The Olympic Games in Athens and in Paris
By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou
By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou
The Prime Minister, Mr. Kyriakos Mitsotakis, after watching the opening of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, among other things, made a polite criticism of what he watched, saying that "the opening ceremony of the Athens Olympic Games in 2004 remains the owner of the gold, not only because of its aesthetics, but primarily because it functioned as a guardian of the idea of the Olympics and the games."
It is important to see how this result was achieved in Athens.
1. The Church and the Olympic Games in Athens
Let me remind those who do not have a strong memory or have a selective memory that since September 1997 when our country had taken over the organization of the 2004 Olympic Games, pagan proposals had been formulated on this occasion to revive the cultural atmosphere of the Games that were taking place in ancient Greece with the main proposition that "Olympism is a way of life for the Greeks."
Then, because I felt that there was an opportunity being taken to pursue the revival of the ancient idolatrous rites, of the ancient worship of the Twelve Gods, i.e. pagan rites, I wrote a relevant article in the newspaper of our Metropolis "Ecclesiastical Intervention" and then submitted a proposal to the Sacred Synod of the Church Greece in the same month, i.e. in September 1997. The purpose of my proposal was to set up a Commission from the viewpoint of the Church with the aim of proposing ways to project during the opening ceremony of the 2004 Olympic Games, the timeless tradition of Greece up to today from Ancient Hellenism to Christian Hellenism up to Neo-Hellenism, so that one-sided presentations are not made and the impression is given that ancient Greeks still live in Greece.
The basic principle was that the Olympic Games in ancient Greece had three main characteristics: First, they began with a sacrifice to the gods (religious program), which was followed by seeing the tragedies in the theater (purification of the spectators) and ended with the competitions of the athletes in the stadium, after they passed through a tunnel - "crypt" - an indication that through exercise they were going into the light of the sun.
This means the Olympic Games were psychosomatic Contests, as the Romans called them, and not games, and thus today they are called Contests ["Agones" in Greek]. Nor were they called Desport (outburst/fun), as the Anglo-French called them and from which we get the word Sport. Athleticism is one thing, as it was in ancient Greece, and sports and games are something different, mixed with big financial interests, as, unfortunately, happens today.
It should also be noted that the then Metropolitan Christodoulos of Demetrias wrote an article in "Vima" in February 1998 titled "Six Proposals for 2004" and subtitled "The Great Opportunity of the Olympiad That Should Not Be Lost", with serious proposals.
Subsequently, the late Christodoulos, upon his ascension to the Archbishop's throne, in April 1998, also became interested in the topic of the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004. Thus, by decision of the Sacred Synod, during the March 1999 Session, a Monitoring Committee was established for the Olympic Games under my chairmanship, and was staffed with notable members from all bodies of our society who had specialized knowledge on the subject of athleticism.
Then, with its second decision, the Sacred Synod, at my suggestion, in June 1999, expanded the purpose and composition of the Committee, again under my chairmanship, in order to find ways for the participation of our Church in the entire organization of the Olympic Games, to present the contribution of the Orthodox Church to Hellenism, to study ways of the Church's communication with athletes from Orthodox countries, to organize various events for the balance between body and soul, and in general to deal properly with the topic "Church and Athleticism".
This was an important, pioneering, leading decision with many ramifications, as will be seen below.
Our Committee worked for five years, from 1999 to 2004, methodically and scientifically in many and long-hour Meetings, we participated in similar events of the State with our positions, we contacted Dimitris Papaioannou who had undertaken the organization of the ceremonies of the Olympic Games and we developed our proposals, and Conferences and Seminars etc. were held to help in the good organization of the ceremony, which would show our history and timeless tradition.
Especially, the late Archbishop of Athens and All Greece, Mr. Christodoulos, repeatedly came in personal communication with the President of the State Committee, Mrs. Gianna Angelopoulos, at the Archdiocese and its Office, in order to organize a ceremony that would present the timeless tradition of our lives. I was present at such a meeting where the President of the Olympic Committee was also present, and all three were conversing in fluent French.
The result of this activity was, on the one hand, the renovation of the Boarding School of Apostoliki Diakonia of the Church of Greece, in Agia Varvara, and on the other hand, with the dynamic intervention of Mrs. Gianna Angelopoulos, the participation of the choir of the Sacred Archdiocese of Athens in the opening ceremony, who sang the anthem of the Olympic Games, so that the presence of the Orthodox Church in Greece could be seen throughout the world.
It is important to write, as it has been noticed by others, that in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004, the ancient symbols coexisted harmoniously with modern elements, such as the double helix of DNA and others. Also, there was a continuous presence of selected Clergy at the Olympic Village to support the Orthodox athletes. In this work, the Secretary of our Committee at the time, Archimandrite Father Pavlos Ioannou, later Metropolitan of Sisanio and Siatista, who is now reposed, together with a group of suitable and trained Clergy, helped effectively.
A positive result of this effort was that in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, the entire tradition of Hellenism up to this day was shown.
Of course, I personally and the members of our Committee, as well as Archbishop Christodoulos, received strong attacks, both from circles of worshipers of the ancient ways who had other plans for the ceremony of organizing the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004, as well as from conservative circles of our Church, who did not fully understand the purpose of the Church Committee in this matter. As I explained before, we wanted the Games not to divert to other purposes, to help present the timeless tradition of our Nation and to make our presence and our pastoral ministry felt in the Olympic Village by our meeting with the Orthodox athletes who had come from all the countries of the world.
All this work carried out by our Committee, with the assistance and support of the late Archbishop of Athens and All Greece, Mr. Christodoulos, can be seen in the report I made, as President of the Synodal Committee, to the Hierarchy of the Church of Greece in October of 2002, before of the start of the Olympic Games in Athens.
The main points of the introduction were: 1. The decision of the Sacred Synod on the formation of the Synodal Committee. 2. The purpose of activating the Church in the matter of the Olympic Games and athleticism. 3. The decisions of the Special Synodal Committee for the good organization of the Olympic Games.
This can also be seen in the report that I submitted as President of the Synodal Committee to the Permanent Sacred Synod in September 2004, after the end of the Olympic Games, in which I fully informed the Synod of the work we had done. The report had two points. First, observations about the way we worked in the Olympic Village with the athletes from Orthodox countries; second, the list of Priests who ministered in the Olympic Village; third, a calendar of Sacred Services and pastoral ministry in the Chapel of the Olympic Village; fourth, general observations from this experience, as recorded by the Secretary of our Committee, Archimandrite Father Pavlos Ioannou.
In the greetings I addressed to the Greek Olympians and Paralympians who took part in the 2004 Olympic Games and especially to those who received medals, in the event that took place in the Hall of Meetings and Ceremonies of the Church of Greece, at the initiative of Archbishop Christodoulos, I presented all the contribution of the Church to the Olympic Games.
This is the explanation why at the opening and closing ceremony of the Olympic Games in Athens, everything went smoothly, the timeless tradition of our Nation was presented, albeit with some shortcomings, and, according to the Prime Minister, Greece "remains the owner of the gold" in terms of organizing the ceremonies of the Olympic Games.
May the memory of Archimandrite Father Pavlos Ioannou, Protopresbyter Father George Metallinos, the actress Anna Synodinos and other members of our Committee be eternal. And above all, may the memory of the late Archbishop Christodoulos, who grasped the dimensions of this matter and showed decisiveness in the assistance of the Church in this matter also, be eternal.
2. The Mentality of the Woke Movement in Paris
I recall all this, because the ceremony of the organization of the Olympic Games in Paris, a few days ago, as has been observed, was an expression of the contemporary Woke movement, according to which until now we all were and are in a state of sleep, and some want us to wake up! Unfortunately, they have not understood that the basis of the tradition of a place, a people and a culture need not be destroyed in order to present modern life. "Modern" life that is detached from tradition is destructive, subversive.
It has been observed that the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris was a Baroque celebration, as was done in European cities in the 17th century (Efi Falida). Also, one could clearly see the colors of the rainbow which is the flag of the LGBTI+ community, as there was also the coexistence of Dionysus with the profane monstrosity of the so-called "Last Supper" which was "a scene of impertinence and mockery of Christianity" and "pagan celebrations", in the name of "respect for diversity".
However, from what they have written about the "Woke" movement, it seems that the term was used in the 1960s in America, by "Martin Luther King's African-American community in the fight against racism and police violence." Since then, it has been used to denote "the administration of justice, the protection of minorities, the fight against racial discrimination and social groups."
Today, the word "Woke" has been appropriated by groups that "identify themselves as progressive, anti-systemic and as guardians of the rights of minorities who suffer discrimination of all kinds." This constitutes absolute entitlement!
It has been written: "The 'woke' behave like a new enlightened vanguard that has a kind of religious revelation, which made them wake up from a long historical lethargy and become aware of the unacceptable discrimination imposed on them by Western civilization and the white man. There is no forgiveness for them, so they choose the fight for their detachment."
In fact, for those who follow the "Woke" movement, which is a "culture of deconstruction" of everything, "Aristotle is an apologist for slavery," "Plato is a white philosopher, therefore suspect in advance and belongs to the dominant race," "mathematics is a racist and macho science," "Shakespeare is sexist," "Voltaire is anti-Semitic," "Victor Hugo is racist," "ancient Greek rationalism is racist," "Tchaikovsky is racist." For the "Woke" movement, it is considered that "the politics of identities entrench people in ethnic or racial categories which are inevitably opposed to each other. Thus, people of color oppose whites, women oppose men, homosexuals oppose heterosexuals, feminists of color oppose whites, neo-feminists oppose transgender people," etc.
It should be noted that the Minister of Education of Macron's first term in France, Jean-Michel Blanquer, seeing the consequences of Woke culture, declared that the Woke movement is "a germ that wants to obliterate democracy" (Advertisement ATHENS).
The problems raised by Woke culture are many and they were expressed at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris, even with the perspective of coexistence. In my other article, which will be published soon, the issue of how we got from the Enlightenment to the modern subversive era will be examined.
Returning to the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris, I would like to mention that in a lecture I gave in the Capital of Central Europe (I am not writing her name so as not to reveal what will follow) a notable and prestigious Greek Orthodox female scientist, who received her doctorate from the Sorbonne University in historical subjects, and represented our country in major organizations, said to me: "Your Eminence, pray for the Christians of France." By this she meant the trials that Christians in France go through by being Christians! This was seen at the ceremony of the Olympic Games organized by France.
However, the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004 had this seriousness and success, because then, among others, the Organizing Committee, the State and the Church worked closely together and this serious result was produced. This created a legacy for our generation and the following generations.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
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