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greecegreek.com
The Greece Greek dot come home page Site Sections  Greece Links Useful links to other greece travel sites and greek culture resources on the web. |
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Greek Orthodox ReligionGreek Orthodox ReligionThe Greek people always associate being Greek with being Orthodox. The Greek Orthodox has a very long and well established history. They have very close relationship with their religion that in the Byzantine Empire they called his emperor God’s vice regent. The emperor was given the authority to preach and give communion. In 1975, the Orthodox religion was established as Greece’s official religion by the constitution. At the moment where the Orthodox religion became official, anyone in the social layer had an obligation to obey and/or associate himself with the Greek Orthdox religion. For example, when someone is chosen as the president of Greece, he/she must affiliate him/herself with the Orthodox church. He/she must be sworn according to the Greek Orthodox church rites, and they must declare church holidays as the official state holidays. The constitution promotes strict law and requires that positions in the military and public schools are restricted only to Orthodox candidate. There has been some incidents where Greeks (except those that are Catholic, Jews, or Muslims) were imprisoned due to their affiliation with non-mainstream religious sects. The government of Greece, particularly the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs, also fully supports the church. They subsidize things such as the budget of the church, and the maintenance of the church’s properties. It is also compulsory for Greek Orthodox children to study religion in public primary and secondary schools. Administratively, the Greek Orthodox church is divided into two major parts, the Monastic Church of Greece and the semiautonomous Church of Crete. The Monastic Church is governed by the Holy Synod, consisting of all the diocesan bishops, while the Church of Crete is governed by seven dioceses as well as the arcbishop of Crete. The major religious festivals of the Greek orthodox religion is called the Twelve Great Feasts; eight of which honour Christ, and four honour Mary the mother of God. Unlike in the Roman Catholic religion, where Christmas is the most celebrated event, the Greek Orthodox religion puts the greatest importance in Easter. Help our community! Please leave a comment or review, |
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