Tug-of-war with Church over same-sex marriage

With the government’s effort to build bridges with the Church of Greece on the issue of same-sex marriage and parenthood having failed, clerics are now pushing lawmakers not to back the relevant bill that will soon be tabled in Parliament.

The move by the Holy Synod to send a circular to the archdiocese and the metropolises a few days before Christmas expressing its opposition, is seen not to be unrelated to reports that the government is oriented towards expediting its legislative initiative rather than postponing it until after the European elections, as it had discussed for some time.

The government has signaled that no one should rush to take a position on the issue and should wait for the law that it will bring, as it seeks those formulations that will, on the one hand, fulfill its commitment to institutionalize same-sex marriage and, on the other, soften opposition as much as possible.