State and Church divide, but do not … divide!

All this looks like … at the oracle of St. Peter's: it will come one day, what state and what church will not be together, but it will be ..! The Prime Minister and the Archbishop reacted last night by evoking the famous "baptized fish meat". Alexis Tsipras and Ieronymos have agreed on two axes that apparently alter the relationship between the state and the Church, but in reality they do not reverse anything that exists today. hui.

First, religious will no longer be considered public servants and will not be paid by the state. In reality, however, they will be paid by the state, which agrees to pay the equivalent of their salary to the church leaders, who will then pay their salary to the clergy! This point of agreement serves to Mr. Tsipras, who makes it a progressive incision evidence, for it to succeed … in the separation of state and government. ;church. And, moreover, this … reduces the state, since nearly 10,000 employees leave the payroll. He hopes the prime minister will strengthen his left-wing profile during the pre-election period and move the center-left audience. The archbishop loses nothing in essence because he guarantees the financial support that the church needs to pay his clerics.

The second pillar of the agreement is the creation of a church for the exploitation of ecclesiastical property. This is a great wish of the Archbishop, and not the ecclesiastical leadership over time, as the state for the first time essentially agrees to clarify and facilitate this whole affair. Many speak of "gold dilemma" and a gesture that will help both sides. The gains will be spread to the center for the state and the church, with the government estimating that, thanks to revenue generated on behalf of the state, it will be able to cover the grant it will pay annually. to cover the payroll of the clergy. In this case, not only a state and a church do not divide, but they are also co-opted under the doctrine of "follow the money," so that great commercial movements that may now exist around ecclesiastical property, .

It seems that both sides have moved with care and intimacy to reach a common area. Mr. Tsipras needed a "reformist" coup in the clergy because it was clear for a long time that he could not include in the fundamental and stable position of SYRIZA in favor of a complete separation of the state and church in the revision of the constitution – with the result that he was receiving criticism from within his party, but also the dissatisfaction of his former electoral base. And in addition, it seems to have been folded (in common: coltouba) and in this case.

In addition, Mr. Ieronymos, aware of the political game, had set as a priority to finally clarify the subject with ecclesiastical property.

The agreement yesterday was a combination of these two goals. At least at the highest level, the current government and church show that they often find it. The question that now arises is whether the Archbishop will pbad this agreement outside the Holy Synod and limit the reactions of the clergy who fear to change their status, but also the possibility of opening other questions in the future.

And it remains to be understood between Mr. Tsipras and Ieronymos on the exact meaning of SYRIZA in the religious neutrality that he wishes to enshrine in the Constitution – although this is not considered an untenable obstacle, as the two parties managed to find them. more important questions.

What does the church-state communique say?

1. The Greek State recognizes that, until 1939, the year of the enactment of the 1731/1939 forced law, it acquired an ecclesiastical property for a consideration lower than its value.

2. The Greek State acknowledges that it has taken over the payroll of the clergy, in the broad sense, in exchange for the ecclesiastical property that it has acquired.

3. The Greek State and the Church recognize that clergy will no longer be understood as civil servants and will therefore be removed from the single payment authority.

4. The Greek State agrees to pay annually to the Church, in the form of a grant, an amount corresponding to the current salary cost of the current priests, which will be adjusted according to the salary changes of the Greek state.

5. The Church acknowledges that after this agreement, she renounces all other claims for this ecclesiastical property.

6. The annual grant will be paid to a special fund of the Church and is reserved exclusively to the salary of the clergy, under the sole responsibility of the Church of Greece and under the relevant control of the control authorities of the 39 State competent.

7. The agreement provides the current number of positions of organic clergy of the Church of Greece, as well as the current number of popular servants of the Church of Greece.

8. A possible choice of the Church of Greece to increase the number of clergy does not create an obligation to increase the amount of the annual grant.

9. The Greek State and the Church of Greece decide to create a Church for the exploitation of ecclesiastical property.

10. This fund will be managed by a board of directors composed of five members. Two members of the Fund will be appointed by the Church of Greece, two members appointed by the Greek Government and one member appointed jointly.

11. The Fund for the Exploitation of Ecclesiastical Property will be in charge of the management and exploitation of property already disputed between the Greek State and the Church of Greece since 1952, as well as of any good of the Church who voluntarily will voluntarily surrender Fund to use.

12. TAEP's revenues and commitments are shared equally between the Greek State and the Church of Greece.

13. The proportions also apply to the properties of the individual metropolises, namely the controversial properties, but also to those of the metropolises voluntarily granted to the archaeological reserve.

14. The Society for the Exploitation of Really Orthodox Real Estate created between the Greek State and the Archdiocese of Athens, already created by Law No. 4128213, is also a member of the TAEP and is governed by the legal regime in force.

15. The aforementioned commitments of the parties will be subject to compliance with the agreement as a whole.