Orthodox leader criticises secularism, supports refugees
-05/06/06
Archbishop Christodo
Orthodox leader criticises secularism, supports refugees
-05/06/06
Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens, the head of Greeceís Orthodox Church, has urged Christians of different denominations to step up cooperation in the face of growing secularism in Western society.
“It’s an urgent task because we are living in an age where there is huge alienation with secularism, globalisation and the breakdown of moral values,” he told a media conference in Geneva during his visit to the headquarters of the World Council of Churches (WCC) last week.
“If the Church does not speak of universal ethical values, who will?”, asked the archbishop, whose church was a founding member of the WCC in 1948.
He also warned against proselytism by Protestant groups in traditional Orthodox areas such as Greece and the former Soviet Union.
A growing number of established church leaders, including Pope Benedict XVI and Anglican Bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir Ali, have expressed concern about secularism recently. It is also a theme of inter-religious conversations.
Critics say this is because the historic churches are losing their traditional power, finance, members and influence ñ as people move away from institutional religion, sometimes towards indifference or non-belief and sometimes towards new spiritual expressions.
But progressive believers in the different faith communities are concerned that an anti-secular agenda is a step backwards towards isolationism and confrontation. They cite initiatives like Make Poverty History as opportunities for constructive engagement among those of different faiths and none.
What is needed, they suggest, is dialogue between mainstream secular and religious organizations to resist the trend towards fundamentalism and extremism.
Writer and academic Bernard Crick, a leading humanist, made such a call in the UK last year.
In September 2005 the UK Christian think-tank, Ekklesia, said in response to a critical BBC TV documentary on the role of religion in politics that ìrepairing the conversation and trust between forward-thinking religionists and those of humanist and secularist opinion is vital.î
Added Ekklesia at the time: ìWe want to see Christians fully involved in public debate, but as advocates and partners, not theocrats. The Gospelís vision of justice and peace is incompatible with the tactics of coercion and domination which have often characterized the now-fading Christendom era.î
Last October the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, commended secularity (neutrality in public life)as a necessity for enabling believers and non-believers to maintain a plural society.
He drew a distinction between a secularity that seeks to create ìa culture of questioning and negotiationî among different communities, and a ìdominant secularismî which denies any legitimate role for religion as a component of some peopleís public identity.
Around the same time, the Catholic Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, Cormac Murphy OíConnor, advocated ëspiritual humanismí as an antidote to religious fanaticism.
Observers say that the peculiar historical situation of the Orthodox explains their apparently anxious attitude to pluralism. Since the fall of the Iron Curtain in Europe, they have faced growing divisions among themselves, with Catholics and with the Protestant majority in the WCC.
Their strong concept of territoriality has in some circumstances led to accusations of repression by other religious groups and by human rights advocates.
The World Council of Churches has carried out substantial structural, voting and liturgical reforms to try to engage the Orthodox more effectively ñ moves acknowledged and welcomed by Archbishop Christodoulos.
Many Orthodox leaders have been resistant to womenís emancipation, hostile to lesbian and gay rights, and critical of a human rights agenda which they say is too Western in its assumptions.
But some Protestants see the ecumenical accommodation of the Orthodox as being too one-sided. In the recent past a prominent German woman bishop resigned from the WCC Central Committee over the issue.
In May 2005 the first major modern ecumenical gathering in a majority Orthodox setting ñ Greece ñ took place. But the presence of the Conference on World Mission and Evangelism (CWME) was resisted by a significant section of the countryís Orthodox bishops, and by a small group of extreme nationalist pickets.
Orthodox Christians account for about 98 per cent of Greece’s 10.7 million people.
During his visit to Geneva last week, Archbishop Christodoulos also met the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, to discuss cooperation on refugee issues and ways of combating intolerance.
Because of Greece’s geographical location – at the external border of the European Union and at the crossroads between Asia, Africa and Europe – considerable numbers of foreign nationals, mostly migrants, arrive in Greece every year, observes Ecumenical News International‘s Stephen Brown.
The UN refugee agency said the talks focussed on practical cooperation within Greece, particularly the protection of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants as well as humanitarian assistance and integration within society.
“I want to express my gratitude to the voice of the archbishop concerning the values of people that suffer and the need for people seeking asylum to get the support they need,” Guterres said after the meeting at the refugee agency’s Geneva headquarters.
[Also on Ekklesia: Archbishop of Canterbury commends secularity to faith communities; Should God get a name check? – Ekklesia’s Simon Barrow on the EU constitution; We need a truly secular political party, says religion writer; Muslim leader denounces religious extremism; Secularists join Christians and Muslims to oppose Indian anti-conversion law; Government plans reopen debate on faith schools; Leading humanist calls for renewed cooperation with believers; Archbishop highlights the role of faith in Europe’s future; Secularists ask Live 8 to keep Vatican out; God and the politicians – BBC2 a response; Creationists target schools and universities in Britain; Evangelical Alliance criticised for slur against same-sex couples; Secularist and Christian voices highlight threats to free speech]
Orthodox leader criticises secularism, supports refugees
-05/06/06
Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens, the head of Greeceís Orthodox Church, has urged Christians of different denominations to step up cooperation in the face of growing secularism in Western society.
“It’s an urgent task because we are living in an age where there is huge alienation with secularism, globalisation and the breakdown of moral values,” he told a media conference in Geneva during his visit to the headquarters of the World Council of Churches (WCC) last week.
“If the Church does not speak of universal ethical values, who will?”, asked the archbishop, whose church was a founding member of the WCC in 1948.
He also warned against proselytism by Protestant groups in traditional Orthodox areas such as Greece and the former Soviet Union.
A growing number of established church leaders, including Pope Benedict XVI and Anglican Bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir Ali, have expressed concern about secularism recently. It is also a theme of inter-religious conversations.
Critics say this is because the historic churches are losing their traditional power, finance, members and influence ñ as people move away from institutional religion, sometimes towards indifference or non-belief and sometimes towards new spiritual expressions.
But progressive believers in the different faith communities are concerned that an anti-secular agenda is a step backwards towards isolationism and confrontation. They cite initiatives like Make Poverty History as opportunities for constructive engagement among those of different faiths and none.
What is needed, they suggest, is dialogue between mainstream secular and religious organizations to resist the trend towards fundamentalism and extremism.
Writer and academic Bernard Crick, a leading humanist, made such a call in the UK last year.
In September 2005 the UK Christian think-tank, Ekklesia, said in response to a critical BBC TV documentary on the role of religion in politics that ìrepairing the conversation and trust between forward-thinking religionists and those of humanist and secularist opinion is vital.î
Added Ekklesia at the time: ìWe want to see Christians fully involved in public debate, but as advocates and partners, not theocrats. The Gospelís vision of justice and peace is incompatible with the tactics of coercion and domination which have often characterized the now-fading Christendom era.î
Last October the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, commended secularity (neutrality in public life)as a necessity for enabling believers and non-believers to maintain a plural society.
He drew a distinction between a secularity that seeks to create ìa culture of questioning and negotiationî among different communities, and a ìdominant secularismî which denies any legitimate role for religion as a component of some peopleís public identity.
Around the same time, the Catholic Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, Cormac Murphy OíConnor, advocated ëspiritual humanismí as an antidote to religious fanaticism.
Observers say that the peculiar historical situation of the Orthodox explains their apparently anxious attitude to pluralism. Since the fall of the Iron Curtain in Europe, they have faced growing divisions among themselves, with Catholics and with the Protestant majority in the WCC.
Their strong concept of territoriality has in some circumstances led to accusations of repression by other religious groups and by human rights advocates.
The World Council of Churches has carried out substantial structural, voting and liturgical reforms to try to engage the Orthodox more effectively ñ moves acknowledged and welcomed by Archbishop Christodoulos.
Many Orthodox leaders have been resistant to womenís emancipation, hostile to lesbian and gay rights, and critical of a human rights agenda which they say is too Western in its assumptions.
But some Protestants see the ecumenical accommodation of the Orthodox as being too one-sided. In the recent past a prominent German woman bishop resigned from the WCC Central Committee over the issue.
In May 2005 the first major modern ecumenical gathering in a majority Orthodox setting ñ Greece ñ took place. But the presence of the Conference on World Mission and Evangelism (CWME) was resisted by a significant section of the countryís Orthodox bishops, and by a small group of extreme nationalist pickets.
Orthodox Christians account for about 98 per cent of Greece’s 10.7 million people.
During his visit to Geneva last week, Archbishop Christodoulos also met the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, to discuss cooperation on refugee issues and ways of combating intolerance.
Because of Greece’s geographical location – at the external border of the European Union and at the crossroads between Asia, Africa and Europe – considerable numbers of foreign nationals, mostly migrants, arrive in Greece every year, observes Ecumenical News International‘s Stephen Brown.
The UN refugee agency said the talks focussed on practical cooperation within Greece, particularly the protection of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants as well as humanitarian assistance and integration within society.
“I want to express my gratitude to the voice of the archbishop concerning the values of people that suffer and the need for people seeking asylum to get the support they need,” Guterres said after the meeting at the refugee agency’s Geneva headquarters.
[Also on Ekklesia: Archbishop of Canterbury commends secularity to faith communities; Should God get a name check? – Ekklesia’s Simon Barrow on the EU constitution; We need a truly secular political party, says religion writer; Muslim leader denounces religious extremism; Secularists join Christians and Muslims to oppose Indian anti-conversion law; Government plans reopen debate on faith schools; Leading humanist calls for renewed cooperation with believers; Archbishop highlights the role of faith in Europe’s future; Secularists ask Live 8 to keep Vatican out; God and the politicians – BBC2 a response; Creationists target schools and universities in Britain; Evangelical Alliance criticised for slur against same-sex couples; Secularist and Christian voices highlight threats to free speech]