PHOTO: At the residence of the Turkish Ambassador in Washington DC during the recent iftar dinner…
By Nick Stamatakis
We have had many Archbishops in our century-old Church and for the most part, they tried to honor their commitment to the Constantinople Patriarchate, even though they were faced with numerous adverse effects of having to deal with both the sclerotic ecclesiastical leadership and with the authoritarian and abusive Turkish regime. But we never had an Archbishop who would act as a slave to the Turkish “Sultan” and go visit him at his hotel in NY… And we never had a Metropolitan (Nathaniel of Chicago) who would immediately upon his enthronement see the Turkish Consul, while he would wait months to accept the visit by the Consul of Greece.
We have a tradition in the Church of America of fighting for human rights; a tradition started by AB Iakovos in the 1960s with his support of MLK. And we have an even stronger tradition of supporting the causes of Hellenism, be it in the Cyprus struggle or the “name of Macedonia” or any other issue. On Sept. 11. 2001, we suffered an attack by Islamic terrorists and we paid a huge price, losing several Greek-Americans and one of our most symbolic churches, Saint Nicholas at Ground Zero.
Two years ago we managed to incorporate the Hellenic and Christian Genocides in the Resolution which passed in Congress recognizing the Armenian Genocide. Here is the first paragraph: “Whereas the United States has a proud history of recognizing and condemning the Armenian Genocide, the killing of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1923, and providing relief to the survivors of the campaign of genocide against Armenians, Greeks, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Syriacs, Arameans, Maronites, and other Christians….” (and here the link to the full resolution). In all of our struggles for human rights, we have to face Turkish barbarism (which is currently embodied by the Erdogan regime’s support for militant Islam, while earlier was represented by the Kemalist regime). If Turkish authoritarianism and Turkish human rights abuses have been our archenemy for centuries, why on Earth should we put aside our fight for human rights? Just for the sake of having “a good relationship” with the tyrannical Turkish Government? Is this what we value the most? Do we masochistically seek acceptance by our perennial murderers?
A few days ago President Biden, in a historic move, proclaimed the recognition of the Armenian Genocide, raising hopes that soon our community can achieve the same… Did anyone hear any statement of support by AB Elpidophoros? No, you did not… The silence was deafening by someone who a few months ago proclaimed to be “the lobbyist” of the Greek-American community”… At almost the same time of this deafening silence, AB Elpidophoros found it proper to participate in a so-called “iftar dinner” marking the end of Ramadan for Muslims at the residence of the Turkish Ambassador in Washington DC. Do you know of anyone else of our Church’s leaders that has ever attempted to honor the invaders and illegal occupiers of Cyprus and the proud descendants of the genocidal Ottomans? No, of course not… Neither AB Iakovos, nor AB Spyridon, nor AB Demetrios would ever do anything like that… AB Elpidophoros is the first – and we are truly hoping he will be the last…
Yes, other religious leaders were present – namely a Rabbi (as you can see in the photo above) and maybe a Catholic priest. But the Rabbi has millions of reasons to be grateful to the descendants of the Ottomans: it was Suleiman the Magnificent who saved the Sephardic Jews from slaughter in Spain during the 16th century, in the times of Inquisition… He allowed them to move in the Ottoman Empire and he gave them special privileges in Constantinople, Smyrna, Salonica, Volos, and elsewhere… The Ottomans did not commit Genocide against the Jews – but they did against the Armenians, the Greeks, and other Christians… Do you see any Armenian religious leaders in the photo?
No, you do not… The Armenians have respect for themselves, their causes, and their slaughtered ancestors. And their leaders put their nation first, be it Armenia or America…
But, but, but, the defeatist voices would say, what are we supposed to do? Our beloved Patriarchate lives under the barbarian Turks… Yes, it does. But this is the Church of America and this is the Greek-American community. We cannot live in this schizophrenic situation for one more day… The solution is simple and we have proposed it already: The establishment of an “autonomous” Church of America – so all the Turkish blackmails stop instantly.
As I said last week, it’s decision time for AB Elpidophoros… Smiling in all directions does not equal leadership…
May 14, 2021, n.stamatakis@aol.com, www.helleniscope.com
Is Elpi so longing to hear the Turkish language spoken he would have to make this demeaning pilgrimage to the Turkish Embassy ?
Dropee…
What do you expect from a Turkish Citizen and the Ultimate Politician
Well, he’s a Turkish citizen who aspires to be Patriarch, a job that requires approval from the Turkish Ministry of Civil Affairs. Why don’t we just pull the covers off of this guy and expose his presence for what it is— political, financial, authoritarian, and ultimately, abusive. There is nothing in The Gospels that is represented by this man. Yet, silly Greeks continue to think there’s salvation associated with Elpidoforos and The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight.
Excellent post by “American” – succinctly said.
Elpidoforos is beyond embarrassing on every level, add to that, his unsavory gay boyfriends will be the end of him.
Wait & see
Gaganas, thanks, and with regard to assertions of buggery (which were rumored even before he took this job, but who knows for sure), remember that many parts of the tribal Islamic world (including the Ottomans) regard it as “okay” as long as one remains the “pitcher” and not the “catcher”. Add to that, monasticism in many areas as been perverted to seem to “tolerate” homosexual activities because they purposely remain without women. That’s why married clergy and married bishops and real community parish centered religious life is a healthier model than what’s offered by GOA nowadays.
American, just remember there’s bad apples in every organization – everywhere.
Think how embarrassing this perverted Rot is for majority of genuine holy monks in monasteries to know about this?
Even among married priests we’ve heard a few deviants & some defrocked.
It’s just the landscape of this fallen world.
It wasn’t that long ago he was marching with BLM. While innocent people were having their businesses burned to the ground some of the Greeks. Elp was saying it was his duty to March.
If you disagree with him he bans you from his social media pages.
BLM issued statements siding against Israel…..