Posted on 12/30/2015 11:35:50 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
A dissenting voice from the Church of Greece has emerged amongst the harsh criticism leveled against the government's passing of a law that grants some rights to same-sex partnerships in Greece.
Chrysostomos, the Metropolitan of Messinia, whose diocese covers southern Greece, said in an interview with a local news site TharrosNews.gr, that homosexuals, like all humans, are a creation of God and they deserve the same respect and honor-- and not violence and rejection.
Chrysostomos' statements came after another bishop of the Church, from nearby Kalavryta, Metropolitan Ambrosios issued a caustic call to his faithful to spit on and beat up gay people.
Other high ranking bishops added their own viewpoints, including Metropolitan Seraphim of Piraeus who claimed that the civil partnership recognition movement in Greece was the fault of a long list of dark, external forces that were seeking to break down Greek society, including the U.S. Embassy in Athens and Consulate in Thessaloniki, Jews, the Rothschilds and George Soros.
Metropolitan Anthimos of Thessaloniki, Greece's second largest city used his pulpit just days before the vote in Greek parliament to suggest that "not even animals" have these tendencies.
In the interview, Chrysostomos went in depth, even using Biblical reference:
"Homosexuals, like all humans, are a creation of God and they deserve the same respect and honor, and not violence and rejection. We shouldn't forget the way Christ responded to the sinful woman, according to the Gospels, which became his word. 'He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.'"
"That canon should be our guiding principle for the way in which we should handle every person and fellow human, regardless of their otherness or differences. The church doesn't reject people."
Chrysostomos went on to say, however, that what the Church cannot accept, is an interference in its liturgical life and how it conducts and perceives its sacramental life.
The Metropolitan's complete statement in Greek follows:
"Οι ομοφυλόφιλοι, όπως όλοι οι άνθÏωποι, είναι δημιουÏγήματα του Î˜ÎµÎ¿Ï ÎºÎ±Î¹ ισχÏει και γι' αυτοÏÏ‚ ο αντίστοιχος σεβασμός και η τιμή, και όχι η βία και η απόÏÏιψη. Δεν Ï€ÏÎπει να μας διαφεÏγει ότι ο Ï„Ïόπος με τον οποίο ο ΧÏιστός αντιμετώπισε την αμαÏτωλή γυναίκα της Ευαγγελικής πεÏικοπής, χαÏακτηÏίστηκε από το λόγο Του, «ο αναμάÏτητος Ï€Ïώτος τον λίθον βαλÎτω». Αυτός ο κανόνας αποτελεί τη διοικοÏσα γÏαμμή για τον Ï„Ïόπο με τον οποίο θα Ï€ÏÎπει να συμπεÏιφεÏόμεθα Ï€Ïος κάθε άνθÏωπο και συνάνθÏωπο, ανεξάÏτητα από την ετεÏότητα ή τη διαφοÏετικότητά του. Η Εκκλησία δεν αποÏÏίπτει τα Ï€Ïόσωπα, αλλά τα σÎβεται στο πλαίσιο των ελεÏθεÏων επιλογών και των δικαιωμάτων τους. Εκείνο που δεν μποÏεί να αποδεχθεί η Εκκλησία είναι την κάθε μοÏφή συμφώνου η οποία αμαυÏώνει το μυστηÏιακό χαÏακτήÏα του Γάμου και αλλοιώνει λειτουÏγικά το θεσμό της οικογÎνειας."
Jesus told the woman to go and sin no more. He asked her to change not go on as before.
Governments are so short-sighted in granting rights to only same sex couples when there are so many clusters and configurations to celebrate.
That is true; homosexuals deserve respect and honor, not violence and rejection. There is no more dangerous advice that telling people it is okay to reject God. There is no more blatant rejection of people than to tell them they are incapable of listening to God. Just as I respect adulterers and others who violate God's word enough to counsel against sinful behavior, we need to respect homosexuals, as people, enough to tell them the truth.
Christians can allow homosexuals who have repented and turned away from the lifestyle into their church, but if homosexuals return to their old lifestyle, send them away. I suppose the same goes for everyone, adulterers, abortionists, and other sexual perverts.
I guess murderers and rapists are God’s creations too. I guess the question is what is the point of all this?
God created us...God also expects us to follow the commandments and avoid sin...
Bill Cosby is God’s creation too.
It doesn’t validate or support Bill Cosby’s immoral actions.
Sinful behavior deserves respect and honor?
The sex positive agenda is designed to smash the patriarchy and smash monogamy.
Its advocates seek to end moral judgments against sexual pairings of any kind regardless of age, relation, sex, marital status, number, or species of partner(s).
With morality out of the picture, it is pointless to debate the concept of sin (and immorality).
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!Nobody who knows the Bible can reason around that.
— Isaiah 5:20
But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die.
— Deuteronomy 18:20
God did not create homosexuals. He created men and women with choice. Homosexual behavior is a behavioral choice, as is theft, overeating, and setting fires.
No. Sinful people deserve respect and honor - and guidance to help them "go forth and sin no more".
Mark 2:17 - On hearing this, Jesus said to them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
The trick is to accept the whole teaching, not just one half or just the other. Jesus did not celebrate sin the way today's liberal activists do, but He also did not reject sinners. As difficult as it is, and modern leftists make it very difficult indeed, we are called to help all people find God and bring their lives closer to His word.
Even Obama/Hillary/Pelosi were created in God's image. Even the evil thugs from Oregon's Bureau of Labor and Industries and the lesbians who used them to rob a pair of innocent bakers of $135,000 were created in God's image. Even supporters of #OccupyWallStreet and #BlackLiarsMatter were created in God's image. As disgusting as their conduct is, we are called to help them return to God, not to reject them and leave them with no hope of salvation.
If you continue to honor and respect sinful people, then you honor their sin. The Bible says to avoid such people (1 Thess 5:22, 2 Tim 3:5, many others) unless they repent, and Mark 2:17 says no different, the Bible translations that omit “to repentance” (which is in the Greek text) notwithstanding.
2 Tim 3:4-7 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
It is a tricky question, and I agree that we cannot honor those who openly reject God even after scripture is explained clearly, but we also cannot reject them without giving them many chances to return to God. Part of respecting them is teaching them God's word, including the above passage to "Abstain from all appearance of evil . . . lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God . . . from such turn away." How can they turn away from their errors if we do not help them find God's path? I agree we have to do it without compromise and without treating sin as an acceptable choice, but we have to accept the fact that we are all tempted to sin.
Just as a parent may try many times to bring a drug-addicted child back, we have to try many times to bring even those who are openly homosexual back to God. That isn't a case of accepting their rejection of God's word, rather it's a case of helping them reach the point where they can accept God's word.
Jesus lived and abided by the Old Covenant - that was the whole point of the need for Him to die on the cross.....He was the only One to ever walk the Earth and be able to abide by the Commandments (not to sin).
Jesus also said that if we even thought a sinful thought, we had already committed the sin - go through a day w/o sinning under the Old Covenant and report back...
To the extent that he is saying we must be careful about judging other people, as opposed to specific sins which are already under divine judgement, I don’t disagree. The Fathers are pretty clear on this subject (”Those who busy themselves with the sins of others have not yet begun to see their own.” -St. Maximus the Confessor) And I certainly reject calls for violence against those who struggle with temptations to this vice. But if he is suggesting that we need to accept or affirm people in their sins then he is way off the mark.
“What the Church can not accept is every form of union which tarnishes the sacramental character of Marriage and alters the function of the institution of the family.”
Is there a problem with that?
The Metropolitan is reacting to a rant of the Metropolitan of Kalavryta who called for the Orthodox Greeks to ”Spit on Them, Beat them Up, They Are Not Human.” He was joined in his attacks by the execrable Metropolitan of Piraeus who, as the linked article notes, blamed the concept of “civil unions” as being used by dark forces to break down Greek society. He blamed, “the U.S. Embassy in Athens and Consulate in Thessaloniki, Jews, the Rothschilds and George Soros.” He's a maggot and a Nazi. The last guys FR wants to support or in any fashion become identified with are these hierarchial demons!
And “God Created” child molesters, bank robbers, Muslims, etc. etc. etc.
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