The Holy Synod of Greece’s Orthodox Church has agreed to send a letter of protest to Archbishop Elpidophoros of America after he baptised the twin children of a same-sex couple in the Athens suburb of Glyfada last week.
The church hierarchy also agreed to send a letter of protest to the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Istanbul, under whose canonical jurisdiction the Greek Orthodox Church of America lies.
The bishops unanimously voted on this move following a written complaint from the Bishop of Glyfada, Antonios.
In the complaint, the Bishop claimed Archbishop Elpidophoros did not inform him that the parents of the children were a gay couple when he requested to conduct the baptism.
Evanggelos Bousis and Peter Dundas, both of Greek descent and prominent men in Hollywood’s fashion industry, became the first gay couple to hold a Greek Orthodox baptism for their children in Greece on Saturday, July 9.
The couple’s children, Alexios and Eleni, were baptised by Archbishop Elpidophoros at the Panagia Faneromeni Church.
The baptism has been the subject of controversy across the Orthodox world, with one bishop telling Kathimerini that it “sent a message that is completely opposite to the teachings of the Greek Orthodox Church.”
Source: Ekathimerini.
