In Greece,Church-State Relations to Begin New Chapter - revised

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and His Beatitude Archbishop Ieronymos II of Athens and All Greece have,in a joint TV appearance from the Maximos Mansion in Athens on 6 November 2018,announced agreement on amendments to Church-State relations in the Hellenic Republic of Greece.The package of constitutional reforms,which was presented to Archbishop Ieronymos and the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece by Mr.Tsipras,will allow the State to become officially neutral in religion;while still affording the Church of Greece a special and officially-recognised role in the life of the nation.
As in the US and other western democracies,the State will not be linked to any particular faith;yet it will recognise that the nation is overwhelmingly Greek Orthodox in orientation (about 98%).As such,it will continue to closely associate with the Church on many levels.While clergy will no longer be part of the civil service,a fixed annual grant of 230 million dollars will be made by the State to cover clergy salaries for the current number of clergy,which is about 10,000;the amount is adjustable based on the average annual salary in the civil service;but,if more clergy are added,the subsidy amount would not increase.Also,the substantial portfolio of Church property claimed by the State before 1939 will now have a fund for the use of the property,with obligations for the fund split evenly between Church and State;and the Church agrees not to file claim to the property.*
On a cultural level,prayer will still begin each school day,and a blessing will still be given by the Church for a new session of Parliament.Religious education will still be provided in the schools.*
Prime Minister Tsipras explained that:
This meeting is the culmination of a dialogue that has gone on for several years,and the common goal was to deal with historical upheavals and the rationalisation of Church-State relations.We are not hiding them,but trying to find a creative way to overcome them.*
For his part,Archbishop Ieronymos said:
This agreement transmits our intention to go one step further in respecting each other.We will move on to a spirit of autonomy and cooperation,making the Church a better servant of the people.*
Analysis:As is to be expected,there are voices of dissent against the agreement both within and outside of the clergy.Yet it seems that,realistically,this is as good a deal for the Church of Greece as it can get in this world of rapid change,and in a Greece striving for unity with its EU partners and NATO Allies,and its place within the broader global community as well.