Religion

rug

(82,333 posts) Fri Apr 10, 2015, 07:54 AM Apr 2015

Atheist Greek PM in tense meeting with Russian patriarch

Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill, right, and Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras pose for a photo in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 9, 2015. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

Apr. 10, 2015 | 10:16 AM (Last updated: April 10, 2015 | 12:46 PM)
Agence France Presse

MOSCOW: Greece's avowedly atheist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras held a tense meeting with the powerful head of Russia's Orthodox Church on Thursday as he wrapped up a trip aimed at closer relations with Moscow.

Tsipras greeted Patriarch Kirill, who enjoys a close relationship with Russian strongman President Vladimir Putin, with a strained smile at his official monastery residence following a two-day Kremlin charm offensive.

Kirill congratulated Tsipras on his January, but swiftly pressed the premier to take on a moral as well as political role in national life.

"I hope that your government will do all it can to preserve the spiritual foundations and morality of your people," the patriarch said.

https://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/World/2015/Apr-10/294012-atheist-greek-pm-in-tense-meeting-with-russian-patriarch.ashx

I'm with Tsipras. Reviving nineteenth century gepolitical ghosts is madness.

5 replies

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Highlight:

Atheist Greek PM in tense meeting with Russian patriarch (Original Post) rug Apr 2015 OP

"only with a spiritual base can a country hope for true social justice" DetlefK Apr 2015 #1

Kirill has no recognition of irony: "Don't forget that being Christian is not a political stance" rug Apr 2015 #2

Is that the strained smile ? jakeXT Apr 2015 #3

I think this is more about the Greek debt than independence from the Ottomans. rug Apr 2015 #4

Fascinating. I like this guy and hope he is able to accomplish what he hopes to. cbayer Apr 2015 #5

DetlefK

(16,423 posts)

1. "only with a spiritual base can a country hope for true social justice"

Reply to rug (Original post)

Fri Apr 10, 2015, 08:27 AM

Apr 2015

Except when that spiritual base is used to solidify an existing hierarchy.

The american Founding Fathers? Neutral stance on religion.
The French Revolution? Hostile to organized religion.
Karl Marx? Hostile to religion.
And they all were fighting for social justice.

Religion is an agent of Order as it preaches the permanent adherence to given structures. But to change injustice into justice, you need rebellion, you need revolution, you need Chaos.

rug

(82,333 posts)

2. Kirill has no recognition of irony: "Don't forget that being Christian is not a political stance"

Reply to DetlefK (Reply #1)

Fri Apr 10, 2015, 08:45 AM

Apr 2015

I agree that religion is used as an agent of order. But the key enemy is the principal, not the agent. To the extent its leaders willingly go along, their efforts must be resisted. But there is much more to religion than its political utility.

jakeXT

(10,575 posts)

3. Is that the strained smile ?

Reply to rug (Original post)

Fri Apr 10, 2015, 08:57 AM

Apr 2015

MOSCOW—Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told senior Russian lawmakers here that Athens had played an active role in preventing an expansion of European Union sanctions against Russia earlier this year.

The comments Thursday by Mr. Tsipras, who is in tough talks with European leaders about much-needed international funding, underscored the defiant tone of his two-day trip to Moscow, where he has criticized European sanctions and stressed Russia and Greece’s shared cultural and religious roots.

..

In a nod to the countries’ shared Orthodox Christian faith, Mr. Tsipras met Thursday with the Patriarch Kirill, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/tsipras-tells-russia-greece-helped-prevent-broader-eu-sanctions-1428577645

rug

(82,333 posts)

4. I think this is more about the Greek debt than independence from the Ottomans.

Reply to jakeXT (Reply #3)

Fri Apr 10, 2015, 09:02 AM

Apr 2015

cbayer

(146,218 posts)

5. Fascinating. I like this guy and hope he is able to accomplish what he hopes to.

Reply to rug (Original post)

Fri Apr 10, 2015, 10:25 AM

Apr 2015

As for the Patriarch Kirill, I like Tsipras's answer to him.

"Don't forget that being Christian is not a political stance,"

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