In an interview for the newspaper “National Herald”, Vice-president of the Clergy Association of Greece Georgios Vamkakidis, who is also priest of the Metropolis of Zihni and Neurocopi, presented the position of the Clergy Association on the latest developments in the vital issue of the salaries of the priests.
Georgios Vamvakidis stated that the government wanted the salary issue to be included in the Church-State dialogue and suggested some changes in the text. However, the Church Committee had been authorized by the Hierarchy to discuss only the subject of the revision of the Constitution and ecclesiastical property. The payroll was a red-line issue and no change would be acceptable.
“We are now awaiting the decision of the Permanent Holy Synod that will be convened on March 5, which will either provide guidance to the Committee on how to negotiate or the Hierarchy will come to a decision,” he noted.
According to Georgios Vamvakidis, “the priests on Greek state payroll are currently around 9,500, including those of the Diaspora, those who serve in other ecclesiastical jurisdictions and are seconded either to its churches in Europe, in Africa, or somewhere else, but they are permanent employees in the Church of Greece.”
He finally raised objections to the handling of the issue by the leadership of the Church of Greece, stressing that the joint preliminary agreement took everyone “by surprise”.
