May 6, 2024

Athens News

News in English from Greece

Deputies from "ND"who voted for the LGBTQ+ law were banned from entering the church: "You are unwanted"


The parish priest of the Agia Kyriaki Church in Trikala has decided to take tough action against members of the Trikala parliament who voted for a bill on the adoption of minor children by “married” LGBTQ+ people, banning them from entering the church.

Father Panagiotis Michos, priest of the village of Agia Kyriaki, in a lengthy letter published on church Facebook pagecommunicated his decision to declare them undesirable in a dismissive manner.

“As Vicar and Priest of Christ, I stand on my priestly conscience, having served 23 consecutive years of Christ Crucified and Risen, and declare that you are NOT WELCOME at the Church of St. Kyriaki in Trikala, where I serve.”, – he said. Moreover, he made it clear that he would suppress any attempts to violate his decision.

“If you still dare to go out through the front door, know that you will find me before you, like the golden examples of church history, for example, St. Chrysostomos against the Empress Eudoxia, St. Ambrose of Milan against Theodosius, etc.“, he says.

In the same context, it is said that they are also unwelcome at any church or other parish event, since they place themselves outside the Church or position themselves “hostile towards her.”

However, the priest also leaves a “window” to remove the punishment if they demonstrate “sincere and unrepentant repentance through public confession before God and the people, so that the Lord will forgive this greatest sin of yours, as well as each of ours.”

He is the second priest after Vicar Paul of Kythera, who excommunicated New Democracy deputies from the church. The rector of the parishes of Karvounad – Keramotos and Agios Ilias in Kythera, priest Pavlos, having the courage that the leadership of the Greek Church seemed to lack, proceeded to excommunicate three members of the “ND” in the first district of Piraeus because they voted for the bill to excommunicate LGBTQ people +.

In particular, he excommunicated Konstantinos Katsafados, Domna-Maria Michaelida and Nikolaos Vlahakos for voting for an amendment that gives minor children to “married” LGBTQ+ couples.

To what extent such excommunication is legitimate is another question. However, no refutation has yet come from the Synod…



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