Athens Prelate concerned at looming debt crisis effects

OXFORD, England (CNS) – Greece’s Catholic Church faces disaster because the current economic crisis is forcing it to end vital social and charitable projects, said Archbishop Nikolaos Foskolos of Athens.

A man stands between discount advertisements at the entrance of his shop in Athens, Greece, 6 July. The economic crisis in Greece is taking its toll on Catholic churches and Church programmes in the predominantly Orthodox nation. Photo: CNS/Yiorgos Karahalis, Reuters

“This crisis could be the worst in our history,” Archbishop Foskolos told CNS on 6 July. “There’s corruption everywhere, especially among our politicians. We get no help from the state or other Western Churches, and our faithful can’t give any more. Our parishes and dioceses are in deep trouble, and in a few months we won’t be able to support our staffers and employees.”  The Archbishop voiced the concerns as European Union finance ministers released emergency funding to rescue the faltering Greek economy.
Amid violent street protests, the Greek legislature approved tough austerity measures and tax increases on 29 June, paving the way for the EU action.
The Archbishop said the higher taxes would have more impact on the Catholic Church than on the country’s predominantly state-supported Orthodox Church. But the Orthodox Church still faced “serious problems” after being told its clergy’s state-paid salaries would be cut by half, he said.
“We’re only a small minority, with few properties and resources, and we’ve been burdened in recent years by many Catholics coming here from poor countries in search of a better life, using Greece as Europe’s eastern gateway,” Archbishop Foskolos said.
“Since we joined the EU in 1981, we haven’t received any help from other Western Churches, since we’re considered a rich country ourselves and they can only aid the Third World,” he added.
“But we have parts of the Third World here in Greece, and it’s creating great pastoral and social hardships.” The EU and International Monetary Fund agreed to provide $156 billion in emergency loans to help Greece pay off some of its $485 billion debt by the end of 2014.
In addition to spending cuts, the economic plan passed by the Greek Parliament calls for tax increases, a “solidarity levy” on households, sweeping privatisation, school closures and sharp state sector staff and wage reductions.