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Joined: Jun 2009
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Link to the article [ news.bbc.co.uk] Please note the biased language used by the BBC. Displaying crucifixes wasn't compulsory, AFAIK. Greek Church acts on crucifix ban
By Malcolm Brabant
BBC News, Athens
Italian media film a crucifix on a school wall
The Strasbourg ruling caused outrage in the Italian media
The Greek Orthodox Church is urging Christians across Europe to unite in an appeal against a ban on crucifixes in classrooms in Italy.
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg ruled last week that the presence of crucifixes violated a child's right to freedom of religion.
Greece's Orthodox Church fears the Italian case will set a precedent.
It has called an emergency Holy Synod meeting for next week to devise an action plan.
Although the Greek Orthodox Church has been at odds with Roman Catholicism for 1,000 years, the judicial threat to Christian symbols has acted as a unifying force.
The European Court of Human Rights found that the compulsory display of crucifixes violated parents' rights to educate their children as they saw fit and restricted the right of children to believe or not to believe.
'Worthy symbols'
The head of the Greek Church, Archbishop Ieronymos, shares Catholic complaints that the court is ignoring the role of Christianity in forming Europe's identity.
It is not only minorities that have rights but majorities as well, said the archbishop.
One of his subordinates, Bishop Nicholas from central Greece, lamented that at this rate youngsters will not have any worthy symbols at all to inspire and protect them.
Crucifixin San Remo town hall 6.11.09
The mayor of one Italian town displayed a 2m high crucifix in protest
Football and pop idols are very poor substitutes, he said.
The Greek Church has ostensibly intervened in this case in response to an appeal by a Greek mother whose son is studying in Italy.
But without doubt it is concerned that its omnipotence in Greece is under threat.
A human rights group called Helsinki Monitor is seeking to use the Italian case as a precedent.
It has demanded that Greek courts remove icons of Jesus Christ from above the judge's bench and that the gospel no longer be used for swearing oaths in the witness box.
Helsinki Monitor is urging trade unions to challenge the presence of religious symbols in Greek schools.
The socialist government here is also considering imposing new taxes on the Church's vast fortune, but at the same time is urging it to do more to help immigrants and poor Greeks.
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May our Lord have mercy.
I pray that the Church is not taxed in Greece, I pray that religious symbols and actions are retained in Greece and in all of Europe. Amen.
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I've said before--united we stand, divided we fall. We may not be able to share at the Lord's Table, but if we don't stand together in this secular onslaught, we'll all go down separately.
BOB
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Nowadays the presence of a crucifixes in any room of public buildings (thus also in public schools) is required by the Italian law.
The same lawsuit went already in court in Italy, and the high court ruled that the crucifix works like a national emblem and thus cannot be moved. But the European court ruled the opposite. The Italian government, supported by the 70% of the polls, already filled the appeal.
I'm very happy that also the Orthodox Churches in Europe realize that it is necessary to be mobilized to support the base idea of the "Christian roots of Europe", an idea that have always been supported by the Catholic Church but that unfortunately has not been included in the new European Constitution that will came into force on next 1 December 09
Last edited by antv; 11/13/09 06:39 PM.
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It seems the people in power consider religion an optional extra to peoples lives.
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But what happens if we reach the next question: what will Italy & Greece do if forced to choose between the EU and Christ?
hawk
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I've said before--united we stand, divided we fall. We may not be able to share at the Lord's Table, but if we don't stand together in this secular onslaught, we'll all go down separately.
BOB AMEN United we stand and seperated we fall one by one.
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