Deputy Foreign Minister of Greece Markos Bolaris said Thursday that his recent visit to the residency of the Constantinople Patriarch was related to the Epiphany celebrations and not the handover of the tomos to the so-called new church in Ukraine, as Athens did not interfere in matters regarding the administration of churches
ATHENS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th January, 2019) Deputy Foreign Minister of Greece Markos Bolaris said Thursday that his recent visit to the residency of the Constantinople Patriarch was related to the Epiphany celebrations and not the handover of the tomos to the so-called new church in Ukraine, as Athens did not interfere in matters regarding the administration of churches.Bolaris was the only representative of a foreign country apart from Ukraine attending Epiphany celebrations at St. George's Cathedral in Istanbul's Fener quarter, during which Constantinople Patriarch Bartholomew gave the tomos of autocephaly to the new Ukrainian church.
"The Greek government is annually represented at the Epiphany celebrations in Fener. This year, there was also a handover of the tomos of autocephaly to Ukraine. The Greek government explained that it does not interfere in the problems of administration and activities of churches," Bolaris said at a briefing, adding that all church matters should be resolved by the Church.
On Sunday, Constantinople Patriarch Bartholomew handed over the tomos of autocephaly to the head of the new Ukrainian church. Under the tomos, the so-called Orthodox Church of Ukraine will have jurisdiction exclusively over Ukraine and will not be authorized to appoint bishops and establish its parishes abroad, becoming effectively dependent on Constantinople.
The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) along with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) have refused to recognize the results of the unification council and Constantinople's decision to grant autocephaly to the new Ukrainian church.
