a model estate attached to the academy, on which the development of agriculture was promoted using modern scientific methods, e.g. the refinement of flocks of sheep through artificial insemination.

Other social activities

Among other things, Irineos was committed to improving educational opportunities for women, particularly in rural areas, and supported the establishment of women's associations.

He was also president of the National Research and Study Foundation Eleftherios Venizelos, which was founded in 2000 on his initiative. Irineos has written numerous books.

Web links

• Irineos Galanakis: The giant of love and sacrifice . Europolis, broadcast from June 25, 2007 (Greek)
• 37 degrees - one man for all needs (Irineos Galanakis) . ZDF, November 11, 1997
• 30 questions to Irineos. Ta Nea, dated July 24, 1999
• Γιώργος Κουκουράκης: A peaceful revolutionary. Χανιώτικα Νέα, August 23, 2010 (Greek). Retrieved March 10, 2014
• Article via Irineos Galanakis ANEKorama, ANEK magazine (Greek, English) accessed on March 13, 2014

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Short message on inews.gr, April 30, 2013 (Greek)
2. ↑ History of Etanap on the corporate ( Memento of 14 March 2014 Internet Archive (Greek, English)) accessed May 4, 2013
3. ↑ Documentation ( Memento of the original from January 10, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in the series Monogramma about Irineos from the Greek television ERT from 1980 (Greek) 
4. ^ Obituary Ta Nea, May 2, 2013 (Greek), accessed March 13, 2014
5. ↑ Death report on kathimerini.gr, April 30, 2013 (Greek), accessed on March 13, 2014
6. ↑ Karbe, Latermann: Crete . Hamburg 1997, p. 218
7. ^ Article about the pressure of the people ( Memento from January 10, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Greek television ERT
8. ^ ANEK Lines website , accessed on March 13, 2013.
9. ↑ ANEK Lines website  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 1.3 MB) p. 138 (English)  
10. ^ Orthodox Academy of Crete (Greek, English), accessed on March 13, 2014
11. ↑ Karbe, Latermann: Crete . Hamburg 1997, p. 219 f.
12. ↑ Women fight for their rights, In: Kirchenzeitung der Diözese Linz, August 18, 1998
13. ↑ Founding history ( Memento of the original from July 9, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Foundation website (Greek, English) accessed March 13, 2014 
14. ↑ Brief overview of Irineos ( Memento from March 11, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) on venizelos-foundation.gr (Greek)