This question is an all-too-common refrain at stately Monomakhos manor. My muse, La Sheppard, has asked me this question on more than one occasion. I imagine she does so because I’m a Greek-American and thinks that I might have some insights into the matter. (That matter being the corruption that seems to emanate from the Patriarchate of Constantinople.)
Now, no Church is perfect. Never has been nor ever will be. That being said, when it comes to certain proclivities, the Ecumenical Patriarchate does seem to attract certain types of questionable men into its ranks.
Nick Stamatakis, the inveterate publisher of Helleniscope, a proud Greek-American as well as a devout Orthodox Christian, has done yeoman’s work in exposing the various Constantinopolitan scandals. You may remember some of them: the Bulgarian Stallions, the Great Big Fat Gay Baptism, the Gold Cufflink Caper, and so on.
Now comes another such unfortunate incident, this one involving an “archimandrite” named Agathangelos Siskos, who was caught in the act of shoplifting an expensive watch from a upscale Istanbul jewelry store. https://www.helleniscope.com/2023/04/21/archimandrite-of-the-patriarchate-arrested-for-high-value-theft-in-istanbul/
Frankly, words fail me. So rather than answer my lovely muse directly, I ask that our collective attention drawn instead to Stamatakis’ brilliant summation:
“Let me remind you that when I exposed the scandal in the Metropolis of Paris, I underlined that the Bulgarian gay escorts returned to the Metropolis building and stole very expensive watches and other jewelry (valued at hundreds of thousands of euros) belonging to Maximos, Emmanuel’s assistant. This is a common thread: The Patriarchate’s priests and hierarchs live a life of luxury and sin. How do they achieve that? With financial support from all of you… After the Paris scandal, instead of punishing Emmanuel and Maximos, Pat. Bartholomew promoted them, and now Emmanuel is ‘second in command’ at the Patriarchate, while Maximos is now a Bishop in the United Kingdom. I can almost guarantee you that Agathangelos Siskos has a great future in the ‘Band of Thieves’ of the Patriarchate… Hopefully, we will not have to deal with him here in America…” [Emphasis added.]
Make no mistake, Nick is no scandal-monger. He does not indulge in gossip for its own sake. Instead, he provides solutions, one which, at this point, only the Greek-American faithful can enact. Specifically, the power of the purse, which is solely within their possession. The question is, will they do so? Or do they prefer things to remain as they are?
This is a good question. For some well-connected laymen, particularly those in the Archon/L100 class, I imagine that they like things pretty much as they are. After all, compromised men are easier to control.
So, in my humble opinion, it’s up to the ordinary Greek-American laity to right the floundering ship that is the GOA. They have the means and capability to do so. From this point on, if they don’t do what is necessary to improve things, then it’s on them, not the hierarchy.
The hierarchy of the POC have spent so long trading money for political favors to stay afloat that it is now endemic in that patriarchate.
Their own patriarch was willing to sell out Orthodoxy in exchange for $$ and we are now seeing that whirlwind be reaped in Ukraine. You can say the same with Metaxakis and with the “human rights awards” given out to all unsavory characters by the Archons. Why should we be surprised at someone stealing at watch.
Between the money received from Ukraine, this guy stealing a watch, trying to “reign” in the money-making monasteries and other context clues I’m personally coming to one conclusion: The Patriarchate is broke. Literally & metaphorically.
Literally in the sense that they are out of money. I mean with the St. Nicholas debacle and their lavish lifestyles, plus their political fees, how long can that Ukraine money actually last? My guess is the purse is about dried up.
Metaphorically they are broke in the spiritual sense and in how they operate and the echo chamber they live in. They act like it’s the height of Byzantium, all the while not realizing the Orthodox world has left them behind.
Does this mean everyone who is a member of the Patriarchate of Constantinople is spiritually bankrupt? No, not at all, look at the monasteries, look at the work Nick Stamatakis does. But, it seems very likely the entirety of the Constantinopolitan Holy Synod, or a very large number of them, are.
How can this be fixed? Well, short of the entire destruction of that edifice I’m not sure it can. Do Greek-Americans care enough to do this from the “inside”, or, is it already the case where most of them have voted with their feet and the EP/GOA is just on a slow march into oblivion?
Greek Americans are our own worst enemy. Only a small minority actually care how we are perceived. Our Greek American so called lobby is only interested in photo ops and bestowing upon each other awards and accolades. The GO Patriarchate and Archdiocese are an embarrassment. The Fakelaki – Bakshishi – Payoff system is well received by both institutions. The US State Department knows this well.
The thief Archimandrite it has been reported now says it was a “mistake “on his part …ya sure.
Below in Turkish as this disgrace is reported in the Turkish news:
https://youtu.be/ssmlWAYcyWE
Apathy abounds in America. The average citizen cannot act on anything. They have become dumb clucks following any Pied Piper who takes them to the cliff to jump. They are bedazzled by their own selfies and entertaining junk posted on the web.
Very few can concentrate anymore to read a legislative bill, look up a word they do not know. So goes the nation down the toilet bowl. The elites will also enter the toilet bowl. They are waste products.
Post photos of these defiled bishops along with their crimes. Send the mugshots to Bart and Elpi
“Having food and clothing, let us be content. But those who desire to enrich themselves fall into temptation and into the net and into many foolish and harmful lusts that plunge people into calamity and ruin; for the root of all evil is the love of money, which having surrendered, some have turned away from the faith and have themselves subjected to many sorrows. But you, man of God, flee these things, and succeed in righteousness, piety, faith, love, patience, meekness” (1 Tim. 6: 8-11)
After reading these many heartfelt replies, the article’s central question remains unanswered. ‘Stand up” are the key words here. I’m left wondering, what would taking a stand look like, exactly? A change.org petition? Flooding HQ with letters? Priests urging their parishioners to stop sending $$ to HQ? A procession around HQ? What? If these suggestions seem like acts of futility, its because they point to the lack of any administrative mechanism by which clergy and laity can confidently present their grievances, be heard, and hold their leaders accountable. That’s because there isn’t one. By design. Neither did we Antiochians when Met. Joseph was suspiciously terminated last year. No push back button, no Facebook comment section. Nothing. The official current narrative is that there was nothing to see here, and everything is guaranteed awesome with the upcoming enthronement of Met. Saba. The problem with pretending that Patriarchs John and Bart are awesome is that such pretending eventually leads us to self loathing (going along to get along) and a morphing into a state of demoralization (apathy, contempt). The antidotes are acting in faith, courage and love, as exemplified by the saints and martyrs. So, with this in mind, what would standing up look from a place of faith, courage and love?
To put it mildly, any serious Orthodox Christian who’s part of the GOA/Patriarchate of Constantinople cannot expect the degeneracy of the leadership in that jurisdiction to ever change. It’s been this way for decades, the only difference is these days it’s more out in the open. Shamelessly out in the open, one could say.
God has a way of making these things more apparent with time. For decades, the senior leadership of the GOA & Patriarchate of Constantinople has often valued Hellenism far more than Orthodox Christianity. And despite what they claim, those two ain’t the same thing.
For those who choose to stay in that jurisdiction, at least operate with your eyes wide open. This is the exact same thing as a spouse suffering from domestic violence just hoping that maybe next week will be different. This stuff doesn’t change without serious effort and serious intervention, which isn’t happening.
In fact, I think the data are pretty clear that the senior leadership of the Patriarchate of Constantinople engages in narcissistic spiritual abuse of its faithful on a daily basis.
Either stay in that jurisdiction with your eyes wide open, or leave. The choice is not that hard.
Well said. I am sticking it out at my parish, but will draw the line if the top brass messes with the liturgy or attempts to insert wokeness through the back door.
“…insert wokeness through the back door.”
They are expert in this method of entry. 😂
Sorry. Slow pitch right down the middle.
Oscar Wilde: “I wish I’d thought of that.”
Frank Harris: “Don’t worry, Oscar. You will.”
But a delightfully funny one at that!
Nothing the laity can do. The liberal laity and majority nominal Greek populace have no problem outing these guys and speaking out but only because it embarrasses the church and reflects bad on Christian people. This majority are the wolves in sheep’s clothing. The pious laity are no better they see everything as binary and must circle the wagon. Their outlook is the archdiocese has the holy Spirit and everyone outside it including other jurisdictions are prone to demons. They view everything thru a political lens precisely because the Cp is an extremist political party.
Egad. GOA unsafe for anyone’s soul – save the children!
Not sure where to post this, but wanted to share this news. Read it and weep! https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/the-greatest-crime-against-humanity-in-history-naomi-wolfs-11-revelations-from-pfizer-vaccine-documents/
Ive got to hand it to Naomi. Years ago she wrote a vapid book about beauty but she’s matured since then.
TOM RENZ: THEY ARE POISONING OUR FOOD
https://rumble.com/v2k9h8a-tom-renz-they-are-poisoning-our-food.html
[Video – 24:12]
Atty. Tom Renz:
‘ If we can get this a little further into the mainstream this is going to be
disastrous for the plans. But this is going to be the next step because
the mrna technology is so damaged politically, like, people don’t want it,
nobody’s getting these shots, the only way they’re gonna be able to do this
is through hiding it and … do you think the WHO and the CDC are pulling
back the childhood recommendations because they’re good people?
No. They just plan on putting it in your food. So we either get informed
consent here or, you know, you just get ready to eat your vaccines. …
We need one state to pass this. If one state passes this, the disclosure
requirements are true in every state, right? So if one state passes this
we get to know the truth nationally. … . ‘
Missouri RINOS voted against people knowing what
is in their food and killed the bill – but only for now …
Yes! I watched this shocking video last week. Ironically, it’s the Naomi Wolf’s of the world who are sounding the alarm and calling us humans to stand against such atrocities. Contrast her urgent message to the we-just-don’t-go-there menu at Ancient Faith Radio, and one can’t help but be dumbstruck at the total absence of any mention of these perilous and ethical issues facing the Church. AFR’s silence amounts to the sin of consent.
All I can say is that before any other action is taken, any Orthodox Christian wanting things to change around them must take the very first step of repentance and confession. I could go on more about that and needs for further teaching and encouragement on these topics for the laity in America and perhaps especially we cradles, but I’ll save that for another time.
I am not saying that nothing should be done. I am saying that we should only expect for good fruits when we are following the prescribed life in the Church. As a side note, when we look at saints’ lives we have to face the reality of what does come when people are living this life in faith and holiness, and then they do come up against pushback. It usually isn’t pretty and one facet of preparing yourself the way the Church tells us to before we try to correct others, is that it helps give the resilience to take whatever the consequence is, without losing your faith and salvation.
One thing laypeople can do after some self reflection and maybe going to confession is write a letter to your bishop. In my experience they do read them. And pray for the hierarchs. I wouldn’t want their job.
Unrelated to this post but it looks like Tucker has been ousted by Fox.
I think(?) I remember someone on here saying that Tucker was the litmus test for free speech, once he’s gone then that’s the end, or something to that effect.
As one who has many Greek friends, the problem is that the options for Greek Americans are limited.
When Russians formed ROCOR there were unique historical circumstances at work: a big migration of people to countries that were non-communist (hence a positive political environment, except in countries like Poland which persecuted Orthodox). They built many of their churches from the ground up and formed new communities. For sure, there were struggles in those communities that existed prior to the revolution and now had to decide which way they wanted to go. But the mere influx of emigres was quite large which enabled a ‘clean slate’ approach.
Contrast that to Greek Americans who have age old parishes, established communities, etc. It’s VERY difficult in that environment to be the canary in the coalmine. Nobody wants to end up like the old calendarists, marginalized and pushed aside.
As a result many simply pay lip service to the politics from above (I can tell that the vast majority of GOA laity are totally not interested in ‘Ukrocephaly’) and carry on with business as usual.
I can’t necessarily judge them, it’s not an easy position to be in. Start a revolution and you’ll be accused of disrupting the community and working for the “enemies of Hellenism and America” (when in fact it’s the enemies of secular globalism which is infecting both civilizations). Many Greek Americans don’t care for Bartholomew on the one side, but try to criticize him and you’ll be told in so many words ‘he’s our miscreant, not yours, shut up’.
The history of the Greek people post-Byzantium is one of fighting for survival, and from a political standpoint that means getting on board a geopolitical alliance that gives the highest promise of protection from Ankara. That’s been the case for centuries, and at this point in history that whole Greece = Democracy = America paradigm is firmly etched into the vast majority of establishment Greek Americans.
It is only through the defeat of the secular globalist hegemony that this dynamic can ultimately shift. Politicians like Orban and Vucic are carefully stacking their chips in that direction. Here in America unless we get a truly anti-globalist movement going in the executive and legislative branches, it’s hard to get momentum going for a new political perspective on things and answer the ever pressing Turkish question for Greek Americans (an understandable concern given past and present).
Thank you. Thankfully, there is a formidable anti-globalist movement afoot in the USA, of which I am a part of in my community, in the halls of state capitols, and we see emerging in DC. “Getting that momentum going” of which you seek means speaking the truth, even if it means being put out of one’s synagogue (parish), if it comes to that. Having witnessed the lies that ousted met. Jospeh, I have already made up my mind that if such apostasy poisons the well of my parish, I pray now God will give me the fortitude to stand up for the truth rather than join hands in a lie.
A formidable anti globalist movement? just where? I haven’t seen it, unless you count “complaining” and “pearl clutching” along with a side of throwing ones hands up in the air in despair as a “movement” (all things conservatives do) then God help you! LOLOLOL! If you have any evidence I am wrong, please do show it to me!
As the saying goes, “If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.”
Evidence of anti globalist movement:
Check out these sites/orgs for starters, then ask God where He would have you serve.
Young Americans for Liberty.
Turning Point USA
National Freedom Caucus
Read, Live Not By Lies” by Rod Dreher
Read, “The Great Reset” by Glenn Beck, then act on it
Shop at Made in USA sites
Shop locally
Get your money out of globalist banks and move your account to a local bank you trust.
Glenn Beck’s Specials on Blaze TV offers many constructive to calls to action
Check out the liberty group I started, Magic Valley Liberty Alliance, on Facebook, Instagram or Telegram. We are growing and effectively pushing back against the RINO takeover in our state.
Run for office.
Form your own group. Warning: don’t expect your parish to support you. You will lose friends but gain many new ones.
“When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty.”
-Thomas Jefferson
“the options for Greek Americans are limited.”
Whereas the options for Orthodox Christian Americans are many.
Isn’t it all in what you value? If one values his Serbian heritage above all, then it’s a Serbian Church or bust.
If one values growing close to Christ, then an Orthodox Christian parish is what matters.
I know for a fact there are thousands of Greek-Americans out there who value their Orthodox faith far above their Greek heritage — not that Greek heritage is bad (of course it’s not), but that it places a distant second to being an Orthodox Christian, growing close to Christ, and participating in the sacramental life of the Church.
Isn’t it all about what one values most?
Very much agree. Broadbrushing all Greeks as secular, liberal, non-religious occasional Church attenders is just very far from accurate. There are many lay people, and parishes, within the GOA who are on fire for Christ and love the Church, and of course we know the monasteries are.
To me, there is just a much wider disparity in the GOA than in any other jurisdiction.
I’ll confess I’m a bit of an oddball here in that I see nothing wrong with mixing ethnicity with Orthodoxy. I grew up in a ROCOR parish and we had the Russian flag, St. George’s crosses hung from lampadas, wooden carvings of double headed eagles and portraits of generals and colonels who fought against the Bolsheviks for a national Russia… None of this made me less Orthodox. On the contrary, it was inspiring. As of this day you can’t really do that with American culture which has not yet become fully Orthodox (though thank God this is changing gradually).
I can understand Greeks who have the same strong feelings for their motherland and heritage, who hold dear the revolutionary heroes of 1821, who have Greek and Byzantine flags. In its proper context these things should not come at cost to Orthodoxy, if anything the opposite.
Love of culture and ethnos in and of itself is not evil. It’s when these concepts are intertwined with anti-Christian ideology that they become destructive. For example pagan nationalism, or nationalism imbued with anticlericalism, or oddball oil and vinegar hybrids like communist nationalism (neo-Stalinism or the Greek communists).
The same concerns blind allegiance to a state, regardless of who is in charge. We ROCOR Russians were against the Soviet state and communist party, who’s principles ran counter to Orthodoxy. When the communist dictatorship fell we cheered and although it took time, found a way to reconcile with the mother church and things are way different now.
During the Soviet period there were some Russian emigres who argued for an embrace of the Soviet regime in Russian national interests, especially when Stalin switched gears from internationalism to embracing traditional Russian national symbols (as it suited him during the war). Likewise we’ve had Russian emigres who believe that the politics of the church should conform to the host country’s political orientation, and some of these people have gone into schism over this (the various groups that splintered from ROCOR).
We could say the same for those Greeks who argue that the Greek state (more specifically it’s strong transatlantic orientation) should be supported at all costs including through the church, or that the church should be subservient to the host country’s politics.
I get my feathers ruffled when people blame ethnocentrism for the current problems of Orthodoxy. The problem is not that people want to retain their Hellenic or Slavic identity, but that there is an adherence to an identity or state that veers away from Orthodox principles. In essence there is a new God created, an idol with clay feet.
When various defenders of Bartholomew argue that he represents Hellenism, I am afraid to ask “what kind of Hellenism is this?”, just as if someone said Nikita Kruschev represents what it means to be Russian…
GeorgeS, I agree with you. Maybe someday our descendants will be honoring a St Mark of Pittsburgh or a a warrior-saint Theodore who graduated from VMI, an American Patriarch Cyril who united the jurisdictions, etc. And our churches will be festooned with Gadsden banners and Betsy Ross flags while we gather for annual July 4 BBQ. Maybe we will host Thanksgiving Day dinners for the homeless. Etc.
I do sincerely hope that those things you mention George do come to pass. America is no less worthy of Orthodoxy than any other nation created under God, and since this country is just 246 years old at the moment it is still quite a junior as compared to other civilizations that had millennial history when they adopted Christianity.
The current sad events in this country are leading to more interest in Orthodoxy so I by all means am in favor of embracing this.
My only hope is that I still be allowed to worship in a Russian parish and be able to use our calendar and pray in Slavonic, despite the fact that I was born in the USA.
I have no problem with the Julian Calendar. In fact, I think we’d have been better off had we not gone to the NC.
As for the liturgical languages: in my ideal Ortho-American world, in every major city with more than five Orthodox parishes, one parish would be mandated to celebrate the services in Slavonic, Arabic, and Ecclesiastical Greek while all others would do them in Elizabethan English.
The importance of the medieval languages is that since they’re not spoken presently, they don’t change, thus serving as a permanent reference point for those parishes that do use the vernacular. (Although my emphasis on Elizabethan English would obviate that point.)
We already have Blessed Seraphim (Rose) of Platina, who can speak with authority to so many of America’s present travails. He grew up as a Protestant “mutt” on the West Coast, passed through American academia (with its pretentious emptiness) and high culture and Buddhism and the San Francisco homosexual scene, and by the grace of God transcended it all to become “the first American ascetic (podvizhnik),” as his archbishop Anthony (ROCOR) called him—using the same word that the Slavonic tradition applies to the holy Desert Fathers of old.
You know, I agree with you, too, GeorgeS. I see no problem with mixing ethnicity with Orthodoxy, as long as it’s like adding perogies, spanakopita, hummus and Hatch green chili to the table beside the macaroni and cheese.
It is so OK with me to hear a little Greek, a little Russian and a little Arabic from the choir. As long as it’s something that’s added and not something that is taken away I’m good. It only makes the experience that much richer, as do the people who come from these various regions.
I love the warmth of the Greeks, the resilience and strength of the Slavs, and the generosity of spirit of the Arabs. All wonderful.
What I abhor are barriers to the Faith. No one ethnic group owns Orthodoxy. And the degree to which some hold onto the myth, it will proportionately bite them in the “you know what” when it comes to growing their parishes.
Exclusivity has no place in the Orthodox Church.
100%! Couldn’t agree with you more!
I agree that NOBODY has exclusivity of Orthodoxy, neither to being a member of the Church nor to being a primate. God did not create some special covenant with any one group once the gospel came into existence: it came with the label “for immediate release” and it had no restrictions as to whom. It was our job and remains our job to get the message out there to everyone.
America is the land of choice, and I think the fact that we can choose to be in an ethnic parish or in an American oriented parish are good things. I’d like for it to stay that way, because this way we can make everyone happy without feeling that we’re taking something away from somebody.
Take for example a new immigrant that comes off the boat. Many get serious about church life when they enter new unfamiliar surroundings. Ethnic parishes give these people a chance to feel at home and connect better, and you have people like me there who grew up here but is well adapted. That makes their life easier here.
So everything has its purpose.
GeorgeS,
I actually agree with you as well, in that the love of country/ethnos and mixing faith and culture is not bad. Indeed, it is how God created us to be, to live in community, to have Christ and the Church sanctify our culture. It’s what St Herman of Alaska did with Alaskan native culture a few hundred years ago — he brought Christ and His Church to it, baptizing it and sanctifying it.
It was the underlying assumption that the GOA is the *only* option for Greek Americans that I take issue with. In my experience that’s simply not true, nor should it be.
In the 1990s, when I was in professional school in Washington DC, I loved to go visit the St John the Baptist ROCOR Cathedral on 17th Street — a peaceful, holy cathedral bathed in Christ’s presence, without question. The steadfastness with which the Russian emigre community maintained their culture and faith during the communist years is incredible and inspiring — I can’t even begin to describe how much I’ve been moved by that story over the years, and continue to be moved by it.
However, it was clear as day to me that that community was not meant or created for me…. at the time it was virtually all Russian-speaking, it’s just the way things were. Not all of us are created to be Blessed Fr Seraphim Roses who learn and adopt a new culture in order to be Orthodox Christian.
Every Orthodox parish has a certain dominant ethnos/culture. God has charged us to worship Him and to “get a long with each other” in the process — to “unite in Him despite our cultural diversity,” to borrow from a modern buzzphrase — from the Russian expat to the secular nihilist who’s only begun the search for Christ and His Church. This process is often easier said than done.
Of course. If there’s one primate who I think can create a genuine alternative for Greeks it’s the Jerusalem Patriarch. Because let’s face it, even if the majority of Greeks don’t like Bartholomew or aren’t particularly proud/fond of him, if ROCOR or the OCA ordained a Greek bishophric here in America, the majority of church going GOA Greeks would consider it treason to switch over. That’s just the way it is.
The Jerusalem Patriarch did at one time have a small presence in the US but it appears Bartholomew effectively pressured him to back off. As of now it appears Theophilus is being very careful, but he or his successor could in due time start building a counter-momentum to the Phanar, including offering people a canonical old calendar alternative. I think that’s win-win for everyone.
Quite the contrary, the GOA full knows its only license is as a gateway to western religions. Greeks don’t want their kids mingling with slavs and arabs
That’s rather sad, don’t you think? I mean, it’s as obvious as warts on a toad that the Christian confessions of the West are rotting corpses at this point.
Is it sad because they’re rotting (yes) or is it sad because the GOA laity can’t see it (yes)? Or is it sad because they’re oblivious?
Talk about a lose-lose-lose.
Mark Derlin,
Unfortunately your right. The heretical OCU projects the feeling of many Greeks when they constantly claim they want to be on the new calendar with the civilized Europe (unlike the Slavs, Copts, Ethiopians, Palestinians). The Love affair with Anglo culture and the supremacy they hold it to is shocking. This can be seen with the outrage some greeks have over a Netflix show on Cleopatra. Angered that she is black and not a white actress playing her. Angered they call her an African Queen because somehow the Ptolemaic empire founded western civilization.
Greek Americans (and their multifarious organizations, like GOA, AHI, AHEPA, HALC) have an obligation to bring American Values to Greece (and her allies), not the other way around.
“…an obligation to bring American Values to Greece”
Let’s reconsider that:
1) “…an obligation to bring American Values to Ukraine”
2) “…an obligation to bring American Values to Russia”
3) “…an obligation to bring American Values to Syria”
4) “…an obligation to bring American Values to Libya”
5) “…an obligation to bring American Values to Afghanistan””
6) “…an obligation to bring American Values to Iraq”
7) “…an obligation to bring American Values to Serbia”
I could go on, but if I haven’t made
my point by now, I never will…
George Markonis- Why??? Not that there’s much of a difference nowadays between Anglo and Greek culture but what values do you have in mind? School shootings? High taxes? Obesity? Maybe AHEPA would like to bring back illegal adoptions and human trafficking? What can the GOA teach the CoG? Beardless priests? How NOT to ever have a saint? To get rid of confession and fasting? Bring in musical organs?
“Bring in musical organs?”
aka: Zelenskyyyyyyyz?
Brenden,
You timed that one just right!! HAHAHA!!
Touche! Brendan, I had to think about that one.
American values are absolute trash. What moron would think smearing them all over the planet is a good thing?
Ironically, by some accounts the majority of Orthodox Christians in Asia Minor (i.e., the Patriarchate of Constantinople’s home territory) are now Slavs, and a sizable minority of the Orthodox population of Istanbul itself (20%, according to one study I read) are Arabs—or at least, Arabic-speaking Antiochians from Hatay Province.
I touched on this a while back. There are between 200,000-300,000 Russians alone living in Turkey. This doesn’t include the ~7 million annual Russian Tourists. I think I read in just Antalya there are around 80,000 Russians. This doesn’t include Ukrainians, Romanians, etc., who are living there.
There are several thousand Arab Antiochians in Hatay, with a seemingly good amount of ethnic Turks, who are under Antioch.
The number of actual Greeks in the canonical bounds of the EP (within Turkey) is incredibly small, numbering below 10,000, and probably lower than 5,000. From what I understand due to emigration & aging they will all be gone soon.
This means that the EP is a minority within its own patriarchate.
If the MP wanted to set up an exarchate in Turkey like it has done in Africa, and given the massive numbers of ethnic Russians in Turkey, it could do so as it has the population and political clout with the Turkish government.
Very interesting observation.
Petro, it’s even worse than that: there are less than 2,000 Greeks living in Istanbul at present.
More Georgians condemn Bartholomew: https://orthochristian.com/153286.html
This from Helleniscope: https://www.helleniscope.com/2023/04/25/pat-bartholomew-kicked-out-the-thief-archimandrite-its-a-late-start/
Bart’s back was against the wall so he wisely –and expeditiously–got rid of the “Grand Archimandrite.”
That’s the problem with corrupt institutions, every day, the top guy wakes up with a feeling of dread, wondering which shoe is going to drop today.
There’s always hope, even within the GOA: https://orthochristian.com/153312.html