Athonite Monks Defend Hosting Greek PM Amid Same-Sex 'Marriage' Row

PM Mitsotakis on Athos. Source: National Herald

KARYES — The Sacred Community of Mt. Athos issued a statement Tuesday defending its decision to host Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, despite opposition to Greece’s 2024 legalization of same-sex marriage and adoption. 

The monastic republic faced criticism for not boycotting the visit, as some monasteries did in 2017 against then-Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. 

The monks clarified that their hospitality reflects Christian duty, not political endorsement. “Mt. Athos receives everyone with discernment and prayer, because it is a place of repentance, not denunciation,” the statement read. 

The monks emphasized that “the silence of the Athonite Fathers is not indifference nor a sign of agreement or submission, but Christian ethos.” 

The statement expressed concerns to Mitsotakis about the legislation, seen as a “threat to the Orthodox ethos of the Greek people,” and requested government support for Mt. Sinai’s monastery. 

The monks also noted the need for state funding to maintain Mt. Athos’ aging infrastructure, vital for preserving its cultural and spiritual heritage.

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