Orthodox Conference held in European Parliament

Orthodox Conference in the European Parliament. Photo: orthodoxianewsagency.gr

On December 9, 2024, the European Parliament hosted a conference titled "The Orthodox Proposal for Life: The Person of Philokalia," reports orthodoxianewsagency.gr.

The event was organized at the initiative of Nikolas Anadiotis, a Member of the European Parliament from the NIKA party, and attracted many participants.

The keynote speaker was Protopresbyter Stylianos Tsipouras, a Doctor of Theology and lecturer at the Faculty of Social Theology and Christian Culture at Aristotle University in Thessaloniki.

In his address, he emphasized that the person of philokalia (love of the good) is a model of Orthodox Christian tradition capable of renewing the world and inspiring Western culture with selfless, sacrificial love for the surrounding world, nature, and one’s neighbor.

The next speaker, Professor Anna Simeonidi-Anastasiadi, a linguist specializing in Greek lexicon and author of numerous dictionaries, presented a talk titled "The Word ‘God’ in Modern Greek."

In her speech, she noted that the word “God” has retained its original semantic meaning as a designation of a supernatural being. However, since the Middle Ages, it has acquired secondary meanings to describe human qualities, such as “very hungry” (θεονήστικος). She observed similar evolutions in theological lexicons of other European languages.

Another speaker, Dr. Fotis Petropoulos, a Doctor of Pedagogy and lecturer at the University of Patras, addressed the topic of the decline of Western Europe and Christian hope.

The event featured lively discussions and numerous participant comments. Among those who spoke were Protopresbyter Georgios Schinas and Father Konstantinos Kenanidis, Secretary-General of the Representation of the Orthodox Church in the European Union. A representative from the Greek Embassy in Belgium, Efstathios Adamopoulos, also delivered remarks.

Other Members of the European Parliament attended the event, including Freddy Belleris, Geadis Geadis, Grzegorz Braun, and former Vice President of the European Parliament Richard Czarnecki.

Earlier, SPZh reported that Bulgarian MEP Petar Volgin from the Europe of Sovereign Nations group submitted a request to the European Commission expressing concerns about Ukraine's new law No. 8371 regarding religious organizations.

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