"We must realize that the whole problem is spiritual"

Cyprus Archbishop: We all lived a wild life

Archbishop of Cyprus Chrysostomos II has assured that the Church would stand by the people and do its utmost to ensure that no one will go hungry due to the difficult economic situation the country is faced with.

Famagusta Gazette,

31 March, 2013

In a message to the people who attended a Sunday church service in Nicosia, Archbishop Chrysostomos noted that the problem in Cyprus is not an economic but spiritual one, adding that if everyone had lived within their means we could have avoided the current economic crisis.

“We all lived a wild life, wanting big things for ourselves because we thought that if you had money, position and power, you would be happy, "he said.

He added that "someone may be happy because he has money or power but that kind of happiness does not last forever nor does wealth ," noting that if everyone had lived within their means we would not face today’s difficult situation”.

He reiterated that "we must realize that the whole problem is spiritual. It’s up to us to come down to earth and ask God to help us to get out of this crisis as quickly as possible”, he said, adding that “we ought to stand next to each other with love and humility. "

“Unfortunately”, he continued “our European partners are against us and they want to punish us”, adding that we had joined the EU because we thought we would find support especially as regards the Cyprus problem. We were wrong, "he said.

He said that the hostility we experienced over the past few days cannot be described. Despite our reaction they remain harsh to our pain and try to break us down. "

The Archbishop said that "the Church will stand by the people especially those suffering the most, noting that “we will do everything so that no one will go hungry”.

He also stressed that the property of the church does not belong to the, the Archbishop or the bishops or their priests but to the people and “is not a figure of speech”, as he said.

“We are at the disposal of the people and our goal is not let anyone starve”, he added.

"Thank God," he said, "our people know how to live with less and are hardworking”. He expressed the belief that with the grace of God we will overcome the difficulties.

Our effort as Church is to open job positions and stand by the government to help it open up opportunities as well so that all people have a job”.

In reply to a question, he said that his scheduled meeting last Thursday with Russian businessmen operating in Cyprus has been postponed for this Thursday and said that he already had an informal meeting with the Ambassador of Russia, to whom he expressed his sympathy for the Russians who lost their money due to the Eurogroup decision for a haircut on bank deposits over 100, 000 euros.

The Archbishop also said that the Russian Ambassador would also attend the meeting on Thursday, while he expressed his belief that the cooperation with the Russians would continue.

Last Monday morning euro zone Finance Ministers and the IMF agreed on a 10 billion financial assistance package after the Cypriot authorities agreed to wind down Cyprus Popular Bank (CPB), the island’s second largest lender, and the restructuring of Bank of Cyprus (BOCY), Cyprus’ biggest bank, after imposing losses on deposits above €100,000.

The aim is to restructure the island’s large banking sector. Banks in Cyprus that remained closed for more than a week, reopened on Thursday. The Central Bank of Cyprus announced on Wednesday that temporary measures will be applied to regulate the flow of capital in Cyprus, aiming to safeguard the stability of the system.