Orthodox churches in Greece
Orthodox churches in Greece are the Church of Greece , some dioceses of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and some small old calendar churches .
meaning
About 97 percent of the population belong to them; according to the constitution , Orthodox Christianity is the state religion . Religious affiliation plays a significant role as a means of identification in the formation of the Greek nation. Strong commitment to religious rites is therefore widespread among the Orthodox population.
Self-designation in Greece
In Greece the term “Greek Orthodox Church” is unusual, the Orthodox majority calls themselves Orthodox Christians ( modern Greek Χριστιανοί Ορθόδοξοι Christianoí Orthódoxoi} ) without any addition and without any distinction from other Orthodox Christians. In earlier times, the term Catholic Christians ( modern Greek Καθολικοί Χριστιανοί Katholikoí Christianoí ) was also used in the early Christian tradition , with “Catholic” being the Greek term for “universally valid, universal”. However, since "Catholic" is associated with the Roman Catholic Church , it is usually not used because of the risk of confusion.
Church of Greece
The Church of Greece declared itself independent ( autocephalous ) from the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in 1833 , which was only recognized by the Patriarch in 1850.
The head of the church is the Archbishop of Athens . About ten million Orthodox Christians belong to the Church, including the “New Lands”.
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in Greece includes the semi-autonomous Archdiocese of Crete ( Church of Crete ), the Dodecanese, the monasteries on Mount Athos and the areas of the New Lands , which are, however, also administered by the Archdiocese of Athens.
Church of Crete
The Church of Crete has been semi-autonomous towards the Ecumenical Patriarch since 1898 and has its own synod . Organizationally, it has been based on the Church of Greece since 1913. She has an archbishop, based in Heraklion ( Modern Greek Ηράκλειο Heraklio ) and seven Metropolitans.
Monasteries on Mount Athos
The monasteries in the monastic republic of Athos are also subject to the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.
new countries
The 36 metropolitan areas in Northern Greece and the Aegean , which belonged to the Greek state only since the Balkan Wars in 1912–1913 and since the Treaty of Neully in 1919 ( Western Thrace ), continue to be hierarchically subordinate to the Ecumenical Patriarch. They were "provisionally" subordinated to the Church of Greece by a law of 1927 and two acts of patriarchy in 1928, but remain spiritually attached to the patriarchate. Even if the Metropolitans are elected by the Holy Synod in Athens, the Patriarch has a say and can remove candidates from the list.
A dispute over the right to appoint the bishops of the "New Lands" led in 2004 to the excommunication of Archbishop Christodoulos I by the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I. However, the dispute over this was settled after a few months and the relations became harmonious again. Bartholomäus also led the service at Christodoulos' funeral, as Christodoulos had requested in his last will.
Dodecanese
The four metropolitans of the Dodecanese archipelago in the southeastern part of the Aegean Sea have been based on the Church of Greece since 1946, but under canon law they are directly subordinate to the Ecumenical Patriarch.
Old calendar churches
In 1924, after the introduction of the New Julian calendar, congregations were formed that retained the old Julian calendar and created their own organization. In 1935, Metropolitan Chrysostom consecrated the first four bishops of the new church. Since 1937 there have been a few spinoffs.
Chrysostom direction
- Church of the True Christians of Greece (Chrysostom Synod) , since 1924, first organization of the old calendars, largest church
- Church of the True Christians of Greece (Kallinikos Synod) , also Genuin Orthodox Church of Greece , split off in 1985
- Holy Metropolitan Synod of the Fatherly Calendar of the Church of True Christians of Greece , split off from the Kallinikos Synod in 2007
Matthew Direction
- Church of the True Christians of Greece (Matthaios Synod) , split off in 1937 because of attempts to bring Metropolitan Chrysostom closer to the Church of Greece
- Church of the True Christians of Greece (Kirykos Synod) , also the True Orthodox Church of Greece , split off in 2005
See also
Web links
- Church of Greece website (Greek)
- Entry above the Church of Greece on prooriente.at