Arabic original here.
Orthodox Demonstrate in Support of Archimandrite
Christophoros
For the second week in a row, large numbers from the Arab
Orthodox Church have demonstrated in rejection of the policy followed by the
Greek Orthodox Patriarchate at the Monastery of Our Lady The Virgin Mary The Life-Giving Spring in Dibbeen, renewing their absolute support for the Arab Archimandrite
Christophoros Atallah and affirming their position rejecting the intervention
of the Jordanian government in the internal decisions of the Church. Church
members regard the decisions of the Greek Patriarch Theophilos to banish
Archimandrite Christophoros, founder of the first monastery in Jordan, as being
malicious.
Particularly noteworthy was the presence of current and
former, Christian and non-Christian members of the Jordanian parliament who
stood alongside church members and Orthodox organizations in embracing the
demands of the Orthodox flock.
The MPs denounced the government’s intervention in internal
church matters and its failure to apply law number 27 of 1958, which has led to
the patriarch unilaterally issuing unfair and inflammatory decisions that do
not serve the interests of the Church and are completely contrary to the
historical demands of the faithful.
Prominent among those in present at the monastery were MP
Jamil Nimri and MP Tarek Khoury, who expressed their absolute support for the
legitimate demands being made by the Arab Orthodox flock in Jordan. The MPs
stressed the necessity of knowing the government’s motives for intervening in
the internal church matter insofar as the Patriarchate of Jerusalem is an
institution subject to Jordanian law which must respect all provisions of the
law and not merely involve the government when it deems doing so useful.
The president of the Orthodox Association, the engineer
Bassem Farraj expressed the total rejection of the decision by Orthodox
organizations. He also congratulated the election of the Jordanian Archimandrite Qays Sadek
as a bishop in the Church of Antioch.
Various media personalities and writers who were present at
the monastery expressed their denunciation of the decision to move Archimandrite Christophoros Atallah away from Jordan under the pretext of promoting him and
giving him responsibilities in Palestine. They regard the Greek Orthodox flock
in Jordan as having a pressing need for spiritual revival. Via telephone from
Jerusalem, Archbishop Atallah Hanna expressed his absolute solidarity with
Archimandrite Christophoros Atallah as he is a symbol of the revival in Jordan.
He stated that the decision to transfer him is unjust and that it would have
been more appropriate to consecrate him as a bishop.
The protesters stressed the maliciousness of the transfer
decision, which was publicly announced in
the official newspapers but which, in their view is part of the plan to drive away and reject
Archimandrite Christophoros Atallah, since the Patriarchate did not do anything
to announce the other malicious decisions that were issued by the Synod in
Jerusalem at the same meeting.
They pointed to the Patriarch’s clear policy of excluding
revivalist Arab priests, as the patriarch acted in the same manner to combat Archimandrite
Dr Meletius Bassal, putting pressure on the Palestinian Authority to implement
the decision to remove Bassal from Ramallah and especially with the pressure on
Archimandrite Athanasius Kakish and Archbishop Atallah Hanna to scale back
their role.
Banners of support
for the monastery and for Archimandrite Christophoros Atallah, signed by
Jordanian tribes, were put up on the monastery’s walls.
More than 1000 of those present then signed a petition
urging His Majesty King Abdallah II to intervene and correct the government’s
current position, which the protesters believe to be contrary to His Majesty’s
approach to support Christians in Jordan. Those present raised their voices in
prayer and supplication to the Lord, the refuge of all Christians in Jordan and
the region.
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