Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is set to legalise same-sex marriage next week despite opposition from the church.
Kyriakos Mitsotakis is relying on a coalition with left-wing lawmakers on the issue, but is also facing opposition from his New Democracy party and, most importantly, the Orthodox Church.
Mitsotakis labelled the importance of the legislation as a matter of equality, to avoid “having two classes of citizens and certainly not to have children of a lesser God.”
The Greek Orthodox Church is professed by about 90 percent of the population.
Moreover, the Holy Synod of the Hierarchy of the Church of Greece unanimously ruled last month that the performance of same-sex marriages and the adoption of children by same-sex couples is unacceptable.
“Obviously, the State legislates, but this parameter neither deprives the Church of its freedom of speech nor exempts the Church from the duty to inform the faithful people, nor can it indicate to the Church what constitutes sin,” the report from the Holy Synod says.
Last month, the Prime Minister said the following before the Cabinet: “I appreciate the perspectives of the Church, which I fully respect. This government has, in fact, addressed long-standing practical matters concerning the clergy,” Mitsotakis said.
“However, let me be clear on this matter: we are discussing the decisions of the Greek State, unrelated to theological beliefs.”
He later noted the growing disparity between secular Greek leaders and the spiritual identity of the Greek population.
Historically, we’ve had divergent opinions with the Church on civil marriage, cremation, and the omission of religion from Greek IDs, Mitsotakis said.
The prime minister and the coalition are expected to adopt the proposal on 15 February.
