Israel is working with foreign governments and Orthodox Christian leaders in the Holy Land to make sure that one of their most ancient and mysterious rituals — the Holy Fire ceremony — is not extinguished by the coronavirus outbreak, officials said Friday.
Each year, thousands of worshippers flock to Jerusalem’s Old City and pack into the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, built on the site where Christian tradition holds that Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected, for the pre-Easter ceremony.
Top Eastern Orthodox clerics enter the Edicule, the small chamber marking the site of Jesus’ tomb, and exit with candles said to be miraculously lit with “holy fire” as a message to the faithful.
The flame is normally shared with candle-holding pilgrims and even sent in special containers to Orthodox Christian communities around the world. Details of the flame’s source are a closely guarded secret.
But due to a ban on large public gatherings this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, Israeli officials say the April 18 ceremony will be limited to about 10 religious leaders from various Orthodox denominations. They have also developed a creative way to deliver the flame to overseas communities.
Because anyone entering Israel must go into quarantine, foreign dignitaries coming to pick up the flame will receive it on their plane and immediately return home.
Akiva Tor, who heads the Israeli Foreign Ministry’s department for world religions, said the arrangement has been discussed with local church leaders and coordinated with several foreign countries with large Orthodox populations, including Greece, Russia, Georgia and Ukraine.
Tor said church officials have been understanding.
“We have the same goal in mind, which is to enable the continuation of this miraculous event while being respectful of the medical emergency which is taking place,” Mr Tor said.
Israel has reported more than 7,000 confirmed cases and at least 36 deaths.
The coronavirus pandemic has caused governments all over the world to introduce drastic emergency measures, suspending many of the freedoms that citizens normally take for granted. Many of these measures are necessary in order to save lives.
In Turkey however, the measures implemented by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan have had mixed results. They have led to a crisis of epic proportions – that is, the very structure of economic, political and social life in Turkey has changed. Here’s the lowdown:
The suppression of criticism and undesirable information:
The current coronavirus outbreak has undoubtedly resulted in the viral spread of misinformation which poses a significant challenge to containment efforts. In response, many countries are using fake news laws as convenient tools to stop the proliferation of this disinformation.
Reports have emerged from Turkey however, that these laws are being used as a weapon to suppress criticism and accurate information just as readily as misinformation.
Fake news laws are being used to suppress people who criticise the Turkish government on social media. Source: Getty Images.
According to the Turkish Interior Ministry, as of March 16, authorities had identified at least 93 suspects allegedly responsible for “unfounded and provocative” social media comments about the coronavirus and they had arrested 19 of them.
Interestingly, the statement by the Interior Ministry on these arrests went even further to say that authorities were acting to arrest social media users whose posts “were targeting officials and spreading panic and fear by suggesting that the virus had spread widely in Turkey and that officials had taken insufficient measures.”
Perhaps this is the clearest indication yet that Turkey has been partaking in the suppression of its critics.
Turkey becomes country with worst COVID-19 trajectory:
Since declaring its first coronavirus case three weeks ago, Turkey has recorded one of the steepest trajectories of new cases in the world, amid fears it could become a hot spot of the pandemic.
The rapid rise in cases – 18,135 confirmed infections and 356 deaths as of today – has seen Turkey overtake other G20 states such as South Korea and Canada that reported cases of the virus weeks earlier.
Workers spray disinfectant at the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, Turkey, to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Source: Reuters.
“It appears coronavirus spread long before the first case was reported due to trips to Europe, Iran and Umrah,” Professor of Infectious Disease at Gazi University in Ankara, Esin Senol, said in an interview with Al Jazeera.
“Limiting testing to those who had recently been abroad in the early days of the outbreak in Turkey also allowed the virus to spread.”
In the face of such criticism, President Erdogan has now implemented stricter measures to control the spread of the virus. His government has limited travel between Turkey’s provinces, halted international flights and imposed quarantines in some areas.
Lira at crisis levels as coronavirus hits trade:
Even before the coronavirus pandemic hit Turkey, its economy was already showing signs of weakness as it tried to recover from the impacts of the currency crisis in 2018.
But the outbreak of COVID-19 pushed the economy to its brink.
Although the Turkish lira initially held up well in March after Turkey’s Central Bank reduced its benchmark interest rate by one percent and several private banks announced the suspension of loan repayments, it fell to an 18-month low on April 1 as the coronavirus death rates accelerated.
The Turkish economy has been heavily impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Source: Ahval.
Now, it must be noted here that Turkey’s dependence on importing almost all of its energy needs could provide a temporary economic reprieve of about $19 billion. However, according to economists from the Financial Times, it’s expected that Turkey, alongside South Africa and Argentina, could still be sliding toward insolvency and debt default.
On that note, it is clear that everything depends on how this crisis progresses and how long it will take to end.
With the mass migration of Greeks to Australia after World War II, came a diversity of tradespersons coming here; Where Greeks settled in large numbers across Sydney, this prompted the opening of diverse Greek owned shops because there was a market for them- as newly arrived migrants felt more comfortable communicating with someone over the counter who could speak Greek and understood their sensitivities and the way they wanted things done. One of these businesses were the Greek barbers and hairdressers.
Walking into Steve and Angela’s Unisex Salon in Belmore, you know that you have entered a Greek shop! And I have to immediately emphasise to our barber, Stavros Kulumundris, that I am a barber’s worst customer! You have to love Stavros’ decorative newspaper clippings across the top of the wall whether they are about Sydney’s iconic soccer team, Pan Hellenic of the 1960s, or Greece winning Euro 2004.
On the waiting table are the Greek newspapers which he states, ‘Ever since I started cutting hair as a barber in my father’s shop in Redfern in 1966, we bought the Greek Herald for our customers to read while they waited. We bought it every day and I continue to buy it every day, after 54 years!’ I try to calculate how many editions that would be, and there are too many zeros, so I give up.
In the mid 1960s, Redfern and the inner city was bustling with Greeks. As Stavros recalls, “So much of the Greek community was within walking distance; up at Taylor Square, you could go to Baveas Delicatessen and the Athina Cake Shop; the Holy Trinity and Agia Sophia Churches were close by; Pan Hellenic Soccer Club played at Wentworth Park, Glebe; the Lawson Theatre in Redfern played Greek movies; there were all these Greek night clubs such as ‘Vrachos’, ‘Kalamata’, ‘Pyrgos’, ‘Deilina’ and ‘Patris’.”
It was inevitable that Stavros would open his own barber shop, and he did so on Frenchmans Road, Randwick. In 1976, Stavros married Angela Liaropoulos, who was a hairdresser. This dynamic duo was subsequently born and when an opportunity arose for Stavros and Angela to establish their own business, they did so in Belmore. Their unisex salon was separated into two sections with the barber shop in the front while the hair salon was in the rear.
Belmore is a melting pot of different cultures and
there was a strong Greek presence. Although many of Stavros and Angela’s
customers were Greek, there were many customers of different cultures.
Stavros has seen all the hairstyle fashions over the years. Being a continental barber, it was initially difficult for him to accept ‘strange’ hairstyles but he gradually got used to the ‘stranger’ ones. Fortunately, fashions often do 360 degree turnarounds and continental haircuts came around and became fashionable again.
Until recently, Stavros and Angela worked together for
over thirty years. Asked about what it was like working together for such a
long time, Angela points out, ‘Stavros and I worked together for over thirty
years; in all this time, we have never argued about work. Steve has his
customers; I have mine. Steve has his part of the shop; I have mine. So,
everything was very clear to us…’
Being in a business that deals with all sorts of
people, Stavros looks back on customers’ loyalty and all the friendships that
developed over the years, “Through the barber shop, I have developed friendships
with so many people over the years. And I have so many loyal customers who have
been coming for years. Lots of customers open their heart to you and express
their pains in life. I just listen; what can I do? I hear about deaths,
divorces, illnesses… All I can say is something positive to soothe
their sorrow.”
And how he deals with the tricky subject matters,
“After cutting hair for almost fifty years, you learn the character of
customers; you learn to whom you will talk about politics and who will talk
about sport.”
And, finally, I ask Stavros how long he will continue
running Steve and Angela’s Unisex Salon, and he replies, “Time passes and we
are not getting any younger. My arms do get tired, cutting hair all day.
Standing all day hurts my back too. As long as I can continue working, I will
work. This is where I will get my Leaving Certificate. One day, we will retire
and Angela and I will return to Greece. I would love to spend time on my
island, Kos, the island of Hippocrates.”
And as I farewell Stavros, he just had to give it one
more try, “Vasili, you need a haircut…”
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced today that ‘workplace rules’ will apply to churches over the Easter period.
This means that whilst the churches are still closed to the general public, additional chanters and altar boys will be able to assist priests perform sacred ceremonies during Holy Week.
“Churches are not open. Places of worship are not open. I want to be very clear about that,” Mr Morrison said.
“But we’ve had a lot of feedback from religious communities that there are ways these holy services are conducted and they will be able to do that by respecting absolutely the 4 square metres per person rules.”
The move comes as churches across Australia come to terms with using online platforms to broadcast their religious ceremonies to the faithful.
Over 5,000 doctors from all over Europe have come together to support the initiative #SOSMoria, which aims to evacuate thousands of migrants trapped at the overcrowded Moria camp in Greece amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The idea for the initiative came from Dutch doctors, Steven Van Der Fieffer and Sane van der Koi, who are currently offering their services in the Moria camp.
“The coronavirus pandemic that threatens to overwhelm the camps will have catastrophic consequences for the refugees, the Greek inhabitants and the rest of our European society,” the doctors wrote in a statement.
“As doctors in Europe, we call on the leaders of our governments and of the European Union to bring refugees to safety immediately.”
Doctors from all over Europe travel to Moria camp to help vulnerable migrants. Source: Twitter.
Moria camp on Lesvos Island has been repeatedly criticised by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) for inhumane living conditions.
According to doctors from the #SOSMoria initiative, it is almost impossible to practice ‘social distancing’ in the camp as there are more than 35,000 migrants in a space designated to accommodate only 3,000.
The #SOSMoria initiative’s slogan.
“It is an illusion to think that a COVID-19 outbreak in these camps could be kept under control. 40,000 people are living on a few square kilometres. There is only a handful of doctors present. Many children and adults are already ravaged by physical and mental traumas,” the initiative states.
“As European doctors, we are obliged to do everything possible to prevent this medical catastrophe… and provide medical care to all people, irrespective of their personal background.”
If you would like to sign the petition or find out more about the initiative, please visit: https://en.sosmoria.eu/
NSW Premier, Gladys Berejiklian, has announced that thousands of small businesses across NSW struggling to cope with the COVID-19 shutdown will receive grants of up to $10,000 under a new assistance scheme.
The NSW Government will put $750 million into the Small Business Support Fund as the centrepiece of a third wave of support measures to keep small businesses afloat.
Deserted Chinatown in Sydney amid coronavirus panic. Source: 9 Honey.
“This is about getting cash into small businesses when they are struggling right now in the face of an unprecedented situation,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“These grants will provide a big boost, and we will make the application process easy to ensure small businesses can receive some cash-flow as soon as possible to meet pressing needs.”
Treasurer, Dominic Perrottet, said many local cafes, restaurants, corner shops, gyms and small accommodation providers will be eligible to apply.
“This is real, rapid relief for tens of thousands of businesses and it will help ensure many businesses that are not eligible for payroll tax waivers and deferrals can live to trade another day,” Mr Perrottet said.
“We have the structures in place after the bushfires and expect to see this money rolling out the door shortly.”
Applications for a small business grant of up to $10,000 will be available through Service NSW within a fortnight and will remain open until 1 June 2020.
To be
eligible, businesses will need to:
Have between 1-19 employees and a turnover of more than $75,000.
A payroll below the NSW Government 2019-20 payroll tax threshold of $900,000.
Have an Australian Business Number as at 1 March 2020, be based in NSW and employ staff as at 1 March 2020.
Be highly impacted by the Public Health (COVID-19 Restrictions on Gathering and Movement) Order 2020 issued on 30 March 2020.
Use the funding for unavoidable business costs such as utilities, overheads, legal costs and financial advice.
Provide appropriate documentation upon application.
The Ministry of Tourism has launched an online platform, ‘Greece from Home,’ which is aimed at reinforcing the country’s positive image during the coronavirus pandemic.
Developed in cooperation with the Greek Tourism Organisation, Marketing Greece and Google, the central goal of the initiative is to help people around the world stay in touch with Greek culture and to “travel” to its cities and towns without leaving home.
“Greece stays home, but doesn’t stay home,” Tourism Minister, Haris Theoharis, said.
The platform also encourages tourism professionals to enhance their digital skills with the help of Google, and there are hours of YouTube videos featuring popular figures including tennis ace, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and NBA star, Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The initiative comes in the wake of 61.3 percent decline in passenger traffic at Athens International Airport last month.
Greece has quarantined Ritsona migrant camp for two weeks after 23 of its residents tested positive for the coronavirus.
The Greek Ministry of Migration announced on Thursday that movement from the Ritsona camp will be heavily restricted and monitored by police, as more of the 2,500 residents of the camp are tested in the coming days.
Dozens of people in the camp were initially tested after a 19-year-old female living in the camp was found infected after giving birth at an Athens hospital last week. She was the first recorded case of a migrant contracting COVID-19.
All of those who tested positive showed no symptoms, the Ministry said.
The Ritsona migrant camp, north of Athens, has been placed under ‘sanitary isolation’ for two weeks. Source: Reuters.
The latest developments come amid increasing calls from medical NGOs and human rights groups for the evacuation of Greece’s overcrowded refugee camps during the coronavirus pandemic.
Over 40,000 people are hosted in the Greek islands’ camps, while the island of Lesbos alone accommodates more than 20,000 people in a space designed for about 3,000.
EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, said that the spread of the virus to less organised refugee camps ‘‘may result in a massive humanitarian crisis.’’
‘‘This is a danger, both for refugees hosted in third countries outside the EU and for those living in unbearable conditions on the Greek islands,’’ she stated.
With the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the United States surpassing 200,000, it’s no surprise that Greek-Australian boxing star George Kambosos Jr fled the country.
With flights being grounded and borders closing, Kambosos made the decision to suspend his training for the final elimination round of the IBF Lightweight World Title, and returned to Australia on March 21.
He, along with his partner Bec Pereira and their children, Evaliah and Leonidas, are now nearing the end of a two-week quarantine.
“I was already in Miami training and I had an absolutely fantastic first week,” Kambosos told Wide World of Sports.
“But unfortunately on the next Monday, we went to get back in the gym and COVID-19 had pretty much taken over the world. The gym got closed down and before you know it, there was signs of the US going into a possible lockdown.
“I had my family with me like always and I said, ‘You know what, if we get stuck here, this is not going to be good. Let’s get on a flight, let’s get home and we’ll deal with whatever comes’.”
The upside? Kambosos has a fully decked-out gym in his home, where he is now preparing for his elimination round against Welshman Lee Selby, a 33-year-old former featherweight world champion.
“For myself, nothing changes. I’m in the gym day-in, day-out whether I have a fight locked in or if a fight’s in six months’ time. I’m always in the gym, always preparing, always perfecting my craft,” Kambosos stressed.
The bout between Kambosos and Selby was initially set for May 9 in Cardiff but has now been postponed to July 11. It is one of the biggest fights of Kambosos’ surging boxing career as it could give him a strong chance to win the IBF Lightweight World Title.
“I want the best Selby, I don’t want no excuses. When I beat him, when I stop him in front of his people, I don’t want any excuses, don’t want him to say, ‘I was outside of the ring too long’, or, ‘I’ve aged too much’,” Kambosos said.
“When the time does come and we do fight, I’ll be 110 percent ready. A little bit of extra time is going to be great for myself and I think it will actually hurt Selby a bit more.”
His Eminence Archbishop Makarios has explained his decision to close churches across Australia, saying that he did not want participation in the Divine Liturgy and other communal worship services to result in “anyone becoming ill or even dying because they were infected.”
This statement was made during his recent interview with Maria Giachnaki from the Orthodoxia News Agency, where he also discussed recent conspiracies that have emerged around COVID-19.
“It is not a weapon of mass destruction which has a toxic character and which has been let loose into the atmosphere to generate mass murder,” His Eminence said when asked about the theory that society was facing a global biological war.
“It is a pandemic which we must all face with unity, faith, obedience to the governing bodies and the scientific community, and with prudence and sobriety.”
Full version of the interview (Greek):
English transcript of the interview:
1. Firstly can you comment on the coronavirus pandemic? Is it true that humankind is experiencing a global biological war?
The studies that have been presented to date show that this virus has arisen through mutation. Without wanting to fall into the trap of catastrophic discourse and accepting the ‘prophesies’ that are on the rise these days, I acknowledge medically that this virus has existed since 2002. The coronaviruses are a group of viruses which attack the respiratory system of humans and animals. This specific virus (COVID-19) is the seventh in this family. In 2002, as was previously mentioned, we saw the emergence of the corona virus SARS in China, while in 2012 we saw the emergence of corona virus MERS in the Middle East.
Beyond the scientific facts, it is well known that the second most powerful nation in the world is China, while America, which is the first, has a huge debt to China. The balances between power are always very delicate. I foresee that the vaccine to treat and cure this virus will be discovered in the USA since in this way the existing economic balances which have been threatened will be maintained. Moreover, we experienced similar situations in the past where there were outbreaks of even more deadly viruses, but we did not see such global mobilization. This specific outbreak has resulted in an only 1% death rate for those of the population who have been infected. All these are fact which one is not able to ignore too easily; indeed, they indicate that certain agendas may underlie the kind of response that has eventuated with the appearance of this virus (which, according to research into its cause, has not been manufactured by humans). This is, therefore, not a biological weapon since the illness does not clinically present as such. It is not a weapon of mass destruction which has a toxic character and which has been let loose into the atmosphere to generate mass murder. It is a pandemic which we must all face with unity, faith, obedience to the governing bodies and the scientific community, and with prudence and sobriety.
2. What measures
have you taken in Australia?
Here in Australia we have tried, as much as possible, to maintain the legal requirements as well as the advice of the medical bodies, not because we want to protect ourselves but to protect those around us. Let us not forget that illnesses are personal trials as well as trials faced by our loved ones and their respective families. We do not for a moment wish to imagine that entire families will suffer. The only reason as to why we were forced to close all our Churches nation-wide, through an official encyclical to our people, was to protect our neighbor, families and society more broadly. We certainly do not want our Churches to become a source of contamination for anyone. We do not want our participation in the Divine Liturgy and other communal worship services to result in anyone becoming ill or even dying because they become infected. Certainly, all the services are being conducted by the priest and the chanter. The bells continue to ring. The services are being live streamed through the internet. People know that their priest is there, and that he continues to offer the bloodless sacrifice for the health of all people; for all those who are not in the Church, and for the repose of all those who have departed this life.
3. Many people are asking why God allowed such a trial to take place across the whole planet. Why is it that the God of mercy and love allows such situations?
I will not attempt to give an answer to such questions because then we will become embroiled in a process of rationalizing what is mystery and faith. I can, however, assure you that our Church is not a Church of pain and illness. It is a Church of joy, love, victory over death. Pain and suffering become an opportunity for the Christian to become a better person, to come out of himself, his introversion and self-love. Pain gives us the ability to empathize with the pain of our fellow human beings, and to enter their situation for a while. Pain allows us to rethink and reflect on our way of life, which may be entirely worldly, and which may not leave any room for a spiritual and eschatological outlook. Pain and illness usually soften the intensity of the passions and transform the person.
Of course, there is the other possibility that illness and pain harden people, making them more unyielding and more difficult. Satan exploits illness a lot. If we do not mobilize patience and our trust in God, then we become anxious, we protest and do not accept our illness, and then Satan creates havoc and one illness follows the other. Some people turn to faith thinking they will overcome illness in that way. I don’t know, however, if this is what we should be striving for. Faith in God has nothing to do with a transaction. Others think that faith protects us from pain, but this is not true. Faith simply helps us to understand and to accept God’s silence when we are tormented by the question you asked me initially: Why does God allow pain and pandemics? Why does He allow the coronavirus and death? Why does God send cancer to me?
4. HowshouldaChristiangenerally
face illnesses?
When we speak about illness we need to clarify that we may be referring to a state that cannot always be explained medically and scientifically. Our body, for example, can slowly die when the soul is not alive; in other words, the presentation of bodily malaise or fatigue is often a result of one’s spiritual state and not merely one’s biological. Some people know that they are ill, while others do not know it. Some accept it and some do not. A person may be living with a particular illness, but follows a completely different path; in other words that person may not be accepting of his or her reality. This is because people are free to live according to the flesh or to live according to the spirit. They may live with God, but quickly they may learn to live without God, without light, without love.
It is natural to have troubling
thoughts and to be worried with the appearance of this pandemic. Despite being human, let us not show a human
way of thinking and lack of courage. Illness and trials in life more generally
become a criterion by which our spirituality and the depth of our humanity can
be tested. Hyper-anxiety, panic and fear reveal the absence of a
spiritual life. That is why we are called to face every illness as children of
God and not as worldly people. In this spirit, I am not sure whether we should
be trying to overcome our illnesses or accept them as a necessary element of
our salvation.
5. Can you give our readers a message on the problems of our times generally and especially in relation to the Coronavirus pandemic?
During times of pandemics, trials and sorrows, let us think how close God and the Saints are to us. Let us look at the lives of the Saints of our Church. They all suffered pain, affliction, deprivation and sorrow; they all experienced difficulties and innumerable trials. In the writings of the Great Fathers, it is repeatedly emphasized how pain and illness sanctify the human person. There has never been a Saint who wrote negatively about pain and illness. Our Saints may have performed miracles, but they never cured themselves. On the contrary, they boast about their trials because in these they were led closer to God.
Illnesses and difficulties will come into our lives. Sometimes they will come unexpectedly. Let us not think that we are not able to overcome them, because then we will be burdened with anxiety and fear. Rather, let us confront these naturally. Let us walk completely free from compulsions and desires, because for us Christians, “whether we live, or whether we die we belong to God”. Let us give thanks to God, not for our illnesses or for the cures, but because, through these, we came to know Him better and we become more intimately connected with Him. Let us look forward to the abolition of our limitations. This means that we put an end to any obstacle, and we become one with Him. We then reach the state that St Paul was referring to: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.”
This new pandemic that we are experiencing today comes to show us, once again, human fragility and our fear when faced with the possibility of death. The human person, however, has been created for something else; and not for corruption and anxiety. For this reason, I personally ask that people remain calm. Let us place our trust in God. I know it is not easy to abandon yourself to the mercy of God. But life always has a way of moving through and beyond trials and difficulties. Our faith in God is a huge power, implacable and unrestrained. Let us therefore make use of it. Let us enhance the power of our faith because then we will see everything in a different light, which will no longer tie us down to earth, but will direct us towards Heaven.
This pandemic will be overcome. The Resurrection will come soon.
![Israel to help Orthodox Christians share ‘holy fire’ amid coronavirus outbreak [VIDEO]](/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/disinfecting-church-768x512.jpg "Israel to help Orthodox Christians share ‘holy fire’ amid coronavirus outbreak [VIDEO]")
![Ministry of Tourism launches ‘Greece from Home’ online platform [VIDEO]](/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/greece-from-home-3-768x480.jpg "Ministry of Tourism launches ‘Greece from Home’ online platform [VIDEO]")
