http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=104206
New Greek archbishop visits Fener Patriarchate
Monday, May 12, 2008
Prior to his February election as archbishop, the
70-year-old Ieronymos was bishop of Thebes in
central Greece where he was appointed in 1981. He
is regarded as a moderate, very active and
energetic and in favor of good relations with the
Patriarchate Patriarch Bartholomeos has stressed
tolerance and reconciliation throughout his
ministry. Since the late Christodoulos believed
that the Patriarch was a tool of the Turkish
government and ambitiously attempting to return
the Orthodox Church of Greece to the Fener
Patriarchate, it would be natural for him to be opposed to the Patriarch
GÜL DEMI.R
ISTANBUL - Turkish Daily News
Istanbul has had an unusual visitor this past
weekend, Archbishop Ieronymos of Greece and
Athens who was elected head of the Orthodox
Church of Greece last February following the
death of Archbishop Christodoulos. He came as the
guest of Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomeos.
No one needs reminding of the antiquity of
the Greek Orthodox Church or that Orthodox Greeks
enjoyed considerable freedom and mobility during
the Ottoman Empire. But during the 19th century
the rise of nationalism led to dismemberment of
the Ottoman Empire in the Balkans, under the
influence of ideas stemming from the French
Revolution. The Greeks revolted in 1821 and they
were sup****ted by the Greek Orthodox Church that
in turn owed its allegiance to what they
considered their mother church, the one in
Istanbul (Constantinople as they continue to refer to the city).
In 1833, Greece's National Assembly declared
the Greek Church independent of the church in
Istanbul. Unlike some other national churches, it
has never disengaged from Greece's public affairs
although it has at times found itself at odds
with whatever government was in control. In the
1980s, the government of the time threatened to
confiscate the extensive property owned by the
church. In an attempt to counter the move, a
delegation that included Christodoulos, who would
later come to the head of the Orthodox Church of
Greece, came to Istanbul to determine whether the
property could be transferred over to the Fener
Patriarchate. Recently, the late archbishop
spearheaded a campaign to prevent a move by the
Greek government to eliminate showing a person's
religion on their identity card, a requirement of the European Union.
Elected in 1998 to be the head of the church
of Greece, Christodoulos was a staunch
nationalist and while that might not have pleased
everybody and especially those who were in favor
of Greece's accession to the European Union. He
was widely popular in those quarters. He was only
69 when he died in January of cancer and
thousands attended his funeral. As a nationalist,
he resisted what he saw as the Patriarchate's
attempts to interfere with his church's business.
Bartholomeos became patriarch in 1991 and after
1998 there were a number of re****ted clashes
between the two men if one believes press
re****ts, perhaps unavoidable since Patriarch
Bartholomeos has stressed tolerance and
reconciliation throughout his ministry. Since
Christodoulos believed that the patriarch was a
tool of the Turkish government and ambitiously
attempting to return the Orthodox Church of
Greece to the jurisdiction of the Fener
Patriarchate, it would be natural for him to be
opposed to the patriarch. Ironically it was only
years before Christodoulos was on the committee
that came to Istanbul to explore that very action.
But now that Christodoulos has departed the
scene, there is hope that the troubling issue
over the management of certain dioceses in Greece
can be resolved. And that is what the new
archbishop brings with him to Istanbul.
Born Ioannis Liapis, he chose the name
Ieronymos (Jerome in English) when he entered the
priesthood. St. Jerome is particularly known for
his extensive writings on theological subjects
and history rather unlike the present day Jerome
who is seen as very active and energetic. Prior
to his election, the 70-year-old Ieronymos was
bishop of Thebes in central Greece a post he was
appointed to in 1981. He is regarded as a
moderate and as favoring good relations with the
Patriarchate. He has said that he will continue
the legacy of his predecessor as well as the
business in which his predecessor was engaged
when he died. After studying archaeology and
theology at the University of Athens, he studied
in Germany and holds degrees from the
Universities of Gratz and Munich. He speaks
German fluently rather than English. With his
foreign education and his previous appointments
to a variety of tasks, open-minded is the
adjective used to describe him by many.
Archbishop Ieronymos in Istanbul
The Archbishop of Athens and Greece Ieronymos
was on a three-day official visit to the Fener
Patriarchate, his first visit to the Patriarchate
since he was elected archbishop. He is a
distinguished-looking gentleman who stands about
half a head higher than the patriarch and
observing him at a reception over the weekend, it
was clear that he holds Patriarch Bartholomeos in
respect and high regard. It seems he was late in
arriving but his only complaint was the traffic
in the city, the same complaint that millions of
Istanbul residents have every day.
Speaking at the reception, Archbishop
Ieronymos said, "Conditions have ripened now and
we have all understood that we should put the
differences behind us. I want to assure you that
I will do everything in my power together with my
brothers, the archbishops, to achieve an absolute
coexistence with you. Rest assured, your
Holiness, that from today, we will plow deeply
into the ecclesiastical field to cultivate the
church, unity, coexistence and cooperation in our common route."
Bartholomeos spoke highly about the
personality and morality of the new archbishop.
He also underlined the close ties that have
existed between the Church of Greece and the
Patriarchate for over 12 centuries and stressed
that the church does not accept divisions.
On Sunday both participated in the liturgy at
the church of the Balikli Monastery. Balikli was
originally named Zoodochos Pege, the life-giving
spring, an epithet of the Holy Virgin. One legend
has it that the Byzantine Emperor Justinian had a
vision of it with a chapel and many people around
it. Balikli Church was once one of many built in
the area by Byzantine emperors where on Ascension
Day the emperor and members of his court used to
come to wor****p. The present church was built in
1833. Yesterday was the feast day of Zoodochos
Pege so it was appropriate to attend wor****p service there.
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