email:vema@bigpond.net.au

JUNE 2008 Tel. (02) 9559 7022 Fax: (02) 9559 7033

THE GREEK AUSTRALIAN

VEMAThe oldestcirculating

Greeknewspaper

outsideGreece

PAGES 8/26 - 9/27

In this issue...

PAGE 12/30

QUEENSLAND

St John’s Young

Lifestyle Care

PAGES 10/28 - 11/29

ST ANDREW’S

THEOLOGICAL COLLEGE

Graduation and

Gold Cross decoration

WINDOWS TO ORTHODOXY

The Saints

Go Marching In

ST SPYRIDON PARISH - HALF A CENTURY

OF SERVICE

The ‘St Spyridon’ Parish and Community of South-East Sydneythis year completes half a century since its establishmentfollowing the Ecclesiastical Directive given by the thenMetropolitan of Australia and New Zealand, Theophylactos ofblessed memory, in 1957. With the activation of a small groupof faithful initially, and with the subsequent support andcontribution of the wider Greek Orthodox community offaithful, the Parish and Community of St Spyridon, since then,has developed significant religious, cultural, educational andsocial missions by the Grace of God.

As a result, the motto adopted by the present Parish Committeein order to appropriately honour this sacred and historic GoldenJubilee of the Parish and Community is:

“Honouring the Past. Celebrating the Present. Securing theFuture.”

Consequently, with deep gratitude not only to the founders andbenefactors but to every member of the Faithful who, inwhatever capacity, contributed towards the work of the Church,the ‘past’ has been honoured through two modest events thathave already taken place this year.

Firstly, through the Gala Dinner held by the Parish andCommunity at Le Montage Bayside Events Centre, Leichhardt,on Friday 22nd February and, secondly, through the theatricalproduction presented in the Church Hall by St Spyridon College(during the 25th Anniversary since its own foundation) underthe title “In this Strange Land – Exile and Refuge” on Thursday15th May in the presence of our Primate, Archbishop Stylianosof Australia, who attended both functions.

SECURING THE ‘FUTURE’

However, the ‘future’ of St Spyridon Parish and Communitywas also secured in the most Orthodox manner since tworesolutions were unanimously approved by the Members at itsExtraordinary General Meeting held on Wednesday 4th June2008, requiring endorsement by 90% of the subscribingMembers and not just of those present – a percentageparticularly difficult to achieve, yet not impossible through theGrace of God.

The Resolutions were:1) To secure the Titles of the ‘St Spyridon’ church buildingthrough their transfer to the Consolidated Trust of the GreekOrthodox Archdiocese of Australia which is protected by a spe-cial Act of the New South Wales Parliament.

2) To accept a counter-offer from the Consolidated Trust of theArchdiocese to ‘St Spyridon’ Parish and Community of a 99-year Lease at a rental of $200 per annum, without review.

What is the Consolidated Trust?

The Consolidated Trust is constituted by an Act of the NSWParliament, the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia

Cont. to page 5/23

THE ‘UNDERMINING’ OF THE SYNODAL

INSTITUTION - ‘MEANS’ AND ‘MANIPULATIONS’

Our Primate’s View

PAGES 4/22 - 5/23

HISTORIC

DECISION BY THE PARISH AND COMMUNITY OF ST SPYRIDON, SYDNEY

� Its Church building now secured with the Consolidated Trust of the Archdiocese

� Unanimous Vote by the Members at its Extraordinary General Meeting!

� The financial management remains in the hands of the Parish and Community

� All of its rights are retained!

The Greek Australian VEMATO BHMA2/20 JUNE 2008

June 26, 1948

Berlin Airlift begins

On this day in 1948, U.S. and Britishpilots begin delivering food and sup-plies by airplane to Berlin after the cityis isolated by a Soviet Union blockade.When World War II ended in 1945,defeated Germany was divided intoSoviet, American, British and Frenchzones of occupation. The city of Berlin,though located within the Soviet zoneof occupation, was also split into foursectors, with the Allies taking the west-ern part of the city and the Soviets theeastern. In June 1948, Josef Stalin'sgovernment attempted to consolidatecontrol of the city by cutting off all landand sea routes to West Berlin in orderto pressure the Allies to evacuate. As aresult, beginning on June 24 the west-ern section of Berlin and its 2 millionpeople were deprived of food, heatingfuel and other crucial supplies

July 4, 1776

U.S. declares independence

In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, theContinental Congress adopts the Decla-ration of Independence, which pro-claims the independence of the UnitedStates of America from Great Britainand its king. The declaration came 442days after the first volleys of the Ame-rican Revolution were fired at Lexin-gton and Concord in Massachu-settsand marked an ideological expansionof the conflict that would eventuallyencourage France's intervention onbehalf of the Patriots.

July 9, 1877

Wimbledon tournament

begins

On July 9, 1877, the All EnglandCroquet and Lawn Tennis Club beginsits first lawn tennis tournament atWimbledon, then an outer-suburb ofLondon. Twenty-one amateurs showedup to compete in the Gentlemen'sSingles tournament, the only event atthe first Wimbledon. The winner was totake home a 25-guinea trophy.

St Spyridon College Students

bring stories of Greek migrants to lifeAll proceeds donated to Radiomarathon

More than 200 St Spyridon College stu-dents staged a mesmerising play titled “Inthis Strange Land - Exile and Refuge”, on15th and 16th of May at St SpyridonChurch hall, Kingsford.The huge production featured students

from year five to twelve who enthralled anaudience of hundreds over two days, tran-sporting them back to the early days ofGreek migration to Australia.

“Our intention was to deliver more thanjust entertainment. We wanted the audi-ence to re-live the journey of migrantsfrom the time they first arrived in an unfa-miliar country leaving their family andfriends, to the time when they finallycame to see Australia as their home. Theincredible stories of their hardships and

achievements motivated us to execute thisambitious plan,” said Mrs Mary Faletas,who conceptualised, scripted and directedthe production. The audience experienced a mixture of

emotions as they empathised with thecharacters, and laughed with the well-executed humorous anecdotes. “We arevery satisfied with the results of the play.These students have amazing talent andconfidence. Without their hard work, thismassive production would not have beenpossible”, added Mrs Faletas.

The school’s decision to donate the pro-ceeds of the play to Radiomarathon- acharity that helps kids with physical andmental disabilities, has added anotherdimension to the success of the produc-

tion.“I congratulate everyone involved in this

production for their dedication and hardwork”, said Spiro Kanellakis, MarketingManager of Laiki Bank, which organisesRadiomarathon. “I would also like tothank St Spyridon for truly believing inthe worthy cause of Radiomarathon andmaking this generous contribution. Withevents like this, we can expand theRadiomarathon Community and workmore effectively towards making a differ-ence to these kids’ lives”, he added.

In 2007, Radiomarathon Australia raisedmore than $355,000 for children with spe-cial needs, as part of an overall total of$6.1 million raised by Radiomarathonactivities worldwide.

The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 3/21

By Dr. George Voskopoulos, PhD

The Agreement was signed in New Yorkon 13 September 1995 and was the fruit ofan internationally guided mediation toestablish tangible confidence-buildingmeasures (CBMs), in order to facilitate theprocess towards a final agreement to bereached at a later stage. It consisted of 23articles, aiming at setting the groundworkand political framework for a definitesettlement of the name issue.

An interpretation of these articlesillustrates that a number of Greek worriesand security considerations were indeedtaken into account through the imposedconstitutional changes. Article 1 aimedprimarily at veri-fying the existingterritorial status and containing Slav-Macedonian irredentism, as Greece hadnever expressed any aspirations towardsexpanding to the North, which is a regionof limited strategic importance to thecountry. The vitality of FYROM reststoday almost exclusively on the economicand trade fields since Greece is the mainprovider of Foreign Direct Investment(FDI).

Article 2 aimed at safeguarding theterritorial status, too, but this remainedmainly a rhetoric wish, as the vision for aunited Slav-Macedonia was only indirectlydealt with. The long and continuous dreamof uniting geographical Macedonia stillremains the fundamental national cause ofthe neighboring country, an aim supportedby the Diaspora in Canada and Australia.

Article 3 set the institutional and conflictresolution framework within which bothstates had to operate to resolve the dispute.Use of violence of threat of use of violencewas eradicated, at least verbally, as ameans of conflict resolution, although

neither signatories had in the past expre-sed any violent trends.The fourth aim of the Interim Accord may

be interpreted as an effort to set the conflictresolution process within commonlyacceptable, official channels, under themediation of the UN Secretary General.However, what the Interim Accord failed toset a time ceiling in the conflict resolutionprocess, a fact that allowed both parties toprocrastinate. Skopje adopted an unco-mpromising policy and supported Mace-donianism in order to support irredentism.

The political elite in FYROM had noreasons to compromise, even on a com-pound name bearing a clear geographicaldefinition, which could accommodate bothsides. This hardened FYROM’s positions,as there was practically no obligation what-soever to put an end to intermi-nable talks.

Eventually the Greek side overlaid thepolitical commitment of its original deci-sion not to accept the use of the term “Ma-cedonia” and made a critical step towardsconflict resolution. In the process theGreek side adopted a drastically revisedpolicy and today appears willing to adopt aname that does not exclude the term“Macedonia”. However, the proposedname should have a clear geographical de-finition to distinguish it from GreekMacedonia, the diachronic target of na-tionalists in FYROM.

The link between the term “Macedonia”and Greek Macedonia is important tonationalistic propaganda in Skopje and thisexplains the rejection of any ethnic linkwith the clearly Slavic element ofFYROM.

With the Interim Accord, the Greek sidemanaged to have FYROM’s Constitutioninterpreted in a way that does not, at leastverbally, challenge the territorial status.

Yet, the Agreement did not regulate norcontrolled the irredentist activities ofpolitical parties in the country, individualsor NGOs conducted from Skopje orabroad.

Regarding the use of symbols, the Accordprovided for the removal of those symbolsassociated with Greek history and Greekterritorial sovereignty, such as the VerginaStar, that implied association of Slav-Macedonians with Greek territory, namelyGreek Macedonia. For Slav Macedoniansthese were negotiable issues that could begiven away in order to support the maincause of the dispute, that is the name.On the practical level both nations need to

accommodate the dispute through a win-win approach. There are no superior orblessed nations in the region. There arenations and political milieu haunted byoutdated great idea, expansionist beliefsthat destabilize the Balkans. These fallwithin the ontological and epistemo-logicalscope of an international relations scholar.Unfortunately they have been exploited byintruding actors in order to serve theirgeopolitical expedience and great powerantagonism. The issue at hand is nothistory but stability. History is just a meansto an end, that is revi-sionism.

The recent elections in FYROM illu-strated blatantly that Greece and itsoperating as a defender of the territorialstatus is not the only “hurdle” in FYROM’scourse to EU and NATO membership. Themost critical issue is the democratization ofthe political system in FYROM. The EU,the European Parliament and theOrganization for Security and Cooperationin Europe sent worrying signals on therecent electoral process. It is clear thatemancipation from past practices is thefirst prerequisite for entering NATO and

the EU.Plato and his writings may provide a

useful base of analysis of the currentsituation in the region. The social evils hedescribed depicted the problems of thetime, namely disunity, incompetence andviolence. He wrote about society and thestate looking for principles. Political elitesin FYROM could learn a lot from Plato’swritings by focusing on their prescriptivebasis. Yet, it seems that time and thehealing process has had no effect on theviews of a limited core of political vam-pires that jeopardize the very survival oftheir country and lead their people to iso-lation. These are the Balkan ghosts of thepast we all need to ostracize in the sameway ancient Greeks did. This is an act ofvalor, a process of immunizing localsocieties against self-destructing policiesand incompetent leaders. It is a funda-mental prerequisite for stability, peace,development and inter-Balkan cooperation.

JUNE 2008

Editorial

The Greece - FYROM 1995 Interim Accord

New homes to be more energy efficientBy Rosemary Desmond

New homes built in Queensland after January 1 next yearwill have a five star energy rating if energy-saving pro-posals announced recently are adopted.

Acting Premier Paul Lucas has released a discussionpaper which will make mandatory features on new homessuch as insulation, water conservation and a ban on inef-ficient air conditioning.

Mr Lucas, who is also the Infrastructure and PlanningMinister, said the measures would add marginally to thecost of a new home.

"On average, these measures will cost less than one percent of construction costs of a new home but the savingscan be up to $200 a year and the costs will be recoupedin about five years, depending on the value of the house,"Mr Lucas told reporters.

He said that 100 years ago, timber and tin"Queenslander" houses were designed and built for thestate's mostly warm climate, including features suchverandahs and louvre windows.

It was important new homes were designed with thestate's climate in mind, he said.

The measures outlined in the discussion paper,Improving Sustainable Housing in Queensland, include a

requirement that houses built after January 1 next yearhave a five-star energy equivalent rating.

Under the Building Code of Australia, new houses andmajor renovations must have a rating of at least five stars(out of a possible total of 10), with a five-star rating con-sidered energy efficient for the building shell.

When the new houses or units were sold or leased, theyshould also detail their energy efficiency and sustainabil-ity levels.

This would enable people to see for themselves exactlyhow energy efficient an existing house or unit was anduse the information as part of their decision to buy orrent, he said.

Mr Lucas said the policy was not about banning air-con-ditioners.

"We need to understand that there are parts of Queens-land such as the tropics where it would be very difficultfor people to survive without an air-conditioner," he said.

"So a major part of this policy will be about houses thatput far less demand on air conditioning and air condition-ers that are far more energy efficient as well."

New homes in Queensland are already required to havegreenhouse-efficient hot water systems, energy-efficientlighting, water-efficient shower heads and toilets, and

rainwater tanks plumbed into toilets and the laundry.

Submissions on the discussion paper close on September12.

Housing Industry Association (HIA) Queensland execu-tive director Warwick Temby welcomed the moves.

"In a climate of housing affordability such as we have atthe moment, we were really concerned about potentialcost impacts.

"But the industry has been moving towards more (ener-gy) efficient housing over the last couple of years any-way, knowing this was coming."

AAP

The Greek Australian VEMATO BHMA4/22

Our Primate’s View

By ArchbishopStylianos

of Australia

JUNE 2008

It constitutes an experience for every human, andhas become the conviction of ‘common sense’, that for a‘collective’ establishment to be formed as an Institution of‘common benefit’, more is required than just time andeffort, with self-understood ‘psycho-spiritual’ outlays (byan individual for the sake of many, and sometimes even bythose who are obliged to ‘accommodate’ the excusableweaknesses of the individual).

In addition there is required, and indeedessentially, respect and devotion to certain fundamentalmoral principles, beforehand known and unquestionable –something which tacitly implies mutual and ‘justified’compromises between the particular individuals who, ingood faith, were called to form and minister to the‘collective’ Body.

Already, from the above, it becomes apparent thatwe are attempting to identify initially the minimum level ofdecorum and ‘social cohesion’ – as we would say today – inthe elementary structure ‘from above’, with regard to themost sacred institution of SYNOD in the Church, so that incontinuation we might be in a position to evaluateappropriately how the responsibilities are designated inrelation to the ‘pathogenesis’ of the paramount institutionbeing examined.

Because, certainly, if the socio-ethical foundationsmentioned above are valid for every Institution orOrganization of ‘common benefit’, then there is all themore greater reason that they should apply to the SYNODwhich is the pre-eminent institution of ‘commonsalvation’!

It goes without saying, however, that phenomenaof ‘pathogenesis’ can never be precluded in advance andaxiomatically from the life of the Church, given thatloathsome ‘egotism’ which also caused the ‘ancestral fall’was in no way a ‘myth’ created by naïve individuals‘theologizing’ on the Scriptures, but rather the morecommon and ‘disconsolate’ reality, as evidenced byEcclesiastical History from the beginning to the presenthour.

This occurs because human ‘sinfulness’, aspropensity towards sin, never ceased, as is known, despitethe release from ‘ancestral sin’ through Baptism. On thecontrary, it continues to accompany the baptized member ofthe Church, even during the most sacred moments of one’searthly life, precisely because of one’s ‘self-determination’, and because the ‘icon’ of God in thehuman person is indestructible.

In order to examine, now, with specific historicalexamples, the gradual or unforeseen ‘degeneration’ of themost sacred institution of SYNOD, we must be particularlycareful so that our judgements and comparisons on thematter might be expressed in ‘the fear of God’, withoutthese ‘digressing’ to futile and impious ‘exercises onpaper’.

Before proceeding to expound the question athand, in accordance with the two roughly discernible andconstantly lingering possibilities of Synodal depreciation –both ‘internal’ and ‘external’ - we should stateunequivocally that, as an immovable ‘foundation’ and‘criterion’ with regard to the integrity and sacredness ofthe Synodal institution through the centuries, it is notpossible to set any other than the already ‘fixed standard’of the 34th Apostolic Canon, with direct reference to the‘Christocentric’ motive preached by the Apostle Paul soabsolutely: “No other foundation can anyone lay than thatwhich is already laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 3:11).

A. THE ‘EXTERNAL’ PRESSURES

The primary and silent factor which, in advance, isable to externally ‘diminish’ the freedom of the Synod inthe Holy Spirit (leading to ‘Constitutional’ or ‘momentary’compromises) is the imperative need for the Synod of

Bishops to ‘cooperate’ with or at least not to ‘beconfrontational’ towards the political Authorities.

This, of course, does not mean that a sincere andhonest cooperation between Church and State is perhapsnot legitimate and desirable. The cooperation between thetwo authorities can be mutually constructive, according tothe degree to which their different responsibilities arerecognized, since these analogously determine theirdifferent priorities and duties.

Here, the axiomatic exhortation of St Paul “do notbe conformed to this world” (Rom. 12:2) constitutes astable security ‘valve’.

The fact, nonetheless, that the need for suchcooperation creates in the first instance a ‘transition’ fromthe primary area of the Holy Canons to the ‘spaciousness’(!) of secondary ‘Regulations’, is already a dubious anddangerous ‘window’. Because no one can predict up towhich point such a ‘rift’ would leave unaffected theimplementation and ‘the spirit’ of the Holy Canons in thefunctionality of the Synodal institution.

‘Regulations’ are usually incorporated in a moregeneral ‘nomocanonical’ arrangement, the so-called‘Constitutional Charter’, which includes the balancing‘Agreements’ arising from time to time, and the‘conditions’ of cooperation between the authoritiesinvolved. This, understandably, of itself constitutes a‘relativity’ which, in time, and in accordance with socio-political concurrence, might unfold into an unacceptable‘enslavement’ of the Church to the State, though the Staterarely subjugates to the Church, if we exclude the singularcase of the uncontrollably evolving Papism of Rome – tothe point of ‘self-deification’. More common in History arethe phenomena of ‘Papocaesarism’ or ‘Caesaropapism’ asantagonistic tendencies, even in more modern times.

Regarding the external assault on the Synodalinstitution, impressive and most characteristic are the casesof immiscible Autocracy in terms of worldly power, asmanifested frequently in more recent times in the form of‘Military Juntas’, not only in the under-developedcountries of Africa, Latin America etc., but also intraditionally Orthodox nations (even from the era ofByzantium, in Tsarist or Soviet Russia and in the Balkansgenerally).

Hence, in the initial ‘experimental’ phase therewas adopted the mode of ‘meritorious’ Synod, with limitedmembership, under the ironic claim that the Dictators knewhow to ‘appoint’ with ‘healthier’ criteria the supposedlymost ‘excellent’ of Bishops, although in reality these werenothing more than ‘aligned’ ‘Junta-supporters’ and acutelysubmissive Hierarchs.

This, at least in Greece, was demonstratedglaringly also in the case of the 7-year Dictatorship of theGenerals (1967-1974) during which the ‘pietist’Archimandrite and Chief Priest of the Palace Ieronymos(Kotsonis), gladly accepted his election as Archbishop ofAthens and Greece by a 7-member ‘meritorious’ Synod,dethroning, like a callous spiritual ‘patricide’ his ownPrimate (the aged and ill former Metropolitan of Philippiand Neapolis) Archbishop Chrysostomos II (Hatzistavrou)of Athens and all Greece.

The then Professor of Ecclesiastical History inAthens castigated this unprecedented case of profaneaudacity, stating epigrammatically that the Synod whichelected him was not ‘aristindin’ (‘meritorious’) but‘ahristindin’ (‘useless’). Unfortunately, judging from whathas ensued in the Church of Greece from then till today, thischaracterization proved to be not merely a witty ‘play onwords’ but rather a ‘prophetic’ evaluation of the emerginggeneral anomaly whose dimension was ‘destined’ to berevealed completely in the ‘monstrosities’ of the so-calledChrysopigi brotherhood!

Cont. page 5/23

THE ‘UNDERMINING’ OF THE SYNODAL

INSTITUTION - ‘MEANS’

AND ‘MANIPULATIONS’(Part 2)

The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 5/23

Cont. from previous page

One could refer, by way of sampling, to othercases of even more callous (but disguised, therefore pre-cisely more dangerous!) intervention by political powersinto the ‘innermost’ affairs of the Church: For such time asthe Regime remained a formally indisputable ‘Democra-cy’, the respect for the Theandric institution of Synod andChurch was either rudimentary or almost non-existent.

The greatest irony, however, was the fact that allthe members of the Cabinet and the Government werebaptized ‘Orthodox’ citizens, though they behaved likeruthless foreign ‘invaders’.

Unfortunately, the recent History of the Church ofGreece (which is our main concern here!) contains manysuch examples, and indeed from democratically electedGovernments which one would assume had learnt some‘lesson’ from the tragic mistakes and the disastrousconsequences which the Dictatorship of ‘April 1967’ultimately had on Greece and Cyprus.

Consequently, we shall not concern ourselves withspecific, almost routine (!) cases, which more or less werebasically similar and passed almost unnoticed by the widerOrthodox public.

We are obliged, however, to recall for the historyof the matter, the ecclesiologically most scandalous case,because, even though it is relatively recent, there is thedistinct possibility that it might be completely forgotteneven by the ‘protagonists’ who are still alive.

In the Provincial Synod of the ‘Apostolic Churchof Crete’ which always ‘blew its own trumpet’ regarding itsmoral ‘stature’ (!) compared to that of any foreign‘violator’ or compatriot ‘daredevil’, there occurred anunparalleled event, almost immediately after the Fall of theJunta: A bishop of the Church of Crete, distinguished forhis social work and not amongst the youngest, aspired to betransferred to an Eparchy of the Ecumenical Throne inWestern Europe - something which he secured with easethrough blatant support and favouritism from one of theJunta’s ‘troika’, the devout Cretan, Stylianos Pattakos.

Unfortunately, this most distinguished and tirelessHierarch, having created remarkable works in Germany,hastened just before the fall of the Dictatorship in Greece topronounce himself a “victim of the Junta” (!) demandingthrough all means that he return to his former Eparchy inCrete (the Metropolis of Kissamos and Selinos). However,the Provincial Synod, having been informed of hisretraction and insistence, had already elected to thatMetropolis another Cleric (Archimandrite Nektarios Hatzi-michalis).

The latter, unable even to approach the Metropolisto which he had been elected, because hot-headedsupporters of the former Prelate ‘kept guard’ over it withflags at half-mast, threatening to cause unprecedenteddemonstrations, was compelled by the events to await the‘compromising’ intervention of the Ecumenical Patriar-chate.

As a result, the elected but never enthronedMetropolitan Nektarios (Hatzimichalis) of Kissamos andSelinos, was then duly elected by the EcumenicalPatriarchate in Phanar as Metropolitan of Karpathos andKassos, whilst the aspiring past Prelate, claiming that hewas being “held captive” by his supporters in his formerEparchy (this being the supposed reason why he could notconform to the Patriarchal Synod’s command that he returnto Germany), in the end was re-elected to his former throne,following the passing intervention of a most powerfulpolitical figure from that area.

The only sentiments which every person who re-spects the institutions of Bishop and Synod in the Ortho-dox Church, could feel after such a ‘calamity’ were indeedbitterness and frustration.

For it was not possible for one to have expectedsuch insincerity and irresponsibility towards the insti-tution of Synod and the Holy Canons of the Church froma Hierarch who, as an Archimandrite and Deputy Principalof the Ecclesiastical Seminary of Crete, had inspired themost sacred of dreams in his young students, one of whomwas the writer.

That is the reason why, with deep anguish, thenot-ungrateful student (!) was obliged from that time tosever every communication with his formerly admiredTeacher, in conformity to the dictum “Plato is a friend, yettruth is the greatest friend”!

TO BE CONTINUED IN THE NEXT ISSUETranslated by FSS

JUNE 2008

HISTORIC DECISION

BY THE PARISH AND COMMUNITY

OF ST SPYRIDON, SYDNEYCont. from page 1/19

Consolidated Trust Act 1994.

What are the functions of the Consolidated Trust?The essential functions of the Consolidated Trust are tohold property as trustee for, or for the purposes of, theGreek Orthodox Church in Australia under thejurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and asadministered by the Archdiocese. The broad aim of theAct is to protect the real estate assets of the Church so asto ensure that there is no deviation in the use to which theyare put from the purposes for which they were originallyestablished.

Will any stamp duty be paid on the transfer?In 2006, the New South Wales Parliament passed theGreek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia ConsolidatedTrust Amendment (Duties) Act 2005 which provides thatduty is not chargeable when property is conveyed to theConsolidated Trust from a person or body who holds thatproperty on behalf of any parish or congregation of theChurch. The effect of this amendment is that a transactionthat involves the transfer of property from a parish orparish-community of the Archdiocese to the ConsolidatedTrust will not attract ad valorem stamp duty.

Were there any legal or other impediments to thetransfer? The proposal agreed to by members in principleat the Company’s annual general meeting on 18 August2003 provided for the transfer of the Church Property tothe Consolidated Trust on certain conditions. Given theterms of the statutory functions of the Consolidated Trustoutlined above, the transfer by the Parish of the ChurchProperty to the Consolidated Trust was in conformity withthe objects of the Parish under its Memorandum ofAssociation.

What are the terms of the transfer to the ConsolidatedTrust? The transfer of the Titles of the Church Propertyto the Consolidated Trust were effected simultaneouslywith the grant of a real property lease of the ChurchProperty by the Consolidated Trust to the Parish on thefollowing broad terms:-

• a term of 99 years;• a nominal rental of $200 per annum (withoutreview);• the payment of all outgoings of the Church Propertyby the Parish; and• the Parish’s right to enjoy unfettered use of theChurch Property for the duration of the lease.

Consequently, the Parish of ‘St Spyridon’:• Retains the financial management of every aspectof its daily functions through its ecclesiastical,cultural, educational and social missions. Therefore,every single donation or contribution by the Faithfulremains in the accounts of ‘St Spyridon’.• Retains the right to hold Annual General Elections,as required by its Constitution. Therefore, itsMembers retain the right to vote and to be elected.• Retains the right to administer the remaining realestate of the Parish and Community according to theneeds that arise, whether they might relates to theChurch, the College or any other activity or mission.Therefore, it can plan for the future, expandingperhaps into other projects of common benefit, at alltimes with the approval and blessing of theEcclesiastical Head, as has occurred till this day.• In a few words, nothing changes at ‘St Spyridon’,apart from the fact that there no longer exists theuncertainty of the past.

THE BITTER PAST

As strange as it might sound, the ‘legal entity’ of ‘StSpyridon’ Parish and Community, as occurs in other

Parishes-Communities, though entirely lawful, yet at thesame time was outside the Ecclesiological spirit of theHoly Canons, as expounded at least by Canons 72 and 73of the Apostolic Injunctions, Canon 24 of the 4th

Ecumenical Council, Canon 20 of the 7th EcumenicalCouncil and the plethora of Ecclesiological Treatisesexpounded by the Fathers of the Church.And this, not through any degree of impiety on behalf of

Prelates, Clergy and Laity who have served the OrthodoxChurch of Australia in the past, but for the simple reasonthat the Constitution of this blessed Nation does notaccommodate the functioning of Churches as ‘religiousentities’ but only as ‘companies’ which are subject to therequirements of Company Law.Yet, even though the operation of an Orthodox church as

a ‘company’ contravenes every notion of Church(Ecclesia), as enunciated in the Holy Scriptures, the HolyCanons and the Theology of the Church, nonetheless theLaws of Australia guarantee Freedom of Religion and theright to live the Faith openly – liberties for which weshould be most grateful.

However, the Laws in mention, beyond their strictrequirement of administrative and legal transparencyupon the ‘Company’, are otherwise most indifferent to theinternal Theological and Traditional regulations of theOrthodox Church per se.

That is why, as a result of the very same Laws, historicchurches around Australia, built by the pious and faithfulPeople of God under the Canonical Church, at some point“swung” to the hands of Administrators who had norelation whatsoever to the spiritual, humble and God-fearing phronema and motives of the original founders.

That is also why the descendants of the donors andbenefactors of those particular churches, in theirthousands, are prohibited by their personal ecclesiasticalconscience from even entering into those churches wheretheir parents and they themselves were married, andwhere they once received Holy Communion - becausethere, today, ‘Services’ are now conducted by Un-Canonical ‘priests’ ‘ordained’ by Un-Canonical ‘Bishops’who are not recognized by any Orthodox Patriarchate orby any Canonical Autocephalous Orthodox Church in theworld.

WAS THERE ANY DANGER TO ‘ST SPYRIDON’?

Now, as far as the Parish and Community of St Spyridonis concerned, was there an immediate danger that it mightalso befall the same fate? Not an immediate danger,because with single-mindedness, harmony and unity, sucha relationship was cultivated with the Canonical Churchunder the Archbishop that one could not imagine adevelopment of this sort in the next few years. However,who would dare predict what social and religious ‘turns’Australia might experience over the next 50 years andhow ‘Orthodox’ the Committee of ‘St Spyridon’ Parishand Community might be in those days? Of course, noone can predict that far ahead!

St Paul, nonetheless, was concerned even for theimmediate future of the Church when he wrote: “I knowthat after I leave, savage wolves will come in among youand will not spare the flock. Even from your own numbermen will arise and distort the truth in order to draw awaydisciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember thatfor three years I never stopped warning each of you nightand day with tears” (Acts 20:29-31).

Having in mind this warning from St Paul, the decisionof the Members of the Parish and Community of ‘StSpyridon’ at its Extraordinary General Meeting of 4th

June 2008 (Feast Day of Thanksgiving for Easter) wasboth prudent and historic. Consequently, this momentousdevelopment will most certainly be in the best interests ofthe Parish, further strengthening its relationship with theCanonical Church which is the Greek OrthodoxArchdiocese of Australia, and securing for ever itsdevotion to the Sacred Ecumenical Patriarchate ofConstantinople.

The Greek Australian VEMATO BHMA6/24 JUNE 2008

A TRUE MODERN OLYMPIAD

Greek Orthodox Colleges of AustraliaCelebrate Annual Sports and SpokenArts Festival

On May 7th, Saint Spyridon Parish Churchwas filled with the students of the GreekOrthodox Colleges of Australia who hadgathered for the annual Sports and SpokenArts Gala Week. This is the twelfth suchgathering of the Orthodox Days Schools ofour Archdiocese, this year hosted by SaintSpyridon College in Kingsford, Sydney.

The annual Sydney, Melbourne orAdelaide trip is eagerly anticipated by thestudents who have been selected torepresent their school in sport or thespoken arts. To my knowledge, it is the

only truly national school sports andspoken arts festival in Australia. I willpurposely refrain from mentioning resultsand placings of the events because theGreek Orthodox Day Schools hold true tothe ideals of sport and competition whichhave been lost in today’s competitiveworld.

First and foremost I will highlight the factthat the event began with the celebration ofa Doxology. These ‘games’ were anexercise (άσκησις) centred on the Churchwith the athletes and competitors comingtogether in a spirit of Christian fellowshipto offer glory and thanksgiving toAlmighty God for the opportunity to com-pete with their peers, something thattoday’s secular and commercialisedOlympic movement has lost. Let us notforget that the ancient Olympics were cele-brated by civilised peoples who gathered topray, offer sacrifice to the gods and thencompete in the name of the gods whowould bless the athletes.

From the Doxology the athletes and com-petitors departed for their respective fieldsto compete with their peers in Girls and

Boys Basketball, Soccer, Netball, Girls andBoys Indoor Soccer and Girls and BoysVolleyball over the next three days. In theevenings the students came together for aSpoken Arts Festival where students fromacross the Colleges recited Greek poetry,performed short plays, presented speechesin Greek, Serbian and Italian and chantedthe hymns of our Holy Church in tradition-al Byzantine chant. This was truly an emo-tional and awe inspiring event which reas-sured all present that the values of ourHoly Church and the Nation are safe in thehands of the Orthodox youth of Australia.The Thursday evening was one of the high-lights of the gathering and saw the studentsshare in a common dinner with their peersand the staff and principals of the colleges.Having experienced such events first handduring my days as a student of SaintAndrew’s Greek Orthodox TheologicalCollege where the students, faculty andhierarchs of the Church would gatherweekly to share a meal, this was a remark-able occasion and was an opportunity forthe students to make new, lasting friend-ships with people who share the samedreams and ideals.The event closed officially on Friday after-

noon in the Parish hall of Saint Spyridonwhere the students were addressed by ourFather and Primate His EminenceArchbishop Stylianos who clarified thetrue definition of the terms competition,αγών and συναγωνισμός and the high-lighted the idea of competing with ratherthan against the other, always respectingand preserving the dignity of fellow com-petitors. These truly inspirational wordswill doubtless remain with the studentswho were fortunate enough to be presentand receive the Blessing of His Eminence.

In an Olympic year, during such a criticaltime, let us pray that the Beijing Olympicsremain games that are played in true spirit,not forgetting that sport to the ancientGreeks, the founders of the OlympicGames, were things that “made peoplecivilised”, and may competitors andadministrators learn from the example setby the students of the Greek Orthodox DaySchools.

By P. MAVROMMATIS*

Coming into Orthodoxy:

Aspects Related to Conversion,

Initiation and IntegrationBy Revd Dr Doru Costache *

Besides the very visible phenomenon ofconversions motivated by marriage, it is amatter of fact that more and more people inWestern societies, from all walks of lifeand mostly intellectuals, become interestedin Orthodoxy. Here I will address aspectsrelated to the necessary steps to be taken bythose who wish to join Orthodoxy.

In light of the Pentecost paradigm (cf. Actsof the Apostles 2:1-4 & 7-11), Orthodoxyhas never supported cultural colonialism,as it is capable of expressing the Christianspirit in all languages. This is perhaps oneof the reasons why, incarnating the originalmessage of the Gospel and exploring itwithin the possibilities of varioushistorical, cultural and geographicalcontexts, the Orthodox tradition exertsineffable attraction upon those looking formore spiritual ways. But the secret of its‘success’ lies undoubtedly with the factthat Orthodoxy ultimately is, if anything,the ‘newness of life’ (Romans 6:4) inChrist’s Holy Spirit, the supremecelebration of life and restoration of itsfullness in light of the traditional apostoliccriteria. Consequently, its message cannotbe exhausted through any ideologicalstatements, religious narratives ormoralising commandments, since withinthe framework of Orthodoxy both faithand life are inextricably connected.Paraphrasing the words of St John Chry-sostom (see Homilies on Genesis 2.14),Orthodoxy illustrates excellently the appli-cation of the integrative principle ac-cording to which the way of life should

reflect one’s teachings and one’s teachingsshould preach a certain way of living.

This characteristic is reflected in thepreliminary instruction (catechism) recei-ved by the converts (catechumens). It is amatter of fact that, during their catecheticalinstruction, the converts to Orthodoxy arenot acquainted with a simplistic ideologicalformula, being instead progressively intro-duced to the Orthodox way of living,which combines the doctrinal and ethicalaspects into an intricate spiritual synthesis.Given this complexity, coming to Ortho-doxy unfolds as a process of gradual assi-milation. Inaugurated by an act of personaldecision – which is in fact, and mystically,an answer to the eternal call of God –walking the distance requires the effort ofconversion, of μετάνοια (literally, ‘changeof mind’) or reshaping of one’s consciencein the form of the φρόνημα or mindset ofChrist (see Philippians 2:5). From anotherpoint of view, this process engages a long-term gradual and delicate change of one’smind and life in accordance with theecclesial, divinely inspired, criteria.Speaking of a gradual process, it is obviousthat the Orthodox Church does not believein definitive conversions over night, beingaware of the inner labyrinths of one’smind, idiosyncrasies and habits that cannotbe transformed through a single decision ofchange.

The perfect paradigm of this gradualassimilation, which is eucharistic-like inessence (since, like in the liturgicalexperience of holy communion, theconverts ‘eat’ the teaching before being

‘eaten’ by it, i.e. incorporated in God’speople), is the monastic pattern of spiritualguidance. According to this pattern,monastic novices are carefully guided bytheir elders to the wisdom and rhythms ofthe ‘angelic life’ (traditional term formonasticism), until they reach spiritualmaturity and discernment. In a similarmanner, along the journey of integrationinto Orthodoxy, and more so after it, anessential dimension is constituted by therelation of the convert with the spiritualfather. There is no room for a superficialsense of hierarchy here or blind obedience;the spiritual father is necessary not from aninstitutional viewpoint but because he trulyis an embodiment of tradition, someoneable to introduce wisely the convert to therhythms of the Church’s life. The spiritualfather is not merely the catechist whoprovides the converts with the elementarynotions; he is the one who administers stepby step, in a personal approach, theexistential reasons and spiritual purposesbehind the elements of faith, ritual andethics. This meaning is encapsulated in thecomment made by His EminenceArchbishop Stylianos, that ‘Christian faithis basically the result of communionbetween two persons’.

With regard to the practical aspects of thisprocess of incorporating converts intoGod’s people, various Orthodox Churchesfollow different paths. The majordifferences occur with the reception of theadults whose upbringing has taken placewithin other Christian denominations.Thus, some Churches baptise again allheterodox coming into Orthodoxy

irrespective of the form in which they havepreviously received baptism. However, themajority of Orthodox Churches (includingthe Greek Orthodox Archdiocese ofAustralia) receive the converts bychrismation (or anointing, the equivalentof the heterodox ceremony of confirma-tion) and holy communion, if they havebeen baptised in the name of the HolyTrinity within a recognised Christiandenomination, and provided they pass thenecessary stage of catechetical instruction.Also, a few Orthodox Churches ask theconverts to abjure the heretical teachingsand practices they professed before theirconversion to Orthodoxy, as a prerequisiteof either the catechetical instruction or thereception of the holy mysteries (sacra-ments) of baptism and/or chrismation. Themajority of the Orthodox Churchesconsider, however, that this practice is notnecessary, given the converts’ expressionof intention to join Orthodoxy. The policyis more uniform with regard to receiving toOrthodoxy converts coming from non-Christian backgrounds. For such cases, theconverts should all pass the catecheticalstage of instruction and only after it receiveall the sacraments of initiation: baptism,chrismation and holy communion. Afterthe reception of the holy mysteries(sacraments), the converts are acknow-ledged as full members of the Church,enjoying all the blessings of partaking withthe people of God.

* Revd Dr Doru Costache lectures in Patristics at St Andrew’s Theological College, Sydney

* Peter Mavrommatis is a teacher of Orthodox Studies and Personal Development at St Spyridon College Senior School Sydney.

The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 7/25JUNE 2008

Facts & Stats

Australians are the least likely to takeall of their annual leave, a trend that isdeterminantal to their health.

The annual Vacation Depravation survey,conducted by Harris Interactive on behalf oftravel website Expedia, surveyed 6,306

people from around the world, includingnearly 1,000 Australians.

Australia topped the list as the mostholiday-deprived nation for the second yearin a row, with 38 per cent of the country nottaking all of their allocated leave.

The United States came in second, with 31per cent avoiding leave while Spain tookout the bronze with 24 per cent.

Of the Aussie contingent, more than onethird blamed work commitments forhindering their holiday plans.

And when they did manage to escape thedaily grind, more than half, 62 per cent,remained in touch with work via mobilephone or email.

Meanwhile, one in 10 said they felt guiltyfor it and seven per cent said they had jobsecurity fears.

Tough economic times also featured highon the list of reasons why Australians didn’ttake all of their leave, with more than aquarter of respondents saying financialpressures prevented them from gettingaway.

When asked specifically if the credit crunchand higher interest rates had hindered theirholiday plans for this year, 32 per centagreed.

About one third of Australians take lessthan one holiday a year and 13 per cent takea break less than every five years.

And the lack of holidays is bad for ourhealth, organisation psychologist Dr BenSearle said.

Dr Searle, from Sydney‘s MacquarieUniversity said that holidays are a necessity,not just a luxury.

“People should recognise that holidays arean important part of maintaining a happyfamily life and good work productivity,rather than believing them to be a mereluxury,” Dr Searle said.

“Working for extended periods withouttaking time off to recharge can affect healthand relationships, and in extreme cases hasbeen linked to premature deaths,” he said.

Percentage of employed adults who don’ttake all their annual leave:

Country 2008 2007

1. Australia 38 per cent 37 per cent2. United States 31 per cent 35 per cent3. Spain 24 per cent 24 per cent4. Great Britain 23 per cent 24 per cent5. France 20 per cent 19 per cent6. Germany 19 per cent 17 per cent

AAP

Aussies the most holiday deprived in the world

Sydney again cracks top 10

of world's best citiesSydney has again cracked the officialtop 10 of the world's best cities to livein, while four other Australian capitalsare ranked in the top 35.

NSW's harbourside capital is 10th inMercer's Worldwide Quality of LivingSurvey 2008, dropping one spot from ninthin last year's survey.

Melbourne has held its 2007 rank of 17th,as did Perth at 21st, while Adelaide impro-ved fractionally - up to 29th from 30th lastyear.

Brisbane rounds out the Australian citiesrated in the global survey of 215 citiesreleased today, coming in at 34th place in2008 compared to 32nd last year.

In comparison, France's cosmopolitan Pa-ris is ranked at 32nd, while the top-ratedUnited States' cities are Hawaii's Honoluluat 28th followed by California's SanFrancisco at 29th.

Mercer spokesman Rob Knox said the an-nual survey was used by international com-panies and governments as they set payrates for expat workers.

"The fact that Australian cities enjoyamong the best standards of living in theworld reinforces the attractiveness ofAustralia for workers and for multinationalorganisations," Mr Knox said in a state-ment."Our major cities continue to tick all of the

boxes (with) established infrastructure andtransport facilities, quality housing close tothe city, a wide selection of restaurants andother amenities, as well as a good educationand environment."

The global survey relies on data collectedover three months to November the previ-ous year, and last-minute monitoring is alsomade.Cities are rated across 39 areas considering

such "quality of life" factors as political andeconomic stability, human rights and per-sonal freedoms, pollution, crime rates,health standards and the cost of consumerstaples.

Access to education, housing and enter-tainment is also considered alongside publictransport and traffic congestion, plus natu-ral factors such as climate and the record ofnatural disasters. The top 20 comprisescities from across Europe, Canada, NewZealand and Australia.

Kiwis living in Sydney may also have tothink twice, as Auckland again topped theharbour city, coming in fifth in 2008, whileWellington again clinched 12th spot.Switzerland's Zurich maintained its grip on

number one this year followed by Austria'sVienna in a tie with Geneva, in Switzerlandagain, at number two.

Mercer also released the results of a simi-lar survey ranking the safety of 215 citiesacross the globe.Luxembourg came in at number one, while

Australia's Sydney, Melbourne and Perthwere tied on 29th, and Adelaide andBrisbane tied on 49th.

Mercer also found the "city with theworld's lowest quality of living and lowestlevels of personal safety" is Baghdad, as thewar-torn Iraqi capital sits on the bottom ofboth lists.

AAP

OECD expects US economic gloom

to hit rest of worldThe US economy is likely to have ground to a halt during the spring and its growth is

set to stay enfeebled for an extended two-year run, inflicting knock-on damage toEurope and Japan, a leading international think-tank said on June 4.

Rich economies across the West are being battered by a “triple whammy” of soaringoil and commodity prices, financial turmoil and the end of a world housing boom, theOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said.

The developed world faced a prolonged economic shock from the combined toll ofthese three damaging forces, the OECD said in its twice-yearly assessment of globalprospects.

The 30-nation club of wealthy countries said that the impact was set to hit industrialeconomies well into next year and confronted central banks with a tricky balancing actbetween weakening growth and persistent high inflation.

“OECD economies face a triple adverse shock as globalisation evolves,” the June 4report said, although it added that emerging market nations would see their growthcontinue at a racy pace. Jorgen Elmeskov, the institution’s acting chief economist, saidthat the OECD had been hit by “strong gales over the recent past... It will take time andwell-judged policies to get back on course.” Across all its members, the OECD cut its forecast for economic growth to 1.8 per cent

this year, down from its previous 2.3 per cent projection made six months ago. For 2009,it predicted OECD-wide growth of a still-weaker 1.7 percent, down from 2.4 percent. The US economy is set to bear the brunt of the downturn, the assessment suggested.

The Times

The Greek Australian VEMATO BHMA8/26 JUNE 2008

Windows to Orthodoxy

By Guy Freeland*

We are trave’ling in the footstepsOf those who’ve gone before,And we’ll all be reunited,On a new and sunlit shore

ChorusOh, when the saints go marching inOh, when the saints go marching inLord, how I want to be in that numberWhen the saints go marching in

And when the sun refuse to shineAnd when the sun refuse to shineLord, how I want to be in that numberWhen the sun refuse to shine

And when the moon turns red with bloodAnd when the moon turns red with bloodLord, how I want to be in that numberWhen the moon turns red with blood

Oh, when the trumpet sounds its callOh, when the trumpet sounds its callLord, how I want to be in that numberWhen the trumpet sounds its call

Some say this world of trouble,Is the only one we need,But I’m waiting for that morning,When the new world is revealed.

(Traditional. American Gospel Hymn.)

The Sunday of All Saints

The Orthodox Church celebrates the feast of All Saints onthe Sunday following Pentecost/Trinity Sunday. In theWest, All Saints is celebrated on November 1.

Earlier the Roman Church celebrated the feast on May 13.The reason is that on May 13, 609 Pope Boniface IV con-secrated the pagan temple to all the gods, the Pantheon(which had been given to him as a gift by the ByzantineEmperor, Phocas) to the Virgin Mary and All the Martyrs.(There is an unlikely story that for the consecrationBoniface had 28 wagonloads of bones of martyrs broughtfrom the catacombs!)

The change to November 1 in the eighth century seems toderive from the dedication of a chapel in St Peter’s by PopeGregory III to all saints, not just the martyrs.

However, there are those who think the change had more todo with a desire to counteract the revels of the pagan Celticfeast of Samain, the Calends of Winter. If so, it had littlelong-term success as the pagan celebration of Halloween (=All Hallows Eve, All Hallows being an old English namefor All Saints) goes from strength to strength. Though todayit is small children dressed up as witches and warlocksdemanding “trick or treat” who menace the neighbourhoodrather than real-life witches and warlocks.

The celebration of the feast on the Sunday after Pentecost isrecorded as early as St John Chrysostom as being the prac-tice of the Church of Antioch.

The reason we celebrate All Saints on this Sunday is thatfollowing the feast of Pentecost/Trinity, the eighth and finalSunday (indeed day) of Pascha, the Church returns us fromthe Paschal anticipation of eternity we have been enjoyingsince Easter Sunday to ordinary work-a-day time. (Theactual dramatic liturgical transition occurs during theService of Kneeling, Vespers.)

As, like the Apostles, we prepare ourselves for our apostolicmission to the fallen world, the Church places before us theexample of the saints to encourage and guide us.

On the Sunday of All Saints the Church joyfully commem-orates all saints whether known or unknown, whether past,present or future.

Technically, from the perspective of canon law, a saint is aperson for whom a feast day has been entered onto theChurch calendar, the process known as canonisation. TheRoman Catholic Church has a cumbersome centralised sys-tem of canonisation, but in the East the process is moreflexible and is undertaken by the various national Churches.

But, there are literally millions of individuals not on the cal-endar who over the centuries have lived outstandingly holylives or have died as martyrs. In fact, the number ofOrthodox martyrs of the twentieth century runs into the mil-lions; more than all previous centuries added together. Eachand every one of these individuals is deserving of a place onthe calendar and so, in a more general sense, can be regard-ed as a saint.

The feast of All Saints is not only a commemoration ofsaints long dead but of all the saints throughout time, fromthe origins of humanity to the consummation of the age andthe Second Coming of Christ.

There are innumerable living saints, individuals whoseburning love of God and of their neighbour render themevery bit as worthy exemplars of the Christian life as thesaints on the calendar. And, of course, there are stillChristians suffering imprisonment and torture, even death,as a consequence of their witness to Christ.

In fact, the feast of All Saints does not only commemoratethose we would call “Christians”. It commemorates allthose who, whatever their time, place and “religion”, havelived their lives guided by the light of the Logos (= Christ)within them. For the Logos, through whom all things arecreated, has been present in the world and in human heartssince the beginning of time, aeons before the Incarnation.

Orthodoxy takes a universalistic view of the Church. TheChurch of the New Testament is historically continuouswith that of the Old. The Old Testament is the New in shad-ow, the New the Old in its fulfilment in the God-man, JesusChrist. Through the Incarnation and Paschal Mystery of theLord the whole of time, past, present and future, is rolled uplike a scroll into the eternal present of God.

Time and Eternity

There is a strong eschatological (= appertaining to the lastthings, the final destination) element to the feast of AllSaints. The Church focuses on the consummation of that towhich it aspires, the drawing of all humanity, indeed all cre-ation, back into God from whence it came.

We are all called to be saints, to transcend the barrier of sep-aration between the Church struggling here on earth, “theChurch Militant”, and the Communion of Saints in Heaven,“the Church Triumphant”.

The Church, on this great feast, therefore commemoratesnot only all the saints of the past and the living saints butalso those saints yet to be born. She looks towards the com-pletion of the span of history when time will be no more.

This strongly eschatological understanding of theCommunion of Saints is captured in the Gospel hymn asso-ciated with the “Dixieland” tradition of New Orleans,“When the Saints Go Marching In”.

Most people are only aware of its secular rendition, inwhich usually only the chorus is sung (endlessly!). In fact,it is a deeply spiritual hymn, rich in the metaphorical lan-guage of biblical eschatology, particularly the book ofRevelation. The hymn gives vivid expression to the hopethat we all might be “in that number when the Saints gomarching in” to the New Jerusalem.

In the New Orleans tradition, the hymn is sung at funerals.It is sung sombrely as a dirge processing to the interment,

while on the return it is sung joyfully in its more familiar“hot” version.

The Cultus of the Martyrs

At this juncture, let us switch texts:

Throughout the world, thy Church, O Christ our God,is adorned with the blood of thy Martyrs as with purple and fine linen. Through them she cries to thee: send down thy pity upon thy people, to thy community give peace, and shed on our souls thy great mercy.

(Dismissal Hymn (aplytikion/troparion) for the Sunday ofAll Saints.)

The dismissal hymn for All Saints will be familiar to mostreaders. But have you ever noticed something odd about it?It commemorates only martyrs, not all the saints. Vast num-bers of saints whose names appear on the calendar did notdie a martyr’s death. So what is going on here? We mustturn to history for an answer.

The Church calendar began its development immediatelyfollowing the Resurrection. Christ rose from the dead on aSunday. It was natural, therefore, that Christians shouldgather for their regular weekly celebration of the Euchariston Sunday, the Lord’s Day.

Christ’s death and Resurrection occurred at the time of theJewish Passover. The descent of the Holy Spirit on theApostles occurred at the Jewish feast of Pentecost, 50 daysafter Passover. The Church from the beginning in keepingthe Jewish feasts of Passover and Pentecost would haveunderstood the festivals in the light of the saving mysteriesof the Lord.

Although confusion was to arise as a consequence of con-flicting traditions, the Paschal cycle, which encompassesnot only Pascha but also every Sunday of the year, is ofApostolic origin. Astronomically, the Paschal cycle is deter-mined not just by the sun, as is the case with our civil cal-endar, but by the phases of the moon as well.

So early on the Church knew only one annual cycle of fes-tivals, the Paschal cycle. The origin of the fixed feast cycle(those festivals kept on the same calendar date each year)lies with the veneration of the martyrs.

It was the heroic witness of Christians whose bodies wereused as torches to illuminate the night by Nero or who weretorn apart by wild beasts in the arena that secured the suc-cess of the Church’s mission to: “Go into all the world andpreach the gospel to the whole creation (Mark 16:15).”

If the mission of the Early Church had not been nourishedby the blood of the martyrs (the word literally means “wit-ness”) the conversion of the Empire might not haveoccurred. Christianity might then have gone down in histo-ry as just another mystery religion, along with those of Isis,Mithras, Dionysus and the rest.

In the New Testament the word “saint” is used of all bap-tised Christians, the Holy people of God. But with the tor-tures and hideous deaths of Christians during the persecu-tions of the first centuries the denotation shifted.

The word came to be restricted to those who had suffereddeath for Christ. The “passion” of the martyr imitated thePassion of Christ. So close to the Saviour, the martyrs wereseen as powerful intercessors on behalf of the faithful.

Local churches started to keep lists of their martyrs, record-ing the day of their deaths on the civil calendar. The day ofa martyr’s death was called their dies natalis or natale (=birthday), denoting their translation into Heaven, not theirphysical birth.

The Saints Go Marching In

The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 9/27JUNE 2008

Cont. from previous page

By the second century we find evidence of the developmentof a definite cultus of the martyrs, at first purely local. Thecommunity would gather at the tomb of a martyr or martyrson their dies natalis and there celebrate a ceremonial meal,known as the Refrigerium, in their memory. (TheRefrigerium, the ancestor of the Memorial Service with kol-lyva that Orthodox still celebrate, was also celebrated byfamily and friends for those who had died natural deaths.)

A small building might be constructed over a tomb for theholding of the Refrigerium. Later, in the fourth century, abasilica might be built over, or beside, a sacred site or tombof a martyr, providing a place where pilgrims could gather.Christians had a strong desire to be buried as close to themartyrs as possible. The whole cluster of graves might thenbe enclosed within a building, creating a coemeterium sub-teglata (= roofed cemetery).

These basilican structures were not designed as churchesfor the celebration of the Eucharist but for the veneration ofthe remains of martyrs, or for the honouring of sacred sites,and the celebration of the Refrigerium. It would seem thatConstantinian basilicas, such as the Church of the HolySepulchre in Jerusalem, the Church of the Nativity atBethlehem and St Peter’s, Rome, were in fact originallybuildings of this kind, although all evolved into churches.

The commemoration of the dead and the Eucharistic wor-ship of the Church rapidly combined during the course ofthe fourth century and the Eucharist came to be celebratedover the remains of martyrs; so much so, that it came to beaccepted that the Liturgy should be celebrated over relics.(This is still the case today as relics are enshrined beneaththe Holy Table at a church’s consecration and sown into theantimension, the cloth on which the Eucharistic offeringsare placed.)

Originally local, the cultus of martyrs spread to other com-munities which added the names to their own calendars.This dissemination was assisted by the growing practice ofdividing and distributing the mortal remains of martyrs.

Eventually, many renowned martyrs came to be commem-orated, usually on their natale, universally. A fixed feastcycle was in the making. This development opened the doorto the creation of feasts of Our Lord outside of the Paschalcycle and, somewhat later, feasts of the Theotokos.

While all of this was going on, the concept of martyrdomitself was expanding, and went on expanding and expand-ing. First it was extended to cover not only those who liter-ally gave their lives but those who underwent torture,

imprisonment and exile for the sake of the Lord; theConfessors.

Then, with the end of bloody persecution in the fourth cen-tury and the rise of monasticism, the concept was extendedto cover holy ascetics, whose tears shed for their own sinsand those of the world, it was said, corresponded to thedrops of blood shed by the martyrs.

The fasting, vigils and unceasing prayer of those who diedto the world came to be thought of as “white” martyrdom,as opposed to the “red” martyrdom of those who actuallyshed their blood for Christ.

From then on it was open slather. The concept of martyr-dom was extended to cover all those who had lived out-standing heroic lives of self-sacrifice and struggle in thename of Christ. And, of course, as we have seen, the Churchon the Sunday of All Saints does not commemorate onlythose whose names are entered on the calendar. She alsohonours all who have led their lives guided by the innerlight of the Logos before the Incarnation, all living saints,and those as yet unborn.

* Guy Freeland teaches Hermeneutics and aspects of LiturgicalStudies at St Andrew’s Greek Orthodox Theological College,Sydney.

For the bibliophiles…God’s grandeur: The Arts

and imagination in theology.By David C. Robinson, editor. (Orbis Books, Maryknoll N.Y.)

This book, the 52nd annual publication of the CollegeTheology Society (2006), presents a number of articles ontheology and the visual, musical and literary arts. Thisapproach, which the editor describes as ‘hybridized’,forms “an interlinked web of disciplinary tools” – a ‘cul-tural studies catch-all’ approach to looking at anything(including theology) being the way of tertiary study in thestart of the 21st century.

Women in Mission: From the New

Testament to Today.By Susan E. Smith (Orbis Books, Maryknoll N.Y.)

This is number 40 in the American Society of MissiologySeries. This volume begins with problems arising from

ancient Greek and Hebrew traditions of a polarizationbetween the sexes (men are active, women passive; mendisplay authority, women obedience; etc.). By goingthrough the books of the New Testament, the writerattempts to show how women’s role was one of active sig-nificance, despite the times in which they lived. From the2nd – 19th centuries this early relationship of co-workerssuffered, the turning point (for this writer) coming in the20th century with Vatican II. The breaking up of empires,the increased importance placed on women’s educationand work in the West, and the shrinking of Western reli-gious orders, all of which preceded Vatican II, has led toan increased role for women as lay missionaries – a situ-ation the writer views as being the trend for the third mil-lennium.

Both books are available from the library of St Andrew’sGreek Orthodox Theological College, at 242 ClevelandSt., Redfern, NSW 2016. Phone: 9698 5066. Email:library@greekorthodox.org.au

A.C.

Scholarships discriminate

Eight years after Greece was thrown into turmoilover whether immigrant children should be allowedto carry the Greek flag in public school parades - aprivilege traditionally reserved for pupils at the topof their class - another debate is brewing. This timeit centres on their right to a state-sponsored schol-arship.

The State Scholarships Foundation (IKY), founded in1951, grants scholarships only to outstanding studentswho are Greek citizens or ethnic Greeks (repatriatedGreeks from the former Soviet Union or Albanian-bornGreeks, known as Northern Ipeirotes or Voreio-ipeirotes).All others, including the Greece-born children of immi-grants residing in Greece, can apply for one of the annu-al scholarships available to foreign exchange students topursue graduate studies in Greece.

Critics say this is unfair. The Greek ombudsman, theindependent defender of citizens' rights, is calling on thegovernment to scrap rules preventing non-Greeks, espe-cially those who have studied in Greek public school,from applying for a state scholarship. The deputyombudsman, Andreas Takis, has sent letters to EducationMinister Evrypidis Stylianidis and Interior MinisterProkopis Pavlopoulos explaining his position.

"Even though [the ministers] are not obliged to respondto us, we decided to raise the issue and to suggest propos-als for change," Grigoris Tsioukas, a researcher for theombudsman's human rights division, told the AthensNews on June 2, stressing that the current rules violateEuropean Union law and go against the government'spledge to promote the social integration of immigrants.

Based on the ombudsman's reasoning, IKY scholarshipsnow issued only to Greek citizens and ethnic Greeksshould also be made available to European Union nation-als residing in Greece, in line with EU directive 38/2004(on the rights of citizens of the EU and their families),which was recently transposed into Greek lawbooks. Theombudsman also believes these scholarships should bemade available to all third-country nationals (non-EU)who have secured the EU longterm resident status. "Greece has an obligation to do this under EU law," said

Tsioukas. "However, we are also proposing to the govern-ment ministers to make these scholarships available toimmigrants who were born and raised in Greece and whohave sat for the state-wide university entrance examina-tions, like all other Greek citizens. A second categoryincludes immigrants who hold a permanent residence per-mit and the children of immigrants who hold the longtermresident status." The ombudsman's plea for the removal of the citizenship

clause in the state scholarship procedures comes afterreview of a case brought to the mediator's attention byone Albanian immigrant studying at the technical college(TEI) in Larissa. His application for a state scholarshipwas rejected on the grounds that he is not a Greek citizen.

"The bottom line is," says Tsioukas, "no one can dis-criminate against someone [based on one's citizenshipstatus] for scholarships awarded to candidates based onmerit. It's just like the case involving the carrying of theGreek flag - you cannot discriminate against immigrantstudents."

ATHENS NEWS

Greece's ombudsman is calling on the government

to scrap citizenship-based scholarships

The Greek Australian VEMATO BHMA10/28 JUNE 2008

GRADUATION AND GOLD CROSS

DECORATION

By Dimitri Kepreotes

If the quality of an educational institutioncan be measured by the level of publicappreciation it receives, then St Andrew’sTheological College seems to be doingsomething right.

That form of public appreciation was mademanifest once again, but perhaps with evengreater depth than on previous occasions,during the evening Service held at theCathedral of the Annunciation of theTheotokos, Redfern, and at the reception inthe adjacent Main Hall of the TheologicalCollege. Both in terms of numbers andinterest of all who were present, the level ofsupport for the College was more than evi-dent.

Eight Graduates received their degrees fromthe hand of the College Dean, HisEminence Archbishop Stylianos, who alsopresided at the special Doxology Servicefor the event. Another two Graduatesreceived their degrees in absentia, beingoverseas and interstate respectively. BothBachelor and Master Degrees were

bestowed as can be seen below:

Bachelor of Theology with Master of Arts(four year program of study)Priest-Monk Evmenios VasilopoulosReverend Athanasios GiatsiosMr Andrew Boucas (in absentia)Mr Demos NicolaouMr Dimitri Papaikonomou Mr Anthony Picardi

Bachelor of TheologyPriest-Monk Eusebios Pantanassiotis

Master of Arts (specialising in Theological Studies)John Athanasiou (in absentia)Andrew KaposPeter Kariatlis

In his address to the congregation in theCathedral, His Eminence ArchbishopStylianos underlined the ongoing role of theCollege which, by its very existence, pro-vides a witness to Orthodox scholarship andethos amidst what he described as “anunhappy world”. There were, he added, toomany people to thank for enabling the

College to reap a new harvest of Graduateseach year, far from their families’ country oforigin.

“Orthodoxy is not a denomination next tomany others. It is the Church which contin-ues the common heritage of the firstChristian millennium and, precisely for thisreason, its responsibility is greater”, theArchbishop concluded.

All Graduates stood on the solea of theCathedral while the College Dean read overthem the Prayer of Dedication. This movingand deeply theological prayer is indicativeof the fact that the College does not seeitself purely as an academic institution, butalso as an organic part of the Church fromwhich its students are, in the sense of theGospels, “sent out”.Following this, and while still in theCathedral, His Eminence decorated with theGold Cross of St Andrew two remarkablemembers of the Academic Faculty whohave served the College selflessly since itsinception in 1986 – Dr Guy Freeland and DrJohn Lee. This is the highest award of theGreek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia,

bestowed on the basis of outstanding serv-ice to the Church and community.Understandably, therefore, both recipientswere visibly moved as they each receivedthe Cross. Having offered their knowledgeand dedication over the past two decadeswith unfeigned modesty, neither had everexpected such a distinction. Furthermore, asOrthodox Christians of non-Greek back-ground, their recognition on behalf of theChurch had an added significance.

Both recipients had the opportunity toaddress the gathering in the Main Hallwhile refreshments were being served.Before doing so, however, their respectivecitations were read aloud, and these arereproduced below for the information of ourreaders.

Guy FreelandBA (Bristol 1960) CertHistPhilSc (Cam-bridge 1963) PhD (Bristol 1965)Born Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England 1938.Educated Dover College, Kent 1951-1957.BA (Hons in Philosophy and Psychology),University of Bristol 1960.Postgraduate Studentship at Churchill

St Andrew’s Greek Orthodox Theological College, Sydney, combined two major events on June 2, 2008 – the Doxology Service

for this year’s Graduates and the awarding of the Gold Cross of St Andrew to two distinguished College Lecturers.

The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 11/29JUNE 2008

Cont. from previous page

College, Cambridge 1962-63.Married Jill Rosemary Rayson 1963; one son and a daugh-ter; one grandchild.Certificate in History & Philosophy of Science, Cambridge1963.PhD (in Psychology) Bristol 1965.

Arrived in Australia late 1964 to take up appointment asLecturer in Scientific Thought at the University of NewSouth Wales. Retired in 1998 as Senior Lecturer in Historyand Philosophy of Science.Founding Member, Australasian Association for the History& Philosophy of Science 1967.President, Australasian Association for the History &Philosophy of Science 1972-1977.

Honorary Lecturer at St Andrew’s Greek OrthodoxTheological College in Philosophy, Church Symbolism,Iconography, Liturgical Studies and Hermeneutics 1986-present.Founding editor of Phronema, the annual journal of StAndrew’s College 1986-1994.Member of the sub-committee of Faculty which introducedunits towards the Bachelor of Theology Honours programat St Andrew’s 2000.Member of the sub-committee of Faculty which workedtowards the establishment of St Andrew’s Orthodox Press2000.Member of the sub-committee of Faculty which introducedunits towards the Master of Arts program at St Andrew’s2003.Member, Research Degree Committee of Sydney College ofDivinity 2000-present.Regular contributor of articles to VEMA since 2003.

Personal: Received into the Orthodox Church in Bristol in1962. When his marriage was celebrated as an Orthodox inCornwall, the locals found the event so unusual that it wastelevised the same night on the regional news! After arriv-ing in Australia he joined the Greek Orthodox Parish of StMichael the Archangel, Crows Nest, NSW.

Interests: Broad interests in theology, church history andarchitecture, as well as astronomy and the calendar, theenvironment and gardening.

John A. L. Lee

BA (Sydney 1966) PhD (Cambridge 1970)

Born Macksville, NSW (approx. 500kms north of Sydney),Australia 1942.Educated Sydney Grammar School 1954-59.BA (Hons in Greek and Hebrew), University of Sydney1966.Married Diane Lesley Minter 1966; two daughters; twograndchildren. Jeremie Septuagint Prize, Cambridge 1968. PhD, Pembroke College, Cambridge 1970.

Appointed Lecturer in Department of Greek, University ofSydney, in 1973 and retired as Senior Lecturer in 2001during which time students of St Andrew’s Greek OrthodoxTheological College studied New Testament Greek underhis lectureship (1986-1999).

Chairman, Committee on the Translation of LiturgicalTexts, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia 1990-pres-ent, during which time the following bilingual works werepublished: Book of Prayers (©1993, reprinted 2005) andThe Divine Liturgy of our Father Among the Saints JohnChrysostom (©1996, reprinted with revisions and additions1999, reprinted with further revisions and additions 2005)

Honorary Lecturer in Advanced New Testament Greek at StAndrew’s 1999, 2000, 2006

Member of the sub-committee of Faculty which workedtowards the establishment of St Andrew’s Orthodox Press2000.

Member, Academic Board of Sydney College of Divinity1995-1999

Member, Council of Sydney College of Divinity 2000–2006. Member, Sydney College of Divinity Ltd 2007-present.

Senior Research Fellow, Macquarie University 2002-pres-ent. Committee member, Kudos Foundation 2001–present.

Chair, Biblical Lexicography Section, Society of BiblicalLiterature 2003–2005.Member, Society for New Testament Studies 2005–present.

Expertise: Classical and Koine Greek. Greek of theSeptuagint and New Testament. Greek lexicography.

Interests: Old lexicons. Computensian Polyglot.Translation of liturgical Greek.

* * *

Apart from other staff members including His GraceBishop Seraphim of Apollonias, also in cheerful attendancewere Mr Michael Diamond and Mr Kon Kontis, Co-ViceChairmen of the Archdiocesan Council, Dr Diane Speed,Interim Dean of the Sydney College of Divinity, Major DrTerry Grey, Deputy Principal of the Salvation Army’sBooth College, Dr Margaret Beirne of the Sydney Collegeof Divinity Council, Mr David and Mrs Chris Cheetham ofthe SCD Office, Rev. Dennis Nutt of the Catholic Instituteof Sydney, and Dr Vivienne Keely of the Roman CatholicDiocese of Parramatta.

The entire event was a fitting juxtaposition of (1) thedeserved recognition of the high calibre of Faculty mem-bers such as Dr Freeland and Dr Lee, with (2) the potentialof this year’s Graduates and all on-looking current students.

Surely this is a promising mark of mutual encouragementand enrichment.

(Left to right) Peter Kariatlis, Anthony Picardi, Fr Athanasios Giatsios, Fr Evmenios Vasilopoulos, His GraceBishop Seraphim, His Eminence Archbishop Stylianos, Fr Eusebios Pantanassiotis, Dimitri Papaikonomou,

Demos Nicolaou, Andrew Kapos

The St Andrew's Gold Cross recipients flanking His Eminence and His Grace

A vibrant reception in the Main Hall of St Andrew'sCollege

The Greek Australian VEMATO BHMA12/30 JUNE 2008

St John’s Young Lifestyle Care - Queensland

Community heroes

Caring for people with special needs suchas frail older people, younger people withdisabilities and carers of both are the crucialroles of local community-based organisa-tion St John’s Community Care.

Established by the Greek OrthodoxArchdiocese of Australia in 1997, St John’sCommunity Care (SJCC) plays a major rolein the Far North Queensland community.“We provide high-quality client orientated,community focused aged care and disabili-ty support services striving to achieve thebest possible outcomes not only for ourclients but also providing support andrespite for their carers”, SJCC GeneralManager, Tricia Williams says.

The wide range of community servicesprovided include respite, aged care pack-ages, disability care, home maintenance andmodifications, multicultural and advocacyservices, transport, and ailed health care.

The large geographical area serviced ran-ges from Cardwell to Thursday Island andacross to the Atherton Tablelands, with fiveservice outlets based at Redlynch, Gordon-vale, Mareeba, Innisfail and ThursdayIsland.

St John’s Community Care currently em-ploys 170 staff who provide services to anestimated 4500 clients.

“We are pro-active in raising awareness ofcultural issues, providing cross-culturaltraining to our support workers and otheragencies and we advocate for inclusion andaccess to appropriate services for ourdiverse community,” Tricia says.

“As a community-based organisation weprovide services to the wider communityand play a vital role in caring for the frailelderly, people with special needs and theircarers in Far North Queensland.”

Managed by a board of directors the clientbase represents the diverse multiculturalnature of the community and people fromall cultural backgrounds access the manyservices.

As such St John’s Community Care alsohas a dedicated Multicultural AccessServices program which aims to supportpeople of culturally and linguisticallydiverse backgrounds, people with specialneeds such as frail older prople, youngerpeople with disabilities and carers of both.

“The range and diversity of community

programs is both challenging and rewardingin its complexity and in its positive out-comes,” Tricia points out.“Training is an important part of our work-

place culture.“The opporotunity to learn from the expe-

rience of networking with internationalhealth and safety professionals, to share thegoodwill of our organisation and to bringthose experiences back to the Far NorthQueensalnd for the benefit of all in ourregional network will be a reward worthreaping.”

For more information phone (07) 40399700

New homes for 10

St John’s Community Care’s two new five-bedroom homes will accommodate 10young people who are currently residing inor at risk of inapproprate placement in a res-idential aged-care facility.

Qualified and experienced staff, includinga registered nurse, house co-ordinator, sup-port workers and a recreation officer, willbe available.

They will ensure each person’s needs aremet in the most appropriate way, taking intoaccount choice, empowerment, ability andindividuality.

Each person will have their own bedroomwith private outdoor deck and two peoplewill share a bathroom with one person hav-ing a private ensuite.

The will be an abundance of space in themany shared living areas in addition to gen-erous-sized outdoor living areas. Choice is

important so tenants will be able to decoratetheir room with their personal effects.As well as personal and shared areas, a pri-

vate therapy room and access to the com-munity centre will be available.

Each house has a fully equipped kitchenand meals will be freshly prepared withinput from residents.

Those wo like the outdoors will be able toenjoy the private landscaped gardens, bar-becue area and the hydrotherapy pool withfamily and friends.

A fully accessible vehicle for communitybased activities, appointments and outingswill be available while the centre ofGordonvale is within walking distance andaccessible by road if travelling in a wheel-chair.

Centre of Independence

The recent official opening of St John’sYoung Lifestyle Care at Gordonvale is agreat day for the younger people with a dis-ability who have high and complexneeds.\Chairperson of St John’s Communi-ty Care Ltd and Parish President Mr TheoBacalakis says the completion of this facili-ty is the culmination of two years planningand development by St John’s.

The facility was blessed by His EminenceArchbishop Stylianos Primate of the GreekOrthodox Archdiocese of Australia and wasofficially opened by the Hon. Mr WarrenPitt MLA, Minister for Local Governmentand Main Roads.“It’s the only such facility in the state other

than the Young Care facility at Brisbane’sSinnamon Park operated by Wesley

Mission,” Mr Bacalakis says.The planning and development of the facil-

ity has involved consultation with all stake-holders including their carers and family.

Mr Bacalakis says the collaborative part-nership between Disability Services Qld,the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese ofAustralia and St John’s has achieved amodel of residential care that will allow theresidents to live in a home-like environmentand achieve a level of independence onlylimited by each person’s ability and circum-stance.

Mr Bacalakis acknowledges and thanksDisability Services Qld and their staff aswell as the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese fortheir financial contribution and assistance.He praised the members and the steeringcommittee for their contribution to thedevelopment of the project.

“Ms Wendy Phillips, Manager of Disabi-lity Services at St John’s, should also bepraised for her efforts in co-ordinating theproject and also the staff of St John’s for alltheir hard work and input,” he says.

“The Ladies Auxiliary of St John’s Parishhave worked tirelessly for many yearsfundraising and working towards this goal.“Glenwood Homes were the builing con-tractors and have worked together with StJohn’s to achieve a wonderful residentialhome that will meet the need of all the resi-dents.”

There have been many donations and inkind support and these firms and individu-als are acknowledged on a donor’s board inthe community centre.

LEFT: Sunday Liturgy conducted by His Eminence, on Sunday 25th May 2008 at St John the Baptist, Cairns. RIGHT: From the Opening of Innisfail St John Community Care Respite Centre by His Eminence.

LEFT: Opening of Gordonvale facilities (Youth Lifestyle Care of St John’s Community Care). MIDDLE: His Eminence handed an award toBrenda Gogven from Disability Services QLD for her collaboration with St John’s Community Care. RIGHT: His Eminence with the Hon.

Minister Warren Pitt at the Oficial Opening of Gortdonvale and Innisfail Centres.

The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 13/31JUNE 2008

Are you a snorer? Is your snoring loud and repeti-tive? Does you snoring follow a pattern of loud snor-ing with pauses, or episodes of silence followed bygasps of breath?If so, you could be suffering from sleep apnoea!

What is sleep apnoea?Sleep apnoea, or correctly speaking, Obstructive SleepApnoea is a medical condition which is characterised byrepetitive pauses in breathing during sleep, due to theobstruction or collapse of the upper airway. This results ina reduction in the oxygenation of the blood saturation andleads to an awakening to breathe.Normally during sleep, the muscles which control thetongue and soft palate hold the upper airway open. In somepeople, these muscles relax, the airway becomes narrow,and so breathing difficulties may begin to occur, causingsnoring. When the airway becomes so blocked that breath-ing cannot occur or is obstructed, then an apnoeic episodemay occur. Apnoea means ‘to stop breathing’.Therefore, Obstructive Sleep Apnoea is a condition whichoccurs during sleep where obstruction of the airway leads tothe cessation of breathing. Breathing cessation or apnoea inObstructive Sleep Apnoea by definition is for at least tenseconds but can be for up to two minutes.During this time, the brain recognises that there is a lack ofoxygen and signals the body to wake up. The person suffer-ing sleep apnoea does not recognise this because the arous-al is slight. Someone with sleep apnoea may wake severalhundred times during the night and this wakening thereforefragments sleep such that the sufferer will be sleep deprivedand feel sleepy and lethargic the next day.

What are the symptoms of sleep apnoea?Along with loud and irregular snoring, periods of pausesduring sleep and excessive daytime sleepiness, other symp-toms may include severe morning headaches, excessivenight sweats and choking at night.People with Obstructive Sleep Apnoea may have so muchdifficulty staying awake during the day such that they mayfall asleep easily watching television,or at their desk atwork or while driving a motor vehicle.Obstructive Sleep Apnoea may be associated with intellec-tual and personality changes, mood shifts such as increasedirritability, and depression.Obstructive Sleep Apnoea is often associated with impo-tence in men and menstrual irregularities in women.Obstructive Sleep Apnoea often occurs in obese peoplebecause excessive fat deposits around the neck tissue cancontribute to collapsing the airway. Furthermore, excessiveweight on the abdomen makes the muscles associated withbreathing, function less efficiently.

How do you tell if someone has Obstuctive SleepApnoea?Usually one can suspect if someone has Obstructive SleepApnoea by listening carefully to the pattern of snoringwhile they sleep. Loud snoring will be heard followed by aperiod of silence when they stop breathing, and then a loudgasp as they start breathing again.There people should consult their general practitioner forreferral to a Sleep Disorders Clinic for a Sleep StudyAssessment.A Sleep Study is a recording of the pattern and behaviour oone’s sleep.Sleep can be characterised into a number of different stagesincluding:

• Drowsiness• Light sleep• Deep sleep• Rapid eye movement (dream) sleep

A Sleep Study is an analysis of one’s stages of sleep andwill determine whether a sleep disorder is present.The study involves the attachment of electrodes to the bodyto monitor brain waves, muscle movements, eye move-ments, breathing, snoring, heart rate and leg movements. A band is applied around the chest and abdomen to meas-ure breathing and a clip on the fingers will measure heartrate and oxygen level. In some cases, the person will bevideotaped sleeping.

Treatment of Obstructive Sleep ApnoeaSleep apnoea can be treated in a number of different ways.The sleep physician will recommend different optionsaccording to the cause of the obstruction. The most com-mon way of treating Obstructive Sleep Apnoea is withContinuous Positive Airway Pressure or CPAP (pronouncedCeePap).CPAP delivers air to the airway under slight pressurethrough a nasal mask. The upper airway is splinted open byan ‘air splint’ which prevents apnoea and snoring.The useof a CPAP machine is a long term commitment. With outthe CPAP machine the sleep apnoea will recur. Oral devices that reposition the jaw and tongue can also beused to reduce snoring in milder cases of Obstructive SleepApnoea.Again, these devices act as splints. However, gen-

erally with age, the airway collapses and so the oral devicesor physical splints are often temporary.Surgery is sometimes recommended for a small proportionof Obstructive Sleep Apnoea sufferers. However, it shouldalways be considered carefully as the risks need to beweighed against the benefits.The person with Obstructive Sleep Apnoea must:• if overweight, lose weight as obesity does contribute tothe condition. • stop smoking as smoking damages the lungs and soreduces lung capacity and therefore can restrict oxygena-tion of blood and hence exacerbate sleep apnoea.• Avoid alcohol and sleeping tablets because both depressbreathing reflexes and so can exacerbate sleep apnoea.

Don’t ignore snoring!!Obstructive Sleep Apnoea if left untreated is potentiallylife-threatening and should not be ignored!Talk to your doctor today about your snoring and risk ofObstructive Sleep Apnoea!

*The information given in this article is of a general natureand readers should seek advice from their own medicalpractitioner before embarking on any treatment.

HEALTH NEWS

WITH DR. THEO PENKLIS *

SLEEP APNOEA

ANNOUNCEMENT St Andrew’s Greek Orthodox Theological College is pleased to announce the continuation of its successful and highly informative intensive course units during January and July. These five-day intensives commenced in January 2004 as part of the establishment of fully accredited graduate level programs: Graduate Certificate of Arts, Graduate Diploma of Arts and the Master of Arts. The schedule for July 2008 will be: CHRISTIAN INITIATION AND THE DIVINE LITURGY (7-11 JULY 2008) Coordinator: Dr Guy Freeland This unit traces the origins and development of rites of Christian initiation and of the Divine Liturgy, with particular reference to the fourth century Church, and analyses the theology of the mysteries. The unit provides a solid foundation for further study of liturgics. Themes include: The roots of the Christian mysteries and liturgy within Judaism and parallels with pagan

mystery religion The development and meaning of Christian rites of initiation and their relationships to the

Paschal Mystery; fourth-century catechetical homilies The development of the Eucharistic Anaphora and the nature of the Eucharistic

transformation The structure and component elements of the Liturgies of St Basil and of St John

Chrysostom The origins and development of the Christian temple and the liturgical use of architectural

spaces The celebration of the Liturgy and the mysteries today, and the challenge of liturgical

reform HYMNOLOGY AND HYMNOGRAPHY (14-18 JULY 2008) Coordinator: Rev. Gerasimos Koutsouras This unit provides a detailed study of various aspects of Orthodox Christian hymnology including its history, theology, musical structure and poetical forms. Themes include: The historical development of hymnology: early Christian origins, Byzantine creativity,

post-Byzantine consolidation The diachronic importance of the Psalter Patristic commentary on the ethos and theology of hymnology Logos and melos: the interplay of words and music Poetical forms: antiphons, kontakia, canons and other troparia The invention of the Byzantine musical system and the stages in its development Personalities: St Romanos the Melodist, St John of Damascus, and the Studites

The course units are conducted on campus at Redfern NSW and are open to men and women, Orthodox and non-Orthodox alike. They may be credited towards a degree (admissions criteria apply) or undertaken by university students as electives towards their own awards (e.g. Bachelor of Arts). Limited places may also be available to auditors. Applications for July 2008 should be lodged by Friday 30 May 2008. For more information about theological education at St Andrew’s please contact the Registrar by telephone on (02) 9319 6145 / 9698 5066 or via email at registrar@sagotc.edu.au. Happy EasterHappy Easter

The Greek Australian VEMATO BHMA14/32 JUNE 2008

By Anthony PapantoniouGraduate of St Andrew’s Greek OrthodoxTheological College

The person and event of Jesus of Nazareth,Christ crucified and risen, constitutes thecentre and essence of Christianity.

In our modern world, however, the mysteryof Christ is hardly believed any longer. Thevirgin birth, the miracles, and the resurrec-tion of Jesus are considered as mythical.The mystery of Jesus in accordance withreason, historical objectivity and scientificcertainty is supposedly improbable. Theseidealistic principles are present within mod-ern theological scholarship. However whilethe reality of the virgin birth, the miracles,and the resurrection of Jesus are rejected, anaffirmation is made in secular circles thatthese have at least a symbolic significance.In this article, we will present some featuresprominent in modern biblical scholarshipconcerning the historical Jesus, specificallyfocusing on the virgin birth and resurrectionof Jesus and will furthermore highlight howOrthodox theology perceives the reality andmeaning of Jesus Christ.

The Jesus of History, the Historical Jesusand the Christ of Faith

In biblical scholarship, three distinctionsare made when speaking of Jesus. First,there is the so-called “Jesus of history,” orthe “real Jesus”, who is the actual historicalperson. This Jesus, according to scholars, isunknown, for it is the Jesus who is behindthe Gospel narratives. The Gospel narra-tives, they affirm, have expressed the his-torical reality of Jesus theologically, hence,the Gospels do not describe the “Jesus ofhistory,” rather they proclaim a theologicalwitness to the reality of Jesus.

The second designation is the so-called“historical Jesus.” The “historical Jesus”differs from the “Jesus of history” becausethe former refers specifically to the histori-cal Jesus as reconstructed by modern histor-ical research. In biblical scholarship, thereare certain criteria based upon what can andwhat cannot be historically known about aperson or event in history. Similar criteriaare used to reconstruct a historical image ofthe person and event of Jesus. According tothese historical criteria, the virgin birth, themiracles, and the resurrection of Jesus, areconsidered improbable as they cannot behistorically proven. Hence, the “historicalJesus” is not the “real Jesus” because it isonly a reconstruction by historical scholar-ship of who is Jesus.

The final designation is the “Christ offaith.” The “Christ of faith” is not consid-ered the “Jesus of history” because it is theJesus who is based on the proclamation ofthe Gospels, and the confession of the earlyChurch. Biblical scholarship claims that the“Christ of faith” is a fabrication of theChurch, as it is the Jesus who has beeninterpreted by the Church in light of the res-urrection. This implies that the “Christ offaith” is simply a mythical presentation ofthe “Jesus of history” because Jesus is pro-claimed as Son of God, and what the

Church would later confess in the ecclesialcreeds as God-Man. It is argued that theearly Church adopted pagan mythical con-cepts to express the significance of Jesuswithin the Gospels.

So far we have examined the prominentperceptions in biblical scholarship of theway Jesus is understood. Let us exploresome of the reasons why biblical scholar-ship discredits the reality of the virgin birthand resurrection of Jesus.

The virgin birth and resurrection ofJesus

We have emphatically pointed out that thereality of the virgin birth is discredited ontheological grounds by many biblicalscholars. This rejection is founded on basic

premises: a) the virgin birth tradition is notoriginal to the earliest sources of the gospeltradition, b) there exists many parallelsbetween the virgin birth tradition asexpressed in the gospels and paganliterature, and c) the virgin birth isimprobable on scientific grounds. However,there are many scholars who have alsoargued for the historicity of the virginalconception of Jesus, and who haveemphasised the fact that the virgin birthnarratives cannot be explained on the basisof comparisons with pagan divine birthstories.

The reality of the resurrection of Jesus as ahistorical event has also been rejected onseveral basic criteria: a) the resurrection is afabrication of the early church whichappropriated pagan parallels of “dying and

rising sons of god,” b) the resurrectionnarratives have discrepancies and arecontradictory, and c) the resurrection as ahistorical event is improbable according toscientific knowledge. Contemporarybiblical scholarship, however, hasattempted to explain the meaning of theresurrection and has acknowledged thehistorical reality and theologicalsignificance of the resurrection of Jesus.Some scholars dismiss the resurrection asmythical, arguing that the resurrection is notan event but a faith, which had dawned onthe disciples who believed that Jesus hadbeen exalted. Other scholars would arguethat the resurrection is not a historical event,in the sense that the resurrection is notsubject to direct historical-empiricalinvestigation, yet maintain that the primarymeaning of the resurrection is theological,and particularly grounded within the Jewishtheological tradition. Others affirm that theresurrection, although beyond historicalverification, is an event in history, and thusshould be perceived as a historical problem.

The resurrection of Jesus, like the virginbirth and miracles, cannot be ‘scientifically’or historically verified, however, they areevents which have been manifested as‘mystery’. And as mystery, the event ofChrist is beyond history but at the sametime an existential reality grounded inhistory, which embraces and penetrates themystery of human existence.

Let us examine this significance of theChrist event as perceived in Orthodoxtheology.

The Ecclesial Christ

In Orthodox theology, the event of Jesus –the virgin birth, miracles, passion, death,resurrection and ascension – is perceivedand proclaimed as mystery. Jesus Christ isthe Incarnate Logos, who unites divinityand humanity in his one person. This mys-tery of the person and event of the crucifiedand risen Christ transcends not only ration-al, scientific and historical verification, butalso linguistic and conceptual definition,whether this is scripture or doctrine.

The modern distinction of Jesus as “the his-torical Jesus,” or “the Jesus of history,” and“the Christ of faith,” therefore cannot bemaintained. According to Orthodox theolo-gy, our experience of Christ, the Christ weknow is the “ecclesial Christ,” who is pro-claimed in the scriptural witness and expe-rienced mystically within the liturgy andsacramental life of the church. The Christevent is not only an event of the historicalpast but an event which we participate incontinually in the Church. Historicalresearch has contributed significant insighton the historical reality of Jesus, however,the mystery of Christ is beyond even its his-torical manifestation. The Jesus we know, isnot the Jesus of historical reconstruction butthe Jesus mediated by the ecclesial tradi-tion, who is historically and theologicallywitnessed in scripture, proclaimed indogma, and experienced mystically withinthe Church as the body of the living Christ.

The Historical Jesus and the Ecclesial Christ:

An Orthodox Hermeneutical Perspective

The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 15/33JUNE 2008

A Professor in the laboratory ofatmospheric physics at the AristotleUniversity of Thessaloniki, AlkiviadisBais was awarded the Nobel PeacePrize earlier this month. Along with 44other scientists, among them NationalObservatory director Christos Zerefos,the 51-year-old was honoured for hiscontribution to the UN’s Intergovern-mental Panel on Climate Change(IPCC) report, which was jointlyawarded the Nobel Peace Prize withformer US vice-president Al Gore in2007. The decision to request theacknowledgement of all the contribu-ting scientists as individual NobelPeace Prize winners was taken byIPCC chairman Rajendra Pachauri inrecognition of their research intoclimate change.

In an interview with the Athens News, Baisargues that the Kyoto Protocol’s emission-cutting targets are not ambitious enoughand that global warming would continue fordecades even if we stopped burning fossilfuels today.

What exactly was your contribution tothe IPCC report?

My contribution was quite different fromMr Zerefos’, who was my predecessor atthe University of Thessaloniki until 2002.In effect, my input was twofold: I was thelead author for the chapter concerningaircraft emissions on UV radiation, whichwas published in the late 1990s. After that,there was another report safeguarding theozone layer where I was a reviewer. I amalso a main member of the UV EffectsPanel on the Montreal Protocol, [a treatythat entered into force in 1989 and is de-signed to phase out a number of substancesbelieved to be responsible for the depletionof the ozone layer].

And what were your conclusions? The conclusions as far as UV radiation is

concerned were positive. The emissionsfrom the new aircraft fleet planned at thetime did not significantly affect the UVradiation reaching the surface. The dif-ference was something like one percent.And, as far as we know, the situation has notchanged because there is not a more recentreport.

Along with Mr Zerefos and otherscientists, you met with the primeminister at the Presidential Mansion onMay 26. What did he say?

He made a speech giving the generalposition on the government’s policy on theenvironment and the Kyoto Protocol. Hesaid nothing in particular, no promises. Hejust expressed his government’s will tocontribute as much as it can on this issue.

On the subject of the Kyoto Protocol andEU emission-cutting targets, do youbelieve Greece can meet its targets?There would need to be a huge increasein the use of renewable energy sourcesalong with significant energyconservation measures during thecoming decade to have any chance ofdoing so.

I want to believe that we will succeed. Icannot say anything more positive becausethe past has shown that we were not able tomeet our goals, although we were not theonly country.

It is clear that the use of renewable energyshould increase. My personal belief is thatover the last 10 years or so there has been asubstantial improvement in this direction.Of course, it is not enough. But there havebeen measures taken in both planning andinstalling. Planning is more promising,especially during the last couple of yearswhen the door to the [energy] market wasopened. There have been so many appli-

cations [principally for wind farms andphotovoltaic plants]. Of course, we don’tyet know if these applications will beapproved.

Under the Kyoto Protocol, Greece mustlimit its rise in carbon emissions to 25percent relative to 1990 levels by 2012.The EU requirements are more stringent,requiring an 18 percent reduction by2020. What is your opinion on Greece‘ssuspension from the Kyoto Protocol’sflexible trading mechanism?

I would rather not comment.

We are at the point of negotiating thesuccessor document to the KyotoProtocol, which has an overall target ofan eight percent reduction in globalgreenhouse gas emissions relative to 1990levels by 2020. Some say this isn’tambitious enough. What do you say?That is my position, too. It should be more

ambitious because eight percent is almostnothing, taking into account the projectionsfor the future. Such a small reduction ingreenhouse gas emissions will not reallymake a change to the climate.

So what should the target be? I cannot give numbers, but it is known that

even if we stopped burning fossil fuels rightnow global warming would continue. Inthat context, an 8 percent decrease will notreally make that much difference.

It is projected that Mediterraneancountries will be particularly badlyaffected. What are the dangers forGreece?

The most important issues are thedesertification of the southern part ofGreece and, of course, the increase of themean temperature and heatwaves. It willaffect everyday life, from forest fires to the

economy and to all ecosystems and peopleliving within them. The effects will bewidespread.

But surely the question of whetherGreece, with a a population of some 11million, does or does not meet its targetsis insignificant next to what is done by,say, the 1.3 billion of China, which is ontop of that a rapidly developing country.Is anything we do here likely to make adifference?

No. I don’t think it is possible for Greeceto make a difference to its own climate.Climate change is a global phenomenon,and Greece‘s contribution to fighting it isvery small. But this doesn’t excuse thecountry from taking measures and fol-lowing the rest of the world. It is a smallcontribution, but it is necessary.

The question is whether developingcountries, like China, can develop sustaina-bly. It is certain that we cannot accept sucha huge country to increase its emissionswithout any control.

And what are the chances of such a thinghappening?

If you are asking whether I believe it willbe done, that is difficult to answer. If youare asking whether it should happen, thenthe answer is undoubtedly yes becauseotherwise we cannot expect any goodresponse. As I was saying earlier, modelshave shown that even if we stopped allcarbon emissions today it would takeseveral decades before the climate returnsto the pre-industrial situation. Therefore,the 50 percent cut in emissions by 2050[outlined in the Kyoto Protocol] willdecelerate the temperature increase but willnot really solve the problem. In conclusion,I am pessimistic.

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Alkiviadis Bais (R) and Christos Zerefos, who were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their contribution to the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change,

meet the prime minister on May 26

The Greek Australian VEMATO BHMA16/34

DIABETES

MELLITUSDiabetes is a condition when the pancreas(a gland in our body) does not secreteenough insulin or if the cells of the bodybecome resistant (do not respond) to theaction of insulin. The cells need sugar to produce energy. Inpeople suffering from diabetes, sugar buildsup in the blood (medically known as hyper-glycaemia), as it cannot get into the cells.This leads to serious complications.Hyperglycaemia (high blood sugar) leads todamaged blood vessels, atherosclerosis(hardening and narrowing of the blood ves-sels), heart diseases, eye diseases, peripher-al neuropathy (nerve damage in the limbs)and diabetic nephropathy (kidney diseases).Prevalence More than 3 million Australians have dia-betes or pre-diabetes. Worldwide, 246 mil-lion people have diabetes.Statistics• Diabetes is the sixth highest cause of deathby disease in Australia• People with diabetes are almost threetimes more likely to have high blood pres-sure, obesity or elevated blood fats e.g. cho-lesterol, triglycerides • They are two to three times more likely tohave cardiovascular disease, e.g. heart dis-ease and stroke • One in four Australian adults has eitherdiabetes or impaired glucose metabolism • An estimated 2 million Australians havepre-diabetes• One person is diagnosed every seven min-utes Pre-diabetesPre-diabetes is a condition when blood glu-cose levels are higher then normal but notyet high enough for a diagnosis of type 2diabetes. Left untreated it may develop intotype 2 diabetes within 5 to 10 years

Syndrome X (Metabolic syndrome/insu-lin Resistance Syndrome)It is a cluster of abnormalities linked torefined carbohydrate consumption in thepeople who are genetically predisposed.Syndrome X includes mild to moderateincrease in blood glucose levels, high bloodpressure, abdominal obesity, high levels oflipids (fats) and high insulin levels.

Prediabetes, syndrome X and type 2 dia-betes are facets of the same disease andunderlying dietary, lifestyle and geneticcauses.Symptoms:The classic symptoms of diabetes are fre-quent urination, excessive thirst, and exces-sive appetite. These classic symptoms maynot be present in all cases. Vague symptomslike tiredness, lack of concentration, weightgain or weight loss, recurrent infections canarise a suspicion of diabetes.Types of diabetes:There are two major types of diabetes: Type

1 (or insulin dependent diabetes mellitus)and Type 2 (non-insulin dependent diabetesmellitus). Type 1 is associated with complete destruc-tion of the beta cells of the pancreas (cellsthat produce insulin), which is thought to bethe result of autoimmune diseases in whichthe body’s immune system attacks anddestroys the insulin producing cells in thepancreas. Some experts believe that thismay be a result of immune response afterviral diseases in the early childhood.Exposure to a protein present in cow’s milk(bovine albumin peptide) during infancymay trigger the autoimmune process andsubsequently lead to type 1 diabetes melli-tus. For nursing mothers (especially if thereis a history of diabetes in the family) it isimportant to breast-feed your child and ifnot possible, ask your health professionalfor an alternative to cow’s milk. Type 1 dia-betes patients need to take injections ofinsulin for life-long, as their body cannotmake it.Some other risk factors for type 1 dia-betes:• Certain viral infections –some viruses e.g.polio, coxsackie, echo (gastro-intestinal)and rubella can activate immune cells andcan affect insulin producing beta cells inpancreas. These viruses may increase theintestinal permeability, which can cause animmune response.• Vitamin D deficiency – Studies haveshown that children taking supplementalvitamin D or taken during pregnancy havean 80% reduced risk of type 1 diabetes.Vitamin D deficient children have a 300%increased risk. Vitamin D helps normaliseimmune system development and inhibitautoimmune reactions. It is advisable tocheck your levels of vitamin D before start-ing any form of supplementation.• Nitrates – Increase in nitrates in diet andwater is linked to an increased rate for type1 diabetes. We get nitrates from agriculturalfertiliser runoff and cured and smokedmeats. Nitrates are converted in the bodyinto nitrosamines, which can cause dia-betes.Type 2 diabetes is the most common formof diabetes. In type 2, pancreas producesinsulin in small quantities, but not enoughto fuel the cells. Their insulin levels in theblood are elevated, indicating a loss of sen-sitivity to insulin by the cells of the body.Obesity is a major contributing factor to thisloss of insulin sensitivity. Ninety percent ofindividuals with type 2 diabetes are obese.In most cases, achieving ideal body weightcan normalise blood sugar levels in thesepatients. Therefore diet and exercise play animportant role in the management of type 2diabetes. Genetic factors are also importantin increasing the susceptibility to diabetes.Risk factors for type 2 diabetes:• Family history of diabetes have 2 to 6times the risk of developing type 2• Age -Over 55 years of age; over 45 yearsof age and have high blood pressure or highblood fats eg cholesterol; over 45 years ofage and overweight• Increased waist to hip ratio: (=waist cir-cumference in cm/hip circumference in cm)For weight to be considered healthy, womenshould have a waist-to-hip ratio of less than0.8. A healthy waist-to-hip ratio for men isless than 0.9.• Have heart disease or had a heart attack• Have/had high blood glucose levels duringpregnancy (gestational diabetes)• Have pre-diabetes: Impaired Fasting

Glucose (IFG) or Impaired GlucoseTolerance (IGT)• Have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome • Race/ethnicity: Native Australian or NewZealander, African American, Hispanic andNative Americans, Asian American, PacificIslanders, People from Indian Subcontinent.Gestational diabetes is a form of diabetesthat develops during pregnancy. Hormonalchanges during pregnancy can affect thebody’s response to insulin. Most often thiscondition disappears after delivery, but itseems to be a sign that the woman is morelikely to develop type 2 diabetes in laterlife.How is diabetes type 2 diagnosed?As the symptoms of type 2 diabetes are usu-ally mild and often unnoticed, diagnosis isentirely on the blood tests.• Fasting blood glucose levels-taken afterfasting for at least 10 hours but not morethan 16 hours• Postprandial glucose- Testing of bloodglucose 2 hours after meal • Random blood glucose – testing of bloodglucose anytime regardless of last meal.• Glucose tolerance test – A series of bloodglucose checks are done after the body ischallenged with a certain amount of glu-cose.Other useful test-• Glycosylated Haemoglobin (HbA1c) –This test is based on the fact that when glu-cose levels are high in the blood, extra glu-cose binds with various proteins in ourbody. So HbA1c is a time-averaged indica-tor for preceding 2 -4 months. This test isnot a diagnostic test for diabetes, but it isuseful for assessing treatment efficacy andpatient compliance.

Recommendations:Diet:Type 2 diabetes is a disease of diet andlifestyle, such as lack of physical exercise,not eating enough of whole plant foods,high intake of harmful fat (saturated or transfats) and obesity. Lifestyle changes aloneare associated with a 58% reduced risk ofdeveloping diabetes with prediabetes.When the ethnic groups with high risk oftype 2 diabetes, follow their traditional dietand lifestyle and avoid Western style diet,the incidence of diabetes is extremely low.Eat a low fat, high fibre diet, includingplenty of raw fruits and vegetables as wellas fresh vegetable juices.Consume foods that have low glycaemicindex (GI). What is glycaemic index or factor?You might have seen this sign on lots offoods in the supermarket. The GI factor is ascientifically validated tool in the dietarymanagement of diabetes, weight reductionand athletic performance. The GI refers tothe effect a particular food has on bloodsugar levels. The foods with high GI causerapid rise in blood sugar levels and exces-sive release of insulin, which stores excesssugar into fat. Low glycaemic index foodscause a slower, sustained increase in theblood sugar, and decreases hunger.However, use food that are not high in fatand have low glycaemic index. Includeberries, fish, garlic, onions, and legumes inyour diet. Foods that are high in fibre pre-vent rapid rises in blood sugar, so areincluded in low GI foods. Good sources offibre are legumes, beans, oat bran, nuts,seeds, psyllium seed husks, pears, applesand most vegetables. Please refer to the listgiven below.

Also avoid smoked or cured meats (e.g.bacon, smoked salmon, salami, etc). Thechemical compounds like nitrates that areused in smoked meats or cured meats arelinked to type 1 diabetes by damaging thecells of pancreas.A2 milk and diabetes– Most of the milkavailable in the market is A1 milk, whichcontains a protein called beta A1 casein,which is linked to a range of serious illness-es, including coronary heart disease, type 1diabetes, autism and schizophrenia. The dif-ference between A2 milk and normal milkis based around the type of cow. In mostherds here there’s a mix of breeds. Friesiancows produce mostly A1 milk, Jerseys andGuernseys produce mainly A2 milk. So inAustralia normal milk is a mixture. But thecows for A2 milk must be specially bredand a number of farmers in Australia haveconverted their herds to produce this virtu-ally pure A2 milk. “Wherever we have acountry that has high intake per capita of A1milk, normal milk, then we have high levelsof type 1 diabetes and heart disease.“Wherever the milk is low in the A1 betacassein, high in the A2 beta casein we havelow level of the type 1 diabetes. (from“Devil in the Milk: Illness, Health andPolitics. A1 and A2 milk” by Keith Wood-ford).Exercise:Regular exercise helps to lower blood sugarby lowering insulin resistance. Therefore ithelps to prevent complication of diabetes. Itis important for both type 1 and type 2 dia-betes.Stress management:Higher stress is linked to higher blood glu-cose in type 1 & 2 diabetes. Stress responseincreases adrenaline and cortisol (our stresshormones) which elevates blood sugar andreduces insulin response.Nutritional supplements:A daily dose of a multivitamin (containingB group of vitamins) and minerals (contain-ing magnesium, chromium, zinc, potassi-um) is a good choice. Vitamin C and E arealso good antioxidants. Omega-3 fatty acidsfrom fish can protect against heart diseasein diabetic people.Botanical medicine:Some herbal medicine can also be used assupportive treatment. These are bilberry, si-lymarin, gymnema, ginkgo, goat’s rue, glo-be artichoke, fenugreek, etc.

Other beneficial foods/supplements:• Green tea extract • Coenzyme Q10• Alphalipoic acid• Bitter melon or Balsam pear (Momordicacharantia) –fresh juice

[Before starting any supplements or herbs,please consult your health professional]

WARNING: Under no circumstancesshould a patient be suddenly taken offdiabetic drugs, especially insulin.

CLINICAL INSIGHTS INTO HEALTH AND NATURAL SOLUTIONS

BY CHRISTINA SCALONE*BHSc, Dip. Bot. Med, Dip.Hom, Dip. Nut

JUNE 2008

* Christina Scalone is a very experienced and successfulnaturopath with over 20 years experience. She holds aDegree in Health Science, a Diploma in Botanical Medi-cine, Diploma in Homoeopathy and a Diploma in Nutri-tion. She has maintained a full time practice, has held aposition as a senior practioner/ naturopathic consultant, aclinic manager and trainer for Blackmores and is a clinicstudent supervisor as well as a lecturer at the AustralianCollege of Natural Therapies. She also maintains her ownprivate practice with successful results.

The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 17/35JUNE 2008

By Imogen Coward

Pick up any weekend newspaper at themoment and, chances are, you’ll comeacross an article on the British chef GordonRamsay. Although Ramsay makes it into theheadlines more often for his somewhatcolourful language than for his food, tothose who steer clear of Ramsay’s showsand books because of the language issue, allI can say is ‘you don’t know what you’remissing!’ His ideas on food and cooking aresimply brilliant and readily accessible.

In fact, a steady dose of Ramsay’s KitchenNightmares show (the British version) hashad a rather curious affect on the cooking inmy household. Forget about ‘baking day’,we decided to introduce ‘fancy or unusualdinner day’; a chance on the one night of theweek when everyone is home, to cook anunusual or new dish preferably using someexotic ingredients such as game meat ratherthan the usual beef, lamb or chicken.Despite the fact that I usually like to makeup a dish as I go – guided by instinct andexperience that is - when it comes to ingre-dients with which I’m unfamiliar, it’s goodto be guided by a recipe.

To make the ‘fancy dinner dish night’ amore sustainable indulgence we decided tostart with recipes that only required a fewextra ingredients to be bought (not a wholenew spice rack full!). Although I’m a fan ofthe Two Fat Ladies and Delia Smith’srecipes, here is where you really appreciateGordon Ramsay’s motto of ‘simplicity andfresh produce’ and his brilliance at puttingtogether an incredible dish with the mini-mum of fuss. For those just venturing into

the world of cooking, the “Gordon Ramsaymakes it easy” has a wide variety of recipestyles (from simple and rustic to exotic) anda DVD showing him cook some of therecipes. His “Kitchen Heaven” book (thecompanion to Kitchen Nightmares – withRamsay’s recipes from the British series) isstuffed with simple but stunning recipesperfect for any fancy dinner. Just for therecord, the venison pie in ‘Kitchen Heaven’is simply fantastic, and not, as one mightotherwise expect, too strong in taste.Flavoured with juniper berries, bay leaves,cepes, pancetta, and red wine (along withswedes, celery, carrot, garlic and so on), thevenison makes steak and mushroom pud-ding pale into insignificance (oh and let’snot even mention commercially madefrozen pies). The marinated duck breastswith star anise, coriander, citrus and garlicin the same book is also a particularly goodrecipe but is quite strongly flavoured.

Of course, a good recipe is only half theequation. High quality ingredients are amust and it’s always worth a trip acrosstown to find them! If you’re in Sydney trythe AC Butchery, 174 Marion St. Leichhardtfor an enormous range of high quality meats(includingthe very special proscuitto fromthe Parma region of Italy, and a fabulousselection of gourmet sausages). For fruitand vegetables, as well as olive oil, vinegarand cheese, check out Fratelli, 7 Danks St,Waterloo which has quite an unusual rangeof produce (the buffalo milk mozzarella isparticularly good). For spices and driedherbs you can’t go past Herbie’s Spices, 745Darling St, Rozelle.

Bon appetit!

� � �

Food & Wine

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PO Box R185 Royal Exchange NSW 1225Tel 02 9251 61 88www.cure.org.au

GREEK SCOUTS

Sponsored by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia

E n r o l l i n g N o w !

Cub Scout units are enrolling boys and girls up to 10 years

Scout units are enrolling boys and girls up to 15 years

By participating in a Greek Orthodox Scout Group, boys and girls benefit from the Australian Scouting program as well as the additional Greek cultural program and the opportunity to practice and improve their knowledge of the Greek Orthodox faith and the Greek language. To enrol your children contact:

Parish of St Euphemia – Bankstown Mr Stavros Kritikos Asst. Group Leader ph. 9547 2269 mob. 0428162893 Fr Panayiotis (Chaplain) ph. 9709 6908 mob. 0402 219214

Parish of St Stylianos – Sutherland Mr Nicholas Depolignol (Group Leader) ph. 9570 1075 - 9579 3888 Father Constantine (Chaplain) ph. 9526 6577 mob.0418 511212

Also more Adult Leaders needed!

To participate in the Scout Movement by becoming a Leader or Assistant (all training will be provided – no previous experience required) phone: The Group Leaders or the Coordinator Miss Katherine Kevgas 0411 525 244 Authorised by Mr George Papadimitriou James PhC,MPS,JP (Commissioner for Greek Scouts) 16, Crewe St. Bardwell Park 2207 Email: greekscouts@hotmail.com

Mount Pleasant

‘Elizabeth’ Semillon 2003

A fresh, mild white wine which, although perfectly fine, doesn’t quite live up to thefull-flavoured expectations of a Hunter Valley Semillon. The hint of granny-smith-apple-like tartness lifts the wine but gives it something of a harsh edge. That said, theedge makes it simply fanstastic in mushroom and bacon risotto.

Cost: around $20

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Free trade "best solution

to food crisis"By Sandra O'Malley

Australia has told the internationalcommunity that liberalising worldtrade is the best way to help ease theglobal food crisis.

World leaders are meeting in Rome for ahigh-profile summit on the food price cri-sis that threatens hunger, poverty and con-flict worldwide.With food prices at a 30-year high, UnitedNations secretary general Ban Ki-moonwarned that while the world must"respond immediately," it must also putthe long-term focus on "improving foodsecurity."Prices have doubled in three years,according to the World Bank, sparkingriots in Egypt and Haiti and in manyAfrican nations. Brazil, Vietnam, Indiaand Egypt have all imposed food exportrestrictions.In his address to the summit, ForeignMinister Stephen Smith said countriesneeded to work cooperatively to make asubstantial change for the better.He told world leaders Australia wasdeveloping a comprehensive long-term

action plan for food security, whichwould draw on the nation's expertise onsemi-arid agriculture research, productionand adaption."Demand for food is increasing at thesame time as we see rising input costs andsupply constraints caused by drought,"Mr Smith said."Through a renewed focus on rural devel-opment in our development assistanceprogram, Australia will work with ourpartners to reduce dependence on food aidand achieve sustained increases in cropand livestock production."In Australia, climate change would be acrucial part in determining Australia'sfuture food production, and the govern-ment was committed to working withsmall island states in the Pacific, some ofwhom were already feeling the effects ofglobal warming.Mr Smith reiterated Australia's view thatliberalising trade, through a successfulconclusion to the Doha round of the worldtrade talks, was the best possible way tocombat the food problem in the longerterm.

AAP

The Greek Australian VEMATO BHMA18/36 JUNE 2008

Take a boat to see Bangkok by riverThe Skytrain elevated railway has eased Bangkok‘sinfamous traffic tangles in recent years and an equallyeasy way to tour the city sights is by river boat.

Take the Skytrain to the end of the Silom Line, disembarkat Saphan Taksin station and you walk a few metres toferryboats waiting to take you up and down the ChaoPhraya river.

Ideal for visitors is to buy a one-day river pass whichenables them to hop on and hop off the Chao Praya TouristBoats at any one of eight other stops, many of them closeto tourist attractions including the Grand Palace complex,between 9am and 3pm.

These boats, with a commentator aboard, carry an orangeflag to distinguish them from regular blue-flagged ferries,which are cheaper but not as comfortable.

The day tickets are also good for Chao Praya ExpressBoats which ply both further up and further down the riveruntil 7.30pm, used by many Thais going to and fromwork.

Views from the boats vary from minute to minute.

On view are old gold-domed temples, modern high-risehotels and apartment blocks, bridges of different styles,ramshackle riverside buildings, speeding longboats andferries, large green weeds clogging some small piers - plussome large wall pictures of and tributes to Thailand’srevered 80-year-old King Bhumibol.

Among places of particular interest to tourists, and thepiers where to get off the boat:

Si Phraya - Close by the River City shopping centre, amust-visit for lovers of arts and antiques as well as storesselling Thai silks and handicrafts.

Ratchawongse - Near the centre of Bangkok‘s Yaowarajor Chinatown, notable for its range of ethnic restaurants,and for traders in gold and jewellery.

Memorial Bridge - Built in 1932 (the same year as theSydney Harbour Bridge) by King Rama VII tocommemorate King Rama I (1782-1809), founder of theChakri dynasty who established Bangkok as the capital ofSiam, later Thailand. A monument to Rama I lies at thefoot of the bridge. The 24-hour Pak Klong Tarad flowermarket is nearby.

Tien - For the Wat Pho, or Wat Phra Chetuphon, built inthe 16th century and the oldest and largest Buddhist

temple in Bangkok. It’s open from 8am to 5pm withadmission 20 baht (about 65 Australian cents).

Maharaj - This is the pier for Bangkok‘s Number Onehistorical landmark, the spectacular Grand Palace built in1782 by King Rama I, along with the Wat Phra Kaeo, bestknown as the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. The palaceis open daily from 8.30am to 3.30pm with 250 baht (about$A8) admission. Dress codes apply. In Bangkok call (02)224-1833. The National Museum (open 9am-4pm,admission 40 baht, or $A1.30 is also in the vicinity.

Wang Lang (Siriraj) - The stop for the Royal BargeMuseum, home for some of the 52 golden royal bargesthat parade down the river for periodic Royal KathinBuddhist ceremonies or state occasions such as Thai KingBhumipol’s 80th birthday last November.

Phra Arthit - It’s a short walk to the Phra Sumane Fort,one of the two remaining fortresses of 14 that were inplace in the mid-to-late 18th century defending the city

against Burmese and other invaders. It was restored bothin 1959 and 1991.

Other boat trips on the river and its surrounds includetours by longboat of the klongs (canals) where people inwaterside homes use the river for transport, for washingand for cooking foods they buy from floating shops.Prices vary from about the equivalent of about $A20.

IF YOU GO:

For information on Thailand‘s tourist attractions, call theTourist Authority of Thailand on (02) 9247-7549 or visitwww.tourismthailand.org/For the Chao Phraya boat company, call (fromn Australia0011-66) 2623-6001 exensions 101/102 or visitwww.chaophrayaboat.co.th.Thai Airways International flies daily between Bangkokand Australian ports. Call 1300-651-960 or visitwww.thaiairways.com.au

AAP

Overseas travel news in briefNEPAL SUMMITS

Fine weather during the short spring season for climbingMount Everest has produced a record number ofsuccessful summits from the southern approach throughNepal, officials said.

Already, 258 climbers have made it to the top from thesouthern approach - one more than the previous high of257 last year - and authorities expect the total to risefurther.They include a Nepali Sherpa who summitted Everest for

a breathtaking 18th time, and a 77-year-old retired Nepalimountaineering official who smashed the record for theoldest person to scale the globe’s highest point.“So far we have confirmed summits by 258 climbers and

some of our liaison officers are still in the field,” RameshKhatri Chhetri from the mountaineering department ofNepal‘s tourism ministry said.

“Once their reports come in the total will be more than300,” said the official.

“It is going to be the highest number of summits in a

single season from the southern (or Nepal) side.”The spring climbing season, when jet stream winds drop

at the 8,848-metre summit to allow a brief window ofgood weather, began under a cloud of doubt after Chinabanned all private expeditions through the Tibetan, ornorthern, approach.The Chinese wanted to ensure the Olympic torch reached

the roof of the world without any of the pro-Tibetdemonstrations that had dogged previous legs of theOlympic torch relay.At the request of its giant northern neighbour, Nepal too

banned climbing until after the torch reached the top,causing concerns of overcrowding and a dangerous rushto the “death zone” above 8,000 metres, where there isonly one-third of the oxygen at sea level.

GERMANY ARTS

Long considered a backwater of the arts world, theGerman capital is today attracting a wave of art dealers,gallery operators and collectors from around the world.

Along with New York, Paris and London, Berlin hasbecome a “must” for those in search for modern andcontemporary works as well as new trends in art.Hundreds of new galleries have sprouted up in the pasteight years.

Before and immediately after the fall of Berlin Wall, theGerman art scene was mainly to be found in the industrialwest, in cities like Cologne, Dusseldorf and Kassel.Berlin, wallowing in debt and devoid of wealthyentrepreneurs, had lost its reputation for arts patronage.

A fact Klaus Wowereit, the city’s governing mayor,appeared to confirm a few years back when he coined theslogan “poor but sexy” for Berlin.

Not until the late 1990s did the art scene start to pick up. Artists began flocking to the city from Europe Asia andLatin America, lured by a liberal, easy-going lifestyle andwealth of surprisingly low-rent studios.

Galleries multiplied in the central Mitte district and theadjoining Charlottenberg, Kreuzberg and Prenzlauer Bergsuburbs, as art dealers began moving from the Rhinelandregion to Berlin around 2000. (AP)

The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 19/37JUNE 2008

Mixing it up with DJ Krazy KonBy Yannis Nikolakopoulos *

What is the soul of Greek music? This

was the question I needed answered

when I visited DJ Krazy Kon at his

Specialty Greek Music store Alpha

Music in Kogarah, Sydney .

Dj Krazy Kon is a unique force in theGreek music scene, not just in his homebase of Sydney, but Australia wide, whichhe regularly tours. Even worldwide, there isno real parallel for what he is doing forGreek music outside of Greece. DJ KrazyKon started off very early. Being born andraised in a Greek household, Greek musicwas an ingrained part of the culture.

“My parents would play music in the houseand of course whenever we went to thechorous”.

During his university years, Kon startedhelping his cousin, a DJ at parties, luggingcrates of albums and occasionally getting tospin a few tracks during the night. At thatstage his interest in music set him on a path,but it was only later in his career that hisflair for Greek music came out and the DJKrazy Kon persona began to emerge.

It was around this time that an emergingGreek nightclub scene also began to conso-lidate.

“There wasn’t anything really like it at thetime. There were a few small things goingon in the Greek scene. “As Dj Krazy Konbegan to play, he found a market ready forwhat he had to offer.

“I remember 1995 we had a Greek night atEarlwood Hotel. It was a reve lation.Everyone wanted to go to Greek nights. Itwas brand new at the time. That’s whenKrazy Kon really began.

“The greek nights are more than just aboutdancing. It’s given people a sense of beingGreeks, it’s a celebration of Greek music,but also Greek culture and fashion. It’s ameeting place for people. We are so farfrom Grecce, that hopefully we can takethem to Greece when they come to a Greeknight.”

The growth of Greek nights in Australia andthe growing market for Greek music inAustralia have since been intertwined withthe Kon’s career, and he has become anintegral part of the Greek music scene.

Having toured in every capital in Australiaas well as New Zealand he sees first handthe widespread popularity of Greek music.“When I play in Hobart or Adelaide, theymay only have three or four shows a year,and the good thing is that everybody comesout to those shows. Everybody comes out tothat night, and you can see the hunger intheir eyes. They want to party, they want tohear the big tracks, and that’s one of thethings I love about touring”.

Catering to a seemingly insatiable appetitefor Greek music, DJ Krazy Kon has what isnow an iconic annual dj Mix album release,simply called Greece, from 2004 to thelatest, Greece 2008. Having just releasedthis sixth album, his DJ series has become arecognisable landmark in Australia‘s Greekmusic landscape.

“This comes from the record labels inGreece. I am the only DJ outside of Greecewho has his own Dj series, whether it’sUSA, Canada or anywhere else. So we’vedone something special .“

But the original question remains. What isthe soul of Greek music?

“If you go looking, the soul of Greek musicis in the meaning it holds, the passion ithas”.

The strongest example of this springsquickly to mind and is well known byGreeks worldwide. “Soma Mou” by NotisSfakianakis, a bittersweet song that Sfa-kianakis wrote for his brother.

Kon tries to put into words what it is aboutGreek music that makes him such a pas-sionate advocate, but it’s the tone of hisvoice, the distant look in his eye as he iscarried to the memories in the music thatare more telling.

“Whether it’s old school singers, such asKazantzidis, Mitropanos, Dionysiou or thenewer acts such as Anna Vissi, DespinaVandi and Thanos Petrellis, Greek musicmaintains a depth and complexity of emo-tion that connects it to the human conditionon a deeper level. The old school really pa-ved the way, and they are still legends andicons who have garnered the respect of theGreek public”.

Dj Krazy Kon remains tireless, havingopened his own music store as well as anonline store, bringing the latest and greatestalbums, as well as the classics, to an

Australia-wide audience. Greek music re-mains a vibrant, evolving and living artform, but retains the depth and complexityof the Greek soul.

An accompanying video of this article withsome of the music and artists mentioned canbe seen at djkrazykon.com

* Yannis Nikolakopoulos is an independentfilm-maker and writer.

This service is funded by the Commonwealth Government’s Community Partners Program

Greek Dementia Helpline

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Ποιος μπορεί να χρησιμοποιεί την υπηρεσία; • Άτομα που έχουν ανησυχίες σχετικά με άνοια ή

απώλεια μνήμης (αναφορικά με τον εαυτό τους, ένα μέλος της οικογένειάς τους ή ένα φίλο τους)•

• Επαγγελματίες υγείας• και • Σπουδαστές, εθελοντές και γείτονες.

Τι παρέχει η υπηρεσία; Παρέχουμε πληροφορίες για: • Άνοια και απώλεια μνήμης• • Κατανόηση μεταβαλλόμενων συμπεριφορών• • Θέματα ιδρυματικής φροντίδας• • Οικογενειακές ανησυχίες• • Στρες και στρατηγικές αντιμετώπισής του• • Νομικές ανησυχίες για άτομα με άνοια• και • Υπηρεσίες που διατίθενται μέσα στην κοινότητα.

Πώς παρέχεται η υπηρεσία; Η Υπηρεσία παρέχεται μέσω: • Εκπαιδευμένων Ελλήνων συμβούλων γραμμής

βοήθειας • Tηλεφώνου [τοπικές και υπεραστικές (STD)

κλήσεις] Δευτέρες, 9π.μ. ως 5μ.μ. (εξαιρουμένων των δημόσιων αργιών)• και

• Προκαθορισμένων επισκέψεων γραφείου και κατοικίας.

Ατελώς (TOLL FREE): 1800 445 922

St Basil’s Aged Care Services and Alzheimer’s Australia WA provide a free and confidential information, support and counselling service.

WHO CAN USE THE SERVICE?

• People who have concerns about dementia or memory loss (in regards to themselves, a family member or a friend);

• Health professionals; and• Students, volunteers and neighbours.

WHAT DOES THE SERVICE PROVIDE?

We provide information on:

• Dementia and memory loss;• Understanding changing behaviours;• Residential care issues;• Family concerns;• Stress and coping strategies;• Legal concerns for people with dementia; and• Services available in the community.

HOW IS THE SERVICE PROVIDED?

The Service is provided through:

• Trained Greek helpline advisors• Telephone (local and STD) on Mondays, 9am to

5pm (excluding public holidays); and• Pre-arranged office and home visits.

TOLL FREE: 1800 445 922

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DJ Krazy Kon

The Greek Australian VEMATO BHMA20/38 JUNE 2008

The Saint Euphemia College High School Open Night was held on Wednesday, 21 May 2008. It was a very successful evening for prospective students and parents, who were able to attend guided tours of the school, led by the enthusiastic members of the Student Representative Council. They also enjoyed the engaging subject displays and informal talks with the High School Principal and staff of the College. Students past and present spoke about their wonderful experiences at the School.

St Euphemia Orthodox College202 Stacey Street, Bankstown, 2200, NSW P.O. Box 747, Bankstown, 1885, NSW Phone: 9796 8240 Fax: 9790 7354 Web: www.steuphemia.nsw.edu.au

“Strive for Excellence”

Saint Euphemia College High School

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Obama vs McCain

By Alexis Papachelas

I came back from a brief trip to the United States and everyone asked me who the next USpresident will be.The best answer I heard came from an expert, a veteran of American politics, who predictedthat Barack Obama will either win by a large margin or lose by an equally large one. Assimplistic as this may sound, it does reflect reality.Right now, the Democratic candidate is enjoying huge momentum, the tide is flowing hisway and a huge pool of disappointment toward President George W. Bush and hisadministration is open to him. Therefore, in many ways, Obama can lose only if he makesa mistake himself.Senator John McCain will try to strike Obama on two fronts. In his official campaign hewill try to take the contest onto the playing field of foreign affairs, reminding the

Americans repeatedly of his own record in Vietnam and contrasting it with his youngeropponent’s lack of such a track record. In the campaign that takes place behind the scenes,he will spread rumors and whispers about Obama’s past, about the fact that his real nameis Barack Hussein Obama and the likelihood that he is probably a Muslim at heart.I find it hard to believe that the electorate may be influenced by such arguments andrumors. It doesn’t make sense. But America, naive and vulnerable to all sorts of scares,thinks and votes in a manner that is hard for the European mind to grasp. The following isa conversation between two Greek Americans I happened to overhear, which made animpression on me: “Will you vote for the black guy?” one asked the other. “Are you crazy!Have a closet Muslim with his hand on the nuclear button? No way!”America is a different world to Europe and our logic will not determine the outcome inNovember.

Kathimerini

Demand InnovationValue Solutions

Stamfords is an Australianadvisory and consulting firm with offices in Sydney and Perth with vastexperience in Australia and abroad providing the following services:

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