Primate of the Church of Greece announces his possible resignation

The head of the Greek Orthodox Church, Archbishop Ieronymos II of Athens, said that he is thinking about his future in office and does not rule out leaving, but his main goal is to pass on a stable and socially active church structure free of long-standing problems. The First Hierarch spoke about this in a frank interview with the Greek newspaper Nea.

the 88-year-old Archbishop, who has been leading the Church of Greece since 2008 and has almost 45 years of experience in the bishop’s ministry, summarized his activities and outlined his priorities for the near future. According to him, the key tasks are “to leave the Church with as few problems as possible” and to resolve the long-standing property dispute that complicates relations between the Church and the state. Ieronymos II emphasized that the development of church property is necessary solely to finance social projects aimed at supporting youth, students, young families, and the elderly, and not to accumulate funds.

During the interview, Archbishop Ieronymos praised the cooperation with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, emphasizing the need to expand the interaction between the Church and the state in the social sphere. At the same time, he called the idea of a complete separation of church and state “dangerous” for the country, calling for “conscientious partnership.”

The Primate paid special attention to demographic and migration challenges. He recalled the active assistance of the Church to refugees during the migration crisis, but pointed out that the current situation requires “great caution” and balanced decisions at the national level. Concerns were also expressed about the future of St. Catherine’s Monastery in Sinai, which remains a source of tension.

Answering the question about a possible successor, the Archbishop of Athens focused not on specific names but on personal qualities. “It is important that this is a person with kindness in his heart, who loves people and cares about the weakest, ” he emphasized. Concluding the conversation, Jerome II emphasized that the future of the Church depends on “seriousness, consistency and love for people,” as well as on the ability to maintain unity and peace in today’s difficult era.

As reported earlier, the hierarch of the Greek Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Seraphim of Kythira , sharply criticized the process of recognizing the OCU in 2019 by the Synod of the GOC, calling it a “real crime.” The bishop said that no vote on this issue was held among the bishops of the Greek Church, despite official statements.