US Ambassador: Our relations with the Church of Greece are excellent (upd)

LAST UPDATE: 16:06

The US Ambassador to Athens met with Metropolitan Dorotheos of Syros during his first visit to the island.

US Ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt through his twitter account praised the Metropolitan for his actions regarding religious freedom and tolerance, “values that we share with the Greek Orthodox Patriarch and His Beatitude Archbishop Ieronymos.”

According to the ANA-MPA, the US ambassador expressed both his gratitude and that of the US government for the statement made by the Metropolitan of Syros shortly after the meeting of the Holy Synod of the Hierarchy on October 12 during which the official position of the Church of Greece on the issue of recognition of Ukrainian Autocephaly was the only issue on the agenda.

On his part, the Metropolitan thanked the ambassador for his kind words while telling him that the Church of Greece has always been by the side of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Mother Church of all.

“It was a brave, bold and resolute statement that you made,” US Ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt replied.

The US ambassador referred to the statement made by Metropolitan Dorotheos of Syros, when he was asked about the decision of the Church of Greece, the Metropolitan replied that “The Church of Greece is not manipulated, nor is it threatened, nor takes it orders and instructions.”

In addition, the US ambassador referred to the excellent relations he has with the Archbishop Ieronymos and the Church of Greece, whose significant charitable and social work he praised in a critical time for Greece.

He also spoke about the special importance of the election of Archbishop Elpidophoros in the Archdiocese of America which, he noted, entered now a new phase of rebirth and renewal. Moreover, he emphasized that Archbishop Elpidophoros would be the coherent link of the entire Greek diaspora, which had made a significant contribution to US history.

On those remarks, Metropolitan of Syros pointed out that “the election of Elpidpohoros was the right choice by our Patriarch because he is a visionary clergyman who can lead the Archdiocese of America into a new era.” He asked the ambassador to do everything he could to support in his work in the USA.