Greece’s government intends to accelerate the submission of legislation that would legalise same-sex marriage, prompting the Church of Greece to call an emergency meeting.
According to amna.gr, the Church of Greece leadership has arranged an emergency meeting on January 23 to examine the topic of same-sex marriage, ahead of a bill likely to be tabled by the government.
A statement released by the Church of Greece declares that the Holy Synod will convene next Tuesday at 9am under the chairmanship of the Archbishop, Hieronymos of Athens, and all of Greece.
The only item on the agenda, according to the statement, will be “Church and instituting marriage between persons of the same sex”.
Government sources state the initial plan was to present the bill at the end of February, but it is believed that the date has been brought forward, as reported by Ekathimerini.
Despite significant opposition from the Conversative Party and the Church of Greece, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has stated that the bill will grant gay couples full parental rights, however, it will not permit medically assisted reproduction via surrogate.
Roughly 60 Conservative MPs are presently leaning towards abstaining from the vote or voting against.
Source: Ekathimerini and amna.gr
